Joseph Johann Littrow
(Given in the literature as Johann Josef Littrow ) Joseph Johann von Littrow ( born March 13, 1781 Bischofteinitz in Bohemia, † November 30, 1840 in Vienna ) was an Austrian astronomer.
Life
Joseph Johann Littrow was the son of the merchant Anton Littrow. After completing his schooling in 1799 Littrow began to study at Charles University in Prague, law and theology in the same year. One of his teachers there was the writer August Gottlieb Meissner. Supported by this, Littrow founded in 1800 together with friends at the University of the magazine " The Propylaea ". This study, he broke off not finish 1803 and then worked as a private tutor and tutor of the young Earl J. Renard; only on their estates in Silesia and later in Vienna.
Littrow married in 1808 a daughter ( Caroline of Ulrichtsthal 1792-1833 ) by Franz Ulrich von Ullrich valley. With her he had twelve children, including the later astronomers Karl Ludwig von Littrow, who was later married to the writer Auguste von Bischoff, and the cartographer Heinrich von Littrow.
Self-taught, he trained specifically in mathematics and astronomy, and in November 1807 Littrow accepted an appointment as professor of astronomy at the Jagiellonian University ( Krakow ) at. Beginning of the year 1810, he went to Kazan, where he founded an observatory. 1816 joined as co-director of the observatory to Budapest. In 1819 he was appointed professor of astronomy at the University of Vienna and was director of the first Vienna University Observatory, which he reorganized completely. He proposed the construction of a new observatory and worked here too with the mechanic and optician Simon Plößl. This project was implemented by his son Karl Ludwig in the 1870s.
1834-36 published Littrow the popular science book " The wonders of the heavens ", which is - edited to 1963 ( 11th edition ) by various authors over and over again -. Developed into a classic astronomical literature In a review in the "Stuttgarter new Tageblatt" is the work referred to " the classic astronomy book" as.
1836 Littrow was raised by Austrian Emperor Ferdinand I in the Austrian hereditary peerage, which also all his sons were members of the nobility.
From 1837 to Littrow was working on a translation of the work "History of the Inductive Sciences " by the British philosopher and historian of science William Whewell. The translation appeared in three volumes from 1840.
Littrow developed a very fruitful activity as a teacher; theoretical investigations he led Plößl to perform the dialytic telescopes. Littrow was also an authority in the field of charitable institutions. Collected published his scientific essays as " Miscellaneous Writings " (Stuttgart, 1846, with biography). Of his numerous writings made him especially his popular lectures on astronomy, which he announced in the "Wiener Zeitschrift fur Kunst and literature ," known.
Littrow died on November 30, 1840 at the age of 59 years. In his memory, were on the Earth's Moon in Mare Serenitatis crater Littrow, the Rimae Littrow, a system of lunar grooves and the Catena Littrow, a chain of craters named. Near the Littrow crater landed two astronauts on the 1972 Apollo 17 mission.
Writings
- Theoretical and practical astronomy. Vienna 1821-27, 3 vols
- About altimetry by barometer. Vienna 1821.
- Dioptrics, or instructions designed to make the telescopes. Vienna 1830.
- About the dreaded comet of the present year 1832 and about comets in general. Vienna 1832. Digitalisat
- Gnomonik, or guidance designed to make all types of sundials. Vienna 1833.
- The wonders of the heavens. Stuttgart 1834-36, 3 parts. 11th edition, completely re-edited by Karl Stumpff, Bonn 1963. Vol 1: Theo Generic astronomy or general phenomena of the sky. Stuttgart 1834. ( Digitized and full text in German Text Archive )
- Vol 2: eschreibende astronomy or topography of heaven. Stuttgart 1835. ( Digitized and full text in German Text Archive )
- Volume 3: Physical Astronomy or laws of the celestial motions. Description and theory of the use of astronomical instruments. Stuttgart 1836. ( Digitized and full text in German Text Archive )
Tributes
- 2012, the auditorium of the Institute for Astrophysics of the University of Vienna was renamed " Littrow auditorium". This is the work of J. J. of Littrows, his son K. L. be appreciated by Littrow and his grandson Otto von Littrow at the University of Vienna.
- 1827 was J. J. commander of the Russian Northern Anne