 The Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory, nearSt. Petersburg | |
| Alternative names | Central Astronomical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences at Pulkovo |
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| Observatory code | 084 |
| Location | Moskovsky District, Saint Petersburg,Saint Petersburg, Russia |
| Coordinates | 59°46′18″N30°19′34″E / 59.771667°N 30.326111°E /59.771667; 30.326111 |
| Altitude | 75 m (246 ft) |
| Established | 7 August 1839 (inJulian calendar) |
| Website | www |
  Location of Pulkovo Observatory | |
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ThePulkovo Astronomical Observatory (Russian:Пулковская астрономическая обсерватория,romanized: Pulkovskaya astronomicheskaya observatoriya), officially named theCentral Astronomical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences at Pulkovo,[1] is the principalastronomical observatory of theRussian Academy of Sciences. It is located 19km south ofSaint Petersburg onPulkovo Heights 75 metres (246 ft) above sea level. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage SiteHistoric Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments.[2] It was formerly known as the Imperial Observatory at Pulkowo.
The observatory was opened in 1839.[3]Originally, it was a brainchild of the German/RussianastronomerFriedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve, who would become its first director[3] (in 1861, his sonOtto Wilhelm von Struve succeeded him). The architect wasAlexander Bryullov. The observatory was equipped with state-of-the-artdevices, one of them being the a 15-inch (380 mm) aperturerefractor, one of the largest refractors in the world at that time (seeGreat Refractor). In 1885, the observatory was equipped with 30-inch (760 mm) refractor, which was the biggest usable refractor in the world, until the 36-inch (910 mm) telescope at theLick Observatory in California a few years later. Both were built byAlvan Clark & Sons in Massachusetts.[4]The principal line of work of the observatory consisted of determination ofcoordinates ofstars and astronomicalconstants, such asprecession,nutation,aberration andrefraction, and also discovering and measuringdouble stars. The observatory's activities have also been connected to thegeographical study of the territory ofRussia and development ofnavigation. Thestar catalogues, containing the most precise positions of 374, and then 558 stars, were made for the years 1845, 1865, 1885, 1905 and 1930.
By the 50th anniversary of the Observatory, they had built anastrophysicallaboratory with a mechanical workshop and installed the Europe's largest refractor, (30 inch). Astrophysical research really gained momentum with the appointment ofFeodor Bredikhin as a director of the Observatory in 1890 and transfer ofAristarkh Belopolsky from the Moscow Observatory, an expert instellar spectroscopy andsolar research. In 1923, they installed a bigLittrowspectrograph, and in 1940 – a horizontal solartelescope, manufactured at aLeningrad factory. After having received anastrograph in 1894, the observatory began its work onastrophotography. In 1927, the Observatory received a zone astrograph and with its help the Russianastronomers catalogued the stars of the near-polar areas of the sky. Regular observation of movements ofcelestial poles began with the construction of thezenith telescope in 1904. In 1920, the Observatory started transmitting the exact time by radio signals. The observatory participated in the basicgeodesic work, namely in measuringdegrees of thearc of the meridian from theDanube to theArctic Ocean (until 1851), and intriangulation ofSpitsbergen in 1899–1901. Militarygeodesists andhydrographers used to work at the Observatory as interns. The Pulkovo Meridian, which passes through the center of the main building of the Observatory and is located at 30°19,6‘ east ofGreenwich, was the point of departure for all former geographical maps of Russia.[5]
In order to observe the southern stars that could not be seen on the observatory'slatitude, the scientists organized twoaffiliated observing locations. One of them was anastrophysical station in theCrimean town ofSimeiz (Simeiz Observatory), which had been organized on the basis of a private observatory presented to the Pulkovo Observatory by an astronomy lover N. S. Maltsov in 1908. The other was anastrometric station inMykolaiv – a former observatory of the Department of the Navy, (today's Nikolaev Astronomical Observatory).
During thesiege of Leningrad (1941–1944), the Observatory became the target of fierceGermanair raids andartillerybombardment. All of the buildings were completely destroyed. Under dramatic circumstances, the maininstruments were saved and stored safely inLeningrad, including the lens of the destroyed 30-inchrefractor, and a significant part of the unique library with manuscripts and important works from the 15th to 19th century. On February 5, 1997, nearly 1,500 of the 3,852 books were destroyed by maliciousarson and the rest of the library items were damaged by flames, smoke or water.[5][6]
Even before the end of the war, the Sovietgovernment made a decision to restore the Observatory. In 1946, it began the construction after having cleared the territory. In May 1954, the Observatory was re-opened, not only having been restored but considerably expanded in terms of instruments,employees and research subjects. New departments had been created, such as the Department ofRadio Astronomy and Department of Instrument Making (with its ownoptical and mechanical workshop). The surviving old instruments were repaired, modernized and put into service once again. Also installed were new instruments, such as the 26-inch (660 mm) refractor,[4] a horizontal meridian device, a photographic polar telescope, a big zenith telescope, stellarinterferometer, two solar telescopes,coronagraph, a bigradio telescope and a variety of labware.The 65 cmZeiss refractor was originally intended as a gift from thenChancellor of GermanyAdolf Hitler to the ItalianBenito Mussolini, but it was not delivered and instead was recovered by the Soviet Union.[7]
The Simeiz station became a part of the newCrimean Astrophysical Observatory of theSoviet Academy of Sciences in 1945. They also built theKislovodsk Mountain Astronomical Station and a laboratory inBlagoveshchensk. The observatory organized many expeditions for determining differences oflongitudes, observing passages ofVenus andsolar eclipses, and studying astroclimate. In 1962, the Observatory sent an expedition toChile to observe stars in the southern skies.[8]
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