Hugo von Seeliger | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1849-09-23)23 September 1849 |
| Died | 2 December 1924(1924-12-02) (aged 75) |
| Alma mater | University of Leipzig |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Astronomy |
| Institutions | University of Munich |
| Doctoral advisor | Carl Christian Bruhns |
| Doctoral students | Julius Bauschinger Gustav Herglotz George W. Myers Karl Schwarzschild |
Hugo von Seeliger (23 September 1849 – 2 December 1924), also known asHugo Hans Ritter von Seeliger, was a German astronomer, often considered the most important astronomer of his day.
He was born inBiala, completed high school inTeschen in 1867, and studied at the Universities ofHeidelberg andLeipzig. He earned a doctorate in astronomy in 1872 from the latter, studying underCarl Christian Bruhns. He was on the staff of theUniversity of Bonn Observatory until 1877, as an assistant toFriedrich Wilhelm Argelander. In 1874, he directed the German expedition to theAuckland Islands to observe thetransit of Venus. In 1881, he became the Director of theGotha Observatory, and in 1882 became a professor of Astronomy and Director of the Observatory at theUniversity of Munich, which post he held until his death. His students includedHans Kienle,Ernst Anding,Julius Bauschinger,Paul ten Bruggencate,Gustav Herglotz,Richard Schorr, and especiallyKarl Schwarzschild, who earned a doctorate under him in 1898, and acknowledged Seeliger's influence in speeches throughout his career.
Seeliger was elected an Associate of theRoyal Astronomical Society in 1892, and President of theAstronomische Gesellschaft from 1897 to 1921. He received numerous honours and medals, including knighthood (Ritter), between 1896 and 1917.
His contributions to astronomy include an explanation of the anomalous motion of the perihelion of Mercury (later one of the maintests of general relativity), a theory ofnova coming from the collision of a star with a cloud of gas, and his confirmation ofJames Clerk Maxwell's theories of the composition of therings of Saturn by studying variations in their albedo. He is also the discoverer of an apparent paradox inNewton's gravitational law, known asSeeliger's Paradox. However his main interest was in the stellar statistics of theBonner Durchmusterung and Bonn section of the Astronomische Gesellschaft star catalogues, and in the conclusions these led about the structure of the universe. Seeliger's views on the dimensions of our galaxy were consistent withJacobus Kapteyn's later studies.
Seeliger was an opponent of Albert Einstein'stheory of relativity.[1]
He continued his work until his death, on 2 December 1924, aged 75.
Theasteroid892 Seeligeria and thelunar craterSeeliger were named in his honour. The brightening ofSaturn's rings atopposition is known as theSeeliger Effect, to acknowledge his pioneering research in this field. Minor planet251 Sophia is named after his wife, Sophia.
His PhD students were (afterMathematics Genealogy Project, Hugo Hans von Seeliger) :
