The Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory, near St Petersburg.

The Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory (Russian: Пу́лковская Астрономи́ческая обсервато́рия), the principal astronomical observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences, located 19 km south of Saint Petersburg on Pulkovo Heights (75 m above sea level). Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial and/or celestial events The Russian Academy of Sciences (Российская Академия Наук Rossi'iskaya Akade'miya Nau'k, shortened to PAH RAN) consists of the National The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Pulkovskiye Heights (Пу́лковские высо́ты is a chain of hills located to the south of Saint Petersburg. M is the thirteenth letter of the modern Latin alphabet. Its name in English is spelled em (ɛm It is a World Heritage Site. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex ^[1]

The observatory was opened in 1839. Year 1839 ( MDCCCXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common ^[2] Originally, it was a brainchild of the German/Russian astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve, who would become its first director^[2] (in 1861, his son Otto Wilhelm von Struve succeeded him). Historically Astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky while Astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve (Vasily Yakovlevich Struve ( April 15, 1793 &ndash November 23, 1864 ( Julian calendar Year 1861 ( MDCCCLXI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Not to be confused with his grandson Otto Struve (1897&ndash1963 Otto Wilhelm von Struve ( May 7 1819 ( Julian The architect was Alexander Bryullov. Alexander Pavlovich Brullov (Александр Павлович Брюллов ( Brulleau until 1822 when the family name was changed according to Russian pronunciation The observatory was equipped with the state-of-the-art devices, one of them being the biggest 38-cm refractor in the world. A machine is any device that uses Energy to perform some activity The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International A refracting or refractor telescope is a dioptric Telescope that uses a lens as its objective to form an image The principal line of work of the observatory consisted of determination of coordinates of stars and astronomical constants, such as precessions, nutations, aberrations and refractions, and also discovering and measuring double stars. In Mathematics and its applications a coordinate system is a system for assigning an n - Tuple of Numbers or scalars to each point A star is a massive luminous ball of plasma. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the Energy on Earth Precession refers to a change in the direction of the axis of a rotating object Nutation is a slight irregular motion (etymologically a "nodding" in the Axis of rotation of a largely axially symmetric object such as a Gyroscope Refraction is the change in direction of a Wave due to a change in its Speed. Double Star is a Science fiction Novel by Robert A Heinlein, first serialized in Astounding Science Fiction Observatory’s activities have also been connected to the geographical study of the territory of Russia and development of navigation. Geography (from Greek γεωγραφία - geografia) is the study of the Earth and its lands features inhabitants and phenomena Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Navigation is the process of reading and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another The star catalogues, containing the most precise positions of 374, and then 558 stars, were made for the years 1845, 1865, 1885, 1905 and 1930. A star catalogue, or star catalog, is an Astronomical catalogue that lists Stars In Astronomy, many stars are referred to simply by catalogue Year 1845 ( MDCCCXLV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1865 ( MDCCCLXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1885 ( MDCCCLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1905 ( MCMV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Year 1930 ( MCMXXX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Pulkovo observatory on the 1989 USSR commemorative stamp

By the 50th anniversary of the Observatory, they had built an astrophysical laboratory with a mechanical workshop and installed the world’s largest 76-cm refractor. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Astronomy (from the Greek words astron (ἄστρον "star" and nomos (νόμος "law" is the scientific study A laboratory (informally lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific Research, Experiments and Astrophysical research really gained momentum with the appointment of Feodor Bredikhin as a director of the Observatory in 1890 and transfer of Aristarkh Belopolsky from the Moscow Observatory, an expert in stellar spectroscopy and solar research. Fyodor Aleksandrovich Bredikhin (Фёдор Александрович Бредихин ( December 8 1831 &ndash May 14 1904 ( O Year 1890 ( MDCCCXC) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Astronomical spectroscopy is the technique of Spectroscopy used in Astronomy. The Sun (Sol is the Star at the center of the Solar System. In 1923, they installed a big Littrow spectrograph, and in 1940 - a horizontal solar telescope, manufactured at a Leningrad factory. Year 1923 ( MCMXXIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Joseph Johann von Littrow ( March 13 1781 &ndash November 30 1840) was an Austrian Astronomer born of an aristocratic A spectrometer is an Optical instrument used to measure properties of Light over a specific portion of the Electromagnetic spectrum, typically used Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A telescope is an instrument designed for the observation of remote objects and the collection of Electromagnetic radiation. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River After having received an astrograph in 1894, the observatory began its work on astrophotography. An Astrograph ( astrographic camera) is a telescope designed for the sole purpose of Astrophotography. Year 1894 ( MDCCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Astrophotography is a specialized type of Photography that entails making photographs of astronomical objects in the sky such as the Moon, Sun, Planets In 1927, the Observatory received a zone astrograph and with its help the Russian astronomers catalogued the stars of the near-polar areas of the sky. Year 1927 ( MCMXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Historically Astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky while Astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena The north and south celestial poles are the two imaginary points in the sky where the Earth's Axis of rotation, "infinitely extended" intersects the Regular observation of movements of celestial poles began with the construction of the zenith telescope in 1904. The north and south celestial poles are the two imaginary points in the sky where the Earth's Axis of rotation, "infinitely extended" intersects the A zenith telescope is an instrument adapted for the measurement of small differences of Zenith distance and used in the determination of astronomic Latitude. Year 1904 ( MCMIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting on In 1920, the Observatory started transmitting the exact time by radio signals. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar The observatory participated in the basic geodesic work, namely in measuring degrees of the arc of the meridian from the Danube to the Arctic Ocean (until 1851), and in triangulation of Spitsbergen in 1899-1901. In Mathematics, a geodesic /ˌdʒiəˈdɛsɪk -ˈdisɪk/ -dee-sik is a generalization of the notion of a " straight line " to " curved spaces This article describes the unit of angle For other meanings see Degree. In Geometry, an arc is a closed segment of a Differentiable Curve in the two-dimensional plane; for example a circular This article is about the geographical concept For other uses of the word see Meridian. The Danube (In Donau from earlier Danuvius, Celtic *dānu, meaning "to flow run" Slovak and Polish Dunaj The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major 1851 ( MDCCCLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common year In Trigonometry and Geometry, triangulation is the process of determining the location of a point by measuring angles to it from known points at either Spitsbergen (formerly known as West Spitsbergen, and sometimes misspelled Spitzbergen) is a Norwegian island the largest Island of the Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Military geodesists and hydrographers used to work at the Observatory as interns. Geodesy (dʒiːˈɒdɪsi also called geodetics, a branch of Earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals Hydrography focuses on the measurement of physical characteristics of Waters and marginal land The Pulkovo Meridian, which passes through the center of the main building of the Observatory and is located at 30°19,6‘ east of Greenwich, was the point of departure for all former geographical maps of Russia. Greenwich ( ˈɡrɛnɪtʃ GREN-itch /ˈɡrɛnɪdʒ/ GREN-idge or /ˈɡrɪnɪdʒ/ GRIN-idge is a district in south-east London,

In order to observe the southern stars that could not be seen on the observatory’s latitude, the scientists organized 2 affiliates. Latitude, usually denoted symbolically by the Greek letter phi ( Φ) gives the location of a place on Earth (or other planetary body north or south of the One of them was an astrophysical station in the Crimean town of Simeiz (Simeiz Observatory), which had been organized on the basis of a private observatory presented to the Pulkovo Observatory by an astronomy lover N. Astronomy (from the Greek words astron (ἄστρον "star" and nomos (νόμος "law" is the scientific study Crimea (kraɪˈmiːə or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Крим Автономна Республіка Крим Avtonomna Respublika Krym; Крым Simeiz (Сімеїз Симеиз Simeiz is a Resort town in Crimea, Ukraine. S. Maltsev in 1908. Year 1908 ( MCMVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The other affiliate of the Pulkovo Observatory was an astrometric station in Nikolaev - a former observatory of the Department of the Navy (today’s Nikolaev Astronomical Observatory). Astrometry is the branch of Astronomy that relates to precise measurements and explanations of the positions and movements of Stars and other celestial bodies

Later history

The observatory staff was very badly affected by the Great Purge and many Pulkovo astronomers, including the director Boris Gerasimovich, were arrested and executed in the late 1930s. Great Purge (Большая чистка transliterated Bolshaya chistka) was a series of campaigns of Political repression and Persecution Boris Petrovich Gerasimovich (Борис Петрович Герасимович &mdash June 1937 was a Russian and Soviet Astronomer and Astrophysicist The 1930s were described as an abrupt shift to more radical and conservative lifestyles as countries were struggling to find a solution to the Great Depression.

During the siege of Leningrad (1941-1944), the Observatory became the target of fierce German air raids and artillery bombardment. The Siege of Leningrad, also known as The Leningrad Blockade ( Russian: блокада Ленинграда ( transliteration: blokada Leningrada Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Strategic bombing is a Military strategy used in a Total war with the goal of defeating an enemy nation-state by destroying its economic ability to wage war rather Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine A bombardment is an attack by Artillery fire directed against Fortifications, troops or towns and buildings All of the buildings were completely destroyed. Under dramatic conditions the main instruments were saved and stored safely in Leningrad, including the world's biggest telescope, as well as a significant part of the unique library with scripts and important works from the 15th to 19th Century. In the Physical sciences Quality assurance, and Engineering, Measurement is the activity of obtaining and comparing physical quantities Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River A telescope is an instrument designed for the observation of remote objects and the collection of Electromagnetic radiation. On February 5, 1997, nearly 1,500 of the 3,852 books were destroyed by malicious arson and the rest of the library items were damaged by flames, smoke or water damage. Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar

Even before the end of the war, the Soviet government made a decision to restore the Observatory. For the government of parliamentary systems see Executive (government. In 1946, they began the construction after having cleared the territory. Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In May of 1954, the Observatory was re-opened, which had not only been restored but considerably expanded in terms of instruments, employees and research subjects. Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) Employment is a Contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. They created new departments, such as the Department of Radio Astronomy and Department of Instrument Making (with its own optical and mechanical workshop). Radio astronomy is a subfield of Astronomy that studies celestial objects at radio frequencies. The surviving old instruments were repaired, modernized and put into service once again. They also installed new instruments, such as the 65-cm refractor, horizontal meridian device, a photographic polar telescope, a big zenith telescope, stellar interferometer, 2 solar telescopes, coronagraph, a big radio telescope and all kinds of labware. Interferometry is the technique of using the pattern of Interference created by the superposition of two or more Waves to diagnose the properties of A coronagraph is a telescopic attachment designed specifically to block out the harsh direct light from a Star, so that nearby objects can be resolved without burning A radio telescope is a form of directional Radio antenna used in Radio astronomy and in tracking and collecting data from Satellites The Simeiz station became a part of the new Crimean Astrophysical Observatory of the Soviet Academy of Sciences in 1945. The Crimean Astrophysical Observatory (CrAO is located in Ukraine. The Russian Academy of Sciences (Российская Академия Наук Rossi'iskaya Akade'miya Nau'k, shortened to PAH RAN) consists of the National Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar They also built the Kislovodsk Mountain Astronomical Station and a laboratory in Blagoveshchensk. Blagoveshchensk (Благове́щенск is a city in Russia, the administrative center of Amur Oblast, located 7985 km east of The Observatory organized many expeditions for determining differences of longitudes, observing passages of Venus and solar eclipses, studying astroclimate. Longitude (ˈlɒndʒɪˌtjuːd or ˈlɒŋgɪˌtjuːd symbolized by the Greek character Lambda (λ is the east-west Geographic coordinate measurement The VENUS ( V ictoria E xperimental N etwork U nder the S ea project is a cabled sea floor observatory operated by the University A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth so that the Sun is wholly or partially obscured In 1962, the Observatory sent an expedition to Chile to observe stars in the southern skies. Year 1962 ( MCMLXII) was a Common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the

References

External links

• The official site of Pulkovo observatory
• Overview of the observatory