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Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers
Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers , 1758–1840, German astronomer and physician. He originated (1797) the first satisfactory method for calculating the orbits of comets, but despite the fame it brought him, he remained an amateur astronomer and became a physician. However, he continued his research on comets and discovered several. He was the first to detect the comet of 1815 (Comet Olbers, period 72.7 years). He also discovered two asteroids, Pallas (1802) and Vesta (1807). Considering their orbits and those of the other asteroids then known, Olbers concluded that they are fragments of a disrupted planet that had formerly revolved around the sun.
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"Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Olbers-H.html "Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Olbers-H.html |
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Olbers, HeinrichWilhelmMatthäus
Olbers, HeinrichWilhelmMatthäus (1758–1840)Germanphysician and amateur astronomer. The method he developed to calculate the orbit of a comet he discovered in 1796 (now designated C/1796 F1) became standard in the 19th century. He later suggested that comets' tails are somehow expelled from their heads by the Sun, thereby anticipating the discovery of radiation pressure. In 1802, a year to the day after its discovery, Olbers recovered the asteroid Ceres in the position predicted by C. F.Gauss. Olbers subsequently discovered Pallas (1802) and Vesta (1807). In 1823 he first pointed out what has come to be called Olbers' paradox.
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Cite this article
"Olbers, HeinrichWilhelmMatthäus." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Olbers, HeinrichWilhelmMatthäus." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O80-OlbersHeinrichWilhlmMtths.html "Olbers, HeinrichWilhelmMatthäus." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O80-OlbersHeinrichWilhlmMtths.html |
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