Cuno Hoffmeister
Encyclopedia
Cuno Hoffmeister was a German astronomer
and founder of Sonneberg Observatory
.
Born in Sonneberg
in 1892, Hoffmeister obtained his first telescope in 1905 and became an avid amateur astronomer. After his father lost most of his money in 1914, Hoffmeister had to leave school in 1916 to start an apprenticeship in his father's company. During this time he continued to study spherical mathematics and trigonometry. In April 1915 Hoffmeister had the opportunity to substitute as the assistant of Ernst Hartwig at Remeis Observatory in Bamberg while the current holder of the position was drafted, mainly working on observations of meteors and variable star
s. He held this position until the end of the war and then moved back to Sonneberg, where he made his Abitur
in 1920. After studying at the University of Jena, while at the same time continuing to work in his job as a tradesman, Hoffmeister obtained his doctorate in 1927. During this time he had already started building what was to become Sonneberg Observatory. After his PhD, Hoffmeister moved back to Sonneberg and started expanding the observatory. Hoffmeister remained at the observatory until his death, even though the observatory lost most of its equipment after the second world war and he was disowned as the observatory became part of East Germany's academy of sciences. Hoffmeister served as the director of the observatory until his death. During his life Hoffmeister played a leading role in supporting amateurs in observations of noctilucent clouds, aurorae, and nightglow. Wilfried Schröder has described his role in a paper in "Sitzungsberichte der Leibniz Sozietät für Wissenschaft" in 2009.
During his active life as an astronomer, Hoffmeister discovered approximately 10,000 variable stars and several asteroid
s on the more than 100000 photographic plates taken at Sonneberg Observatory. He also co-discovered comet
C/1959 O1. The crater Hoffmeister
on the Moon
is named after him, as are the asteroids 1726 Hoffmeister
and 4183 Cuno
.
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
and founder of Sonneberg Observatory
Sonneberg Observatory
Sternwarte Sonneberg is an astronomical observatory and was formerly an institute of the Academy of Science in the German Democratic Republic. It was founded in 1925 by Cuno Hoffmeister and is located in Sonneberg, Thuringia, Germany. Sonnenberg Observatory has one of the world's largest...
.
Born in Sonneberg
Sonneberg
Sonneberg is a town in Thuringia, Germany, which is seat of the district Sonneberg.It has long been a centre of toy making and is still well known for this...
in 1892, Hoffmeister obtained his first telescope in 1905 and became an avid amateur astronomer. After his father lost most of his money in 1914, Hoffmeister had to leave school in 1916 to start an apprenticeship in his father's company. During this time he continued to study spherical mathematics and trigonometry. In April 1915 Hoffmeister had the opportunity to substitute as the assistant of Ernst Hartwig at Remeis Observatory in Bamberg while the current holder of the position was drafted, mainly working on observations of meteors and variable star
Variable star
A star is classified as variable if its apparent magnitude as seen from Earth changes over time, whether the changes are due to variations in the star's actual luminosity, or to variations in the amount of the star's light that is blocked from reaching Earth...
s. He held this position until the end of the war and then moved back to Sonneberg, where he made his Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
in 1920. After studying at the University of Jena, while at the same time continuing to work in his job as a tradesman, Hoffmeister obtained his doctorate in 1927. During this time he had already started building what was to become Sonneberg Observatory. After his PhD, Hoffmeister moved back to Sonneberg and started expanding the observatory. Hoffmeister remained at the observatory until his death, even though the observatory lost most of its equipment after the second world war and he was disowned as the observatory became part of East Germany's academy of sciences. Hoffmeister served as the director of the observatory until his death. During his life Hoffmeister played a leading role in supporting amateurs in observations of noctilucent clouds, aurorae, and nightglow. Wilfried Schröder has described his role in a paper in "Sitzungsberichte der Leibniz Sozietät für Wissenschaft" in 2009.
During his active life as an astronomer, Hoffmeister discovered approximately 10,000 variable stars and several asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
s on the more than 100000 photographic plates taken at Sonneberg Observatory. He also co-discovered comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
C/1959 O1. The crater Hoffmeister
Hoffmeister (crater)
Hoffmeister is a lunar crater that is located on the Moon's far side, to the northwest of the huge walled plain Mendeleev. Some distance to the north of Hoffmeister lies the crater Siedentopf, and to the west-northwest is Gavrilov....
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named after him, as are the asteroids 1726 Hoffmeister
1726 Hoffmeister
1726 Hoffmeister is a main-belt asteroid discovered on July 24, 1933 by Reinmuth, K. at Heidelberg.- External links :*...
and 4183 Cuno
4183 Cuno
4183 Cuno is an Apollo, Mars- and Venus-crosser asteroid. It was discovered in 1959 by Cuno Hoffmeister, from whom the asteroid takes its name....
.