Eduard Heis
Encyclopedia
Eduard Heis was a German
mathematician
and astronomer
.
He completed his education at the University of Bonn
in 1827, then taught mathematics at a school in Cologne. In 1832 he taught at Aachen
, and remained there until 1852. He was then appointed by King Frederick William IV
to a chair position at the Academy of Münster
in 1852. In 1869 he became rector
of the Academy.
While at the academy he made a series of observations of the night sky, including the milky way
, zodiacal light
, star
s, and shooting stars
. These were published in the following works, among others:
His star atlas, which was based on the Uranometria Nova, helped define the constellation
borders in the northern sky. His other publications included a treatise on the eclipses during the Peloponnesian war
, Halley's comet, and some mathematical text books.
He was also the first person to record a count of the Perseid meteor shower in 1839, giving an hourly rate of 160. Observers have recorded the hourly count every year since that time.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
and astronomer
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...
.
He completed his education at the University of Bonn
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn is a public research university located in Bonn, Germany. Founded in its present form in 1818, as the linear successor of earlier academic institutions, the University of Bonn is today one of the leading universities in Germany. The University of Bonn offers a large number...
in 1827, then taught mathematics at a school in Cologne. In 1832 he taught at Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
, and remained there until 1852. He was then appointed by King Frederick William IV
Frederick William IV of Prussia
|align=right|Upon his accession, he toned down the reactionary policies enacted by his father, easing press censorship and promising to enact a constitution at some point, but he refused to enact a popular legislative assembly, preferring to work with the aristocracy through "united committees" of...
to a chair position at the Academy of Münster
University of Münster
The University of Münster is a public university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The WWU is part of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, a society of Germany's leading research universities...
in 1852. In 1869 he became rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of the Academy.
While at the academy he made a series of observations of the night sky, including the milky way
Milky Way
The Milky Way is the galaxy that contains the Solar System. This name derives from its appearance as a dim un-resolved "milky" glowing band arching across the night sky...
, zodiacal light
Zodiacal light
Zodiacal light is a faint, roughly triangular, whitish glow seen in the night sky which appears to extend up from the vicinity of the sun along the ecliptic or zodiac. Caused by sunlight scattered by space dust in the zodiacal cloud, it is so faint that either moonlight or light pollution renders...
, star
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
s, and shooting stars
METEOR
METEOR is a metric for the evaluation of machine translation output. The metric is based on the harmonic mean of unigram precision and recall, with recall weighted higher than precision...
. These were published in the following works, among others:
- Atlas Coelestis Novus, Cologne, 1872.
- Zodiakal-Beobachtungen.
- Sternschnuppen-Beobachtungen.
- De Magnitudine, 1852.
His star atlas, which was based on the Uranometria Nova, helped define the constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
borders in the northern sky. His other publications included a treatise on the eclipses during the Peloponnesian war
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...
, Halley's comet, and some mathematical text books.
He was also the first person to record a count of the Perseid meteor shower in 1839, giving an hourly rate of 160. Observers have recorded the hourly count every year since that time.
Awards and honors
- Order of the Red EagleOrder of the Red EagleThe Order of the Red Eagle was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful service to the kingdom, or other achievements...
, 1870. - Awarded doctor honoris causa by Bonn University, 1852.
- Foreign associate, Royal Astronomical SocietyRoyal Astronomical SocietyThe Royal Astronomical Society is a learned society that began as the Astronomical Society of London in 1820 to support astronomical research . It became the Royal Astronomical Society in 1831 on receiving its Royal Charter from William IV...
of London, 1874. - Honorary member, Leopoldine Academy, 1877.
- Honorary member, Scientific Society of BrusselsBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, 1877. - The crater HeisHeis (crater)Heis is a small lunar impact crater that is located in the western part of the Mare Imbrium. It is located to the northeast of the crater Delisle, and south of C. Herschel. This is a circular, symmetrical formation with an interior floor that is about half the diameter of the outer rim...
on the MoonMoonThe 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.