Ercole Dembowski
Encyclopedia
Ercole Dembowski (January 12, 1812 – January 19, 1881) was an Italian astronomer
.
He was born in Milan
. He inherited the title of "Baron" as the son of Jan Dembowski
(Dębowski), one of Napoleon's Polish
generals. He served in the navy of Austria-Hungary
until 1843.
He was a tireless observer of double star
s and made tens of thousands of micrometer
measurements. In particular, he remeasured many double stars from Friedrich Struve's Dorpat Catalogue, noting how some of them had changed position over the years due to their mutual orbit as binary star
s.
He won the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
in 1878.
The crater Dembowski
on the Moon
is named after him, as well as the minor planet
349 Dembowska
.
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 was born in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. He inherited the title of "Baron" as the son of Jan Dembowski
Jan Dembowski (general)
Jan Dembowski was a Polish general and political activist.-Military career:In 1812 he was appointed to the Army of the Kingdom of Italy and commanded a brigade of, then on the staff of Pino’s 15th Division of Eugene’s IV Corps in Russia...
(Dębowski), one of Napoleon's Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
generals. He served in the navy of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
until 1843.
He was a tireless observer of double star
Double star
In observational astronomy, a double star is a pair of stars that appear close to each other in the sky as seen from Earth when viewed through an optical telescope. This can happen either because the pair forms a binary star, i.e...
s and made tens of thousands of micrometer
Micrometer
A micrometer , sometimes known as a micrometer screw gauge, is a device incorporating a calibrated screw used widely for precise measurement of small distances in mechanical engineering and machining as well as most mechanical trades, along with other metrological instruments such as dial, vernier,...
measurements. In particular, he remeasured many double stars from Friedrich Struve's Dorpat Catalogue, noting how some of them had changed position over the years due to their mutual orbit as binary star
Binary star
A binary star is a star system consisting of two stars orbiting around their common center of mass. The brighter star is called the primary and the other is its companion star, comes, or secondary...
s.
He won the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
-History:In the early years, more than one medal was often awarded in a year, but by 1833 only one medal was being awarded per year. This caused a problem when Neptune was discovered in 1846, because many felt an award should jointly be made to John Couch Adams and Urbain Le Verrier...
in 1878.
The crater Dembowski
Dembowski (crater)
Dembowski is a lunar crater located to the southeast of the Sinus Medii. To the east are the craters Agrippa and Godin, and to the southwest is Rhaeticus....
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 well as the minor planet
Minor planet
An asteroid group or minor-planet group is a population of minor planets that have a share broadly similar orbits. Members are generally unrelated to each other, unlike in an asteroid family, which often results from the break-up of a single asteroid...
349 Dembowska
349 Dembowska
Asteroid 349 Dembowska is named in honor of the Baron Hercules Dembowski, an Italian astronomer who made significant contributions to research on double and multiple stars. The asteroid was discovered over a century ago on December 9, 1892, by the French astronomer Auguste Charlois while working at...
.