Gunnar Malmquist
Encyclopedia
Karl Gunnar Malmquist was a Swedish
astronomer
.
, where he completed his secondary school education before matriculating at the Lund University
in 1911. He received his Ph.D. in 1921, was an amanuensis
at the Lund Observatory
1915-1920 and a docent
from 1920. He continued to work at the observatory in Lund until 1929, was observator at the Stockholm Observatory
and taught at the Stockholm University College 1930-1939, and was Professor of Astronomy at the Uppsala University
from 1939 until his retirement in 1959.
Malmquist was a student of Carl Charlier
at Lund and became one of the best known members of the so-called "Lund school" in statistical astronomy. His work in that field led, among other things, to his observation of the Malmquist bias
.
As professor at the Uppsala Astronomical Observatory
he got interested in Schmidt telescopes and took the initiative, together with Åke Wallenquist
, to get a large Schmidt telescope installed at Uppsala University's Kvistabergs Observatorium (Kvistaberg Observatory, 1964), at the time one of the largest Schmidt telescopes in the world with a mirror
of 135 cm and a corrector plate
of 100 cm. He also arranged for the university to construct a Schmidt telescope and build a dome at Mount Stromlo
in Australia
in 1956, "The Uppsala Southern Station".
The asteroid 1527 Malmquista
was named after him.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
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...
.
Biography
Gunnar Malmquist was born in YstadYstad
Ystad is a "locality", or town, and the seat of Ystad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden, with 17,286 inhabitants .Settlement dates back to the 11th century and the town has become a busy ferryport, local administrative centre and tourist attraction...
, where he completed his secondary school education before matriculating at the Lund University
Lund University
Lund University , located in the city of Lund in the province of Scania, Sweden, is one of northern Europe's most prestigious universities and one of Scandinavia's largest institutions for education and research, frequently ranked among the world's top 100 universities...
in 1911. He received his Ph.D. in 1921, was an amanuensis
Amanuensis
Amanuensis is a Latin word adopted in various languages, including English, for certain persons performing a function by hand, either writing down the words of another or performing manual labour...
at the Lund Observatory
Lund Observatory
Lund Observatory is the official English name for the astronomy department at Lund University. As of January 2010 Lund Observatory is part of The department of astronomy and theoretical physics at Lund University...
1915-1920 and a docent
Docent
Docent is a title at some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks below professor . Docent is also used at some universities generically for a person who has the right to teach...
from 1920. He continued to work at the observatory in Lund until 1929, was observator at the Stockholm Observatory
Stockholm Observatory
The Stockholm Observatory is an astronomical institution in Stockholm, Sweden, founded in the 18th century and today part of Stockholm University...
and taught at the Stockholm University College 1930-1939, and was Professor of Astronomy at the Uppsala University
Uppsala University
Uppsala University is a research university in Uppsala, Sweden, and is the oldest university in Scandinavia, founded in 1477. It consistently ranks among the best universities in Northern Europe in international rankings and is generally considered one of the most prestigious institutions of...
from 1939 until his retirement in 1959.
Malmquist was a student of Carl Charlier
Carl Charlier
Carl Vilhelm Ludwig Charlier was a Swedish astronomer.He received his Ph.D. from Uppsala University in 1887, later worked there and at the Stockholm Observatory and was Professor of Astronomy and Director of the Observatory at Lund University from 1897.He made extensive statistical studies of the...
at Lund and became one of the best known members of the so-called "Lund school" in statistical astronomy. His work in that field led, among other things, to his observation of the Malmquist bias
Malmquist bias
The Malmquist bias refers to an effect in observational astronomy which leads to the preferential detection of intrinsically bright objects. It was first popularized in 1922 by Swedish astronomer Gunnar Malmquist , who then greatly elaborated upon this work in 1925...
.
As professor at the Uppsala Astronomical Observatory
Uppsala Astronomical Observatory
The Uppsala Astronomical Observatory is the oldest astronomical observatory in Sweden. It was founded in 1741, though there was a professorial chair of astronomy at the University of Uppsala from 1593 and the university archives include lecture notes in astronomy from the 1480s.In the 18th...
he got interested in Schmidt telescopes and took the initiative, together with Åke Wallenquist
Åke Wallenquist
Åke Anders Edvard Wallenquist was a Swedish astronomer. He worked at the Dutch Bosscha Observatory in Indonesia between 1928 and 1935, and became assistant professor at Uppsala's Kvistabergs Observatorium in 1948...
, to get a large Schmidt telescope installed at Uppsala University's Kvistabergs Observatorium (Kvistaberg Observatory, 1964), at the time one of the largest Schmidt telescopes in the world with a mirror
Mirror
A mirror is an object that reflects light or sound in a way that preserves much of its original quality prior to its contact with the mirror. Some mirrors also filter out some wavelengths, while preserving other wavelengths in the reflection...
of 135 cm and a corrector plate
Schmidt corrector plate
A Schmidt corrector plate is an aspheric lens which is designed to correct the spherical aberration in the spherical primary mirror it is combined with. It was invented by Bernhard Schmidt in 1931, although it may have been independently invented by Finnish astronomer Yrjö Väisälä in 1924...
of 100 cm. He also arranged for the university to construct a Schmidt telescope and build a dome at Mount Stromlo
Mount Stromlo Observatory
Mount Stromlo Observatory located just outside of Canberra, Australia, is part of the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Australian National University .-History:...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1956, "The Uppsala Southern Station".
The asteroid 1527 Malmquista
1527 Malmquista
1527 Malmquista is a main-belt asteroid discovered on October 18, 1939 by Y. Vaisala at Turku. It is named for the Swedish astronomer Gunnar Malmquist.- External links :*...
was named after him.