Pierre Puiseux
Encyclopedia
Pierre Henri Puiseux was a French
astronomer
.
Born in Paris
, son of Victor Puiseux
, he was educated at the Ecole Normale Supérieure
before starting work as an astronomer at the Paris Observatory
in 1885.
He worked on the aberration of light
, asteroid
s, lunar
dynamics and, in collaboration with Maurice Loewy
, the ill-fated Carte du Ciel
project. Puiseux created a photographic atlas of the Moon based on 6000 photographs taken by him and Loewy. In 1896 was he awarded the Lalande Prize
of the French Academy of Sciences
, and became a member of the academy in 1912.
The crater Puiseux
on the Moon
is named after him.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
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...
.
Born in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, son of Victor Puiseux
Victor Puiseux
Victor Alexandre Puiseux was a French mathematician and astronomer. Puiseux series are named after him, as is in part the Bertrand–Diquet–Puiseux theorem.-Life:...
, he was educated at the Ecole Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
before starting work as an astronomer at the Paris Observatory
Paris Observatory
The Paris Observatory is the foremost astronomical observatory of France, and one of the largest astronomical centres in the world...
in 1885.
He worked on the aberration of light
Aberration of light
The aberration of light is an astronomical phenomenon which produces an apparent motion of celestial objects about their real locations...
, 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, lunar
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...
dynamics and, in collaboration with Maurice Loewy
Maurice Loewy
Maurice Loewy was a French astronomer.Born in Mariánské Lázne, in what is now the Czech Republic, Loewy's Jewish parents moved to Vienna in 1841 to escape the antisemitism of their home town. Loewy became an assistant at the Vienna Observatory, working on celestial mechanics...
, the ill-fated Carte du Ciel
Carte du Ciel
The Carte du Ciel and the Astrographic Catalogue were two distinct but connected components of a massive international astronomical project, initiated in the late 19th century, to catalogue and map the positions of millions of stars as faint as 11th or 12th magnitude...
project. Puiseux created a photographic atlas of the Moon based on 6000 photographs taken by him and Loewy. In 1896 was he awarded the Lalande Prize
Lalande Prize
The Lalande Prize was an award for scientific advances in astronomy, given from 1802 through 1970 by the French Academy of Sciences.The prize was named for, and endowed by, astronomer Jérôme Lalande in 1801...
of the French Academy of Sciences
French Academy of Sciences
The French Academy of Sciences is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research...
, and became a member of the academy in 1912.
The crater Puiseux
Puiseux (crater)
Puiseux is the remnant of a lunar crater that has been almost completely submerged by lava. It is located near the southern end of Mare Humorum, to the north east of the ruined crater Doppelmayer. To the south-southeast is Vitello. Of the original structure of Puiseux, only the upper part of the...
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.
Obituaries
- JRASC 22 (1928) 394 (one sentence)
- MNRAS 89 (1929) 327
- PASP 40 (1928) 413 (one paragraph)