1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910254586803321

Titolo

Merz Telescopes [[electronic resource] ] : A global heritage worth preserving / / edited by Ileana Chinnici

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cham : , : Springer International Publishing : , : Imprint : Springer, , 2017

ISBN

3-319-41486-0

Edizione

[1st ed. 2017.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (IX, 185 p. 108 illus., 30 illus. in color.)

Collana

Historical & Cultural Astronomy, , 2509-310X

Disciplina

520

Soggetti

Observations, Astronomical

Astronomy—Observations

Cultural heritage

History

Astronomy, Observations and Techniques

Cultural Heritage

History of Science

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Includes indexes.

Nota di contenuto

Introduction: the role of Merz telescopes in Italian astronomy - by Ileana Chinnici -- The Merz Company: a Global Player of the 19th Century - by Jurgen Kost & Gudrun Wolfschmidt -- 1850-1900: The Era of Very Large Refractors - by Paolo Brenni -- The maker and the scientist: the relationship between Georg Merz and the Jesuit astronomer Angelo Secchi - by Ileana Chinnici -- Visual double stars measurements with Merz refractors: some statistics - by Giuseppe Massone -- Padua Astronomical Observatory and Merz Workshop: a special connection - by Valeria Zanini -- Merz instruments at Naples Observatory -by Mauro Gargano -- Merz Telescopes at Brera - by Mario Carpino -- Merz telescopes at Rome Astronomical Observatories - by Aldo Altamore & Francesco Poppi -- Merz Telescopes at Catania Royal Astrophysical Observatory - by Andrea Orlando -- Appendix – A list of surviving Merz telescopes outside Italy - by P. Brenni and Ileana Chinnici.

Sommario/riassunto

This book comprises a fascinating collection of contributions on the



Merz telescopes in Italy that collectively offer the first survey on historical large refracting telescopes in the country, drawing on original documents and photographs. It opens with a general introduction on the importance of Merz telescopes in the history of astronomy and analyses of the local and international contexts in which the telescopes were made. After examination of an example of the interaction between the maker and the astronomer in the construction and maintenance of these refractors, the history of the Merz telescopes at the main Italian observatories in the nineteenth century is described in detail. Expert testimony is also provided on how these telescopes were successfully used until the second half of the twentieth century for research purposes, thus proving their excellent optical qualities.