Joan Voûte
Encyclopedia
Joan George Erardus Gijsbertus Voûte (June 7, 1879–August 20, 1963) was a Dutch
astronomer
.
He was born in Madioen, Java
to a Huguenot
family. He studied civil engineering
at Delft, but while a student he gained an interest in astronomy—studying variable star
s. After graduating he joined the staff of the Leiden Observatory
, where he worked on binary star
s. In 1913 he gained a post at the Cape Observatory in South Africa
, where he worked on double stars and parallax
measurements. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society
in 1917. His preliminary account of the parallax of Proxima Centauri
was published in 1917, demonstrating that Proxima was the same distance from the Sun as the Alpha Centauri
system.
He returned to Java in 1919, where he served as an assistant at the Weltevreden meteorological and magnetic observatory. There he was able to gain the interest of wealthy friends for the construction of an observatory. Voûte became the Director, and he selected the 1,300 m altitude Lembang
for the site. The main instrument was a 60 cm Zeiss double refractor. The work of the observatory focused on double stars, parallax measurements, photometry of variable stars and clusters
, and so forth. The results were published in the Lembang Observatory Annals.
Following the Japan
ese occupation of Java, Voûte was imprisoned. As a result of his captivity he suffered from poor health, so after the war he moved to Australia
. Later he settled at The Hague
, Holland, where he died in 1963.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
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 was born in Madioen, Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
to a Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
family. He studied civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
at Delft, but while a student he gained an interest in astronomy—studying variable star
Variable star
A star is classified as variable if its apparent magnitude as seen from Earth changes over time, whether the changes are due to variations in the star's actual luminosity, or to variations in the amount of the star's light that is blocked from reaching Earth...
s. After graduating he joined the staff of the Leiden Observatory
Leiden Observatory
Leiden Observatory is an astronomical observatory in the city of Leiden, Netherlands. It was established by Leiden University in 1633, to house the quadrant of Snellius, and is the oldest operating University observatory in the world Leiden Observatory (Sterrewacht Leiden in Dutch) is an...
, where he worked on 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. In 1913 he gained a post at the Cape Observatory in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, where he worked on double stars and parallax
Parallax
Parallax is a displacement or difference in the apparent position of an object viewed along two different lines of sight, and is measured by the angle or semi-angle of inclination between those two lines. The term is derived from the Greek παράλλαξις , meaning "alteration"...
measurements. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
in 1917. His preliminary account of the parallax of Proxima Centauri
Proxima Centauri
Proxima Centauri is a red dwarf star about 4.2 light-years distant in the constellation of Centaurus. It was discovered in 1915 by Robert Innes, the Director of the Union Observatory in South Africa, and is the nearest known star to the Sun, although it is too faint to be seen with the naked eye...
was published in 1917, demonstrating that Proxima was the same distance from the Sun as the Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri is the brightest star in the southern constellation of Centaurus...
system.
He returned to Java in 1919, where he served as an assistant at the Weltevreden meteorological and magnetic observatory. There he was able to gain the interest of wealthy friends for the construction of an observatory. Voûte became the Director, and he selected the 1,300 m altitude Lembang
Bosscha Observatory
Bosscha Observatory is the oldest observatory in Indonesia. The observatory is located in Lembang, West Java, approximately north of Bandung. It is situated on a hilly six hectares of land and is above mean sea level plateau...
for the site. The main instrument was a 60 cm Zeiss double refractor. The work of the observatory focused on double stars, parallax measurements, photometry of variable stars and clusters
Star cluster
Star clusters or star clouds are groups of stars. Two types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of hundreds of thousands of very old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters, more loosely clustered groups of stars, generally contain less than...
, and so forth. The results were published in the Lembang Observatory Annals.
Following the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese occupation of Java, Voûte was imprisoned. As a result of his captivity he suffered from poor health, so after the war he moved to 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...
. Later he settled at The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, Holland, where he died in 1963.