Paul Herget
Encyclopedia
Paul Herget was an American astronomer
.
Herget taught astronomy at the University of Cincinnati
. He was a pioneer in the use of machine methods, and eventually digital computers, in the solving of scientific and specifically astronomical problems (for example, in the calculation of ephemeris
tables for minor planet
s).
During World War II he applied these same talents to the war effort, helping to locate U-boats by means of the application of spherical trigonometry.
Herget established the Minor Planet Center
at the university after the war in 1947. He was also named director of the Cincinnati Observatory
. The Minor Planet Center was eventually relocated in 1978 to the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where it still operates.
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...
.
Herget taught astronomy at the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
. He was a pioneer in the use of machine methods, and eventually digital computers, in the solving of scientific and specifically astronomical problems (for example, in the calculation of ephemeris
Ephemeris
An ephemeris is a table of values that gives the positions of astronomical objects in the sky at a given time or times. Different kinds of ephemerides are used for astronomy and astrology...
tables for 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...
s).
During World War II he applied these same talents to the war effort, helping to locate U-boats by means of the application of spherical trigonometry.
Herget established the Minor Planet Center
Minor Planet Center
The Minor Planet Center operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory , which is part of the Center for Astrophysics along with the Harvard College Observatory ....
at the university after the war in 1947. He was also named director of the Cincinnati Observatory
Cincinnati Observatory
The Cincinnati Observatory, located in Cincinnati, Ohio on top of Mt. Lookout. It consists of two observatory buildings housing an 11 inch and 16 inch aperture refracting telescope. It is the oldest professional observatory in the United States...
. The Minor Planet Center was eventually relocated in 1978 to the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory is a research institute of the Smithsonian Institution headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where it is joined with the Harvard College Observatory to form the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics .-History:The SAO was founded in 1890 by...
in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where it still operates.
External links
- Paul Herget at Columbia University Computing History
- Lecture by Paul Herget on the history of the Cincinnati Observatory
- Paul Herget 1908 - 1981. A Biografical Memoir by Donald E. Ostertbrock and P. Kenneth Seidelmann National Academy of Sciences)