Vatican Observatory: Difference between revisions

Vatican Observatory
Organization	Holy See ;
Observatory code	036
Location	Castel Gandolfo, Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Lazio, Italy
Coordinates	41°44′50″N 12°39′02″E / 41.747222222222°N 12.650555555556°E
Altitude	430 m (1,410 ft)
Established	1930
Website	www.vaticanobservatory.org
	Location of Vatican Observatory
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The Vatican Observatory (Italian: Specola Vaticana) is an astronomical research and educational institution supported by the Holy See. Originally based in the Roman College of Rome, the Observatory is now headquartered in Castel Gandolfo, Italy and operates a telescope at the Mount Graham International Observatory in the United States.^[1]

The Director of the Observatory is Brother Guy Consolmagno, an American Jesuit. In 2008, the Templeton Prize was awarded to cosmologist Fr. Michał Heller, a Vatican Observatory Adjunct Scholar. In 2010, the George Van Biesbroeck Prize was awarded to former observatory director, the American Jesuit, Fr. George Coyne.^[2]

History[edit]

The Church has had a long-standing interest in astronomy, due to the astronomical basis of the calendar by which holy days and Easter are determined. For instance, the Gregorian Calendar, promulgated in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII, was developed by Aloysius Lilius and later modified by Christoph Clavius at the Collegio Romano from astronomical data. The Gregorian Tower was completed in 1580 for his purpose, designed by Bolognese architect Ottaviano Nonni.

In the 18th century, the Papacy actively supported astronomy, establishing the Observatory of the Roman College in 1774. In 1787–1789, the Specola Vaticana in the Tower of the Winds within the Vatican was established under the direction of Msgr. Filippo Luigi Gilii (1756–1821). When Msgr. Gilii died, the Specola was closed down because it was inconvenient for students in the city because the dome of St. Peter's obstructed its view. Its instruments were transferred to the College Observatory. A third facility, the Observatory of the Capitol, was operated from 1827 to 1870.

Father Angelo Secchi SJ relocated the College Observatory to the top of Sant'Ignazio di Loyola a Campo Marzio (Church of St. Ignatius in Rome). In 1870, with the capture of Rome, the College Observatory fell into the hands of the Italian Government. Out of respect for his work, however, Father Secchi was permitted to continue using the Observatory. After Secchi's death in 1878 the Observatory was nationalized by the Italian government and renamed the Regio Osservatorio al Collegio Romano ("Royal Observatory at the Roman College"), ending astronomical research in the Vatican.

In 1891, however, Pope Leo XIII issued a Motu proprio re-founding the Specola Vaticana (Vatican Observatory) and a new observatory was built on the walls at the edge of the Vatican.^[3] The new Vatican Observatory remained there for the next forty years.

In the late nineteenth-century the Vatican Observatory was part of a group of top astronomy institutions from around the world which worked together to create a photographic "Celestial Map" ("Carte du Ciel") and an "astrographic" catalog pinpointing the stars' positions. Italian astronomer Father Francesco Denza led the Vatican's contribution to the project until his death in 1894. In the early twentieth-century Father John Hagen took over the project and recruited a group of nuns from the Sisters of the Holy Child Mary to work on the necessary recording and calculations. The sisters were Sisters Emilia Ponzoni, Regina Colombo, Concetta Finardi and Luigia Panceri.^[4]^[5]

By the 1930s, the smoke and sky-glow of the city had made it impossible to conduct useful observations in Rome.^[1] Pope Pius XI relocated the Observatory to Castel Gandolfo, which is 25 kilometres (16 mi) southeast of Rome. By 1961, the same problems with light pollution made observing difficult at Castel Gandolfo. The Observatory then established the Vatican Observatory Research Group (VORG), with offices at the Steward Observatory of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona.^[1]

D.K.J. O'Connell produced the first color photographs of a green flash at sunset in 1960.^[6] In 1993, VORG completed construction of the 1.8 metres (71 in) Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope, which is at Mount Graham near Safford, Arizona.

The Observatory's headquarters remain in Italy at Castel Gandolfo. In early 2008, the Vatican announced that the Observatory would be relocated to a former convent a mile away from the castle as part of a general reconstruction of the Papal residence. Its former space would be used to provide more room for the reception of diplomatic visitors. The old quarters in the castle were cramped and very poorly laid out for the Observatory's use. VORG research activities in Arizona continued unaffected.

Leadership[edit]

Francesco Denza (1891-1894)
Giuseppe Lais (1894-1906)
Johann Georg Hagen (1906-1930)
Johan Stein (1930-1951)
Daniel Joseph Kelly O'Conell (1952-1971)
Patrick Treanor (1971-1978)
George Coyne (1978 – 19 August 2006)^[7]
José Gabriel Funes (19 August 2006^[7] – 18 September 2015)^[8]
Guy Consolmagno (18 September 2015^[8] – present)

Notes[edit]

^ ^a ^b ^c Johnson, George (22 June 2009). "Vatican's Celestial Eye, Seeking Not Angels but Data". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
^ Dennis Sadowski (4 January 2010). "American Astronomical Society honors former Vatican Observatory head". Catholic News Service. Archived from the original on 7 January 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
^ History of the Vatican Observatory Archived 18 December 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Vatican Observatory Foundation. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
^ "Mapping with the stars: Nuns instrumental in Vatican celestial survey". www.catholicnews.com. Archived from the original on 29 April 2016. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
^ Blakemore, Erin. "These Little-Known Nuns Helped Map the Stars". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
^ Maunder, Michael (2007). Lights in the Sky: Identifying and Understanding Astronomical and Meteorological Phenomena. Springer. p. 72. ISBN 978-1846287619. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
^ ^a ^b "Rinunce e Nomine, 19.08.2006" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 19 August 2006. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Rinunce e Nomine, 18.09.2015" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 18 September 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2020.

References[edit]

Sabino Maffeo: The Vatican Observatory. In the Service of Nine Popes, Vatican Observatory Publications, 2001.

External links[edit]

Official website

[nytimes-1] Johnson, George (22 June 2009). "Vatican's Celestial Eye, Seeking Not Angels but Data". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 June 2009.

[Catholic_News-2] Dennis Sadowski (4 January 2010). "American Astronomical Society honors former Vatican Observatory head". Catholic News Service. Archived from the original on 7 January 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2010.

[3] History of the Vatican Observatory Archived 18 December 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Vatican Observatory Foundation. Retrieved 28 September 2013.

[4] "Mapping with the stars: Nuns instrumental in Vatican celestial survey". www.catholicnews.com. Archived from the original on 29 April 2016. Retrieved 26 December 2019.

[5] Blakemore, Erin. "These Little-Known Nuns Helped Map the Stars". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 26 December 2019.

[lits-6] Maunder, Michael (2007). Lights in the Sky: Identifying and Understanding Astronomical and Meteorological Phenomena. Springer. p. 72. ISBN 978-1846287619. Retrieved 28 September 2013.

[funes-7] "Rinunce e Nomine, 19.08.2006" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 19 August 2006. Retrieved 14 February 2020.

[consol-8] "Rinunce e Nomine, 18.09.2015" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 18 September 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2020.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
 {{Infobox observatory|locmapin=Italy}}
-The '''Vatican Observatory''' the name of observatory is Lucifer ({{Lang-it|Specola Vaticana}}) is an astronomical research and educational institution supported by the [[Holy See]]. Originally based in the [[Roman College]] of [[Rome]], the Observatory is now headquartered in [[Castel Gandolfo]], [[Italy]] and operates a telescope at the [[Mount Graham International Observatory]] in the [[United States]].<ref name="nytimes">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/23/science/23Vatican.html?hpw|title=Vatican’s Celestial Eye, Seeking Not Angels but Data|last=Johnson|first=George|date=22 June 2009|publisher=[[The New York Times]]|accessdate=24 June 2009}}</ref>
+The '''Vatican Observatory''' ({{Lang-it|Specola Vaticana}}) is an astronomical research and educational institution supported by the [[Holy See]]. Originally based in the [[Roman College]] of [[Rome]], the Observatory is now headquartered in [[Castel Gandolfo]], [[Italy]] and operates a telescope at the [[Mount Graham International Observatory]] in the [[United States]].<ref name="nytimes">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/23/science/23Vatican.html?hpw|title=Vatican's Celestial Eye, Seeking Not Angels but Data|last=Johnson|first=George|date=22 June 2009|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=24 June 2009}}</ref>
 The Director of the Observatory is Brother [[Guy Consolmagno]], an American [[Society of Jesus|Jesuit]]. In 2008, the [[Templeton Prize]] was awarded to [[cosmology|cosmologist]] Fr. [[Michał Heller]], a Vatican Observatory Adjunct Scholar. In 2010, the [[George Van Biesbroeck Prize]] was awarded to former observatory director, the American Jesuit, Fr. [[George Coyne]].<ref name="Catholic News">{{cite news
@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
  |publisher  = [[Catholic News Service]]
  |date       = 4 January 2010
- |accessdate = 6 January 2010
+ |access-date = 6 January 2010
 }}</ref>
 ==History==
+{{More citations needed|section|date=October 2021}}
 The Church has had a long-standing interest in astronomy, due to the astronomical basis of the calendar by which holy days and [[Easter]] are determined. For instance, the [[Gregorian Calendar]], promulgated in 1582 by Pope [[Gregory XIII]], was developed by [[Aloysius Lilius]] and later modified by [[Christoph Clavius]] at the [[Pontifical Gregorian University|Collegio Romano]] from astronomical data. The [[Gregorian Tower]] was completed in 1580 for his purpose, designed by Bolognese architect [[Ottaviano Nonni]].
-In the 18th century, the Papacy actively supported astronomy, establishing the Observatory of the Roman College in 1774. In 1789–1787, the ''Specola Vaticana'' in the Tower of the Winds within the Vatican was established under the direction of Msgr. Filippo Luigi Gilii (1756–1821). When Msgr. Gilii died, the ''Specola'' was closed down because it was inconvenient for students in the city because the dome of [[St. Peter's Basilica|St. Peter's]] obstructed its view. Its instruments were transferred to the College Observatory. A third facility, the Observatory of the Capitol, was operated from 1827 to 1870.
+In the 18th century, the Papacy actively supported astronomy, establishing the Observatory of the Roman College in 1774. In 1787–1789, the ''Specola Vaticana'' in the Tower of the Winds within the Vatican was established under the direction of Msgr. Filippo Luigi Gilii (1756–1821). When Msgr. Gilii died, the ''Specola'' was closed down because it was inconvenient for students in the city because the dome of [[St. Peter's Basilica|St. Peter's]] obstructed its view. Its instruments were transferred to the College Observatory. A third facility, the Observatory of the Capitol, was operated from 1827 to 1870.
-Father [[Angelo Secchi]] SJ relocated the College Observatory to the top of [[Sant'Ignazio|Sant'Ignazio di Loyola a Campo Marzio]] (Church of St. Ignatius in [[Rome]]). In 1870, with the [[Risorgimento|capture of Rome]], the College Observatory fell into the hands of the Italian Government.  Out of respect for his work, however, Father Secchi was permitted to continue using the Observatory.  After Secchi's death in 1878 the Observatory was nationalized by the Italian government and renamed the ''Regio Osservatorio al Collegio Romano'' ("Royal Observatory at the Roman College"), ending astronomical research in the Vatican.
+Father [[Angelo Secchi]] SJ relocated the College Observatory to the top of [[Sant'Ignazio|Sant'Ignazio di Loyola a Campo Marzio]] (Church of St. Ignatius in [[Rome]]). In 1870, with the [[Risorgimento|capture of Rome]], the College Observatory fell into the hands of the Italian Government. Out of respect for his work, however, Father Secchi was permitted to continue using the Observatory. After Secchi's death in 1878 the Observatory was nationalized by the Italian government and renamed the ''Regio Osservatorio al Collegio Romano'' ("Royal Observatory at the Roman College"), ending astronomical research in the Vatican.
-In 1891, however, [[Pope Leo XIII]] issued a [[Motu Proprio]] re-founding the ''Specola Vaticana'' (Vatican Observatory) and a new observatory was built on the walls at the edge of the Vatican.<ref>[http://www.vaticanobservatory.org/VOF/index.php/about-us/history History of the Vatican Observatory] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218091016/http://vaticanobservatory.org/VOF/index.php/about-us/history |date=18 December 2012 }}. Vatican Observatory Foundation. Retrieved 28 September 2013.</ref>  The new Vatican Observatory remained there for the next forty years.
+In 1891, however, [[Pope Leo XIII]] issued a ''[[Motu proprio]]'' re-founding the ''Specola Vaticana'' (Vatican Observatory) and a new observatory was built on the walls at the edge of the Vatican.<ref>[http://www.vaticanobservatory.org/VOF/index.php/about-us/history History of the Vatican Observatory] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218091016/http://vaticanobservatory.org/VOF/index.php/about-us/history |date=18 December 2012 }}. Vatican Observatory Foundation. Retrieved 28 September 2013.</ref> The new Vatican Observatory remained there for the next forty years.
-In the late nineteenth-century the Vatican Observatory was part of a group of top astronomy institutions from around the world which worked together to create a photographic "Celestial Map" ("[[Carte du Ciel]]") and an "astrographic" catalog pinpointing the stars' positions. Italian astronomer Father [[Francesco Denza]] led the Vatican's contribution to the project until his death in 1894. In the early twentieth-century Father John Hagen took over the project and recruited a group of nuns from the Sisters of the Holy Child Mary to work on the necessary recording and calculations. The sisters were Sisters Emilia Ponzoni, Regina Colombo, Concetta Finardi and Luigia Panceri.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2016/nuns-instrumental-in-vatican-celestial-survey.cfm|title=Mapping with the stars: Nuns instrumental in Vatican celestial survey|website=www.catholicnews.com|access-date=26 December 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-little-known-nuns-helped-map-stars-180959012/|title=These Little-Known Nuns Helped Map the Stars|last=Blakemore|first=Erin|website=Smithsonian Magazine|language=en|access-date=26 December 2019}}</ref>
+In the late nineteenth-century the Vatican Observatory was part of a group of top astronomy institutions from around the world which worked together to create a photographic "Celestial Map" ("[[Carte du Ciel]]") and an "astrographic" catalog pinpointing the stars' positions. Italian astronomer Father [[Francesco Denza]] led the Vatican's contribution to the project until his death in 1894. In the early twentieth-century Father John Hagen took over the project and recruited a group of nuns from the Sisters of the Holy Child Mary to work on the necessary recording and calculations. The sisters were Sisters Emilia Ponzoni, Regina Colombo, Concetta Finardi and Luigia Panceri.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2016/nuns-instrumental-in-vatican-celestial-survey.cfm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429120230/http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2016/nuns-instrumental-in-vatican-celestial-survey.cfm|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 April 2016|title=Mapping with the stars: Nuns instrumental in Vatican celestial survey|website=www.catholicnews.com|access-date=26 December 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-little-known-nuns-helped-map-stars-180959012/|title=These Little-Known Nuns Helped Map the Stars|last=Blakemore|first=Erin|website=Smithsonian Magazine|language=en|access-date=26 December 2019}}</ref>
 [[File:Vatican Observatory 1891.jpg|thumb|left|Silver medal celebrating the 1891 Pope Leo XIII's inauguration of the new observatory]]
-<br />
 [[file:Pontifical palace and Vatican Observatory, Castel Gandolfo.jpg|thumb|left|Vatican Observatory and pontifical palace, Castel Gandolfo]]
-By the 1930s, the smoke and sky-glow of the city had made it impossible to conduct useful observations in Rome.<ref name="nytimes" /> [[Pope Pius XI]] relocated the Observatory  to Castel Gandolfo, which is {{convert|25|km|mi}} southeast of Rome. By 1961, the same problems with [[light pollution]] made observing difficult at Castel Gandolfo. The Observatory then established the '''Vatican Observatory Research Group (VORG)''', with offices at the [[Steward Observatory]] of the [[University of Arizona]] in [[Tucson]], [[Arizona]].<ref name="nytimes" />
+By the 1930s, the smoke and sky-glow of the city had made it impossible to conduct useful observations in Rome.<ref name="nytimes" /> [[Pope Pius XI]] relocated the Observatory to Castel Gandolfo, which is {{convert|25|km|mi}} southeast of Rome. By 1961, the same problems with [[light pollution]] made observing difficult at Castel Gandolfo. The Observatory then established the '''Vatican Observatory Research Group (VORG)''', with offices at the [[Steward Observatory]] of the [[University of Arizona]] in [[Tucson]], [[Arizona]].<ref name="nytimes" />
-D.K.J. O'Connell produced the first color photographs of a [[green flash]] at sunset in 1960.<ref name="lits">{{cite book |title=Lights in the Sky: Identifying and Understanding Astronomical and Meteorological Phenomena |last=Maunder |first=Michael |year=2007 |publisher=Springer |isbn=1846287618 |page=72 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kqv5G6O1rFUC |accessdate=28 September 2013}}</ref> In 1993, VORG completed construction of the {{convert|1.8|m|in}} [[Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope]], which is at [[Mount Graham]] near [[Safford, Arizona]].
+D.K.J. O'Connell produced the first color photographs of a [[green flash]] at sunset in 1960.<ref name="lits">{{cite book |title=Lights in the Sky: Identifying and Understanding Astronomical and Meteorological Phenomena |last=Maunder |first=Michael |year=2007 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1846287619 |page=72 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kqv5G6O1rFUC |access-date=28 September 2013}}</ref> In 1993, VORG completed construction of the {{convert|1.8|m|in}} [[Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope]], which is at [[Mount Graham]] near [[Safford, Arizona]].
-The Observatory's headquarters remain in Italy at Castel Gandolfo. In early 2008, the Vatican announced that the Observatory would be relocated to a former convent a mile away from the castle as part of a general reconstruction of the Papal residence. Its former space would be used to provide more room for the reception of diplomatic visitors. There was some commentary that the Observatory was being shut down or cut back, but in fact the Observatory staff welcomed the move.{{Citation needed|date=March 2015}} The old quarters in the castle were cramped and very poorly laid out for the Observatory's use. VORG research activities in Arizona continued unaffected.
+The Observatory's headquarters remain in Italy at Castel Gandolfo. In early 2008, the Vatican announced that the Observatory would be relocated to a former convent a mile away from the castle as part of a general reconstruction of the Papal residence. Its former space would be used to provide more room for the reception of diplomatic visitors. The old quarters in the castle were cramped and very poorly laid out for the Observatory's use. VORG research activities in Arizona continued unaffected.
 {{Clear}}
 ==Leadership==
+* [[Francesco Denza]] (1891-1894)
+* [[Giuseppe Lais]] (1894-1906)
+* [[Johann Georg Hagen]] (1906-1930)
+* [[Johan Stein]] (1930-1951)
+* [[Daniel Joseph Kelly O'Conell]] (1952-1971)
+* [[Patrick Treanor]] (1971-1978)
 *[[George Coyne]] (1978 – 19 August 2006)<ref name=funes/>
 *[[José Gabriel Funes]] (19 August 2006<ref name=funes>{{cite press release | access-date = 14 February 2020 | language = it | date = 19 August 2006 | publisher = Holy See Press Office | url = https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2006/08/19/0411/01156.html | title= Rinunce e Nomine, 19.08.2006}}</ref> – 18 September 2015)<ref name=consol>{{cite press release | access-date = 14 February 2020 | language = it | date = 18 September 2015| publisher = Holy See Press Office | url = https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2015/09/18/0689/01528.html | title= Rinunce e Nomine, 18.09.2015}}</ref>
@@ Line 44: / Line 50: @@
 ==See also==
-{{Portal|Astronomy}}
 *[[Archaeoastronomy]]
-*[[Catholic Church and science#Vatican Observatory]]
+*{{section link|Catholic Church and science|Vatican Observatory}}
 *''[[Scientific Perspectives on Divine Action]]''
 *[[Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope]]
+* [[List of astronomical observatories]]
+* [[List of Jesuit sites]]
+* [[Pietro Maffi]]
 ==Notes==
@@ Line 63: / Line 71: @@
 {{Vatican City topics}}
 {{Astronomical observatories in Italy}}
+{{Portal bar|Astronomy|Stars|Spaceflight|Outer space|Solar System|Education|Science}}
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