Writing History - Wilhelm Albrecht Oeltzen - The Lost Astronomer

Wilhelm Albrecht Oeltzen was German astronomer and author of several books. He is known for the processing of a part of Friedrich Wilhelm August Argelander's Zones from 1849-1852 in Bonn Germany. Often these are labeled "A. Oe." or "AOe" in catalogs. This was a two step process, I am uncertain if the abbreviations differentiate the two projects. In 1875, he disappeared. I have been unable to find any reference to what he was doing at that time.

Since the 1870s are an interesting time period, it would be no surprise that the man simply passed away of natural causes, far from home.

Notes compiled:

• Born on Oct 2nd, 1824.
• Studied at University of Göttingen in 1846.
• First Assistant at Vienna Observatory 1849-1859, before moving to The Paris Observatory.
• The Oeltzen's catalogue of Argelander's Southern Zones. 1857-58.
• The Oeltzen's catalogue of Argelander's Northern Zones. 1851-52.
• Schwerd's Beobachtungen von Circumpolarsternen in mittleren Positionen published in 1856, with Friedrich Magnus Schwerd.
• Disappeared in 1875.

#tbt – Astronomy Cast Episode 1

Today’s post is for Throw Back Thursday. I decided to take a listen to AstronomyCast’s first episode. After the first few minutes, Pamela and Fraser catch their groove. It is surprising how fast they found “the formula” and established the sound and style of the show.

Timely, as New Horizons approaches Pluto. It is a long way off, at least the way I drive, but surface details are becoming obvious.