Presidential Library marks the day of foundation of Pulkovo Observatory

On August 19, 2024, the anniversary of 185 years since the founding of the Pulkovo Observatory, which has been referred to as the "astronomical capital of the world", will be celebrated.

The idea of creating a new observatory emerged in the mid-18th century, when it became apparent that the Kunstkamera Tower on Vasilyevsky Island, which housed the previous observatory, was not an ideal location for astronomers.

In 1827, the St Petersburg Academy of Sciences resolved to establish a new astronomical observatory. Emperor Nicholas I selected a site 19 versts (about 21 km) from St Petersburg and 8 versts (approximately 9 km) from Tsarskoe Selo. He ordered the peasants living on these lands, who were cultivating orchards, to relocate and provided significant compensation for their losses.

Russian astronomer and geodesist Vasily Struve, who was of German origin, played a significant role in the establishment of the Pulkovo Observatory and later became its head. He chose the site for the observatory with great care, considering various factors such as a vast horizon with a diameter of 70 versts, the absence of frequent fog, clear spring water, proximity to meadows, and, most importantly, an "almost perfect lack of dust".

The Pulkovo Observatory was close to Struve long before its foundation, as a child is close to its mother before it is born, writes biographer Elizaveta Litvinova in her essay V.Ya. Struve: His Life and Scientific Activity (1893), which is available on the Presidential Library's portal.

The opening of the Pulkovo Observatory on August 19, 1839, was a significant event for Russian and international science. Top officials, ambassadors from foreign countries, prominent scientists, and all Russian astronomers were invited. As Elizaveta Litvinova wrote, the emperor who visited the observatory later, "alluding to Struve's ambitious plans, jokingly asked if the observatory director was completely satisfied. Encouraged by the monarch's friendliness, Struve responded with his usual honesty, saying that he was satisfied today, but he did not guarantee that he would not need the emperor's support again for science." Vasily had a good sense of humor too. It is said that when Nicholas I and his retinue visited the observatory, Struve joked that he had never seen so many stars on uniforms instead of the sky.

Later, Struve wrote the following lines dedicated to Nicholas I, after whom the observatory was named Nikolaevskaya: "The Pulkovo Observatory is a realization of a clear scientific idea, achieved thanks to the unlimited generosity of the monarch."

In fact, the establishment of the observatory did not come to an end, but rather, it marked the beginning of the implementation of this idea. According to its charter, the observatory's purpose was "to conduct constant and as accurate observations as possible that contribute to the advancement of astronomy, and to make observations necessary for geographical exploration within the empire and for scientific travel."

The work of the Pulkovo Observatory has immediately placed it among the leading institutions in the world, according to Professor Konstantin Pokrovsky in his brochure The Centenary of the Pulkovo Observatory. Scientists from various countries have come here to learn from its experience. The instrument park of the observatory has been continuously replenished and enhanced. Under the leadership of Otto Vasilyevich Struve, the largest 30-inch refractor telescope produced in the United States was acquired in 1885, and an astrograph arrived in the 1890s. In the first half of the 20th century, additional equipment such as the Litrow spectrograph, horizontal solar telescope, and zonal astrograph were added. Since 1920, the observatory has also begun transmitting radio signals for the precise time.

During the Great Patriotic War, capturing the Pulkovo Heights was a strategic goal for the enemy - from the top of the hill, Leningrad could be seen at a glance. The air raids and shellings did not stop until the end of the blockade, and almost all the buildings in the complex were destroyed. However, already in May 1954, the main astronomical observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences reopened, significantly expanding its capabilities. Today, its scientific activities cover almost all priority areas of modern astronomical research.