Donald W. Olson | |
---|---|
Nationality | American |
Occupation(s) | Astrophysicist, forensic astronomer |
Academic background | |
Education | B.S. in physics, Michigan State University PhD in physics, University of California-Berkeley |
Academic work | |
Institutions | Texas State University |
Donald W. Olson is an astrophysicist and forensic astronomer at the Texas State University. Nicknamed the "Celestial Sleuth," he is known for studying art and history using astronomical data. [1] He is currently regents professor emeritus at Texas State's Department of Physics. [2]
Olson received a B.S. in physics from Michigan State University. Upon graduating,he was awarded the Thomas H. Osgood Undergraduate Physics Award. He later studied at University of California-Berkeley,where he received his PhD. Olson went on to study at Cornell University and University of Texas at Austin,before taking up a teaching position at Texas State University in 1981. [3]
Olson began his career studying the theory of relativity and creating computer simulations of astronomical phenomena such as the distribution of galaxies or radiation near black holes. [4] He became well known for his work in the field of forensic astronomy,often in collaboration with fellow astrophysicist Russell Doescher. Their work has also studied how astronomy has impacted events such as battles and historical decisions. [5]
In 2004,he and Doescher suggested that the traditionally accepted date for the Battle of Marathon was incorrect,taking place on August 12,rather than the traditionally accepted date of September 12. [6] [7] In 2008,he and Doescher published a paper claiming to have found the precise date and location of Julius Caesar's landing in Britain. [8] Olson's team also attempted to recreate the timeline of Mary Shelley's inspiration to write Frankenstein ,which the author claimed occurred during a moonlit night but which historians had traditionally dismissed. Based on the team's findings,Shelley likely did experience a moonlit night on June 16,1816,the date on which she conceived of Frankenstein. [9]
Olson received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2011. [3] In 2012,Olson led a team of researchers who studied whether the sinking of the Titanic may have been caused by a lunar event. [10] At the time of the sinking on January 4,1912,the moon was simultaneously at perigee and in line with the Sun,producing a rare spring tide that may have pushed ice bergs into the path of the ship. This was the closest approach to Earth made by the moon in 1,440 years. [11]
Olson was awarded the 2014 Klopsteg Memorial Lecture Award by the American Association of Physics Teachers. [3]
He has authored papers on historically significant astronomical events such as the 1913 Great Meteor Procession. [12] He has also studied the astronomical conditions which inspired unusual paintings and photographs by artists such as Johannes Vermeer,Edvard Munch, [12] Claude Monet, [13] and Ansel Adams, [14] as well as exactly when they would have been created. [15] Other research has studied descriptions of astronomical phenomena in literary works like The Canterbury Tales or Childe Harold's Pilgrimage . [16]
He wrote the book Celestial Sleuth,which was published by Springer in 2014. The book explores the historical significance of astronomical phenomena in world history,as well as analyzing historical descriptions of astronomical events. [17]
He has criticized some archaeoastronomical theories,such as the idea that the Norse myth of Ragnarök was inspired by the Hyades star cluster. [18]
In 2022,he published Investigating Art,History,and Literature with Astronomy as part of the Springer Praxis series. [19]
Gegenschein or counterglow is a faintly bright spot in the night sky centered at the antisolar point. The backscatter of sunlight by interplanetary dust causes this optical phenomenon.
Astronomy is the oldest of the natural sciences,dating back to antiquity,with its origins in the religious,mythological,cosmological,calendrical,and astrological beliefs and practices of prehistory:vestiges of these are still found in astrology,a discipline long interwoven with public and governmental astronomy. It was not completely separated in Europe during the Copernican Revolution starting in 1543. In some cultures,astronomical data was used for astrological prognostication.
Taurus is one of the constellations of the zodiac and is located in the northern celestial hemisphere. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the Northern Hemisphere's winter sky. It is one of the oldest constellations,dating back to the Early Bronze Age at least,when it marked the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. Its importance to the agricultural calendar influenced various bull figures in the mythologies of Ancient Sumer,Akkad,Assyria,Babylon,Egypt,Greece,and Rome. Its old astronomical symbol is (♉︎),which resembles a bull's head.
Tycho Brahe,generally called Tycho for short,was a Danish astronomer of the Renaissance,known for his comprehensive and unprecedentedly accurate astronomical observations. He was known during his lifetime as an astronomer,astrologer,and alchemist. He was the last major astronomer before the invention of the telescope.
The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8°north and south of the ecliptic,which is the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. The orbital paths of the Moon and major planets are within the belt of the zodiac.
In astronomy and navigation,the celestial sphere is an abstract sphere that has an arbitrarily large radius and is concentric to Earth. All objects in the sky can be conceived as being projected upon the inner surface of the celestial sphere,which may be centered on Earth or the observer. If centered on the observer,half of the sphere would resemble a hemispherical screen over the observing location.
Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics,physics,and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets,moons,stars,nebulae,galaxies,meteoroids,asteroids,and comets. Relevant phenomena include supernova explosions,gamma ray bursts,quasars,blazars,pulsars,and cosmic microwave background radiation. More generally,astronomy studies everything that originates beyond Earth's atmosphere. Cosmology is a branch of astronomy that studies the universe as a whole.
In astronomy and celestial navigation,an ephemeris is a book with tables that gives the trajectory of naturally occurring astronomical objects as well as artificial satellites in the sky,i.e.,the position over time. Historically,positions were given as printed tables of values,given at regular intervals of date and time. The calculation of these tables was one of the first applications of mechanical computers. Modern ephemerides are often provided in electronic form. However,printed ephemerides are still produced,as they are useful when computational devices are not available.
An armillary sphere is a model of objects in the sky,consisting of a spherical framework of rings,centered on Earth or the Sun,that represent lines of celestial longitude and latitude and other astronomically important features,such as the ecliptic. As such,it differs from a celestial globe,which is a smooth sphere whose principal purpose is to map the constellations. It was invented separately,in ancient China possibly as early as the 4th century BC and ancient Greece during the 3rd century BC,with later uses in the Islamic world and Medieval Europe.
An astronomical object,celestial object,stellar object or heavenly body is a naturally occurring physical entity,association,or structure that exists within the observable universe. In astronomy,the terms object and body are often used interchangeably. However,an astronomical body or celestial body is a single,tightly bound,contiguous entity,while an astronomical or celestial object is a complex,less cohesively bound structure,which may consist of multiple bodies or even other objects with substructures.
Dirk Brouwer was a Dutch-American astronomer.
Astronomy in China has a long history stretching from the Shang dynasty,being refined over a period of more than 3,000 years. The ancient Chinese people have identified stars from 1300 BCE,as Chinese star names later categorized in the twenty-eight mansions have been found on oracle bones unearthed at Anyang,dating back to the mid-Shang dynasty. The core of the "mansion" system also took shape around this period,by the time of King Wu Ding.
Sidewalk astronomy or street corner astronomy refers to the activity of setting up a telescope in an urban place on a for-profit or non-profit basis as entertainment and/or for public education.
A star chart is a celestial map of the night sky with astronomical objects laid out on a grid system. They are used to identify and locate constellations,stars,nebulae,galaxies,and planets. They have been used for human navigation since time immemorial. Note that a star chart differs from an astronomical catalog,which is a listing or tabulation of astronomical objects for a particular purpose. Tools using a star chart include the astrolabe and planisphere.
Peter Goldreich is an American astrophysicist whose research focuses on celestial mechanics,planetary rings,helioseismology and neutron stars. He is the Lee DuBridge Professor of Astrophysics and Planetary Physics at California Institute of Technology. Since 2005 he has also been a professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton,New Jersey. Asteroid 3805 Goldreich is named after him.
Babylonian astronomy was the study or recording of celestial objects during the early history of Mesopotamia.
Astronomical chronology,or astronomical dating,is a technical method of dating events or artifacts that are associated with astronomical phenomena. Written records of historical events that include descriptions of astronomical phenomena have done much to clarify the chronology of the Ancient Near East;works of art which depict the configuration of the stars and planets and buildings which are oriented to the rising and setting of celestial bodies at a particular time have all been dated through astronomical calculations.
Clifford J. Cunningham is a Canadian-Scottish professional astronomer and author of numerous books on asteroids.
Forensic astronomy is the use of astronomy,the scientific study of celestial objects,to determine the appearance of the sky at specific times in the past. This has been used,if relatively rarely,in forensic science and for resolving historical problems more generally,notably issues in art history.
Historical models of the Solar System began during prehistoric periods and are updated to this day. The models of the Solar System throughout history were first represented in the early form of cave markings and drawings,calendars and astronomical symbols. Then books and written records became the main source of information that expressed the way the people of the time thought of the Solar System.