 |
George HaleAmerican astronomer
Date of Birth: 29.06.1868
Country:  USA |
Content:
Biography of George Hale
George Ellery Hale was an American astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of the Sun and stars. He was born on June 29, 1868, in Chicago. Hale graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1890 and later conducted research at the Harvard College Observatory.
In 1888-1891, Hale carried out observations at his own small observatory in Kenwood. From 1892 to 1905, he worked at the University of Chicago, where he became a professor and the first director of the Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, near Chicago. In 1904, Hale founded the Mount Wilson Observatory in California and served as its director until the end of 1923.
Hale's work focused on the physics of the Sun and stars. In 1889, he invented the spectroheliograph, a device used to photograph the Sun's chromosphere. With this instrument, he obtained the first photographs of prominences and calcium flocculi in 1892. Hale also proposed the existence of strong magnetic fields in sunspots and later proved their existence through experiments on the Zeeman effect in spectral lines in 1908. He conducted the first experiments related to the detection of the Sun's global magnetic field.
In addition to his scientific contributions, Hale played a significant role as an organizer. He was involved in the founding of the Yerkes Observatory and the Mount Wilson Observatory, and he secured funding for the construction of large telescopes. The world's largest 40-inch refractor was completed at the Yerkes Observatory in 1897, followed by a 60-inch telescope in 1908 and a 100-inch reflector at the Mount Wilson Observatory in 1917. In 1928, Hale initiated the construction of a 200-inch telescope on Mount Palomar near the Mount Wilson Observatory. The project was completed in 1948, and the telescope was named after Hale.
Hale also participated in the establishment of the California Institute of Technology, one of the largest research centers in the United States. He was involved in the organization of the Huntington Library and Art Gallery in San Marino, California. Hale was one of the founders of the International Union for Cooperation in Solar Research in 1904, which later became the International Astronomical Union in 1919.
Hale's contributions to astronomy and optics, as well as his organizational efforts, earned him numerous awards, medals, and honorary titles from scientific academies in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Italy. He authored several books, including "The Study of Stellar Evolution" (1908), "Ten Years' Work of a Mountain Observatory" (1915), "The New Heavens" (1922), and "The Depths of the Universe" (1924).
George Hale passed away in Pasadena, California, on February 21, 1938.
Installation of the Yerkes Observatory
In 1897, the installation of a 40-inch refractor at the Yerkes Observatory was completed. The observatory is located in Williams Bay, Wisconsin and is owned by the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago. George Hale, along with William Rainey Harper, convinced Chicago millionaire Charles Yerkes to finance the project. Some components of the telescope, including the lenses, had already been manufactured for another project that was never realized. The mechanical parts were made by Warner & Swasey Company in Cleveland, Ohio.
Death and Legacy
George Hale passed away in Pasadena, California, on February 21, 1938. His contributions to astronomy, his development of observatories, and his organizational efforts have left a lasting impact on the field. The Hale Telescope, a 200-inch reflecting telescope on Mount Palomar, is named in his honor. Hale's work continues to inspire astronomers and scientists to this day.
