Steinicke, Wolfgang (Author)
In 1785 William Herschel published a paper in the Philosophical Transactions containing the remarkable section "An opening or hole". It describes an unusual vacant place in Scorpius. This matter falls into oblivion until Caroline Herschel initiated a correspondence with her nephew John in 1833. It contains Herschel's spectacular words "Hier ist wahrhaftig ein Loch im Himmel" ("Here truly is a hole in the sky"). About a hundred years later, Johann Georg Hagen, Director of the Vatican Observatory, presented a spectacular candidate for the 'hole', discovered in 1857 by Angelo Secchi in Sagittarius and later catalogued by Edward E. Barnard as the dark nebula B 86. Hagen's claim initiated a debate, mainly in the Journal of the British Astronomical Association, about the identity of Herschel's 'object'. Though things could be partly cleared up, unjustified claims still remain. This is mainly due to the fact that original sources were not consulted. A comprehensive study of the curious 'hole' is presented here. It covers major parts of the epochal astronomical work of William, Caroline and John Herschel. This includes a general study of 'vacant places', found by William Herschel and others, and the speculations about their nature, eventually leading to the finding that dark nebulae are due to absorbing interstellar matter. Some of the 'vacant places' could be identified in catalogues of dark nebulae and this leads to a 'Herschel Catalogue of Dark Nebulae' - the first historic catalogue of its kind.
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Book
Bratton, Mark;
(2011)
The Complete Guide to the Herschel Objects: Sir William Herschel's Star Clusters, Nebulae, and Galaxies
(/isis/citation/CBB001252581/)
Article
Hoskin, Michael;
(2005)
Caroline Herschel: “The Unquiet Heart”
(/isis/citation/CBB000630776/)
Book
Hoskin, Michael A.;
(2007)
The Herschels of Hanover
(/isis/citation/CBB000930169/)
Article
Hoskin, Michael;
(2011)
William Herschel and Herschelian Reflectors
(/isis/citation/CBB001023542/)
Book
Wolfgang Steinicke;
(2021)
William Herschel Discoverer of the Deep Sky: The epochal work of the greatest visual observer and his talented sister Caroline
(/isis/citation/CBB218557286/)
Book
Holmes, Richard;
(2008)
The Age of Wonder
(/isis/citation/CBB001024401/)
Article
Martin Schneider;
(2022)
Von der Musik zur Astronomie. Die Geschwister William und Caroline Herschel (From music to astronomy. The siblings William and Caroline Herschel)
(/isis/citation/CBB894984103/)
Book
Hoskin, Michael;
(2003)
The Herschel Partnership: As Viewed by Caroline
(/isis/citation/CBB000500033/)
Book
Wolfgang Steinicke;
(2021)
William Herschel: Discoverer of the Deep Sky
(/isis/citation/CBB965994687/)
Chapter
Ring, Francis;
(2008)
Telescopes and Astronomy: The Herschels in Bath
(/isis/citation/CBB001022813/)
Book
Hoskin, Michael A.;
(2011)
Discoverers of the Universe: William and Caroline Herschel
(/isis/citation/CBB001024756/)
Article
Wolfgang Steinicke;
(2023)
Visitors to the Herschels between 1777 and 1822
(/isis/citation/CBB432491035/)
Article
Hoskin, Michael;
(2008)
Nebulae, Star Clusters and the Milky Way: From Galileo to William Herschel
(/isis/citation/CBB000930134/)
Book
Belkora, Leila;
(2003)
Minding the Heavens: The Story of Our Discovery of the Milky Way
(/isis/citation/CBB000301934/)
Article
Clifford J. Cunningham;
(2020)
Herschel's spurious moons of Uranus: their impact on satellite orbital theory, celestial cartography and literature
(/isis/citation/CBB722993822/)
Article
Hoskin, Michael;
(2008)
Gravity and Light in the Newtonian Universe of Stars
(/isis/citation/CBB000930128/)
Book
Kurtik, Gennadii;
(2007)
Zvezdnoe nebo drevnei Mesopotamii: Shumero-akkadskie nazvaniia sozvezdii i drugikh svetil
(/isis/citation/CBB000900066/)
Article
S. Mohammad Mozaffari;
(2022)
An analysis of Ibn al-Shāṭir’s star table
(/isis/citation/CBB218902011/)
Chapter
Wayne Orchiston;
Clifford J. Cunningham;
(2015)
The Clash Between William Herschel and the Great German ‘Amateur’ Astronomer Johann Schroeter
(/isis/citation/CBB706726069/)
Article
Hanham, Andrew;
Hoskin, Michael;
(2013)
The Herschel Knighthoods: Facts and Fiction
(/isis/citation/CBB001200854/)
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