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Barnaba Oriani

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Barnaba Oriani
FRS, FRSE
Portrait of Barnaba Oriani by Pietro Narducci, 1830
Portrait of Barnaba Oriani by Pietro Narducci, 1830
Born 17 July 1752
Garegnano, Milan, Duchy of Milan
Died 12 November 1832 (aged 80)
Milan, Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia
Occupations Catholic priest
Geodesist
Astronomer
Scientist
Known for Detailed research of the planet Uranus
Oriani's theorem
Parent(s) Giorgio Oriani and Margherita Oriani (née Galli)
Scientific career
Fields astronomy
Notable students Francesco Carlini

Barnaba Oriani FRS FRSE (17 July 1752 – 12 November 1832) was an Italian priest, geodesist, astronomer and scientist, known for Oriani's theorem and for his research on Uranus. His skill in spherical trigonometry enabled him to be the first in computing the path and perturbations of the first dwarf planet, Ceres (discovered by his friend Piazzi in 1801).[1] Oriani was also the first to determine the orbit of Uranus.[2]

Life

Oriani was born in the small village of Garegnano (now part of Milan) on 17 July 1752, to a family of humble origins. His father Giorgio was a mason.[3]

After receiving an elementary education in Garegnano, he went on to study at the College of San Alessandro in Milan, under the tutelage and with the support of the Order of Barnabites,[4][5] which he later joined. After completing his studies in the humanities, physical and mathematical sciences, philosophy, and theology, he was ordained a priest in 1775.[3] The Barnabite father Paolo Frisi, professor at the Palatine Schools of Milan, introduced him to theoretical astronomy.

In 1776, at the age of 23, he became an apprentice astronomer in the Brera Astronomical Observatory of Milan, directed by the famous Jesuit polymath Roger Joseph Boscovich.[6] Thanks to his gifts as an observational astronomer, Oriani rapidly raised in status. In 1786 he obtained funds from the Austrian Government for a journey to visit the most highly regarded European research institutions, and with the task of commissioning Jesse Ramsden a new large mural quadrant 8 feet in radius.[7] The instrument was shipped to Genoa in December 1790 and installed in Brera the following year.

When Napoleon I established the Republic of Lombardy, Oriani refused to swear an oath against the monarchy, and the new republican government modified the oath of allegiance on his behalf. He was retained in his position at the observatory and was made president of the commission appointed to introduce the metric system to Lombardy.[3] In 1800 he was summoned by Napoleon to take part in the organisational committee for the new Italian Republic.

When the republic became a Napoleonic kingdom, Oriani was awarded the Iron Crown and the Legion of Honour, was made a count and senator, and was appointed to measure the arc of the meridian between the zeniths of Rimini and Rome.[3]

When Lombardy returned under Austrian rule in 1814, the work of the observatory went on uninterrupted. Oriani retired in 1817, handing over the directorship to Boscovich's pupil Angelo Cesaris, but he continued to live in Brera and to carry out observations alongside his young pupil Francesco Carlini. He died in Milan on 12 November 1832.

Oriani was a devoted friend of the Theatine monk Giuseppe Piazzi, the discoverer of Ceres. He was the first person to whom Piazzi communicated his discovery.[8] Oriani and Piazzi worked together for thirty-seven years, cooperating on many astronomical observations.[3]

Astronomy

Given his strong interest in astronomy, Oriani was appointed on the staff of the Observatory of Brera in Milan in 1776, becoming assistant astronomer in 1778 and director in 1802. In 1778 he began publishing various in-depth dissertations on astronomical objects, the Effemeridi di Milano (Ephemerides of Milan).[3] On May 5, 1779, he discovered the Virgo Cluster galaxy Messier 61, using a 3.6" refractor at Brera Observatory.[9]

A very capable astronomer, Oriani's work began to attract considerable attention.[3] His research in the areas of astronomic refraction, the obliquity of the ecliptic, and orbital theory were of considerable noteworthiness in themselves; but his greatest achievement was his detailed research of the planet Uranus, which had been discovered by Sir William Herschel in 1781. Oriani devoted significant time to observations of Uranus, calculating its orbital properties which he published as a booklet of tables in 1783.[10] It was an important work, that won him widespread appreciation and made him famous in Europe.[6]

After others had shown that Uranus was not on a parabolic orbit but rather in a roughly circular orbit, he calculated the orbit in 1783. In 1789, Oriani improved his calculations by accounting for the gravitational effects of Jupiter and Saturn.[4]

In addition to his continual contributions to the Effemeridi, he published a series of memoirs on spherical trigonometry: the Memorie dell'Istituto Italiano, 1806–10, and the Istruzione suelle misure e sui pesi, 1831.[3]

For his work in astronomy, Oriani was honoured by naming asteroid 4540 "Oriani". This asteroid had been discovered at the Osservatorio San Vittore in Bologna, Italy on 6 November 1988.[4]

Oriani's theorem

In De refractionibus astronomicis,[11] Oriani showed that astronomical refraction could be expanded as a series of odd powers of (tan Z), where Z is the observed zenith distance. Such a series had previously been derived by J. H. Lambert, who dropped all but the first term. However, Oriani investigated the higher terms, and he found that neither of the first two terms depended on the structure of the atmosphere.

The series expansion he obtained was effective at up to 85 degrees from the zenith. Unlike previous approximations, however, Oriani's two-term expression did not depend on a hypothesis regarding atmospheric temperature or air density in relation to altitude. Thus, the effects of atmospheric curvature are only dependent upon the temperature and pressure at the location of the observer.

Oriani's theorem explains why Cassini's uniform-density model works well except near the horizon—the atmospheric refraction from the zenith to a zenith distance of 70° is not dependent on the details of the distribution of the gas.[12]

See also

  • List of Roman Catholic scientist-clerics

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

Barnaba Oriani — Italian Barnabite and astronomer, b. at Carignano, near Milan, 17 July, 1752; d. at Milan, 12 November, 1832. After receiving an elementary education in his native town, he studied at the College of San Alessandro, Milan, where he was educated and supported by the Barnabites. He later joined the Barnabites, and, after studying the humanities, physical and mathematical sciences, philosophy, and theology, was ordained priest at the age of twenty-three. Specially interested in astronomy, he was shortly after his ordination (1776) appointed on the staff of the Observatory of Brera in Milan. He became assistant astronomer in 1778, and director in 1802. In 1778 he began to publish the dissertations on astronomical subjects which form an important part of the original memoirs appearing in the "Effemeridi di Milano" during the next fifty-two years. His work soon attracted considerable attention, and in 1785 a notable memoir containing his calculation of the orbit of Uranus and a table of elements for that planet won for him a prominent place among the astronomers of his time. He was admitted to membership in numerous learned societies, and offered the position of professor of astronomy at Palermo, which, however, he did not accept. In the following year he travelled throughout Europe at the expense of the state, visiting the chief observatories. When Napoleon set up the republic in Lombardy, Oriani refused absolutely to swear hatred towards monarchy; the new government modified the oath of allegiance in his regard, retained him in his position at the observatory, and made him president of the commission appointed to regulate the new system of weights and measures. When the republic was transformed into the Napoleonic kingdom Oriani received the decorations of the Iron Crown and of the Legion of Honour, was made count and senator of the kingdom, and was appointed in company with De Cesaris, to measure the arc of the meridian between the zeniths of Rimini and Rome. He was a devoted friend of the Theatine monk Piazzi, the discoverer of Ceres, and for thirty-seven years cooperated with him in many ways in his astronomical labours. Besides his constant contributions to the "Effemeridi di Milano", he published a series of important memoirs on spherical trigonometry (Memorie dell' Istituto Italiano, 1806-10) and the "Istruzione suelle misure e sui pesi" (Milan, 1831).

GABBA in TIPALDO, Italiani Illustri, III (Venice, 1836), 473-81; POGGENDORF, Handwörterbuch zur Gesch. der exacten Wissenschaften, II (Leipzig, 1863); CACCIATORE AND SCHIAPPARELLI, Correspondenza Astronomica fra Giuseppe Piazzi e Barnaba Oriani (Milan, 1874), introduction.

References

  1. Back to citation Cunningham 2007.
  2. Back to citation Abetti, Giorgio (1952). The History of Astronomy. Translated by Betty B. Abetti. New York: H. Schuman. p. 174.
  3. Back to citation occurrence 3.0 Back to citation occurrence 3.1 Back to citation occurrence 3.2 Back to citation occurrence 3.3 Back to citation occurrence 3.4 Back to citation occurrence 3.5 Back to citation occurrence 3.6 Back to citation occurrence 3.7 Herbermann 1913.
  4. Back to citation occurrence 4.0 Back to citation occurrence 4.1 Back to citation occurrence 4.2 Students for the Exploration and Development of Space
  5. Back to citation Aist, Rodney (2012-06-15). "St Barnabas of Milan". Medieval Milanetc. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  6. Back to citation occurrence 6.0 Back to citation occurrence 6.1 Tagliaferri & Tucci 1989, p. 278.
  7. Back to citation Schiaparelli 1881, p. 324.
  8. Back to citation Chinnici 2024, p. 81.
  9. Back to citation "Messier 61". Archived from the original on 2017-01-06. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
  10. Back to citation Alexandro Malaspina Research Centre Archived November 9, 2002, at the Wayback Machine
  11. Back to citation Ephemerides astronomicae anni 1788: Appendix ad ephemerides Anni 1788 (Appresso Giuseppe Galeazzi, Milano, 1787), pp. 164–277.
  12. Back to citation Young, Andrew T (2009). "Wegener's principle". Retrieved 6 May 2021.

Bibliography

  • Gabba, Alberto (1834). Elogio di Barnaba Oriani. Milan: Luigi di Giacomo Pirola. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  • Schiaparelli, Giovanni Virginio, ed. (1875). Corrispondenza astronomica fra Giuseppe Piazzi e Barnaba Oriani. Milan: Ulrico Hoepli. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  • Schiaparelli, Giovanni Virginio (1881). "Notizie sull'Osservatorio di Brera in Milano". Mediolanum. Vol. II. Milan: Vallardi. pp. 323–327.
  • Celoria, Giovanni (1912). "Commemorazione dell'astronomo Barnaba Oriani". Rivista di astronomia. VI: 321–339.
  • Meda, Filippo (1932). "Barnaba Oriani nel primo centenario della sua morte". Vita e Pensiero. 11: 651–660.
  • Bianchi, Emilio (1933). "Barnaba Oriani". Memorie della Società astronomica italiana. VI (3): 421–440.
  • Emanuelli, Pio (1933). "L'astronomo Barnaba Oriani nel primo centenario della morte". Rivista di fisica, matematica e scienze naturali. VII (6–7): 3–26.
  • Tagliaferri, Guido; Tucci, Pasquale (1989). "The visit to the Low Countries in 1786 of the astronomer Barnaba Oriani". In C.S. Maffioli; L.C. Palm (eds.). Italian scientists in the Low Countries in the XVIIth and XVIIIth centuries. Amsterdam: Rodopi. pp. 277–290. doi:10.1163/9789401200110_017.
  • Tagliaferri, Guido; Tucci, Pasquale (1993). "Laplace, Oriani, and the Italian meridian degree". In F. Bevilacqua (ed.). Proceedings of the 1st EPS Conference on history of physics in Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries. Bologna: Rodopi. pp. 93–100.
  • Agnese Mandrino; Guido Tagliaferri; Pasquale Tucci, eds. (1994). Un viaggio in Europa nel 1786. Diario di Barnaba Oriani astronomo milanese. Florence: Leo S. Olschki. ISBN 9788822241702.
  • Tagliaferri, Guido; Tucci, Pasquale (1997). "Alcune lettere inedite di P.S. Laplace a Barnaba Oriani". Quaderni di Storia della Fisica. I: 5–34.
  • Chinnici, Ileana (2024). "The Discovery of Ceres: A "Scientific Comedy"". In Ileana Chinnici (ed.). Italian Contributions to Planetary Astronomy. From the Discovery of Ceres to Pluto's Orbit. Historical & Cultural Astronomy. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. pp. 77–102. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-48389-9_5. ISBN 978-3-031-48388-2.
  • Bianchi, Emilio (1933). "ORIANI, Barnaba". Enciclopedia Italiana. Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. Retrieved 23 May 2025.
  • Tucci, Pasquale (2013). "ORIANI, Barnaba". Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (in Italian). Vol. 79: Nursio–Ottolini Visconti. Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. ISBN 978-88-12-00032-6.
  • Cunningham, C.J. (2007). "Oriani, Barnaba". In Hockey, T; et al. (eds.). Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. New York, NY: Springer. pp. 861–862. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-30400-7_1041. ISBN 978-0-387-31022-0.
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