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Charles Dillon Perrine

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Charles Dillon Perrine
Charles Dillon Perrine
Born(1867-07-28)July 28, 1867
Ohio
DiedJune 21, 1951(1951-06-21) (aged 83)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materSanta Clara College (honorary doctorate) (today, Santa Clara University)
Known forHimalia
Elara
AwardsLalande Prize, Astronomical Society of Mexico Gold Medal, Astronomical Society of the Pacific's Donohoe (Comet) Medals (x5), 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition Gold Medal
Scientific career
Fieldsastronomy
InstitutionsLick Observatory, Argentine National Observatory (today, Observatorio Astronomico Cordoba)

Charles Dillon Perrine (July 28, 1867 – June 21, 1951) was an American astronomer living in Argentina. He won the Lalande Prize in 1897.[1]

Born in Steubenville, Ohio, a son of Peter and Elizabeth McCauley Perrine,[2][3] and a descendant of Daniel Perrin, "The Huguenot", he worked at Lick Observatory in California from 1893 to 1909 and then was director of the Argentine National Observatory (today, Observatorio Astronómico de Córdoba)[4][5] in Argentina from 1909 until 1936.

Between 1900 and 1908, Perrine accompanied four eclipse expeditions and was in charge of the one sent from Lick Observatory to Sumatra in 1901. Also in 1901, he and George Ritchey observed the apparent superluminal motion in the nebulosity surrounding Nova Persei 1901.[3]

He discovered two moons of Jupiter, today known as Himalia (on December 3, 1904) and Elara (in 1905). They were simply designated "Jupiter VI" and "Jupiter VII" and were not given their present names until 1975.

Perrine co-discovered the lost periodic comet 18D/Perrine-Mrkos and several other comets. Antonín Mrkos later named the asteroid 6779 Perrine after him. The lunar crater Perrine is also named after him.

As director of the Argentine National Observatory in Cordoba, Perrine designed and led the first astronomical attempt to test Einstein's Theory of Relativity by observing the deflection of star light near the Sun at a total solar eclipse. In Perrine's own words, "The Cordoba Observatory made the first definite attempt to secure observations at an eclipse (that of 1912) for the relativity problem and that was done at the instigation of Dr. Freundlich."[6] Albert Einstein, in 1905, had proposed his Theory of Special Relativity which predicted that gravity bent light. In 1911 Einstein wrote, "It would be urgently wished that astronomers take up the question here raised (gravitational light-bending),...".[7] Dr. Freundlich, a German astronomer, took up Einstein's challenge and contacted Perrine in 1911 and 1912 to ask if he would undertake a test of light-bending near the Sun. Perrine agreed to add the test to his planned expedition to Cristina, Brazil to observe the total solar eclipse of Oct. 10, 1912. William Wallace Campbell, the Director of the Lick Observatory, also encouraged Perrine to pursue the test and loaned him telescopic/camera lenses for the purpose. Perrine designed and had built the necessary telescopes/cameras at the Argentine Observatory which he transported to and set up at the observation site. Unfortunately, steady rain made visibility of the brief eclipse and the test impossible. As Perrine put it, "We suffered a total eclipse instead of observing one".[8]

He promoted the study of astrophysics in Argentina and pushed for the construction of a large telescope (the Bosque Alegre telescope), which however was not completed until 1942 (he had retired in 1936). He remained in Argentina after retirement and died there, in Villa General Mitre (which has since been renamed to its original name of Villa del Totoral). He is buried in the Cementerio de Disidentes in the city of Córdoba.

Comets discovered or co-discovered

References

  1. ^ "Perrine, Charles Dillon". New International Encyclopedia. Vol. 18. 1918. p. 364.
  2. ^ ‘U.S. Passport Application, American Embassy, Paris, France, 27 Oct. 1911’, “U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925”, Ancestry.com, retrieved May 2020
  3. ^ a b Leonard, John (1901). Who's Who in America, Vol. II. Chicago, Illinois: A. N. Marquis and Co. p. 885.
  4. ^ Hodge, John (1997). "Charles Dillon Perrine and the Transformation of the Argentine National Observatory". Journal of the History of Astronomy. 8: 12–25. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  5. ^ "Observatorio Astronómico de Córdoba". Oac.uncor.edu. September 27, 1908. Archived from the original on February 28, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  6. ^ Perrine, Charles (1923). "Contribution to the history of attempts to test the theory of relativity by means of astronomical observations". Astronomische Nachrichten. 219 (5249): 281–284.
  7. ^ Einstein, Albert (1911). "On the Influence of Gravitation on the Propagation of Light". Annalen de Physik. 35: 898–908.
  8. ^ Paolantonio, Santiago. "Perrine, Freundlich, Eddington and the Theory of Relativity". Historia De La Astronomio. WordPress. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  9. ^ a b c d e f Kronk, Gary W. (2003). "Comet Designation Index, years 1892–1899". Cometography: A Catalog of Comets. Vol. vol. 2: 1800–1899. p. 837. ISBN 978-0521585057. {{cite book}}: |volume= has extra text (help)

Obituaries

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