History

It is believed that the development of astronomy at V.N.Karazin Kharkov National University began in 1808, when a special room devoted to astronomy studies was opened. In 1824 the Chair of astronomy was founded at Kharkov University. P.A.Zateplinskiy (1794-1834) was the first head of this department. In fact P.A.Zateplinskiy was the first Russian scientist who was awarded a Ph.D. degree of the University of Paris ( the famed Sorbonne. After he came back to Russia, he was nominated as the first professor of astronomy of Kharkov University. In the middle of the nineteenth century a great event took place in Russian astronomical world: Vasiliy Ya. Struve (1793-1864), the founder of Pulkovo Observatory, initiated observations the major goal of which was to measure the degree of arc of the so-called "Russian meridian". Astronomers of Kharkov University took active part in this campaign under the supervision of Prof. Shidlovskij A.P. (1818-1892).


In 1883 the permanent Astronomical Observatory of Kharkov University was founded by Prof. Levitskiy G.V. (1852-1917). For more than two decades, from 1894 to 1915, Ludwig O. Struve (1858-1920), a grandson of the aforementioned astronomer Vasiliy Ya. Struve, was the head of the Chair of Astronomy of Kharkov University and the director of Astronomical Observatory. He was a founder of Kharkov scientific school in the field of astrometry and stellar astronomy. Honoured Scientist of Ukraine Prof. Evdokimov N.N. (1868-1941), State Prize Winner of the USSR Kavrayskiy V.V. (1884-1954), Honoured Science and Engineering Worker of the RSFSR Kudrevich B.I. (18..-19..) were outstanding representatives of this school. Famous astrophysicists Acad. Fessenkov V.G. (1889-1972) (he was the founder of planetary astronomy at Kharkov Observatory), Prof. Gerassimovich B.P. (1889-1937) (he was the Director of Pulkovo Observatory in the 1930's), American astronomer Otto Struve (1897-1963) (he was a son of Ludwig O. Struve and he headed a number of American astronomical institutions and served as President of the International Astronomical Union in 1952-1955), Acad. of Ukrainian Academy of Sciences Barabashov N.P. (1894-1971) were Prof. Struve's students and disciples.

Acad. Barabashov N.P., the founder of the world wide-known Kharkov school of planetary science, successfully continued researches of physical conditions of the Moon and other planets of the solar system begun by Acad. Fessenkov V.G.


Information about the Moon's surface, Martian atmosphere, studies of the photometric properties of atmospheres of Venus, Jupiter, Saturn obtained by the researchers of Kharkov Observatory in the 1930-60`s ensured greater efficiency in the first planetary space program planning. Astronomers of Kharkov National University took part in the preparation and reduction of the results of almost all spaceborne researches of the Moon, Mars, Venus and Halley Comet carried out in the USSR. Acad. Barabashov was one of the editors of the three-volume "Atlas of the Moon's far side". Hard work on the creation of data output necessary for the design of spacecraft astronavigation systems was performed in 1967-1988 by the scientists of Kharkov National University.

At the same time astrometrical position measurements were continued. In 1935 the first spectroheliograph of our country was designed, and then the Solar Patrol was organized, and the studies of solar activity and solar physics were started. Since 1929 the Kharkov Time Service that is a component of the International Time Service began its daily routine work.

In the late 1960's a new scientific trend (working out of ground-based and space data processing technique) began to develop, and a number of applied scientific tasks were solved, in particular, reduction of space images of the Moon, Mars, Venus. Now on the basis of this technique the studies of gravitational lenses are being carried out.

Studies of the solar system bodies, based on the combination of the Earth-based and space observations which are obtained as a result of space missions of the Clementine (the Moon), Magellan (Venus), and Global surveyor spacecrafts (Mars) are being continued. Information about optical and radiophysical surface properties of the Moon and Venus is used to result in their chemical-mineralogical and geological characteristics. As a consequence, a lot of unique maps of the Moon and terrestrial planets Mars and Venus are created by Kharkov astronomers today. In addition, these works are accompanied by the diverse theoretical and laboratory methods that can provide significant information about the scattering of light reflected by the rough surfaces.

For two decades asteroid research has been developing in Kharkov. Observatory of Kharkov National University is one of the leading astronomical institutions which investigate the near-Earth asteroids and solve the impact hazard problems.

Nowadays some new scientific trends are developed: the large astrophysical telescopes are used in the field of astrometry; the closest to the Sun stars and physics of substars (a new type of objects predicted by Kharkov astronomers) are studied.

Astronomers of Kharkov National University work in close co-operation with their colleagues from the special astronomical institutions of Ukraine, Russia (and other countries of the former USSR), the USA, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Poland.

Scientific research and educational process in Kharkov National University are associated. About ten students finish their astronomical studies every year. For five post-war decades about 400 qualified astronomers graduated from Kharkov National University. Most astronomy students are not going to make career in astronomical research, nevertheless, about 50 of our graduate students have been awarded the Candidate degree, and more than ten persons were awardet the Doctor degree. It is important that joined observational and research work of the scientists of Astronomical Observatory, the teachers and astronomical students is actively encouraged.

Today the staff of Astronomical Observatory and Teaching staff of the Chair of astronomy numbers 45 researchers including six Doctors of Science (Professors) and 20 Candidates of Science (PhD). They are organized in five thematic sections:

* astrometry and stellar astronomy (The chief of this section is Dr. P.N.Fedorov);
* planetary and solar physics (The chief of this section is Dr. V.V.Korokhin);
* physics of asteroids (The chief of this section is Prof. D.F.Lupishko);
* remote sensing examines of planets (The chief of this section is Prof. Yu.G.Shkuratov);
* methods of reduction of observations (The chief of this section is Prof. V.N.Dudinov).


In addition, Astronomical Observatory has a good working library (above 50.000 of the principal astronomical and scientific periodicals and books), and the Chuguyev Observation Station (70 km south-east from Kharkov).

The main equipment of Astronomical Observatory consists of: the 0.7-m reflector (AZT-8); the 0.5-m reflector (on Mt. Maidanak in Middle Asia); a reflector (AZT-7); the Repsold meridian circle; a normal astrograph; a transit instrument (APM); a solar telescope (AFR-2). The special coherent-optical system for calculations is unique, it was registered as the national property of Ukraine. Our observers have a great opportunity to work with new powerful equipment at other observatories.

At the present time the basic trends of the researches at Kharkov Astronomical Observatory and the Chair of astronomy are:

* experimental and theoretical studies of interacting radiation with the rough surfaces;
* studies of chemical-mineralogical and geological-morphological characteristics of the lunar and planetary surfaces based on the combination of the ground-based and space data;
* physical properties of minor planets (asteroids) and the impact hazard problem research;
* development of image processing algorithms for high-resolution imaging with ground-based optical telescopes;
* photometric monitoring of brightness variations in gravitational lens systems and investigation of a gravitational lensing phenomenon;
* the Solar Service and studying the Solar activity in the chromosphere;
* studying the characteristics of the nearest to the Sun stars;
* studying the inner composition of the substars;
* studying the supermassive compact objects;
* fundamental astrometry;
* the Time Service and studying the irregularities in speed of Earth`s rotation.

Astronomers of Kharkov National University are the active members of social scientific organizations in Ukraine. They participate in publicizing scientific results, give popular lectures on astronomy. Their achievements are highly appreciated: 22 objects of the solar system are named in honour of the most prolific astronomers of Kharkov National University.

Professor Yurij V. Aleksandrov