Astronomer. Discovered the first known variable star, Mira (Omincron Ceti), in August 1596 and later sunspots. Born in Esens, Frisia (now in Germany), he was a Lutheran pastor serving small communities in East Frisia, Germany. In addition to his pastoral duties he studied astronomy. Early in 1611, his son Johannes returned from university studies in the Netherlands with newly invented (1608) telescopes which they used to enhance their observations. In March 1611 the two observed the rising sun and saw several dark spots on it, a new phenomenon. They began at the edge of the Sun, and after their eyes adjusted to the brightness slowly moved toward the Sun's center; they changed to indirect observation using a camera obscura. Over the next several months they tracked spots as they moved across the Sun's face and noted that spots disappeared from the western edge of the Sun and reappeared a week or so later on the eastern edge, now documented as the first notice of sunspots and providing the first evidence of rotation of the sun. Copies of a 1589 map of Frisia made by David Fabricius still exist. He was also mentioned in Jules Verne's book, "From the Earth to the Moon" as someone who claimed to have seen lunar inhabitants through his telescope (fiction). The Fabricius crater (54 miles diameter) in the moon's southern hemisphere is named after him. Cause of death: homicide; shortly bafter denouncing a local goose thief from his pulpit, the accused man struck a fatal blow to Fabricius with a shovel.
Astronomer. Discovered the first known variable star, Mira (Omincron Ceti), in August 1596 and later sunspots. Born in Esens, Frisia (now in Germany), he was a Lutheran pastor serving small communities in East Frisia, Germany. In addition to his pastoral duties he studied astronomy. Early in 1611, his son Johannes returned from university studies in the Netherlands with newly invented (1608) telescopes which they used to enhance their observations. In March 1611 the two observed the rising sun and saw several dark spots on it, a new phenomenon. They began at the edge of the Sun, and after their eyes adjusted to the brightness slowly moved toward the Sun's center; they changed to indirect observation using a camera obscura. Over the next several months they tracked spots as they moved across the Sun's face and noted that spots disappeared from the western edge of the Sun and reappeared a week or so later on the eastern edge, now documented as the first notice of sunspots and providing the first evidence of rotation of the sun. Copies of a 1589 map of Frisia made by David Fabricius still exist. He was also mentioned in Jules Verne's book, "From the Earth to the Moon" as someone who claimed to have seen lunar inhabitants through his telescope (fiction). The Fabricius crater (54 miles diameter) in the moon's southern hemisphere is named after him. Cause of death: homicide; shortly bafter denouncing a local goose thief from his pulpit, the accused man struck a fatal blow to Fabricius with a shovel.
Bio by: Fred Beisser
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