Heinrich Wilhelm Matthaus Olbers Biography

Heinrich Olbers was born on October 11, 1758. He was born in Arbergren, Germany, near Bremen. He is most famous for being a physician and an astronomer. He studied to become a physician at Gottinger, which is a university in Lower Saxony, Germany. He graduated in 1780, and he began to practice medicine in Bremen, Germany. He is perhaps more famous for his fascination with astronomy and contributions made towards the field. He turned the second level of his home into an observatory with which he was able to make several contributions. He made several discoveries of asteroids, including Pallas and Vesta. Olbers also theorized about the formation of the asteroid belt. As the term "asteroid" had not been coined during his lifetime, he as well as some others astronomers thought that they were planets or parts of planets. Olbers predicted that the area in which these asteroids were being found was once a planet and that the asteroids were its remnants. Olbers also discovered a comet which is named after him (13P/Olbers). Olbers' most famous contribution to astronomy is his paradox. It states that the darkness of the night sky conflicts with the  assumption of an infinite and eternal static universe. If the universe is static and populated by an infinite number of stars, any sight line from Earth must end at the surface of a star, so the night should be completely bright. Other notable accomplishments were his acceptance into the Royal Swedish Academy of the Sciences, and he also partook in the baptizing of Napoleon the Second of France. Heinrich Olbers died on March 2, 1840, at the age of 81.