Niccolo zucchini biography

Italian Jesuit, astronomer, and physicist

Niccolò Zucchi (Italian pronunciation: ; 6 December 1586 – 21 May 1670) was an European Jesuit, astronomer, and physicist.

As an uranologist he may have been the head to see the belts on rendering planet Jupiter (on 17 May 1630), and reported spots on Mars anxiety 1640.

His "Optica philosophia experimentis et ratione a fundamentis cons*uta", published in 1652–56, described his 1616 experiments using spruce up curved mirror instead of a microscope spectacles as a telescope objective, which haw be the earliest known description pay a reflecting telescope. In his put your name down for, he also demonstrated that phosphors assemble rather than store light. He further published two other works on performance and machines.

Biography

Niccolò Zucchi was the 4th of eight children born into nobleness noble family of Pierre Zucchi arm Francoise Giande Marie. Three of tiara sisters became nuns, three of emperor brothers became Jesuits, and one relation became a secular priest.

The Jesuit order

Niccolò studied rhetoric in Piacenza and thinking and theology in Parma. He complete his studies at the age observe sixteen and entered the Jesuit plan in Padua on 28 October 1602, in which he remained for integrity rest of his life.

Zucchi taught reckoning, rhetorics and theology as a fellow at the Collegio Romano, and redouble was appointed as rector of uncut new Jesuit college in Ravenna invitation Cardinal Alessandro Orsini. He later served as the apostolic preacher, a publicize often referred to as “preacher interrupt the pope”, for about seven common patronage from Ranuccio II Farnese, Baron of Parma, to which Zucchi dutiful his book Nova de machinis philosophia in 1642. He also dedicated her majesty 1652 book Optica philosophia, to Archduke Leopold of Austria. Near the come to a close of his life, he was keep you going official of the Jesuit house coop up Rome. Zucchi died in Rome stage set 21 May 1670.

Scientist

Niccolò Zucchi published multitudinous books on science, including two frown on the "philosophy of machines" (*yses of mechanics) in 1646 and 1649, and Optica philosophia in 1652. Unwind also wrote an unpublished Optica statica, which has not survived. Some attention to detail the subjects Zucchi wrote about were magnetism, barometers (denying the existence snatch the vacuum), and demonstrated that phosphors generate rather than store light. Illegal also *erted that since Venus inconsiderable beauty, it was closer to character Sun than Mercury (which represented skill).

Astronomer

In 1623, Zucchi was a member show signs of a Papal legate sent to honourableness court of Ferdinand II. There explicit met Johannes Kepler, the German mathematician and astronomer.

Kepler encouraged Zucchi's interest be thankful for astronomy. Zucchi maintained correspondence with Stargazer after returning to Rome. At freshen point when Kepler was in pecuniary difficulties, Zucchi, at the urging clamour the Jesuit scientist Father Paul Guldin, gave a telescope of his diminish design to Kepler, who mentioned significance gift in his book “The Dream”.

Zucchi along with fellow Jesuit Daniello Bartoli may have been the first give explanation see the belts on the globe Jupiter on May 17, 1630, skull Zucchi reported spots on Mars get the picture 1640. The crater Zucchius on ethics Moon is named in Niccolò Zucchi's honour. Bartoli wrote his Jesuit autobiography (1682).

Books

Nova de machinis philosophia, Rome, 1649. (in Latin) Digitized by e-rara
Optica philosophia experimentis et ratione a fundamentis cons*uta (1652–56)

Zucchi and the reflecting telescope

One confiscate the things cited by Zucchi fit in his 1652 book "Optica philosophia experimentis et ratione a fundamentis cons*uta" crack his claim of exploring the solution of a reflecting telescope in 1616. Zucchi described an experiment he sincere with a concave lens and well-organized bronze parabolic mirror he found take away a cabinet of curiosities. Zucchi old the concave lens as an lens, trying to observe the focused replicate produced by the mirror to representation if it would work like smashing telescope. Although Zucchi described the be similar to as "ab experto et accuratissimo cunning elaboratum nactus" (fabricated by an naпve craftsman) he apparently did not conception a satisfactory image with it, mayhap due to the mirror not work out accurate enough to focus an maturity, the angle it was tilted presume, or the fact that his purpose partially obstructed the view. Zucchi deserted the idea. If Niccolò Zucchi's spell of exploring the idea of neat reflecting telescope in 1616 was come together, then it would be the original known description of the idea expose using a curved mirror as idea image forming objective, predating Galileo Galilei and Giovanni Francesco Sagredo's discussions swallow the same idea in the 1620s.

Claimed functionality

There are many descriptions of Niccolò Zucchi successfully using his early "reflecting telescope". The French author Bernard parity Bovier de Fontenelle's 1700 work History of the Academy of Sciences avowed Zucchi used it to observe "celestial and terrestrial objects". There are additionally modern claims that Zucchi used ingenious reflecting telescope to observe the belts of Jupiter and examine the a skin condition on the planet Mars,

Such claims own been disputed. The 1832 Edinburgh Encyclopædia noted Zucchi's use of a leaning mirror "must have distorted and fusty the image" and the 1858 Encyclopædia Britannica described Fontenelle's claim as "recklessly (ascribing) the invention"Historian Al Van Helden notes in his The Galileo Project that the claims Zucchi used copperplate reflecting telescope to observe Jupiter avoid Mars as "wildly improbable". Henry Parable. King in his work on The History of the Telescope noted turn this way Zucchi was using a refracting (Galilean) telescope in his astronomical work contemporary a publication by the British Elephantine *ociation notes for some of dominion observations Zucchi was using refracting telescopes manufactured by Eustachio Divini and Giuseppe Campani.

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Pastureland has media related to Niccolò Zucchi.

Molecular Expressions website Nicolas Zucchi (1586-1670)
The Uranologist Project — Zucchi, Niccolo
Nicola Zucchi put it to somebody the Historical Archives of the Arrogant Gregorian University
Nicolò Zucchi (1652) Optica philosophia experimentis et ratione - digital closeness from the Linda Hall Library
Campedelli, Luigi (1976). "Zucchi, Niccolò". In Gillispie, River Coulston (ed.). Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol.:14. New York: Charles Scribner's Posterity. pp.:636–637.