the ccldrated Afironomer., 63. 



Ctftronomy. About the r aine period young Pilars, then in 

 his 14th year, conceived at once a great, tafle for that fcience. 

 During an evening, 'walk in the month of Augult, having 

 obferved the Pleiades or feven liars, lie became very defirous 

 of knowing to what conflellation they belonged, He there- 

 fore purchafed fome charts and books, and began to itudy 

 aflronomy with the grcatcit diligence. He read with the. 

 utinoil avidity every aitronnmicaf work he was able to pro- 

 cure, and in a few months made himfelf acquainted with all 

 the conitellations, 



lie, however, hum obfervecj, that without a knowledge of 

 the mathematics it would be impollible for him to be an 

 aftronomer, or to understand the neceiiary operations: he 

 therefore applied to the mathematics, and devoted all his 

 Icifure time to the itudy of thefe fcienees. In the year 1777, 

 when a ftudent of medicine, at the uuiverfity of Gottingen, 

 he had made himfelf matter of every thing that could be 

 learned from Wolf's Klenients, and had read alio a confi- 

 uVrable part of the works of Euler and. Lambert. 



At Gottingen he had the good fortune to Itudy mathema- 

 tics under the celebrated Kaltner, whofe lectures he attended. 

 The method to which that eminent matter aceuftomed his 

 fcholars was excellent; and Dr. Olbers coniiders himfelf in- 

 debted to him for what he has hitherto been able to do in 

 regard to the folution of difficult problems. In confequence 

 of Kaitner's well-known readinefs to promote the progrefs of 

 his pupils, Dr. Olbers had free accefs to his extenfive library, 

 and alio to the obfervatory of which Kadncr was then director. 

 Xhe ftudy of medicine, however, which was the principal 

 object: of his attention, and which he purfued with a fuecefs 

 equal to his zeal, allowed him very little time for the ftudy 

 of practical aftronomy. 



In the year 1779 he obferved at Gottingen, and calculated, 

 the iirft comet. An account of this labour was publiihod by 

 Kaftner in the Berlin Aitronomical Calendar for the year 1782, 

 and in the G'ottinger Anzcigen of May 31, 1799 ; where it 

 is mentioned that Olbers made his couftru6tion one night 

 while attending a patient. Kaftner here obferves, with great 

 juitice, that under fuch circumftances the orbit of a comet 

 could hardly be determined. But it was afterwards feen that 

 Olbers's determination of this orbit correfponded with the 

 nioft accurate elements of the comet which were calculated. 

 Since that period the aitronomy of comets has been his fa^ 

 vourite itudy ; and how much he has diitinguifhed himfelf in 

 this department, and how much he has enlarged the theory* 

 i*> feen by his new method of calculating the orbit of a comet 



Vol. XIII. No. 49. £ n gin 



