Giovanni Antonio Amedeo Plana
Encyclopedia
Giovanni Antonio Amedeo Plana (6 November 1781 – 20 January 1864) was an Italian
astronomer
and mathematician
.
He was born in Voghera
, Italy
to Antonio Maria Plana and Giacoboni. At the age of 15 he was sent to live with his uncles in Grenoble
to complete his education. In 1800 he entered the École Polytechnique
, and was one of the students of Joseph Lagrange
. Jean Fourier, impressed by Plana's abilities, managed to have him appointed to the chair of mathematics
in a school of artillery in Piedmont
in 1803, which came under the control of the French in 1805. In 1811 he was appointed to the chair of astronomy
at the University of Turin
thanks to the influence of Lagrange. He spent the remainder of his life teaching at that institution.
His contributions included work on the motions of the Moon
, as well as integral
s, elliptic functions, heat
, electrostatics, and geodesy
. In 1820 he was one of the winners of a prize awarded by the Académie des Sciences in Paris
based on the construction of lunar tables using the law of gravity. In 1832 he published the Théorie du mouvement de la lune. In 1834 he was awarded with the Copley Medal
by the Royal Society
for his studies on lunar motion. He became astronomer royal, and then in 1844 a Baron
. At the age of 80 he was granted membership in the prestigious Académie des Sciences. He died in Turin
. He is considered one of the premiere Italian scientists of his age.
The crater Plana
on the Moon
is named in his honor.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
and mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
.
He was born in Voghera
Voghera
thumb|250px|The Castle of Voghera in a 19th century etching.Voghera is a town and comune of Lombardy, Italy, in the province of Pavia...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
to Antonio Maria Plana and Giacoboni. At the age of 15 he was sent to live with his uncles in Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
to complete his education. In 1800 he entered the École Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
, and was one of the students of Joseph Lagrange
Joseph Lagrange
Count Joseph Lagrange was a French soldier who rose through the ranks and gained promotion to the rank of general officer during the French Revolutionary Wars, subsequently pursuing a successful career during the Napoleonic Wars and winning promotion to the top military rank of General of Division....
. Jean Fourier, impressed by Plana's abilities, managed to have him appointed to the chair of mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
in a school of artillery in Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
in 1803, which came under the control of the French in 1805. In 1811 he was appointed to the chair of astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
at the University of Turin
University of Turin
The University of Turin is a university in the city of Turin in the Piedmont region of north-western Italy...
thanks to the influence of Lagrange. He spent the remainder of his life teaching at that institution.
His contributions included work on the motions of the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, as well as integral
Integral
Integration is an important concept in mathematics and, together with its inverse, differentiation, is one of the two main operations in calculus...
s, elliptic functions, heat
Heat
In physics and thermodynamics, heat is energy transferred from one body, region, or thermodynamic system to another due to thermal contact or thermal radiation when the systems are at different temperatures. It is often described as one of the fundamental processes of energy transfer between...
, electrostatics, and geodesy
Geodesy
Geodesy , also named geodetics, a branch of earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth, including its gravitational field, in a three-dimensional time-varying space. Geodesists also study geodynamical phenomena such as crustal...
. In 1820 he was one of the winners of a prize awarded by the Académie des Sciences in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
based on the construction of lunar tables using the law of gravity. In 1832 he published the Théorie du mouvement de la lune. In 1834 he was awarded with the Copley Medal
Copley Medal
The Copley Medal is an award given by the Royal Society of London for "outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science, and alternates between the physical sciences and the biological sciences"...
by the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
for his studies on lunar motion. He became astronomer royal, and then in 1844 a Baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
. At the age of 80 he was granted membership in the prestigious Académie des Sciences. He died in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
. He is considered one of the premiere Italian scientists of his age.
The crater Plana
Plana (crater)
Plana is a lunar crater that lies on the boundary between two small lunar mare areas, with Lacus Mortis to the north and the larger Lacus Somniorum on the southern side. It is joined to the crater Mason to the east by a short stretch of rugged ground...
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named in his honor.
External links
- Biography and a source for this page.