Eise Eisinga facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Eise Eisinga
|
|
|---|---|
_02.jpg)
Portrait by Willem Bartel van der Kooi (1827)
|
|
| Born |
Eise Jeltes Eisinga
21 February 1744 Dronryp, Dutch Republic
|
| Died | 27 August 1828 (aged 84) |
Eise Jeltes Eisinga (born February 21, 1744 – died August 27, 1828) was a clever Frisian person who loved astronomy. He built an amazing model of our solar system right inside his own house in Franeker, the Netherlands! This special model is called the Eise Eisinga Planetarium, and it's still working today. It's the oldest planetarium in the world that you can still visit!
About Eise Eisinga
Eise Jeltes Eisinga was born on February 21, 1744, in a place called Dronryp in the Dutch Republic. His father, Jelte Eises, worked with wool, and his mother was Hitje Steffens.
Even though Eise was very smart, he didn't get to go to a regular school. But that didn't stop him! When he was just 17 years old, he wrote a book about mathematics. He also wrote another book explaining the basics of astronomy, which is the study of stars and planets. He kept writing more books about special topics in astronomy.
Eise became a wool carder, just like his dad, and lived in Franeker. He taught himself a lot about math and astronomy. He even studied these subjects at the University of Franeker. When he was 24, he married Pietje Jacobs. They had three children together.
Later, because of some political problems in 1787, Eise had to leave Friesland for a while. He moved to Germany and then to a place called Visvliet. He continued working as a wool carder there. His first wife passed away. In 1792, he married Trijntje Eelkes Sikkema, and they had three more children. In 1795, Eise was able to return to Franeker.
Eise Eisinga continued to work as a wool carder his whole life. He also managed his famous planetarium. Sometimes, he even gave special talks at the University of Franeker. Eise passed away on August 27, 1828, when he was 84 years old.
Eise's Amazing Planetarium
In 1774, people were worried because a special event was going to happen in the sky. The Moon and several planets like Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter were going to line up. A reverend named Eelco Alta wrote a book saying that this alignment could cause the planets to crash into each other! He even predicted that Earth might be pushed out of its orbit and burn up. This made many people in Friesland very scared.
To calm everyone down and show them that there was no danger, Eise Eisinga decided to build a model of the solar system. This kind of model is called an orrery. He started building it right in his living room! He thought it would take him about six months, but it actually took him seven years to finish, in 1781.
His orrery shows how the planets move around the Sun. It was built into the ceiling of his living room. Interestingly, the planet Uranus was discovered in the same year he finished his model, but there wasn't enough space on his ceiling to add it!
Building this orrery was a huge help for Eise. Before, he had to calculate where all the planets would be by hand. With his model, he could simply look up and see their positions!
Many years later, on June 30, 1818, King William I of the Netherlands and Prince Frederik came to visit Eise's amazing orrery. The King was so impressed that he bought the orrery for the Dutch country. In 1859, the orrery was given to the city of Franeker.
How Eise Was Honored
Eise Eisinga received many honors for his incredible work. He became an honorary citizen of Franeker. The street where his planetarium is located was even renamed "Eise Eisingastraat" in his honor.
In 1994, a special stamp was made to celebrate his 250th birthday. In 2006, the planetarium was allowed to use the special title "royal," meaning it's recognized as very important. Eise Eisinga's story is also part of the "Canon of the Netherlands" and the "Canon of Friesland." These are important lists of historical events and people taught in schools across the Netherlands and in the province of Friesland.
