Nicholas E. Wagman facts for kids

Nicholas E. Wagman (born in 1905, died in 1980) was an American astronomer. An astronomer is a scientist who studies stars, planets, and everything else in space. He was also an astrometrist, which means he was an expert at measuring the exact positions and movements of stars.

Nicholas E. Wagman's Work in Space

Nicholas Wagman started working at the Allegheny Observatory in Pittsburgh in 1930. This observatory is a special place where scientists watch and study the sky. From 1941 to 1970, he was the director of the Observatory. He also led the Astronomy Department at the University of Pittsburgh during that time.

Studying Stars with the Thaw Refractor

Under his leadership, a large telescope called the Thaw refractor was updated. This telescope was 0.76 meters wide. Wagman and his team used it to measure the distances to stars very accurately. They did this by using something called parallax. Parallax is how much a star seems to shift its position when you look at it from different points in Earth's orbit around the Sun. They made over 1200 of these important distance measurements.

Discovering Binary Stars

His team also found and studied many binary stars. A binary star system is made up of two stars that orbit around each other. Learning about these pairs of stars helps scientists understand how stars form and behave.

Things Named After Nicholas E. Wagman

Nicholas Wagman's important work was recognized in several ways:

• The Nicholas E. Wagman Observatory, which belongs to the Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh, is named after him. It is located in Frazer Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.
• An asteroid in space is also named after him. It is called 3110 Wagman.