200 years of astronomy in Odessa

Abstract

Astronomy in the city of Odessa, a sea-port, existed from the time immemorial. First it was used nautical practice and in train navigators for applied purposes. The part it played was highly appreciated in Odessa. An Astronomical Observatory already existed in Richelieu Lyceum founded in 1817. One of the rooms of the Lyceums department of physics and mathematics accomodated the Observatory equipped with 24 astronomical and topographic instruments. The observatory was used for educational urposes only and had no applied or scientific significance then. Subsequently, these instruments constituted the base for astronomical study at the astronomy and geodesy Chair of the Novorossiysk University inaugurated in 1865 on the basis of Richelieu Lyceum.