xiv
founders of modern science, actually science as we know it is, for better or worse, a
nineteenth-century invention. And Secchi was a key figure in how that came about.
Secchi altered the nature of the questions that science would ask: from “how are
things arranged?” to “what are things made of and how do they work?” This is seen
most clearly in his pioneering studies of stellar spectroscopy, done in the face of
opposition from the traditional astronomers who saw only the measurement of star
positions as their appropriate work.
Secchi embraced the new technologies of electricity and steam to change the
way that data were collected. He pioneered the use of telegraphy to produce synoptic weather maps; and with newly devised batteries, wires, and electrical relays, he
created his famous device to automatically record climate and weather data. At the
same time, he took advantage of the ease of travel (and postal delivery) that steampowered ships and trains provided to correspond regularly with scientists from
Sicily to Paris to Berlin, and to travel routinely across Europe to observe eclipses
and attend scientific congresses. This began with his own journeys to England and
the United States in 1848–1850, which transformed his own understanding of the
scientific enterprise.
Finally, and perhaps most radically, he found ways to integrate his own scientific
interests with the needs of his national government (the Holy See), providing it with
the expertise to deal with the challenges of the times. This included the response of
the government to the growth of urban areas, with its concomitant issues of public
health, and the systemization of its cartography and timekeeping. He also demonstrated to his government, and to the Church, how important and useful it was to
have a visible and credible presence in the world of science.
The natural philosopher of 1801—toiling before even the word scientist had
been coined—would not recognize the life of a scientist of 1860. By contrast,
Secchi’s day-to-day activities are not all that unrecognizable to a scientist of today.
From his time forward, science would be the enterprise of collaborations tied
together by modern communication technology; the collection of data would depend
more and more on complex instruments of a sort that would require a team of supporting engineers; and its support would be closely tied to government funding of
both universities and national observatories.
Because Secchi’s work was so wide-ranging, we can find reflected in his life so
many of the changes that stormed the intellectual world of the mid-nineteenth century. Seeing how Secchi himself was personally touched by these changes, and how
in turn he affected them, we can help relive and appreciate those developments. In
him we find the roots of contemporary science.
Director, Vatican Observatory
Br Guy Consolmagno SJ
(gjc@specola.va)
Introduction
founders of modern science, actually science as we know it is, for better or worse, a
nineteenth-century invention. And Secchi was a key figure in how that came about.
Secchi altered the nature of the questions that science would ask: from “how are
things arranged?” to “what are things made of and how do they work?” This is seen
most clearly in his pioneering studies of stellar spectroscopy, done in the face of
opposition from the traditional astronomers who saw only the measurement of star
positions as their appropriate work.
Secchi embraced the new technologies of electricity and steam to change the
way that data were collected. He pioneered the use of telegraphy to produce synoptic weather maps; and with newly devised batteries, wires, and electrical relays, he
created his famous device to automatically record climate and weather data. At the
same time, he took advantage of the ease of travel (and postal delivery) that steampowered ships and trains provided to correspond regularly with scientists from
Sicily to Paris to Berlin, and to travel routinely across Europe to observe eclipses
and attend scientific congresses. This began with his own journeys to England and
the United States in 1848–1850, which transformed his own understanding of the
scientific enterprise.
Finally, and perhaps most radically, he found ways to integrate his own scientific
interests with the needs of his national government (the Holy See), providing it with
the expertise to deal with the challenges of the times. This included the response of
the government to the growth of urban areas, with its concomitant issues of public
health, and the systemization of its cartography and timekeeping. He also demonstrated to his government, and to the Church, how important and useful it was to
have a visible and credible presence in the world of science.
The natural philosopher of 1801—toiling before even the word scientist had
been coined—would not recognize the life of a scientist of 1860. By contrast,
Secchi’s day-to-day activities are not all that unrecognizable to a scientist of today.
From his time forward, science would be the enterprise of collaborations tied
together by modern communication technology; the collection of data would depend
more and more on complex instruments of a sort that would require a team of supporting engineers; and its support would be closely tied to government funding of
both universities and national observatories.
Because Secchi’s work was so wide-ranging, we can find reflected in his life so
many of the changes that stormed the intellectual world of the mid-nineteenth century. Seeing how Secchi himself was personally touched by these changes, and how
in turn he affected them, we can help relive and appreciate those developments. In
him we find the roots of contemporary science.
Director, Vatican Observatory
Br Guy Consolmagno SJ
(gjc@specola.va)
Introduction