Maximilian Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf (21 June 1863 – 3 October 1932) was a German

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. Astronomers observe astronomical objects, such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, galax ...

and a pioneer in the field of

astrophotography Astrophotography, also known as astronomical imaging, is the photography or imaging of astronomical objects, celestial events, or areas of the night sky. The first photograph of an astronomical object (the Moon) was taken in 1839, but it was no ...

. He was the chairman of astronomy at the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

and director of the

Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory () is a historic astronomical observatory located near the summit of the Königstuhl hill in the city of Heidelberg in Germany. It is operated by the ''Center for Astronomy (ZAH)'' at the University of He ...

from 1902 until his death in 1932.

Early life

Max Wolf was born in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

, Germany on 21 June 1863, the son of medical doctor Franz Wolf. His father encouraged an interest in science and built an observatory for his son in the garden of the family home. It is from here that Wolf was credited with his first astronomical discovery, comet 14P/Wolf, in 1884.

Life at the university

Wolf attended his local university and, in 1888, at the age of 25, was awarded a Ph.D. by the

. He spent one year of post-graduate study in Stockholm, the only significant time he would spend outside of Heidelberg in his life. He returned to the

and accepted the position of ''privat-docent'' in 1890. A popular lecturer in astronomy, he declined offers of positions from other institutions. In 1902 he was appointed Chair of Astronomy and Director of the new Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl observatory, positions he would hold until his death in 1932. While the new observatory was being built, Wolf was appointed to supervise the construction and outfitting of the

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline, James Keeler, said, astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the ...

half of the observatory. He proved to be not only a capable supervisor but also a successful fundraiser. When sent to America to study the construction of the large new telescopes being built there, he returned not only with telescope plans but also with a grant of $10,000 from the American philanthropist Catherine Wolfe Bruce. Wolf immediately designed and ordered a double

refractor telescope A refracting telescope (also called a refractor) is a type of optical telescope that uses a lens (optics), lens as its objective (optics), objective to form an image (also referred to a dioptrics, dioptric telescope). The refracting telescope d ...

from American astronomer and instrument builder

John Brashear John Alfred Brashear (November 24, 1840 – April 8, 1920) was an American astronomer and instrument builder. Life and work Brashear was born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, a town located 35 miles (56 km) south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, ...

. This instrument, known as the ''Bruce double-

astrograph An astrograph (or astrographic camera) is a telescope designed for the sole purpose of astrophotography. Astrographs are mostly used in wide-field astronomical surveys of the sky and for detection of objects such as asteroids, meteors, an ...

'', with parallel lenses and a fast f/5

focal ratio An f-number is a measure of the light-gathering ability of an optical system such as a camera lens. It is calculated by dividing the system's focal length by the diameter of the entrance pupil ("clear aperture").Smith, Warren ''Modern Optical ...

, became the observatory's primary research telescope. Wolf also raised money for a reflector telescope, the first for the observatory, used for spectroscopy. In 1910, Wolf proposed to the

Carl Zeiss Carl Zeiss (; 11 September 1816 – 3 December 1888) was a German scientific instrument maker, optician and businessman. In 1846 he founded his workshop, which is still in business as Zeiss (company), Zeiss. Zeiss gathered a group of gifted p ...

optics firm the creation of a new instrument which would become known as the

planetarium A planetarium (: planetariums or planetaria) is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation. A dominant feature of most planetariums is ...

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

intervened before the invention could be developed, but the

company resumed this project after peace was restored. The first official public showing was at the

Deutsches Museum The Deutsches Museum (''German Museum'', officially (English: ''German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology'')) in Munich, Germany, is the world's largest museum of science museum, science and technology museum, technology, with a ...

Munich, Germany Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

on 21 October 1923. During his trip to America, Wolf was interested in learning more about the relatively new field of

. He met the American astronomer and astrophotographer E.E. Barnard, and the two became lifelong correspondents, competitors, collaborators and friends. Wolf wrote a long obituary for Barnard upon his death in 1923.

Later life and death

Heidelberg University became well known for astronomy under Wolf's leadership. Wolf himself was an active researcher, contributing numerous papers in many areas of astronomy up to the end of his life. He died in Heidelberg on 3 October 1932, at the age of 69. He was survived by his wife and three sons.

Comets and novae

Wolf started his career as a comet hunter and continued to discover them throughout his life. He discovered or co-discovered several

comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...

s, including 14P/Wolf and 43P/Wolf-Harrington. Wolf won a competition with E. E. Barnard on who would be the first to observe the return of

Halley's Comet Halley's Comet is the only known List of periodic comets, short-period comet that is consistently visible to the naked eye from Earth, appearing every 72–80 years, though with the majority of recorded apparitions (25 of 30) occurring after ...

(P1/Halley) in April 1910. He discovered Nova Aquilae 1927, a classical nova. He discovered or co-discovered four supernovae: SN 1895A (a.k.a. VW Vir), SN 1909A (a.k.a. SS UMa), SN 1920A, and, with Reinmuth, SN 1926A.

Dark nebulae

One of the many significant contributions Wolf made was in the determination of the nature of ''

dark nebula A dark nebula or absorption nebula is a type of interstellar cloud, particularly molecular clouds, that is so dense that it obscures the visible wavelengths of light from objects behind it, such as background stars and emission or reflection ...

e''. These areas of the sky, thought since William Herschel's time to be "holes in the sky", were a puzzle to astronomers of the time. In collaboration with E. E. Barnard, Wolf proved, by careful photographic analysis, that ''dark nebulae'' were huge clouds of fine opaque dust.

Star catalog

Along with E. E. Barnard, Wolf applied

to the observation of stars. The ''Bruce double-astrograph'' was originally designed to hunt dim asteroids but it was found to be ideally suited for the study of the

proper motion Proper motion is the astrometric measure of changes in the apparent places of stars or other celestial objects as they move relative to the center of mass of the Solar System. It is measured relative to the distant stars or a stable referenc ...

of low-luminosity stars using much the same technique. In 1919 Wolf published a catalog of the locations of over one thousand stars along with their measured

. These stars are still commonly identified by his name and catalog number. Among the stars he discovered is Wolf 359, a dim

red dwarf A red dwarf is the smallest kind of star on the main sequence. Red dwarfs are by far the most common type of fusing star in the Milky Way, at least in the neighborhood of the Sun. However, due to their low luminosity, individual red dwarfs are ...

that was later found to be one of the nearest stars to the Solar System. He continued to add

star discoveries to this catalog throughout his life, with the catalog eventually totaling over 1500 stars, many more than all of his competitors combined. These stars are significant because stars with low luminosity and high

, such as

Barnard's Star Barnard's Star is a small red dwarf star in the constellation of Ophiuchus. At a distance of from Earth, it is the fourth-nearest-known individual star to the Sun after the three components of the Alpha Centauri system, and is the c ...

and Wolf 359, are usually relatively close to the

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

and thus the stars in Wolf's catalog remain popular subjects for astronomical research. The methods used by E. E. Barnard and Wolf were continued by

Frank Elmore Ross Frank Elmore Ross (April 2, 1874 – September 21, 1960) was an American astronomer and physicist. He was born in San Francisco, California and died in Altadena, California. In 1901 he received his doctorate from the University of California. ...

and George Van Biesbroeck through the mid-20th century. Since that time, photographic plates have been gradually replaced with more sensitive electronic

photodetectors Photodetectors, also called photosensors, are devices that detect light or other forms of electromagnetic radiation and convert it into an electrical signal. They are essential in a wide range of applications, from digital imaging and optical c ...

for

astronomical survey An astronomical survey is a general celestial cartography, map or astrophotography, image of a region of the sky (or of the whole sky) that lacks a specific observational target. Alternatively, an astronomical survey may comprise a set of image ...

Asteroids

In 1891, Wolf discovered his first asteroid,

323 Brucia 323 Brucia is a stony Phocaea asteroid and former Mars-crosser from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately in diameter. It was the first asteroid to be discovered by the use of astrophotography. Description ''Brucia'' was a ...

, and named it after Catherine Wolfe Bruce. He pioneered the use of astrophotographic techniques to automate the discovery of asteroids, as opposed to older visual methods, as a result of which asteroid discovery rates sharply increased. In time-exposure photographs, asteroids appear as short streaks due to their planetary motion with respect to fixed stars. Wolf discovered 248

asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...

s in his lifetime. Among his many discoveries was 588 Achilles (the first

Trojan asteroid In astronomy, a trojan is a small celestial body (mostly asteroids) that shares the orbit of a larger body, remaining in a stable orbit approximately 60° ahead of or behind the main body near one of its Lagrangian points and . Trojans can shar ...

) in 1906, as well as two other Trojans: 659 Nestor and 884 Priamus. He also discovered 887 Alinda in 1918, which is now recognized as an Earth-crossing

Amor asteroid The Amor asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after the archetype object 1221 Amor . The orbital perihelion of these objects is close to, but greater than, the orbital aphelion of Earth (i.e., the objects do not cross Earth's orbit ...

(or sometimes classified as the namesake of its own Alinda family). Wolf's then-record number of discoveries was surpassed by his pupil Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth on 24 July 1933.

List of discovered minor planets

Superscript letters indicate co-discovery made with: * A. Schwassmann * L. Carnera * P. Götz * A. Kopff * M. Ferrero *

- 22 December 1891 * 325 Heidelberga - 4 March 1892 * 328 Gudrun - 18 March 1892 * 329 Svea - 21 March 1892 * 330 Adalberta - 2 February 1910 * 332 Siri - 19 March 1892 * 333 Badenia - 22 August 1892 * 334 Chicago - 23 August 1892 * 339 Dorothea - 25 September 1892 * 340 Eduarda - 25 September 1892 * 341 California - 25 September 1892 * 342 Endymion - 17 October 1892 * 343 Ostara - 15 November 1892 * 351 Yrsa - 16 December 1892 * 352 Gisela - 12 January 1893 *

353 Ruperto-Carola 353 Ruperto-Carola ( ''prov. designation'': ''or'' ) is a background asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt. It was discovered by German astronomer Max Wolf at the Heidelberg Observatory on 16 January 1893. It is named after the ...

- 16 January 1893 * 385 Ilmatar - 1 March 1894 * 386 Siegena - 1 March 1894 * 391 Ingeborg - 1 November 1894 *

392 Wilhelmina 392 Wilhelmina is a large Main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Max Wolf on 4 November 1894 in Heidelberg, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea a ...

- 4 November 1894 * 393 Lampetia - 4 November 1894 * 399 Persephone - 23 February 1895 * 401 Ottilia - 16 March 1895 * 407 Arachne - 13 October 1895 * 408 Fama - 13 October 1895 * 412 Elisabetha - 7 January 1896 * 413 Edburga - 7 January 1896 * 415 Palatia - 7 February 1896 * 417 Suevia - 6 May 1896 * 418 Alemannia - 7 September 1896 * 419 Aurelia - 7 September 1896 * 420 Bertholda - 7 September 1896 * 421 Zahringia - 7 September 1896 * 434 Hungaria - 11 September 1898 *

435 Ella 435 Ella is a typical Main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Max Wolf and A. Schwassmann on 11 September 1898 in Heidelberg. This is the eponym An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, n ...

- 11 September 1898 * 436 Patricia - 13 September 1898 * 442 Eichsfeldia - 15 February 1899 * 443 Photographica - 17 February 1899 *

446 Aeternitas 446 Aeternitas is a main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Max Wolf and A. Schwassmann on 27 October 1899 in Heidelberg. It is classified as an A-type asteroid. The asteroid is roughly 45 km in diameter and has a high albedo Albedo ...

- 27 October 1899 * 447 Valentine - 27 October 1899 *

448 Natalie 448 Natalie is a typical Main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Max Wolf and A. Schwassmann on 27 October 1899 in Heidelberg. Analysis of the light curve generated from photometric data collected during its 2010 opposition show a rotati ...

- 27 October 1899 * 449 Hamburga - 31 October 1899 *

450 Brigitta 450 Brigitta is a typical Main belt asteroid. It is a member of the Eos family. It was discovered by Max Wolf and A. Schwassmann on 10 October 1899 in Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by populatio ...

- 10 October 1899 *

455 Bruchsalia 455 Bruchsalia is a main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by Max Wolf and Friedrich Karl Arnold Schwassmann Friedrich Karl Arnold Schwassmann (25 March 1870 – 19 January 1964) was a German astronomer and a discoverer of 22 minor planets and ...

- 22 May 1900 *

456 Abnoba 456 Abnoba, provisional designation , is a stony background asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 40 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 4 June 1900, by astronomers Max Wolf and Arnold Schwassmann at the ...

- 4 June 1900 *

457 Alleghenia 457 Alleghenia, provisional designation 1900 FJ, is a carbonaceous asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, about 34 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 15 September 1900, by German astronomers Max Wolf and Friedrich Schwas ...

- 15 September 1900 *

458 Hercynia 458 Hercynia, provisional designation , is a background asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 38 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 21 September 1900, by astronomers Max Wolf and Arnold Schwassmann at the ...

- 21 September 1900 * 459 Signe - 22 October 1900 * 460 Scania - 22 October 1900 * 461 Saskia - 22 October 1900 * 462 Eriphyla - 22 October 1900 * 463 Lola - 31 October 1900 * 464 Megaira - 9 January 1901 * 465 Alekto - 13 January 1901 * 466 Tisiphone - 17 January 1901 * 467 Laura - 9 January 1901 * 468 Lina - 18 January 1901 * 471 Papagena - 7 June 1901 * 473 Nolli - 13 February 1901 * 474 Prudentia - 13 February 1901 * 480 Hansa - 21 May 1901 * 482 Petrina - 3 March 1902 * 483 Seppina - 4 March 1902 * 484 Pittsburghia - 29 April 1902 * 488 Kreusa - 26 June 1902 * 490 Veritas - 3 September 1902 * 491 Carina - 3 September 1902 *

492 Gismonda 492 Gismonda is a main belt asteroid discovered by German astronomer Max Wolf in 1902. Gismonda is named after the daughter of Tancred, prince of Salerno, from Giovanni Boccaccio's work, The Decameron. It is orbiting from the Sun with a peri ...

- 3 September 1902 * 493 Griseldis - 7 September 1902 * 494 Virtus - 7 October 1902 * 495 Eulalia - 25 October 1902 * 496 Gryphia - 25 October 1902 * 499 Venusia - 24 December 1902 * 500 Selinur - 16 January 1903 * 501 Urhixidur - 18 January 1903 * 502 Sigune - 19 January 1903 * 509 Iolanda - 28 April 1903 * 512 Taurinensis - 23 June 1903 * 513 Centesima - 24 August 1903 * 514 Armida - 24 August 1903 * 515 Athalia - 20 September 1903 * 520 Franziska - 27 October 1903 * 522 Helga - 10 January 1904 * 524 Fidelio - 14 March 1904 * 526 Jena - 14 March 1904 * 527 Euryanthe - 20 March 1904 * 528 Rezia - 20 March 1904 * 529 Preziosa - 20 March 1904 * 530 Turandot - 11 April 1904 * 531 Zerlina - 12 April 1904 *

532 Herculina 532 Herculina is a large asteroid, with a diameter of around 200 km. Discovery It was discovered on April 20, 1904, by Max Wolf in Heidelberg, and initially catalogued as 1904 NY. The origin of its name is not known; it may be named aft ...

- 20 April 1904 * 539 Pamina - 2 August 1904 * 540 Rosamunde - 3 August 1904 * 541 Deborah - 4 August 1904 * 549 Jessonda - 15 November 1904 * 550 Senta - 16 November 1904 * 551 Ortrud - 16 November 1904 * 552 Sigelinde - 14 December 1904 * 553 Kundry - 27 December 1904 * 555 Norma - 14 January 1905 * 557 Violetta - 26 January 1905 * 558 Carmen - 9 February 1905 * 559 Nanon - 8 March 1905 * 560 Delila - 13 March 1905 * 561 Ingwelde - 26 March 1905 * 562 Salome - 3 April 1905 * 565 Marbachia - 9 May 1905 * 570 Kythera - 30 July 1905 * 573 Recha - 19 September 1905 * 574 Reginhild - 19 September 1905 * 575 Renate - 19 September 1905 * 577 Rhea - 20 October 1905 * 578 Happelia - 1 November 1905 * 580 Selene - 17 December 1905 * 586 Thekla - 21 February 1906 * 587 Hypsipyle - 22 February 1906 * 588 Achilles - 22 February 1906 * 590 Tomyris - 4 March 1906 * 592 Bathseba - 18 March 1906 * 594 Mireille - 27 March 1906 * 597 Bandusia - 16 April 1906 * 598 Octavia - 13 April 1906 * 601 Nerthus - 21 June 1906 * 605 Juvisia - 27 August 1906 * 609 Fulvia - 24 September 1906 * 610 Valeska - 26 September 1906 * 641 Agnes - 8 September 1907 *

642 Clara 642 Clara is a minor planet orbiting the Sun. Discovered by Max Wolf Maximilian Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf (21 June 1863 – 3 October 1932) was a German astronomer and a pioneer in the field of astrophotography. He was the chairman of ast ...

- 8 September 1907 * 659 Nestor - 23 March 1908 * 683 Lanzia - 23 July 1909 * 692 Hippodamia - 5 November 1901 * 707 Steina - 22 December 1910 * 712 Boliviana - 19 March 1911 * 733 Mocia - 16 September 1912 * 798 Ruth - 21 November 1914 * 800 Kressmannia - 20 March 1915 * 801 Helwerthia - 20 March 1915 * 802 Epyaxa - 20 March 1915 * 805 Hormuthia - 17 April 1915 * 806 Gyldenia - 18 April 1915 * 807 Ceraskia - 18 April 1915 * 809 Lundia - 11 August 1915 * 810 Atossa - 8 September 1915 * 811 Nauheima - 8 September 1915 * 813 Baumeia - 28 November 1915 * 815 Coppelia - 2 February 1916 * 816 Juliana - 8 February 1916 * 817 Annika - 6 February 1916 * 818 Kapteynia - 21 February 1916 * 819 Barnardiana - 3 March 1916 * 820 Adriana - 30 March 1916 *

821 Fanny 821 Fanny ('' prov. designation:'' ''or'' ) is a dark background asteroid and slow rotator from the central regions of the asteroid belt. It was discovered on 31 March 1916, by German astronomer Max Wolf at the Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Ob ...

- 31 March 1916 * 822 Lalage - 31 March 1916 * 823 Sisigambis - 31 March 1916 * 826 Henrika - 28 April 1916 * 831 Stateira - 20 September 1916 *

832 Karin 832 Karin is a minor planet orbiting the Sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the e ...

- 20 September 1916 * 833 Monica - 20 September 1916 * 834 Burnhamia - 20 September 1916 * 835 Olivia - 23 September 1916 * 836 Jole - 23 September 1916 * 837 Schwarzschilda - 23 September 1916 * 838 Seraphina - 24 September 1916 * 839 Valborg - 24 September 1916 * 840 Zenobia - 25 September 1916 * 841 Arabella - 1 October 1916 * 842 Kerstin - 1 October 1916 * 845 Naema - 16 November 1916 * 860 Ursina - 22 January 1917 * 861 Aida - 22 January 1917 * 862 Franzia - 28 January 1917 * 863 Benkoela - 9 February 1917 * 865 Zubaida - 15 February 1917 * 866 Fatme - 25 February 1917 * 868 Lova - 26 April 1917 *

870 Manto 870 Manto ( ''prov. designation'': ''or'' ) is a stony background asteroid and slow rotator from the inner region of the asteroid belt. It was discovered on 12 May 1917, by astronomer Max Wolf at the Heidelberg Observatory in southwest Germany ...

- 12 May 1917 * 871 Amneris - 14 May 1917 * 872 Holda - 21 May 1917 * 873 Mechthild - 21 May 1917 * 874 Rotraut - 25 May 1917 * 875 Nymphe - 19 May 1917 * 879 Ricarda - 22 July 1917 * 880 Herba - 22 July 1917 * 881 Athene - 22 July 1917 * 883 Matterania - 14 September 1917 * 884 Priamus - 22 September 1917 * 887 Alinda - 3 January 1918 * 888 Parysatis - 2 February 1918 * 889 Erynia - 5 March 1918 * 890 Waltraut - 11 March 1918 *

891 Gunhild 891 Gunhild ( ''prov. designation'': ''or'' ) is a large background asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, that measures approximately in diameter. It was discovered on 17 May 1918, by astronomer Max Wolf at the Heidelberg-Kön ...

- 17 May 1918 * 892 Seeligeria - 31 May 1918 * 893 Leopoldina - 31 May 1918 * 894 Erda - 4 June 1918 * 895 Helio - 11 July 1918 * 896 Sphinx - 1 August 1918 * 897 Lysistrata - 3 August 1918 * 898 Hildegard - 3 August 1918 * 899 Jokaste - 3 August 1918 * 900 Rosalinde - 10 August 1918 * 901 Brunsia - 30 August 1918 * 904 Rockefellia - 29 October 1918 * 907 Rhoda - 12 November 1918 * 908 Buda - 30 November 1918 * 914 Palisana - 4 July 1919 * 919 Ilsebill - 30 October 1918 * 927 Ratisbona - 16 February 1920 * 946 Poësia - 11 February 1921 * 949 Hel - 11 March 1921 * 972 Cohnia - 18 January 1922 * 1008 La Paz - 31 October 1923 * 1021 Flammario - 11 March 1924 * 1038 Tuckia - 24 November 1924 * 1039 Sonneberga - 24 November 1924 * 1053 Vigdis - 16 November 1925 * 1069 Planckia - 28 January 1927 * 1134 Kepler - 25 September 1929 * 1141 Bohmia - 4 January 1930 * 1169 Alwine - 30 August 1930 * 1178 Irmela - 13 March 1931 * 1179 Mally - 19 March 1931 * 1203 Nanna - 5 October 1931 * 1214 Richilde - 1 January 1932 * 1219 Britta - 6 February 1932 * 1365 Henyey - 9 September 1928 * 1514 Ricouxa - 22 August 1906 * 1661 Granule - 31 March 1916 * 1703 Barry - 2 September 1930 * 1967 Menzel - 1 November 1905 * 2017 Wesson - 20 September 1903 * 2119 Schwall - 30 August 1930 * 2298 Cindijon - 2 October 1915 * 2373 Immo - 4 August 1929 * 2443 Tomeileen - 24 January 1906 * 2483 Guinevere - 17 August 1928 * 2533 Fechtig - 3 November 1905 * 2650 Elinor - 14 March 1931 * 2732 Witt - 19 March 1926 * 3034 Climenhaga - 24 September 1917 * 3202 Graff - 3 January 1908 * 3396 Muazzez - 15 October 1915 * 3626 Ohsaki - 4 August 1929 * 3907 Kilmartin - 14 August 1904 * 4588 Wislicenus - 13 March 1931 * 4775 Hansen - 3 October 1927 * 4809 Robertball - 5 September 1928 * 5702 Morando - 16 March 1931 * 5926 Schönfeld - 4 August 1929

Awards and honors

Prix Jules Janssen The Prix Jules Janssen is the highest award of the Société astronomique de France (SAF), the French astronomical society. This annual prize is given to a professional French astronomer or to an astronomer of another nationality in recognition ...

, the highest award of the

Société astronomique de France The Société astronomique de France (SAF; ), the France, French astronomical society, is a non-profit association in the public interest organized under French law (Association loi de 1901). Founded by astronomer Camille Flammarion in 1887, its ...

, the French astronomical society, in 1912. *

Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society The Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society is the highest award given by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS). The RAS Council have "complete freedom as to the grounds on which it is awarded" and it can be awarded for any reason. Past awar ...

in 1914. *

Bruce Medal The Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal is awarded every year by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for outstanding lifetime contributions to astronomy. It is named after Catherine Wolfe Bruce, an American patroness of astronomy, and was ...

in 1930. The lunar crater

Wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, includin ...

as well as the main-belt asteroids 827 Wolfiana and 1217 Maximiliana were named in his honor. Minor planet 1152 Pawona is named after both

Johann Palisa Johann Palisa (6 December 1848 – 2 May 1925) was an Austrian astronomer, born in Troppau, Austrian Silesia, now Czech Republic. He was a prolific discoverer of asteroids, discovering 122 in all, from 136 Austria in 1874 to 1073 G ...

and Max Wolf, in recognition of their cooperation. The name was proposed by Swedish astronomer Bror Ansgar Asplind. ''Pawona'' is a combination of "Palisa" and "Wolf" (Pa, Wo) joined with a Latin feminine suffix.

Other astronomers named ''Wolf''

* Marek Wolf, a Czech astronomer who is also a discoverer of minor planets. He is credited as "M. Wolf" by the

Minor Planet Center The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the official body for observing and reporting on minor planets under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Founded in 1947, it operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Funct ...

, while the discoveries by Max Wolf are credited with "M. F. Wolf". * Charles Wolf, a French astronomer and co-discoverer of the Wolf-Rayet stars. * German astronomers Christian Wolf and Ulrich Wolff (amateur from Berlin), as well as American astronomer Chris Wolfe have also discovered minor planets.

References

External links

*
The Bruce Medalists

Obituaries

MacPherson, Hector, Observatory 55, 355–359 (1932)

Reynolds, J.H., MNRAS 93, 236–238 (1933)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, Max 1863 births 1932 deaths 19th-century German astronomers Discoverers of asteroids Discoverers of comets Discoverers of supernovae Scientists from Heidelberg Heidelberg University alumni Recipients of the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences Corresponding Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences (1917–1925) Corresponding Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences * Recipients of the Lalande Prize 20th-century German astronomers