Pietro Paolo Giovanni Ernesto Baracchi (25 February 1851 – 23 July 1926) was a

Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany (; ) was an Italian monarchy located in Central Italy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1860, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In the 19th century the population ...

-born astronomer, active in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and Government Astronomer of

Victoria (Australia) Victoria, commonly abbreviated as Vic, is a States and territories of Australia, state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state (after Tasmania), with a land area of ; the second-most-populated state (after New South Wales), ...

1900–15.J. L. Perdrix,
Baracchi, Pietro Paolo Giovanni Ernesto (1851 - 1926)
, ''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Volume 7, MUP, 1979, pp 166–167 Baracchi was born in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, and took a degree in civil engineering. In 1876 he sailed for

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, but soon moved on to

. He gained work as an assistant at the Melbourne Observatory and was selected to be transferred to Darwin. After completing his task there to measure

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...

s, he returned to

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and became an acting government astronomer on 30 June 1895 on Robert L. J. Ellery's retirement. Baracchi was awarded the Order of Knight Commander of the Crown of Italy, 1897 and was president of the

Royal Society of Victoria The Royal Society of Victoria (RSV) is the oldest scientific society in Victoria, Australia. Foundation In 1854 two organisations formed with similar aims and membership, these being the Victorian Institute for the Advancement of Science (found ...

1908–1909. He established the Mount Stromlo Observatory in 1910. His wife died in 1908. Baracchi retired in 1915 and was succeeded as Government Astronomer of Victoria by Joseph M. Baldwin. In 1922 Baracchi visited Europe for two years and after his return he lived at the Melbourne Club. His son Guido Baracchi (1887–1975)Biography - Guido Carlo Luigi Baracchi - Australian Dictionary of Biography
/ref> was a founding member of the

Communist Party of Australia The Communist Party of Australia (CPA), known as the Australian Communist Party (ACP) from 1944 to 1951, was an Australian communist party founded in 1920. The party existed until roughly 1991, with its membership and influence having been ...

References

Baracchi, Pietro Paolo Giovanni Ernesto (1851 - 1926)
at Bright Sparcs,

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baracchi, Pietro Paolo Giovanni Ernesto 1851 births 1926 deaths Scientists from the Grand Duchy of Tuscany Scientists from Florence 19th-century Australian astronomers Italian emigrants Immigrants to colonial Australia People from the Colony of Victoria 20th-century Australian astronomers