Einstein and the Solar Eclipses - Why Albert Einstein joined the Astronomische Gesellschaft in Potsdam 1921
Abstract
In 1911 Einstein suggested that photons which pass close to the Sun are deflected by its effective mass which would apparently shift the positions of stars by up to one arcsecond, something that should be observable by astronomers during solar eclipses. Einstein`s ideas including the later doubling of the value due to relativistic space curvature met with enthusiastic responses from astronomers. The history of these efforts, their motivations and interactions with Einstein is presented here, beginning with the expedition that failed due to WWI of the young Erwin Freundlich in 1914 and ending with the unsuccessful Potsdam campaign to Öland (Sweden) in 1954. A newly found conference photograph from the first post-war meeting of the Astronomische Gesellschaft in 1921 shows Albert Einstein as a new member of the AG on the Telegraphenberg in Potsdam.
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BibTeX
@misc{rudiger2026einstein,
title = {{Einstein and the Solar Eclipses - Why Albert Einstein joined the Astronomische Gesellschaft in Potsdam 1921}},
author = {Günther Rüdiger},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.10577},
eprint = {2609.10577},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.10577},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Einstein and the Solar Eclipses - Why Albert Einstein joined the Astronomische Gesellschaft in Potsdam 1921
AU - Günther Rüdiger
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/04
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.10577
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.10577
AB - In 1911 Einstein suggested that photons which pass close to the Sun are deflected by its effective mass which would apparently shift the positions of stars by up to one arcsecond, something that should be observable by astronomers during solar eclipses. Einstein`s ideas including the later doubling of the value due to relativistic space curvature met with enthusiastic responses from astronomers. The history of these efforts, their motivations and interactions with Einstein is presented here, beginning with the expedition that failed due to WWI of the young Erwin Freundlich in 1914 and ending with the unsuccessful Potsdam campaign to Öland (Sweden) in 1954. A newly found conference photograph from the first post-war meeting of the Astronomische Gesellschaft in 1921 shows Albert Einstein as a new member of the AG on the Telegraphenberg in Potsdam.
ER -