P006820 revised AU-VU:EOAS Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation

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 English AACR2 Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules Corporate Body created 2020-03-03 human Helen Cohn updated 2026-03-03 human https://www.eoas.info/biogs/P006820b.htm corporateBody Flagstaff Observatory for Geophysics, Magnetism and Nautical Sciences Colony of Victoria AACR2 March 1858 November 1863 Start Place Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Observatory Magnetic observation Meteorology The Flagstaff Observatory was established on Flagstaff Hill, Melbourne, in 1858. It was the initiative of physicist Georg von Neumayer, who returned to Victoria in 1857 for his second visit to the colony with a view to conducting research on meteorology and terrestrial magnetism. Despite scepticism on the part of some politicians and fears that Neumayer's plans were antithetical to the establishment of an astronomical observatory, work began on magnetic and meteorological observations at Flagstaff in March 1858 with financial backing from the Victorian Government and the local German community. Official responsibility for meteorological measurements was passed to Flagstaff from the Lands Department in March 1859. Neumayer's research included a magnetic survey of Victoria, invaluable for magnetic correction of maps, and an analysis of ship's logs relating to ocean currents and prevailing winds. The Observatory ceased operations in 1863 when it merged with the Williamstown Observatory to form the Melbourne Observatory at a new site in South Yarra, just to the south of the city. Neumayer returned to Germany in 1864 and pursued a successful career in meteorology and hydrography. Osborne, John Walter (1828 - 1902)

Assistant 1858

 Wills, William John (1834 - c. 1861)

Assistant 1858? - 1860

 Neumayer, Georg Balthasar von (1826 - 1909)

Director 1858 - 1863

 Melbourne Observatory, Colony and State of Victoria (1863 - 1944) 'Flagstaff Observatory for Geophysics, Magnetism and Nautical Sciences', in Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation, Centre for Transformative Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology Flagstaff Observatory for Geophysics, Magnetism and Nautical Sciences Swinburne University of Technology, Centre for Transformative Innovation Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation Resource Section: Flagstaff Observatory, 1858 - 1863 Gillespie, Richard Flagstaff Observatory, 1858 - 1863 Melbourne Museums Victoria 2008 Museum Victoria collections - articles Thesis: Some Foundations of Science in Victoria in the Decade After Separation Cohn, Helen M. Some Foundations of Science in Victoria in the Decade After Separation Melbourne University of Melbourne 1990 Journal Article: Flagstaff Hill and its Observatory Perdrix, John L. Flagstaff Hill and its Observatory 1990 Australian Journal of Astronomy 3 3 113-124 Book: Discussion of the meteorological and magnetical observations made at the Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne during the years 1858-1863 Neumayer, G. Discussion of the meteorological and magnetical observations made at the Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne during the years 1858-1863 Mannheim, Germany J. Schneider 1867 Journal Article: Description and system of working at the Flagstaff Observatory Neumayer, G. Description and system of working at the Flagstaff Observatory Melbourne Philosophical Institute of Victoria 1859 Transactions of the Philosophical Institute of Victoria 3 94-103 Journal Article: The Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne: New Documents Relation to its Foundation Home, R. W.; and Kretzer, Hans-Jochen The Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne: New Documents Relation to its Foundation 1991 Historical Records of Australian Science 8 4 213-244 Book Section: Georg von Neumayer and the Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne Home, R. W. Georg von Neumayer and the Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne Sydney New South Wales University Press 1991 From Berlin to the Burdekin: The German Contribution to the Development of Australian Science, Exploration and the Arts David Walker and Jurgen Tampke 40-53 Book: Results of the Magnetic Survey of the colony of Victoria executed in the years 1858-1864 Neumayer, G. Results of the Magnetic Survey of the colony of Victoria executed in the years 1858-1864 Mannheim, Germany J. Schneider 1869 Book: Results of the meteorological observations taken in the colony of Victoria during the years 1859-1862; and of the nautical observations collected and discussed at the Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne, during the years 1858-1862 Neumayer, G. Results of the meteorological observations taken in the colony of Victoria during the years 1859-1862; and of the nautical observations collected and discussed at the Flagstaff Observatory, Melbourne, during the years 1858-1862 Melbourne Government Printer 1864