Fredric Mallet
1728-1797.
Astronomer, mathematician.
Fredric Mallet began studying at Uppsala University in 1745 with astronomy and mathematics as main subjects.
In 1754, Mallet started a training trip in Europe, a trip that lasted 28 months. After his return, he was appointed an observer at the Uppsala Observatory on Svartbäcksgatan, a service that he held for 16 years.
By the end of the 1700s, the Celsius observatory had decayed, but the building still remains in central Uppsala. The location in the middle of the city did not make it very suitable for observations. The instruments trembled when horse carriages pulled out on Svartbäcksgatan and the view was obscured by chimney smoke.
Astronomical Observatory, Uppsala. Engraver Fredrik Akrel. Illustration from Busser, Johan B., draft beskrifning on Upsala, Part 2, Uppsala 1769, pp. 112. The house was finished 1741. Photo: UUB.
The same building in 2019, which houses a goldsmith and various university departments. Photo: Henrik Zetterberg.
In 1769, Mallet was commissioned by the Academy of Sciences to study Venus from Pello in the Torne Valley. When Venus passes over the solar disc, was in the past important from a scientific point of view. By studying Venus from several different places on Earth, the researchers managed to determine the distance between the Earth and the sun.
In 1773 Fredric Mallet was appointed Professor of mathematics, a service he held until 1794.
Burial site: 0109-0466
Image description: Portrait of Fredric Mallet. Painting by O. Arenius. Photo: Swedish Biographical dictionary / National Archives. [The image is cropped ]
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