History
The former Departments
Below is the history of the former Department of Physics and the former Department of Astronomy, which merged into the Department of Physics and Astronomy “Galileo Galilei”.
Department of Physics
The Institute of Physics located in Via Marzolo (later named as Department of Physics) was inaugurated in 1937 by Bruno Rossi. Some fragments of its history can be found in various articles, some of which are reported here.
Bruno Rossi published in the magazine "Ricerca Scientifica" a note containing a technical description and the maps of the Institute. Angelo Drigo, in 1939, reported in the magazine "L'Energia Elettrica" not only a description of the structure of the building, but also described the didactic and research activities and equipment available at the time.
The research activity in the field of cosmic rays, which began in the early years of the Institute's foundation, is summarized in an article written by Antonio Rostagni, Director of the Institute of Physics from 1938 to 1973, and published in the "INFN Newsletter", Vol. 4, n. 1/2 of March-October 1988 and in an article published by Alessandro Pascolini in the magazine "Padova e il suo territorio" (no. 61 of 1996). The Italian history and contributions to the scientific developments of that period are collected in a publication by Giulio Peruzzi and Sofia Talas in the "Rivista del Nuovo Cimento" (Vol. 30 n. 5 of 2007).
The activity in the field of particle physics with accelerators developed from the 1950s and was linked to the birth of the first European laboratory, CERN, which was founded in 1954. The bubble chamber technique assumed a fundamental role in the study of proton and meson and Padova played an important role in these developments, as Guido Zago explains in an article published in the magazine " Padova e il suo territorio".
The history of scientific development from the inauguration of Giovanni Poleni's " Teatro di Filosofia Sperimentale" (1740) to date is documented above all through the collections of ancient instruments, collected in the museum of the Department of Physics, created by Gian Antonio Salandin in the early '90s and told in an article reported in the aforementioned magazine " Padova e il suo territorio".
The Polenian machines, presented in an article by Maria Pancino, were part of the Giovanni Poleni’s cultural-scientific programme, that gave to Physics, which was until then a branch of philosophical studies, an experimental direction following the model of the Flemish school. Indeed, the correspondence between Poleni and Musschenbroek of the University of Leiden, described by Gian Antonio Salandin, testifies the cultural osmosis between the two schools.
The fervor of discoveries, experiments and inventions of the Enlightenment period is also told by Antonio Lepschy in his presentation of Poleni as the pioneer of computer science with his invention of a calculating machine.
In the 19th Century, the Institute of Physics continued to be the site of pioneering experiments. Giovanni Colombini recalls the figure of Francesco Zantedeschi engaged in studies on electricity and magnetism; Luciano Nerini presents the work of Giuseppe Vicentini on radiology.
Quoted publications:
- Bruno Rossi "Il nuovo Istituto di Fisica della R. Università di Padova - La Ricerca Scientifica - 1937, pg. 220
- Angelo Drigo "L'Istituto di Fisica della R. Università di Padova" - L'Energia Elettrica - 1939, pg. 46
- Antonio Rostagni "La fisica a Padova" - Notiziario INFN - V. 4 num. 1/2, 1988, pg. 1
- Alessandro Pascolini "Ricerche sui raggi cosmici presso l'Università di Padova" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Giulio Peruzzi, Sofia Talas "The Italian contributions to cosmic-ray physics from Bruno Rossi to the G-Stack. A new window into the inexhaustible wealth of nature" - Rivista del Nuovo Cimento - V. 30 num. 5, 2007 (accesso limitato)
- Guido Zago "Pietro Bassi e le camere a bolle di Padova" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Gian Antonio Salandin"Il Museo di Storia della Fisica dell'Università di Padova - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Luciano Nerini"Giovanni Vicentini e i raggi Roentgen" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Maria Pancino"Le macchine poleniane" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Gian Antonio Salandin"Leida a Padova: una collaborazione tecnico-scientifica nel secolo XVIII" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Antonio Lepschy"La macchina aritmetica di Giovanni Poleni" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
- Giovanni Colombini"L'abate Francesco Zantedeschi fisico-sperimentatore" - Padova e il suo territorio - Anno XI num. 61, 1996
Department of Astronomy
Astronomy has been taught in Padua since 1300. From Pietro d’Abano, passing through Regiomontano and Moletti , we arrive to Galileo, who started the revolution that would have led to the birth of modern science in the early 1600s.
Nowadays, after the institution in 1968 of the first Degree Course in Astronomy in Italy, the tradition continues in the two renovated locations in Padova and Asiago.
Didactic activities and theoretical and practical research take place in the headquarters in Padova, while Asiago is mainly dedicated to observational research and practical teaching thanks to the on-site presence of the Galileo telescope.
The Department collaborates closely with the Astronomical Observatory of Padova and is part of the Interdepartmental Center for Space Studies and Activities (CISAS) of the University of Padova.
The new headquarters of the Department of Astronomy is located in the "ex Rizzato" building, which has been completely renovated.