Struve Vasiliy Yakovlevich is a world-known Russian astronomer and geodesist, who was born to the large family of gymnasium director on April 4, 1793. His family lived in a small town near Hamburg. In 1808 Struve left Germany and was admitted to the University of Dorpat (now Estonian city of Tartu). In 1810 Vasiliy became professional philologist, and three years later young man defended master thesis in astronomy. The same 1813 Struve was appointed extraordinary professor of the University of Dorpat. In 1818 the scientist headed the department of astronomy of the same university, and several years later became the director of Dorpat observatory. In 1839 Struve headed the Pulkovo observatory, which he created and equipped.
Vasiliy Yakovlevich Struve became world famous thanks to his studies of binary and multiple stars, which he started in 1813. In 1827 the astronomer published a catalogue of exact locations for 3110 stars of a kind, and 2000 Struve discovered himself. In 1852 another catalogue “Mean positions” came of the press, carrying information about 2874 stars, observed by Struve and his student between 1822 and 1843. Both catalogues were widely used in various works on stellar astronomy.

Struve Geodetic Arc
Struve was not only tireless and skilled observer, a sharp thinker, but also a genial teacher and brilliant manager – the scientist equipped the Pulkovo observatory with first class hardware. Struve supervised development high-precision methods of stellar coordinates setting. Struve was the father of astrometry school, which placed the Pulkovo observatory among top observatories of the world. Struve had time for everything – he collected books for the library, including rare and antique editions and compiled a catalogue for the collection; he participated in expeditions and headed them; he was an active member of Russian Geographic Society; Struve made reports at meeting of Academy of Sciences and read public lectures; the astronomer taught officers of the Russian Navy and the General Staff, hydrographers of the Navy Department.
Struve was married two times and had 18 children. His numerous offspring were talented scientists too, there was a dynasty of Struve astronomers. Vasiliy Struve was Russian citizen from 1842. The astronomer had many Russian and foreign awards; he was the honorary member of all Russian universities and numerous foreign academies and scientific societies. Vasiliy Struve died in Pulkovo, near St. Petersburg on November 23, 1864.
Source: Krugosvet.ru
Kizilova Anna