| Joseph von Littrow | |
| Birth Date: | 13 March 1781 |
| Birth Place: | Horšovský Týn, Bohemia |
| Death Place: | Vienna, Austria |
| Nationality: | Austrian |
| Fields: | Astronomer |
| Workplaces: | Krakau University Kazan University Vienna Observatory Buda Observatory University of Vienna |
| Alma Mater: | Charles University |
| Doctoral Students: | Nikolai Brashman Ivan Simonov |
| Known For: | Littrow projection |
| Footnotes: | Note that he was the father of Karl Ludwig von Littrow and Heinrich von Littrow. He was the father-in-law of Auguste von Littrow. |
Joseph Johann von Littrow (13 March 1781, Horšovský Týn (German: Bischofteinitz) – 30 November 1840, Vienna) was an Austrian astronomer. In 1837, he was ennobled with the title Joseph Johann Edler von Littrow. He was the father of Karl Ludwig Edler von Littrow and the mentor of the mathematician Nikolai Brashman. His work took him to Russia for a time, which is where his son who succeeded him was born.
He became director of the Vienna Observatory in 1819. He served in this position until his death in 1840. He created the only conformal retroazimuthal map projection, which is known as the Littrow projection. Littrow authored the widely read Wunder des Himmels ("Miracles of the Sky"), which was reprinted eight times by 1897.[1]
Von Littrow is often associated with a proposal to dig a large circular canal in the Sahara desert and fill it with burning kerosene, thus communicating the fact of human intelligence to aliens who may be observing Earth.[2] However, Von Littrow's connection with this scheme may be apocryphal.[3]
The crater Littrow on the Moon is named in his honor.
He is the great-great-great-grandfather of Roman Catholic Cardinal Christoph Schönborn.