About Joseph von Fraunhofer
Joseph Ritter von Fraunhofer (; German: [ˈfraʊnˌhoːfɐ]; 6 March 1787 – 7 June 1826) was a German physicist and optical lens manufacturer. He made optical glass, an achromatic telescope, and objective lenses. He developed diffraction gratings and also invented the spectroscope. In 1814, he discovered and studied the dark absorption lines in the spectrum of the sun now known as Fraunhofer lines. The German research organization Fraunhofer Society, which is Europe's biggest Society for the advancement of applied research, is named after him. Fraunhofer lines are used in astronomy to determine the composition of celestial bodies. His epitaph reads Aproximavit sidera, Latin for 'He brought closer the stars.' == Early life == Joseph Fraunhofer was the 11th child, born into a Roman Catholic family in Straubing, in the Electorate of Bavaria, to Franz Xaver Fraunhofer and Maria Anna Fröhlich. His father and paternal grandfather Johann Michael had been master glassmakers in Straubing. Fröhlich's family also came from a lineage of glassmakers going back to the 16th century. He was orphaned at the age of 11 and started working as an apprentice to a harsh glassmaker named Philipp Anton Weichelsberger.
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