Olbers

Olbers is a German surname. The most prominent bearer is Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers, a German astronomer active in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He is known for his observational work and for the discovery of the asteroid Pallas in 1802. Olbers contributed to cometary studies and played a role in the development of early astronomical instrumentation.

Olbers is also associated with Olbers' paradox, a concept named after him in the field of cosmology. The paradox asks why the night sky is dark if the universe is infinite and uniformly filled with stars. In the classical formulation, every line of sight would end on a star, implying a sky as bright as the surface of a star. The paradox highlights how assumptions about the size, age, and structure of the universe affect observable reality. Modern explanations resolve the paradox by considering the finite age of the universe, the expansion of space, and the absorption of light by interstellar and intergalactic matter.

Today, the surname Olbers is relatively rare and of German origin. It is most commonly found in German-speaking regions and among descendants of German migrants. The name is primarily of historical interest in astronomy due to Olbers and the associated paradox, but it persists in genealogical and regional contexts.