The proposed study is devoted to the reconstruction of pages of the scientific biography of the Ukrainian astronomer-theoretician Professor Alexei Ivanovich Razdolsky. To date no specific publications on the study of the facts of the life and works of Prof. Razdolsky have been identified. In several astronomical publications his name is found only in connection with the mention of works in the field of theoretical astronomy in Kharkiv University in the '20s and '30s XX century. The periodical materials, including foreign, contains brief comments, dedicated to the different topics of the astronomer's scientific work and his pedagogical activity at Kharkiv State University. Thus, the name of the scientist is actually lost to the history of native science. We consider it necessary to conduct a detailed study of the basic facts of Razdolsky's research work at the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory, focusing on his direct involvement in the formation of topics and organization of work in the field of celestial mechanics throughout the 1930s.

The author uses special methods – historical and biographical, retrospective and methods of source analysis. Their use made it possible to identify the main stages of the scientific biography of Alexei Razdolsky, to assess his research potential and in general – his personal scientific contribution to the development of astronomical science. It has been shown that Razdolsky worked in the field of theoretical astronomy, specializing in the determination and improvement elements of the asteroid's orbit of the main belt of the Solar system (taking into account of the perturbations by the planets), calculation of their motion. He is most known for his works, related to the movement of asteroids – the Jupiter trojans. The numerous astronomer's scientific works, which became a bibliographic rarity long time ago, but are no less fundamental, have been analyzed. The prospect of further development of this topic is to prepare a comprehensive historical and biographical study of the life and work of Prof. Alexei Razdolsky in the context of a general study on the history of astronomy in Kharkiv in the first half of the ХХ century.

1. Osobovi dokumenty O. I. R o zdolsko g o (1903–1941) [Personal documents of O. I. Rozdolsky]. Archives of the Institute of Astronomy V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University [In Russian. In Ukrainian].
2. Razdolskiy, A. I. (1925). Prylozhenye ellypticheskikh funktsiy k resheniyu osnovnoy geodezicheskoy zadachi [Application of elliptic functions to the solution of the main geodesic problem]. Russian Astronomical Journal.2, 77-88. [In Russian].
3. Rasdolsky, O. I. (1926). Über die Berechnung periodischer Losungen [Über die Berechnung periodischer Losungen]. Astronomische Nachrichten. 227, 315–318.
4. Schaumasse, A. (1927). Revue des travaux astronomiques [Revue des travaux astronomiques]. L'Astronomie. 41, 337–339.
5. Razdolskiy, A. I. (1927). Teor i ya mal y kh planet Yup i terovo y g rupp y [The theory of Minor planets of the Jupiter group]. Russian Astronomical Journal. 4, 204–224. [In Russian].
6. Rasdolsky, A. (1929). Theorie der kleinen Planeten vom Typus [Theorie der kleinen Planeten vom Typus]. Arkiv för matematik, astronomi och fysik. 21, 1–28.
7. Razdolskiy, A. I. (1931). V y chyslenye sredneho e llypsa orbyt y 787 Moskva s uchetom vozmushchenyi [Calculation of the average ellipse of the 787 Moskva orbit with taking into account of the perturbations]. Astronomical Journal. 8, 75–78. [In Russian].
8. Barabashov, N. P. (1932). Otchet Kharkovsko y astronom i chesko y observatorii[Report of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory]. Astronomical Journal. 9, 294–298. [In Russian].
9. Rasdolsky, A. (1931). Bestimmung einer mittleren Ellipse für den Planeten 472 Roma mit Berücksichtigung der Störungen [Bestimmung einer mittleren Ellipse für den Planeten 472 Roma mit Berücksichtigung der Störungen]. Astronomische Nachrichten. 244, 7–10.
10. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1931). Pro rukh maloy planety 55 Pandora [About the movement of the Minor planet 55 Pandora]. Publications of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory. 3, 63–65. [In Ukrainian].
11. Kleine Planeten, Jahrgang 1932. Elemente und Oppositions-Ephemeriden (1931). [Kleine Planeten, Jahrgang 1932. Elemente und Oppositions-Ephemeriden]. Berlin : Ferd. Dümmlers Verlagsbuchhandlung (Kommissionsverlag), 144.
12. Planeten und Monde : 5635. Verzeichnis Berechner (1932). [Planeten und Monde: 5635. Verzeichnis Berechner]. Astronomischer Jahresbericht. 33, 142.
13. Planeten und Monde : 5627. Verzeichnis Berechner(1934). [Planeten und Monde: 5627.Verzeichnis Berechner]. Astronomischer Jahresbericht. 35, 138.
14. Rasdolsky, A. (1934). Sur l ’ Orbite periodique de la Planete Nestor [Sur l’Orbite periodique de la Planete Nestor]. Journal des Observateurs. 17, 97–101.
15. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1933). Nova systema elementiv 51 Nemaus a [The New system of elements of 51 Nemausa]. Publications of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory. 4, 61–62. [In Ukrainian].
16. Razdolskiy, A. I. (1935). Malaya planeta 51 Nemausa [Minor planet 51 Nemausa]. Publications of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory. 5, 103–108. [In Russian].
17. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1936). Zastosuvannia metodu momentalnykh kolyvan do vyvchennia rukhu planet Yupiterovoi hrupy vidnosno tsentriv libratsii L4 ta L5 [Application of the method of momentary oscillations to the study of the motion of the planets of the Jupiter group with regarding to the centers of libration L4 and L5].  Scientific Notes of Kharkiv State University. 4, 11–32. [In Ukrainian].
18. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1935). Pro orbity kharakterystychnykh planet u rukhomykh poliakh [On the orbits of characteristic planets in moving fields]. Publications of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory. 5, 97–102. [In Ukrainian].
19. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1936). Pro zastosuvannia obertovoho polia do orbit kharakterystychnykh malykh planet [On the application of a rotating field to the orbits of characteristic Minor planets]. Scientific Notes of Kharkiv State University. 6–7, 55–66. [In Ukrainian].
20. Planeten und Monde: 5659. Verzeichnis Berechner (1938). [Planeten und Monde: 5659. Verzeichnis Berechner]. Astronomischer Jahresbericht. 38, 201.
21. Barabashov, N. P. (1938). Otchet o deyatelnosti Astronomicheskoy observatorii Kharkovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta za 1937 g . [Report on the activities of the Astronomical Observatory Kharkiv State University in 1937]. Astronomical Journal. 15, 278–279. [In Russian].
22. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1938). Zastosuvannia obertovoho polia do kanonichnoho rozv’iazannia problemy nezburenoho eliptychnoho rukhu malykh planet [Application of the rotational field to the canonical solution of the problem of the perturbed elliptical motion of Minor planets]. Publications of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory. 6, 25–40. [In Ukrainian].
23. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1938). Pro orbitu planety u hravitatsiinomu poli Sontsia [About the orbit of a planet in the gravitational field of the Sun]. Publications of the Kharkiv Astronomical Observatory. 6, 41–46. [In Ukrainian].
24. Rozdolskiy, O. I. (1941). Pro zastosuvannia kanonichnykh elementiv Delone [On the application of the canonical elements of Delaunay]. Scientific Notes of Kharkiv State University. 23, 101–103. [In Ukrainian].
25. Balyshev, M. A. (2008). Iz istorii Kharkovskoy observatorii: biograficheskie ocherki [To the history of the Kharkiv Observatory: biographical researches]. 200 let astronomii v Kharkovskom universitete [200 years of astronomy in Kharkiv University]. Kharkiv : KhNU, 632. [In Russian].