He spent part of his early astronomical career at the Nice Observatory, which was close to his house, the Villa Paradou. The Villa was built by famous French architect Charles Garnier[2][citation needed] who also built the Nice Observatory and both the operas of Paris and Monaco. In 1995, the abandoned villa was acquired by the artist Rainer Maria Latzke, who restored it and added new murals to the existing frescoes.
Chrétien was one of the founders of the Institut d'optique théorique et appliquée and professor at the French "grande école" SupOptique (École supérieure d'optique).
Awards and honors
The astronomical Chrétien International Research Grants awards are in honor of him[3]
In 1901, Chrétien, Joseph Joachim Landerer and Thomas David Anderson jointly received the Prix Jules Janssen, the highest award of the Société astronomique de France (French Astronomical Society).
^Chrétien International Research Grants Archived 2009-02-14 at the Wayback Machine
^"Prix et Subventions Attribués en 1931: Prix Valz". Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires des Séances de l'Académie des Sciences. 193: 1238. December 14, 1931.
^"Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature: Chrétien". International Astronomical Union (IAU) / USGS Astrogeology Science Center. Oct 18, 2010.