John Flamsteed the first Astronomer Royal was born in Denby, Derbyshire, England on 19th August 1646.
He is perhaps best known for calculating the solar eclipses of 1666 and 1668 and for the earliest recorded sighting of Uranus in December 1690. Flamsteed did not recognize Uranus for what it was so the credit for discovering Uranus goes to Sir William Herschel on 13th March 1781. As the first Astronomer Royal, Flamsteed laid the foundation stone of the Royal Greenwich Observatory in August 1675.
10 August 2008 at 23:42 |
[...] King also created the position of Astronomer Royal. John Flamsteed was the first to hold that [...]
13 March 2009 at 0:03 |
[...] William Herschel was not the first person to observe Uranus – John Flamsteed beat him to it. But Flamsteed did not recognise Uranus for what it was. The credit for the [...]