Autobiography of Sir George Biddell AiryAiry, George Biddell
Science
Autobiography of Sir George Biddell Airy
Airy, George Biddell
Airy, George Biddell, 1801-1892; Astronomers -- Great Britain -- Biography; Autobiographies; Royal Greenwich Observatory
"As early as Feb. 23rd I had been in correspondence with T. Jones, the
instrument-maker, about pendulums for a repetition of the Dolcoath
Experiments. Invitations had been received, and everything was
arranged with Whewell. Sheepshanks, my brother, and Mr Jackson of
Ipswich (Caius Coll.) were to go, and we were subsequently joined by
Sedgwick, and Lodge (Magdalene Coll.). On July 3rd Sheepshanks and I
started by Salisbury, taking Sherborne on our way to look at the
church, which had alarmed the people by signs of a crack, and arrived
at Camborne on July 8th. On the 14th we set up the pendulums, and at
once commenced observations, our plan being, to have no intermission
in the pendulum observations, so that as soon as the arc became too
small a fresh series was started. On July 29th we raised the
instruments, and Sheepshanks, who managed much of the upper
operations, both astronomical and of pendulums, mounted the pendulums
together in his observatory. We went on with our calculations, and on
August 8th, on returning from a visit to John Williams at Barncoose,
we heard that there was a 'run' in Dolcoath, that is a sinking of the
whole mass of rock where it had been set free by the mine excavations:
probably only a few inches, but enough to break the rock much and to
stop the pumps. On Aug. 10th the calculations of our observations
shewed that there was something wrong, and on the 13th I perceived an
anomaly in the form of the knife edge of one pendulum, and of its
agate planes, and suggested cautions for repeating the observations.
We determined at once to repeat them: and as the water was rising in
the mine there was no time to be lost. We again sent the instruments
down, and made observations on the 16th, 17th and 18th. On the 19th I
sent the instruments up, for the water was near our station, and
Sedgwick, Whewell, and I went on a geological expedition to the
Lizard. On our return we met Sheepshanks and the others, and found the
results of the last observations unsatisfactory. The results of
comparing the pendulums were discordant, and the knife edge of the
faulty pendulum had very sensibly altered. We now gave up
observations, with the feeling that our time had been totally lost,
mainly through the fault of the maker of the pendulum (T. Jones). On
the 28th we made an expedition to Penzance and other places, and
arrived at Cambridge on the 17th of September.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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