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
"In January my Examination Paper for Smith's Prizes was prepared as
usual.--Two matters (in addition to the daily routine of Observatory
work) occupied me at the beginning of this year. One was the
translation of Encke's Paper in successive numbers of the
Astronomische Nachrichten concerning Encke's Comet; the University
Press printed this gratuitously, and I distributed copies, partly by
the aid of Capt. Beaufort.--The other was the Report on Astronomy for
the British Association, which required much labour. My reading for
it was principally in the University Library (possibly some in
London), but I borrowed some books from F. Baily, and I wrote to
Capt. Beaufort about the possible repetition of Lacaille's Meridian
Arc at the Cape of Good Hope. The Report appears to have been finished
on May 2nd.--At this time the Reform Bill was under discussion, and
one letter written by me (probably at Sheepshanks's request) addressed
I think to Mr Drummond, Lord Althorp's secretary, was read in the
House of Commons.
"Optics were not neglected. I have some correspondence with Brewster
and Faraday. On Mar. 5th I gave the Cambridge Philosophical Society a
Paper 'On a new Analyzer,' and on Mar. 19th one 'On Newton's Rings
between two substances of different refractive powers,' both Papers
satisfactory to myself.--On the death of Mr F. Fallows, astronomer at
the Cape of Good Hope Observatory, the Admiralty appointed Mr
Henderson, an Edinburgh lawyer, who had done some little things in
astronomical calculation. On Jan. 10th I discussed with him
observations to be made, and drew up his Official Instructions which
were sent on Jan. 10th.--On Feb. 16th Sir James South writes that
Encke's Comet is seen: also that with his 12-inch achromatic,
purchased at Paris, and which he was preparing to mount equatoreally,
he had seen the disk of Aldebaran apparently bisected by the Moon's
limb.--Capt. Beaufort and D. Gilbert write in March about instructions
to Dunlop, the astronomer at Paramatta. I sent a draft to
Capt. Beaufort on Apr. 27th.
"The Preface to my 1831 Observations is dated Mar. 20th. The
distribution of the book would be a few weeks later.--On May 7th I
began my Lectures: 51 names: I finished on May 29th.--The mounting of
the Equatoreal was finished some time before the Syndicate Visitation
at the end of May, but Jones's charge appeared to be exorbitant: I
believe it was paid at last, but it was considered unfair.--On June
2nd I went to London: I presume to the Greenwich Visitation.--I went
to Oxford to the meeting of the British Association (lodging I think
with Prof. Rigaud at the Observatory) on June 16th, and read part of
my Report on Astronomy in the Theatre.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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