Account of a comet
Date
1781
Creator
William Herschel (1738 - 1822, German-British) , Astronomer
Object type
Archive reference number
Material
Dimensions
height (drawing): 137mm
width (drawing): 117mm
width (drawing): 117mm
Subject
Content object
Description
Chart tracing the path of a comet using fixed stars, observed by eye.
Figure 7 from the paper Account of a comet by William Herschel, 1781. Printed in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, volume 71, 492-501, 1781.
Accompanying text in the paper reads ‘This evening at 8h 15’ the comet was a little above the line drawn from [η to Θ?] in figure 7. This figure is only delineated by the eye, so that no very great exactness in the distance of the stars is to be expected; but I shall take the first opportunity of measuring their respective situations by the micrometer.'
William Herschel was the first to discover an entirely new planet, Uranus, using a telescope. He initially believed that the object was a comet but further evidence convinced him that this must be a planetary body. The discovery was truly sensational and made Herschel internationally famous. He named the new world Georgium Sidus, after his patron King George III.
William Herschel (1738-1822) was a British astronomer, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1781.
Figure 7 from the paper Account of a comet by William Herschel, 1781. Printed in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, volume 71, 492-501, 1781.
Accompanying text in the paper reads ‘This evening at 8h 15’ the comet was a little above the line drawn from [η to Θ?] in figure 7. This figure is only delineated by the eye, so that no very great exactness in the distance of the stars is to be expected; but I shall take the first opportunity of measuring their respective situations by the micrometer.'
William Herschel was the first to discover an entirely new planet, Uranus, using a telescope. He initially believed that the object was a comet but further evidence convinced him that this must be a planetary body. The discovery was truly sensational and made Herschel internationally famous. He named the new world Georgium Sidus, after his patron King George III.
William Herschel (1738-1822) was a British astronomer, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1781.
Associated place