Profession: Astronomer
Biography: Starting in 1774, Herschel spent nine years carrying out thorough sky surveys.
In 1781, he realized that one celestial body he had observed was not a star, but a planet, Uranus. This was the first planet to be discovered since antiquity.
As a result of this discovery, George III appointed him "Court Astronomer". Later he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society.
Born: November 15, 1738
Birthplace: Hanover, Brunswick-Lüneburg, Holy Roman Empire
Star Sign: Scorpio
Historical Events
- 1774-03-04 First sighting of Orion nebula by William Herschel
- 1780-05-02 William Herschel discovers 1st binary star, Xi Ursae Majoris
- 1781-03-13 William Herschel sees what he thinks is a "comet" but is actually the discovery of the planet Uranus
- 1783-02-01 English-German astronomer William Herschel announces the star Lambda Herculis is close to the solar apex
- 1783-05-04 William Herschel reports seeing a red glow near lunar crater Aristarchus
- 1787-01-11 Titania and Oberon, moons of Uranus, discovered by William Herschel
- 1789-08-28 William Herschel discovers Saturn's moon Enceladus
- 1789-09-17 William Herschel discovers Mimas, satellite of Saturn
- 1819-07-04 William Herschel makes last telescopic observation of 1819 comet
Annie Jump Cannon
Carl Sagan
Charles Messier
James Bradley
Johannes Kepler
Tycho Brahe