John Flamsteed | |
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Born | 19 August 1646 |
Died | 31 December 1719 (aged 73) |
Nationality | English |
Alma mater | Jesus College, Cambridge |
Known for | First Astronomer Royal |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Astronomy |
Influenced | Joseph Crosthwait Abraham Sharp |
John Flamsteed FRS (19 August 1646 – 31 December 1719) was an English astronomer. He was the first Astronomer Royal, appointed in 1675.
Flamsteed calculated the solar eclipses of 1666 and 1668.
He was responsible for several of the earliest recorded sightings of the planet Uranus, which he mistook for a star and catalogued as '34 Tauri'. The first of these was in December 1690, which remains the earliest known sighting of Uranus by an astronomer.