James bradley astronomer biography of abraham lincoln

English Astronomer Royal (–)

For other people named James Bradley, see James Bradley (disambiguation).

James BradleyFRS (September – 13 July ) was an English astronomer and priest who served as the third Astronomer Royal from He is best known for two fundamental discoveries in astronomy, the aberration of light (–), and the nutation of the Earth's axis (–).

These two discoveries were called "the most brilliant and useful of the century" by Jean Baptiste Joseph Delambre, historian of astronomy, mathematical astronomer and director of the Paris Observatory. In his History of astronomy in the 18th century (), Delambre stated:^[1]

"It is to these two discoveries by Bradley that we owe the exactness of modern astronomy.&#; This double service assures to their discoverer the most distinguished place (after Hipparchus and Kepler) above the greatest astronomers of all ages and all countries."

Biography

Bradley was born at Sherborne, near Cheltenham