Eclipses, Stars and Relativity

 

If Eddington made Einstein a household name, the Royal Observatory made Eddington the observational astronomer.

The Royal Observatory, Greenwich, 1881-1939, Lee T. Macdonald, p. 195

The Royal Observatory, Greenwich was founded in 1675 to solve the pressing problem of finding longitude at sea.

The most enduring solution was John Harrison's marine timekeeper. And over the two centuries that followed, Greenwich became the centre of Britain’s time service.

From 1884, the Greenwich meridian was becoming widely accepted as the 'zero' of world longitude. But by the late 1950s, the Royal Observatory had moved out of London in search of clearer skies.

What happened in those early years of the twentieth century?

Lee Macdonald draws on his book, The Royal Observatory, Greenwich, 1881-1939 to explain how the Observatory advanced astronomical research during this time of global upheaval and scientific endeavour.

Using many previously unpublished sources, Lee describes the essential role Greenwich played in expeditions to observe the 1919 solar eclipse, which confirmed a key prediction of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity – the theory expounded in the History of Science Museum’s best-known exhibit: Einstein's blackboard.

5.45 pm: Doors open

6.00 pm: Lee Macdonald on Eclipses, Stars and Relativity

6.45 pm: Q&A

7.00 pm: The Royal Observatory, Greenwich, 1881-1939 on sale in the Entrance Gallery

We regret that there is no step-free access to the museum.