BellaOnline Forums Education Astronomy William Herschel *new*

A professional musician named William Herschel was the first person in history to discover a planet. Later, as a professional astronomer, Herschel studied the stars and deep space objects to try to understand “the construction of the heavens.” He was one of the fathers of modern astronomy.

William Herschel

William Herschel's son John - among his many talents - was a pioneer of photography. It was John Herschel who invented some of the vocabulary of photography, as well as the cyanotype photographic process. This produces blue-colored images and is still used to make blueprints. The earliest known photograph on glass is one John Herschel took of the framework of his father's 40-foot telescope. He took the picture soon before he had it dismantled because it was becoming increasingly rickety.

William Herschel was over forty when he took up astronomy as a career. It showed a lot of love and dedication for the stars after more than twenty years as a professional musician. (The Grove Dictionary of Music has an entry for him as a musician.) Some of his compositions have been recorded, including this short symphony recorded by the London Mozart Players.

November 15th - It's William Herschel's birthday today!

Here is another symphony by Herschel along with a drawing by his contemporary, French artist Anicet Charles Gabriel Lemonnier (1743–1824).

In 1997 a Miss Cruickshank (I can't find a first name for her) left the Diocese of Oxford a bequest for a stained glass window depicting the Solar System. The parishes were invited to apply. St Laurence's connection with the Herschels won the day and they were awarded the bequest for the window. You can see part of it here.

Miss Cruickshank wanted something to "inspire wonder". As the psalmist said, "when I consider the heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you have set in their courses, what are mortals that you should be mindful of them?" (Ps 8).

The final resting place of one of the greatest astronomers of all time was allowed to fall into shocking disrepair by the mid 19th century. It was almost demolished. But saved by a local farmer, it was later repaired and brought back into use.