Over on the Longitude Project blog, the last few posts have focused heavily Nevil Maskelyne, 5th Astronomer Royal and a key player in the Board of Longitude, the bicentenary of whose death was marked last week. However, 2011 also inevitably marks 200 years since the appointment of Maskelyne’s successor, a fact which perhaps also deserves mention, especially since he too was inevitably involved with the Board of Longitude.
This successor was John Pond (bap. 1767- d. 1836). He is not, it has to be said, one of the better-known tenants of Flamsteed House, being generally considered as the filling between the tenures of Maskelyne and George Airy. However, follow the link to find out more about his life and interesting times.
teleskopos 