John Couch Adams (June 5, 1819 – January 21, 1892), was a British mathematician and astronomer. Adams was born in Laneast, Cornwall and died in Cambridge. June 5 is the 156th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (157th in leap years), with 209 days remaining. ... 1819 common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... This article is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... An astronomer or astrophysicist is a scientist whose area of research is astronomy or astrophysics. ... Motto: Onen hag oll (Cornish: One and all) Geography Status Ceremonial and (smaller) Non-metropolitan county Region South West England Population - Total (2004 est. ... This article is about Cambridge, England; see also other places called Cambridge. ...

His most famous achievement was predicting the existence and position of Neptune, using only mathematics. The calculations were made to explain discrepancies with Uranus's orbit and the laws of Kepler and Newton. At the same time, but unknown to both, the same calculations were made by Urbain Le Verrier. Le Verrier would assist Galle in locating the planet (September 1846); which was found within 1° of its predicted location, a point in Aquarius. (There was, and to some extent still is, some controversy over the apportionment of credit for the discovery; see Discovery of Neptune.) Atmospheric characteristics Surface pressure ≫100 MPa Hydrogen - H2 80% ±3. ... Euclid, detail from The School of Athens by Raphael. ... Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 120 kPa Hydrogen 83% Helium 15% Methane 1. ... In physics, an orbit is the path that an object makes, around another object, whilst under the influence of a source of centripetal force, such as gravity. ... A physical law, scientific law, or a law of nature is a mathematical generalization based on empirical observations of physical behavior. ... Johannes Kepler Johannes Kepler (December 27, 1571 – November 15, 1630), a key figure in the scientific revolution, was a German mathematician, astrologer, astronomer, and an early writer of science fiction stories. ... Sir Isaac Newton, PRS, (4 January [O.S. 25 December 1642] 1643 – 31 March [O.S. 20 March] 1727) was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, alchemist, inventor, and natural philosopher who is generally regarded as one of the most influential scientists in history. ... Urbain Le Verrier. ... Johann Gottfried Galle (June 9, 1812 – July 10, 1910) was a German astronomer at the Berlin Observatory who, with help from Urbain Le Verrier, sighted Neptune on September 23, 1846. ... A planet is generally considered to be a relatively large mass of accreted matter in orbit around a star that is not a star itself. ... Point can refer to: Look up Point in Wiktionary, the free dictionary // Mathematics In mathematics: Point (geometry), an entity that has a location in space but no extent Fixed point (mathematics), a point that is mapped to itself by a mathematical function Point at infinity Point group Point charge, an... Aquarius (Latin for the Water-bearer or Cup-bearer, symbol , Unicode â™’) is the eleventh sign of the zodiac, situated between Capricornus and Pisces. ... Atmospheric characteristics Surface pressure ≫100 MPa Hydrogen - H2 80% ±3. ...

He was Lowndean Professor at the University of Cambridge for 33 years from 1859 to his death. He won the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1866. In 1884, he attended the International Meridian Conference as a delegate for Britain. The Lowndean chair of Astronomy and Geometry is one of the two major Professorships in Astronomy at Cambridge University, alongside the Plumian Professorship. ... The University of Cambridge, located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Gold Medal awarded to Asaph Hall The Gold Medal is the highest award of the Royal Astronomical Society. ... The Prime Meridian, Greenwich The Prime Meridian is the meridian (line of longitude) passing through the Royal Greenwich Observatory, Greenwich, England; it is the meridian at which longitude is 0 degrees. ...

A crater on the Moon is jointly named after him, Walter Sydney Adams and Charles Hitchcock Adams. Neptune's outermost known ring and the asteroid 1996 Adams are also named after him. The Adams Prize, presented by the University of Cambridge, commemorates his prediction of the position of Neptune. Tycho crater on Earths moon. ... Bulk composition of the moons mantle and crust estimated, weight percent Oxygen 42. ... Walter Sydney Adams (December 20, 1876 – May 11, 1956) was an American astronomer. ... Charles Hitchcock Adams (1868–1951) was an amateur American astronomer. ... A planetary ring is a ring of dust and other small particles orbiting around a planet in a flat disc-shaped region. ... An asteroid is a small, solid object in our Solar System, orbiting the Sun. ... See also the Herbert Baxter Adams Prize of the American Historical Society The Adams Prize is awarded each year by the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge and St Johns College to a young, UK based mathematician for first class international research in the Mathematical Sciences. ...

Early life

His father, Thomas Adams, was a tenant farmer; his mother, Tabitha Knill Grylls, inherited a small estate at Badharlick. From the village school at Laneast he went, at the age of twelve, to Devonport, where his mother's cousin, the Rev. John Couch Grylls, kept a private school. His promise as a mathematician induced his parents to send him to the University of Cambridge, and in October 1839 he entered as a sizar at St John's College. He graduated with a B.A. in 1843 as the senior wrangler and first Smith's prizeman of his year. Devonport, in Devon, was formerly called Plymouth Dock. ... The University of Cambridge, located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... In the 19th century, a sizar was one of a body of students in the universities of Cambridge and Dublin, who, having passed a certain examination, are exempted from paying college fees and charges. ... Full name The College of Saint John the Evangelist of the University of Cambridge Motto Named after The Hospital of Saint John the Evangelist, Cambridge, named after John the Evangelist Previous names Incorporates part of what was Merton Hall which no longer exists Established 1511 Sister College(s) Balliol College... At the University of Cambridge in England, a wrangler is a student who has completed the third year (called Part II) of the mathematical tripos with first-class honours. ... The Smiths Prize is a prize awarded to research students in theoretical Physics and applied mathematics at the University of Cambridge. ...

Astronomy

While still an undergraduate he happened to read of certain unexplained irregularities in the motion of the planet Uranus, and determined to investigate them as soon as possible, with a view to ascertaining whether they might not be due to the action of a remote undiscovered planet. Elected fellow of his college in 1843, he at once proceeded to attack the novel problem. It was this: from the observed perturbations of a known planet to deduce by calculation, assuming only Newton's law of gravitation, the mass and orbit of an unknown disturbing body. By September 1845 he obtained his first solution, and handed to Professor James Challis, the director of the Cambridge Observatory, a paper giving the elements of what he described as "the new planet." (Challis would later observe it, but fail to recognize it, despite possessing Adams' paper.) James Challis (December 12, 1803 – December 3, 1882) was a British clergyman and astronomer. ...

On 21 October 1845 he left at Greenwich Observatory, for the information of Sir George B. Airy, the Astronomer Royal, a similar document, still preserved among the archives. A fortnight afterwards Airy wrote asking for information about a point in the solution. Adams, who thought the query unessential, did not reply, and Airy for some months took no steps to verify by telescopic search the results of the young mathematician's investiation. Meanwhile, Leverrier, on 10 November 1845, presented to the French Academy a memoir on Uranus, showing that the existing theory failed to account for its motion. Unaware of Adams's work, he attempted a like inquiry, and on 1 June 1846, in a second memoir, gave the position, but not the mass or orbit, of the disturbing body whose existence was presumed. The longitude he assigned differed by only 1 deg. from that predicted by Adams in the document which Airy possessed. The latter was struck by the coincidence, and mentioned it to the Board of Visitors of the Observatory, James Challis and Sir John Herschel being present. Herschel, at the ensuing meeting of the British Association early in September, ventured accordingly to predict that a new planet would shortly be discovered. Meanwhile Airy had in July suggested to Challis that the planet should be sought for with the Cambridge equatorial. The search was begun by a laborious method at the end of the month. On the 8th and 12 August, as afterwards appeared, the planet was actually observed; but owing to the want of a proper star-map it was not then recognized as planetary. Leverrier, still ignorant of these occurrences, presented on 31 August 1846 a third memoir, giving for the first time the mass and orbit of the new body. He communicated his results by letter to Galle, of the Berlin Observatory, who at once examined the suggested region of the heavens. On 23 September he detected near the predicted place a small star unrecorded in the map, and next evening found that it had a proper motion. No doubt remained that Leverrier's planet had been discovered. On the announcement of the fact, Herschel and Challis made known that Adams had already calculated the planet's elements and position. Airy then at length published an account of the circumstances, and Adams's memoir was printed as an appendix to the Nautical Almanac. A keen controversy arose in France and England as to the merits of the two astronomers. In the latter country much surprise was expressed at the apathy of Airy; in France the claims made for an unknown Englishman were resented as detracting from the credit due to Leverrier's achievement. As the indisputable facts became known, the world recognized that the two astronomers had independently solved the problem of Uranus, and ascribed to each equal glory. The new planet, at first called Leverrier by F. Arago, received by general consent the neutral name of Neptune. Its mathematical prediction was not only an unsurpassed intellectual feat; it showed also that Newton's law of gravitation, which Airy had almost called in question, prevailed even to the utmost bounds of the solar system. October 21 is the 294th day of the year (295th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 71 days remaining. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... George Biddell Airy Sir George Biddell Airy (July 27, 1801–January 2, 1892) was British Astronomer Royal from 1835 to 1881. ... November 10 is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 51 days remaining. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... June 1 is the 152nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (153rd in leap years), with 213 days remaining. ... 1846 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... John Herschel Sir John Frederick William Herschel (7 March 1792 – 11 May 1871) was an English mathematician and astronomer. ... The British Association or the British Association for the Advancement of Science or the BA is a learned society with the object of promoting science, directing general attention to scientific matters, and facilitating intercourse between scientific workers. ... August 12 is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... August 31 is the 243rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (244th in leap years), with 122 days remaining. ... 1846 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Johann Gottfried Galle (June 9, 1812 – July 10, 1910) was a German astronomer at the Berlin Observatory who, with help from Urbain Le Verrier, sighted Neptune on September 23, 1846. ... The Berlin Observatory has its origins in 1700 when Gottfried Leibniz initiated the Brandenburgische Society which would later become Prussian Academy of Sciences. ... September 23 is the 266th day of the year (267th in leap years). ... The law of universal gravitation states that gravitational force between masses decreases with the distance between them, according to an inverse-square law. ...

The honour of knighthood was offered to Adams when Queen Victoria visited Cambridge in 1847; but then, as on a subsequent occasion, his modesty led him to decline it. The Royal Society awarded him its Copley medal in 1848. In the same year the members of St John's College commemorated his success by founding in the university an Adams Prize, to be given biennially for the best treatise on a mathematical subject. In 1851 he became president of the Royal Astronomical Society. His lay fellowship at St John's College came to an end in 1852, and the existing statutes did not permit of his re-election. But Pembroke College, which possessed greater freedom, elected him in the following year to a lay fellowship, and this he held for the rest of his life. In 1858 he became professor of mathematics at St Andrews, but lectured only for a session, when he vacated the chair for the Lowndean professorship of astronomy and geometry at Cambridge. Two years later he succeeded Challis as director of the Observatory, where he resided until his death. The premises of the Royal Society in London (first four properties only). ... The Copley Medal is a scientific award for work in any field of science, the highest award granted by the Royal Society of London. ... The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) began as the Astronomical Society of London in 1820 to support astronomical research (mainly carried on at the time by gentleman astronomers rather than professionals). ... Full name Pembroke College Motto - Named after Countess of Pembroke, Mary de St Pol Previous names Marie Valence Hall (1347), Pembroke Hall (?), Pembroke College (1856) Established 1347 Sister College(s) Queens College Master Sir Richard Dearlove Location Trumpington Street Undergraduates ~420 Postgraduates 194 Homepage Boatclub Pembroke College is a...

Although Adams's researches on Neptune were those which attracted widest notice, the work he subsequently performed in relation to gravitational astronomy and terrestrial magnetism was not less remarkable. Several of his most striking contributions to knowledge originated in the discovery of errors or fallacies in the work of his great predecessors in astronomy. Thus in 1852 he published new and accurate tables of the moon's parallax, which superseded J. K. Burckhardt's, and supplied corrections to the theories of M. C. T. Damoiseau, G. A. A. Plana and P. G. D. de Pontecoulant. In the following year his memoir on the secular acceleration of the moon's mean motion partially invalidated Laplace's famous explanation, which had held its place unchallenged for sixty years. At first, Leverrier, Plana and other foreign astronomersi controverted Adams's result; but its soundness was ultimately established, and its fundamental importance to this branch of celestial theory has only developed further with time. For these researches the Royal Astronomical Society awarded him its gold medal in 1866. The great meteor shower of 1866 turned his attention to the Leonids, whose probable path and period had already been discussed by Professor H. A. Newton. Using a powerful and elaborate analysis, Adams ascertained that this cluster of meteors, which belongs to the solar system, traverses an elongated ellipse in 33 1/4 years, and is subject to definite perturbations from the larger planets, Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus. These results were published in 1867. Ten years later, when Mr. G. W. Hill of Washington expounded a new and beautiful method for dealing with the problem of the lunar motions, Adams briefly announced his own unpublished work in the same field, which, following a parallel course had confirmed and supplemented Hill's. In 1874-1876 he was president of the Royal Astronomical Society for the second time, when it fell to him to present the gold medal of the year to Leverrier. The determination of the constants in Gauss's theory of terrestrial magnetism occupied him at intervals for over forty years. The calculations involved great labour, and were not published during his lifetime. They were edited by his brother, Professor W. Grylls Adams, and appear in the second volume of the collected Scientific Papers. Numerical computation of this kind might almost be described as his pastime. The value of the constant known as Euler's, and the Bernoulli numbers up to the 62nd, he worked out to an unimagined degree of accuracy. For Newton and his writings he had a boundless admiration; many of his papers, indeed, bear the cast of Newton's thought. He laboured for many years at the task of arranging and cataloguing the great collection of Newton's unpublished mathematical writings, presented in 1872 to the university by Lord Portsmouth, and wrote the account of them issued in a volume by the University Press in 1888. The post of Astronomer Royal was offered him in 1881, but he preferred to pursue his peaceful course of teaching and research in Cambridge. He was British delegate to the International Prime Meridian Conference at Washington in 1884, when he also attended the meetings of the British Association at Montreal and of the American Association at Philadelphia. Five years later his health gave way, and after a long illness he died at the Cambridge Observatory on 21 January 1892, and was buried in St Giles's cemetery, near his home. In 1863 he married Miss Eliza Bruce, of Dublin, who survived him. An international committee was formed for the purpose of erecting a monument to his memory in Westminster Abbey; and there, in May 1895, a portrait medallion, by Albert Bruce Joy, was placed near the grave of Newton, and adjoining the memorials of Darwin and of Joule. His bust, by the same sculptor, stands opposite that of Sir John Herschel in the hall of St John's College, Cambridge. Herkomer's portrait is in Pembroke College; and Mogford's, painted in 1851, is in the combination room of St John's. Another bust, taken in his youth, belongs to the Royal Astronomical Society. A memorial tablet, with an inscription by Archbishop Benson, is placed in the Cathedral at Truro; and Mr Passmore Edwards erected a public institute in his honour at Launceston, near his birthplace. 1966 Leonid Meteor Shower The Leonids are a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Tempel-Tuttle. ... The gauss, abbreviated as G, is the cgs unit of magnetic flux density or magnetic induction (B), named after the German mathematician and physicist Carl Friedrich Gauss. ... Leonhard Euler aged 49 (oil painting by Emanuel Handmann, 1756) Leonhard Euler (April 15, 1707 - September 18, 1783) (pronounced oiler) was a Swiss mathematician and physicist. ... In mathematics, the Bernoulli numbers Bn were first discovered in connection with the closed forms of the sums for various fixed values of n. ... Astronomer Royal is a senior post in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. ... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Abbeys western façade The Collegiate Church of St Peter, Westminster, which is almost always referred to as Westminster Abbey, is a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. ... Truro is Cornwalls only city and its administrative centre. ... Launceston is the name of the following places: Launceston, Cornwall, England Launceston, Tasmania, Australia Note that the English Launceston is pronounced Lawn-sn, Lan-sn or Larn-sn while the Australian one is pronounced Lon-cestun. ...

Publications

The Scientific Papers of John Couch Adams, 4to, vol. i. (1896), and vol. ii. (1900), edited by William Grylls Adams and Ralph Allen Sampson, with a memoir by Dr J. W. L. Glaisher, were published by the Cambridge University Press. The first volume contains his previously published writings; the second those left in manuscript, including the substance of his lectures on the Lunar Theory. A collection, virtually complete, of Adams's papers regarding the discovery of Neptune was presented by Mrs Adams to the library of St John's College. A description of them by Professor Sampson was inserted in the Memoirs of the Royal Astronomical Society (vol. liv. p. 143). Consult: Month. Notices Roy. Astr. Soc., liii. 184; Observatory, xv. 174; Nature, xxxiv. 565, xlv. 301; Astr. Journal, No. 254; R. Grant, Hist. of Physical Astronomy, p. 168; Edinburgh Review, No. 381, p. 72. He was also on the front of the very well known Playgirl magazine, and was awarded nobel sexy prize in 1836. Dominick, also known as Lyrik, is the best rapper ever and every girl wants to give him some of their ass.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication in the public domain. Encyclopædia Britannica, the 11th edition The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

See also

• Neptune (planet)
• List of Cornish people
• Adams Prize

Atmospheric characteristics Surface pressure ≫100 MPa Hydrogen - H2 80% ±3. ... Note: This list includes people of Cornish birth, parentage, or longtime residence. ... See also the Herbert Baxter Adams Prize of the American Historical Society The Adams Prize is awarded each year by the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge and St Johns College to a young, UK based mathematician for first class international research in the Mathematical Sciences. ...

References

• Harrison, H. M (1994). Voyager in time and space: the life of John Couch Adams, Cambridge astronomer. Lewes: Book Guild. ISBN 0863329187.

External links

• Biography on the St Andrews database
• Awarding of RAS gold medal: MNRAS 26 (1866) 157

Obituaries

• AJ 11 (1892) 112
• MNRAS 53 (1892) 184
• Obs 15 (1892) 173