Francis Abbott (12 August 1799 – 18 February 1883) was an Australian astronomer.

Biography

Abbott was born in

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and became a watchmaker there. In 1831 he moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

and manufactured timepieces and astronomical machinery. In 1844, he was found guilty of obtaining two watches under false pretenses, and was sent to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. He arrived in

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

in 1845, where he eventually again became a maker of watches and clocks. Abbott set up a private observatory where he made astronomical and meteorological observations. He published a number of papers in astronomical journals about comets, transits, and other matters. In an 1863 paper in ''

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society ''Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society'' (MNRAS) is a peer-reviewed scientific journal in astronomy, astrophysics and related fields. It publishes original research in two formats: papers (of any length) and letters (limited to ...

'', he claimed that the Eta Carinae nebula had changed shape and size since Herschel observed it in the 1830s. This claim was refuted by

Richard Proctor Richard Anthony Proctor FRAS (23 March 1837 – 12 September 1888) was an English astronomer. He is best remembered for having produced one of the earliest maps of Mars in 1867 from 27 drawings by the English observer William Rutter Dawes. Hi ...

in 1871. This almost destroyed his credibility and he ceased publishing papers in European journals in 1873, deciding instead to write popularized astronomy booklets. He died in Hobart. He was originally buried in the Congregational Cemetery in South Hobart with some members of his family. Sometime after 1902 the Congregational Cemetery was closed and the remains were removed."Abbott, Francis", by Wayne Orchiston, pp. 4–5 in ''The Biographical Dictionary of Astronomers'', eds. Thomas Hockey et al., Springer: New York, 2007, , . Abbott was Tasmania's ''de facto'' government astronomer and meteorologist from 1855 to 1880, and he was a member of the

Royal Society of Tasmania The Royal Society of Tasmania (RST) was formed in 1843. It was the first Royal Society outside the United Kingdom, and its mission was the advancement of knowledge. The work of the Royal Society of Tasmania includes: * Promoting Tasmanian hist ...

, the

Royal Astronomical Society The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) is a learned society and charitable organisation, charity that encourages and promotes the study of astronomy, planetary science, solar-system science, geophysics and closely related branches of science. Its ...

, and the

Royal Meteorological Society The Royal Meteorological Society is an organization that promotes academic and public engagement in weather and climate science. Fellows of the Society must possess relevant qualifications, but Members can be lay enthusiasts. It publishes vari ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abbott, Francis 19th-century Australian astronomers 1799 births 1883 deaths People from Derby Colony of Tasmania people