Nathaniel Bliss
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Nathaniel Bliss (28 November 1700 – 2 September 1764) was an English
astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. Astronomers observe astronomical objects, such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, galax ...
of the 18th century, serving as Britain's fourth
Astronomer Royal Astronomer Royal is a senior post in the Royal Households of the United Kingdom. There are two officers, the senior being the astronomer royal dating from 22 June 1675; the junior is the astronomer royal for Scotland dating from 1834. The Astro ...
between 1762 and 1764. Bliss studied at
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
and later became the
Savilian Professor of Geometry The position of Savilian Professor of Geometry was established at the University of Oxford in 1619. It was founded (at the same time as the Savilian Professor of Astronomy, Savilian Professorship of Astronomy) by Henry Savile (Bible translator), ...
. He made important meridian observations of a
comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...
and a
solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs approximately every six months, during the eclipse season i ...
visible from
Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
, and many of his observations proved useful in solving the
longitude problem The history of longitude describes the centuries-long effort by astronomers, cartographers and navigators to discover a means of determining the longitude (the east-west position) of any given place on Earth. The measurement of longitude is impo ...
, and were bought by the
Board of Longitude Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard ...
after his death.


Life

Nathaniel Bliss was born in the
Cotswolds The Cotswolds ( ) is a region of central South West England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper River Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and the Vale of Evesham. The area is defined by the bedroc ...
village of Bisley in
Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...
. His father, also named Nathaniel Bliss, was a clothier. Bliss studied at
Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located on Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England and VI of Scotland, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale ...
. He graduated
B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
in 1720 and M.A. in 1723, and married shortly afterwards. In 1736, Bliss became rector of
St Ebbe's Church St Ebbe's is a Church of England parish church in central Oxford, named after the seventh-century abbess Æbbe of Coldingham. The church is within the conservative evangelical tradition and participates in the Anglican Reform movement. It has memb ...
in
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
. Supported by, among others; the 2nd Earl of Macclesfield (George Parker),
Savilian Professor of Astronomy The position of Savilian Professor of Astronomy was established at the University of Oxford in 1619. It was founded (at the same time as the Savilian Professorship of Geometry) by Sir Henry Savile, a mathematician and classical scholar who was ...
James Bradley James Bradley (September 1692 – 13 July 1762) was an English astronomer and priest who served as the third Astronomer Royal from 1742. He is best known for two fundamental discoveries in astronomy, the aberration of light (1725–1728), and ...
and by William Jones, Bliss succeeded
Edmond Halley Edmond (or Edmund) Halley (; – ) was an English astronomer, mathematician and physicist. He was the second Astronomer Royal in Britain, succeeding John Flamsteed in 1720. From an observatory he constructed on Saint Helena in 1676–77, Hal ...
as
Savilian Professor of Geometry The position of Savilian Professor of Geometry was established at the University of Oxford in 1619. It was founded (at the same time as the Savilian Professor of Astronomy, Savilian Professorship of Astronomy) by Henry Savile (Bible translator), ...
at
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
in February 1742 – being elected a Fellow of the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
in May the same year. As Savilian Professor he lectured courses in arithmetic, algebra, plane and spherical geometry, the use of logarithms and surveying instruments. In 1762 he succeeded Bradley to become the fourth Astronomer Royal, but held the post for only two years before his unexpected death. He died in Oxford, but was buried close to Edmond Halley in St Margaret's churchyard in
Lee Lee may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lee'' (2007 film), Tamil-language sports action film * ''Lee'' (2017 film), Kannada-language action film * ''Lee'' (2023 film), biographical drama about Lee Miller, American photojournalist * ''L ...
in south-east
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. As men of independent means, the first four Astronomers Royal including Bliss, were paid only a minimal salary. This situation changed when
Nevil Maskelyne Nevil Maskelyne (; 6 October 1732 – 9 February 1811) was the fifth British Astronomer Royal. He held the office from 1765 to 1811. He was the first person to scientifically measure the mass of the planet Earth. He created '' The Nautical Al ...
succeeded Bliss as Astronomer Royal upon his death – Maskelyne commanded a salary of £350 per annum, permitting him to make the post his main occupation. In 2000 the
International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; , UAI) is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach, education, and developmen ...
named a crater on the Moon after Bliss, in commemoration of his position as Astronomer Royal.


Observations

George Parker, the Earl of Macclesfield, had established an observatory at
Shirburn Castle Shirburn Castle is a Grade I listed building, Grade I listed, moated castle located at the village of Shirburn, near Watlington, Oxfordshire, Watlington, Oxfordshire. Originally constructed in the fourteenth century, it was renovated and remode ...
in
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...
. Working for and with the Earl of Macclesfield, Bliss made
meridian Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to Science * Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon * ...
observations of a comet approaching the Sun in 1744 at Shirburn Castle and at
Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
. Bliss worked alongside James Bradley at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich and in June 1761, owing to the poor health of Bradley, he undertook the observations for the
transit of Venus A transit of Venus takes place when Venus passes directly between the Sun and the Earth (or any other superior planet), becoming visible against (and hence obscuring a small portion of) the solar disk. During a transit, Venus is visible as ...
. His assistant at the Royal Observatory was Charles Green, and upon his death, Green continued Bliss' work until the appointment of the next Astronomer Royal. In April 1764 Bliss made observations of an annular (solar) eclipse visible from Greenwich. Many of the observations made by Bliss were considered potentially useful for solving the
longitude problem The history of longitude describes the centuries-long effort by astronomers, cartographers and navigators to discover a means of determining the longitude (the east-west position) of any given place on Earth. The measurement of longitude is impo ...
, important for cartography and ocean navigation, and were therefore bought by the
Board of Longitude Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard ...
from his widow Elizabeth Bliss (née Hillman). His Greenwich observations were not published until 1805, when they were included as a supplement in an edition by
Thomas Hornsby Thomas Hornsby (1733 in Durham – 11 April 1810 in Oxford) was a British astronomer and mathematician. Life Hornsby became a Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford in 1760. He occupied the Savilian Chair of Astronomy at Oxford University fr ...
on the observations of Bradley.


References

;Attribution


Further reading

*


External links


Online catalogue of Bliss' working papers (part of the Royal Greenwich Observatory Archives held at Cambridge University Library)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bliss, Nathaniel 1700 births 1764 deaths 18th-century English astronomers 18th-century English mathematicians Alumni of Pembroke College, Oxford Astronomers Royal Fellows of the Royal Society People from Bisley, Gloucestershire Savilian Professors of Geometry 18th-century English Anglican priests