The Reverend Thomas Henry Espinell Compton Espin or T. H. E. C. Espin (28 May 1858 – 2 December 1934) was a British

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 ...

. His father Thomas Espin was Chancellor of the Diocese of Chester and his mother was Elizabeth (née Jessop). He became interested in

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

by the appearance of " Coggia's Comet" (

C/1874 H1 C/1874 H1 (Coggia) is a non-periodic comet, which in the summer of 1874 could be seen by the naked eye. On the basis of its brightness, the comet has been called the Great Comet of 1874; on July 13 of that year its apparent magnitude peaked at be ...

), which he saw while attending

Haileybury School Haileybury is a co-educational Public school (United Kingdom), public school (fee-charging boarding school, boarding and day school for 11- to 18-year-olds) located in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire. It is a member of the Rugby Group and enrols ...

. Espin then went to Exeter College, Oxford, from 1878 to 1881. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

the following year. He was an avid amateur astronomer and skilled observer. In 1876, and while only eighteen years of age, he made the acquaintance of the aged Rev.

Thomas William Webb Thomas William Webb (14 December 1807 – 19 May 1885) was a British astronomer. Some sources give his year of birth as 1806. The only son of a clergyman, the Reverend John Webb, he was raised and educated by his father, his mother having d ...

(1807–1885) and assisted with an updated edition of his book '' Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes''; after Webb's death in 1885 he published an expanded 5th (1893) and 6th (1917) editions of it. Also in 1885 Espin was appointed Curate of

Wolsingham Wolsingham is a market town in Weardale, County Durham (district), County Durham, England. It is situated by the River Wear, between Crook, County Durham, Crook and Stanhope, County Durham, Stanhope. History Wolsingham sits at the confluence ...

and he established an astronomical observatory there. In 1888 he transferred to

Tow Law Tow Law is a town and civil parish in County Durham, England. It is situated a few miles to the south of Consett and 5 miles to the north west of Crook. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,952, increasing to 2,138 at the ...

, where he served until he died, and brought the observatory with him. The observatory housed a -inch (438 mm) aperture reflecting telescope, which was later supplemented by a 24-inch (620 mm) aperture reflecting telescope. Espin discovered many

nebulae A nebula (; or nebulas) is a distinct luminescent part of interstellar medium, which can consist of ionized, neutral, or molecular hydrogen and also cosmic dust. Nebulae are often star-forming regions, such as in the Pillars of Creation in th ...

variable star A variable star is a star whose brightness as seen from Earth (its apparent magnitude) changes systematically with time. This variation may be caused by a change in emitted light or by something partly blocking the light, so variable stars are ...

s, and more than 2500

double star In observational astronomy, a double star or visual double is a pair of stars that appear close to each other as viewed from Earth, especially with the aid of optical telescopes. This occurs because the pair either forms a binary star (i.e. a ...

s. He made many observations of the spectra of stars, and in particular he also did extensive searches for red stars (especially in his early career) and published a catalogue of them. He became a Fellow of 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 ...

on 11 January 1878. From 1912 he was assisted in astronomical observing by William Milburn (1896–1982), the grandson of a family friend. Espin was awarded the

Jackson-Gwilt Medal The Jackson-Gwilt Medal is an award that has been issued by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) since 1897. The original criteria were for the invention, improvement, or development of astronomical instrumentation or techniques; for achievement ...

of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1913. He discovered a

nova A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white ...

in the constellation

Lacerta Lacerta is one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Its name is Latin for lizard. A small, faint constellation, it was defined in 1687 by the astronomer Johannes Hevelius. Its brightest stars form a "W" ...

in December 1910: this object was later known as DI Lacertae. His other amateur scientific interests included

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

and the study of

X-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...

s; his study of

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

s caused him to disbelieve Darwin's theory of

evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...

. He also served as a county magistrate for 35 years beginning in 1891 and was chairman of Stanhope and

Sessions. He never married. The crater Espin on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

is named after him.

References

External links

Obituaries

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Espin, T. H. E. C 1858 births 1934 deaths 19th-century British astronomers 19th-century English Anglican priests 20th-century English Anglican priests Fellows of the Royal Astronomical Society 20th-century British astronomers