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 their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either o ...

. 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 astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

by the appearance of " Coggia's Comet" ( C/1874 H1), which he saw while attending

Haileybury School Haileybury is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) near Hertford in England. It is a member of the Rugby Group and, though originally a major boys' public school in the Victorian era, it is now co-educational, enrolli ...

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

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

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 Rev. John Webb, he was raised and educated by his father, his mother having died ...

(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, England. It is situated by the River Wear, between Crook and Stanhope. History Wolsingham sits at the confluence of the River Wear and Waskerley Beck. It is a small settlement and one ...

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 20 ...

, 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 ('cloud' or 'fog' in Latin; pl. nebulae, nebulæ 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 regio ...

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

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 Spectra may refer to: * The plural of spectrum, conditions or values that vary over a continuum, especially the colours of visible light * ''Spectra'' (journal), of the Museum Computer Network (MCN) * The plural of spectrum (topology), an object ...

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 (Whatever shines should be observed) , predecessor = , successor = , formation = , founder = , extinction = , merger = , merged = , type = NG ...

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 (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramati ...

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 DI Lacertae or Nova Lacertae 1910 was a nova in constellation Lacerta which appeared in 1910. It was discovered by Thomas Henry Espinell Compton Espin at Wolsingham Observatory on 30 Dec 1910, at which time it was an 8th magnitude o ...

. His other amateur scientific interests included

botany Botany, also called plant science (or plant sciences), plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "bot ...

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

and the study of

X-ray X-rays (or rarely, ''X-radiation'') are a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. In many languages, it is referred to as Röntgen radiation, after the German scientist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, who discovered it in 1895 and named it ' ...

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 preserved ...

s caused him to disbelieve

Darwin Darwin may refer to: Common meanings * Charles Darwin (1809–1882), English naturalist and writer, best known as the originator of the theory of biological evolution by natural selection * Darwin, Northern Territory, a territorial capital city i ...

's theory of

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

. 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 Espin can refer to: * eCRUSH * espin (protein) * Espin (surname) * Espin (crater) Espin is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, just beyond the northeastern limb. It lies to the west-southwest of the larger crater Seyf ...

on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width ...

is named after him.

References

External links

Obituaries

MNRAS 95 (1935) 319–322

JBAA 45 (1935) 128

Nature 135 (1935) 257-258
{{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