The Shuckburgh telescope or Shuckburgh equatorial refracting telescope was a 4.1 inches (10.4 cm) diameter aperture telescope on an equatorial mount completed in 1791 for Sir George Shuckburgh (1751–1804) in Warwickshire, England, and built by British instrument maker Jesse Ramsden (1735–1800).[1][2][3][4][5] It was transferred to the Royal Observatory, Greenwich in 1811 and the London Science Museum in 1929.[2] Even though it has sometimes not been regarded as particularly successful, its design was influential.[3] It was one of the larger achromatic doublet telescopes at the time, and one of the largest to have an equatorial mount.[2] It was also known as the eastern equatorial for its location.[6]

It was pictured in the Rees Cyclopedia of the early 1800s.[7] It was early pictured in Philosophical Transactions, published in 1793.[8]

At the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, it was for a time installed in the North Dome, although this had a Sky view partially obscured by the Octagon room.[9][10] It was earlier installed as an alt-az mount in the South dome at Greenwich, which in 1838 is where the then-new 6.7 inch aperture Sheepshanks refractor was installed.[11]

The telescope tube is 5 feet four inches long (about 1.6 meters).[9] The focal length was the same for this telescope, with object glass being doublet of 4.1 inch (~10.4 cm) aperture.[10][12]

Shuckburgh placed an order with Ramsden for the telescope in 1781, and it was delivered for his observatory ten years later.[13] He also ordered a clock from John Arnold & Son to use with the telescope.[13] The telescope was installed at Shuckburgh Hall, in Warwickshire, United Kingdom.[13]

Observations

The Shuckburgh/ Eastern telescope was used for the 1832 transit of Mercury equipped with a micrometer by Dollond.[14] By observing the transit in combination with timing it and taking measures, a diameter for the planet was taken. They also reported the peculiar effects that they compared to pressing a coin into the Sun. The observer remarked:

I afterwards observed, that immediately around the planet there was a dusky tinge, making it appear as if, in a small degree sunk below the sun's surface;[14]

Further information: Black drop effect

The Shuckburgh and the western equatorial at Greenwich are recorded as having been used for observations of the 1835 apparition of Halley's Comet.[15]

The Shuckburgh, also called the "Eastern Equatorial" at the time Halley's comet was sometimes used with a micrometer microscope.[6] For the observations of Halley's 1835, the Transit and Arnold 1 and 2 clocks were used.[6] Observations were recorded in August, September, and October, but it could not view the comet after October 19, because its view was blocked by another part of the observatory building.[6]

The Shuckburgh is also reported to have been used for observing the occultation of stars by the Moon and observing the moons of Jupiter.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ Winterhalter, Albert Gustavus (1889), The International Astrophotographic Congress and a Visit to Certain European Observatories and Other Institutions: Report to the Superintendent [of the U.S. Naval Observatory]. Washington observations for 1885. Appendix I, U.S. Government Printing Office, p. 151.
  2. ^ a b c McConnell, Anita (2007), "Sir George Shuckburgh's Observatory", Jesse Ramsden (1735-1800): London's Leading Scientific Instrument Maker, Science, technology, and culture, 1700-1945, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., pp. 135–137, ISBN 9780754661368.
  3. ^ a b Andrews, A. D. (1996), "Cyclopaedia of Telescope Makers Part 5 (Sae-Sim)", Irish Astronomical Journal, 23 (1): 57–117, Bibcode:1996IrAJ...23...57A. The Shuckburgh telescope is described on p. 99.
  4. ^ Hingley, Peter D. (2013). "The Shuckburghs of Shuckburgh, Isaac Fletcher, and the History of the English Mounting". The Antiquarian Astronomer. 7. Society for the History of Astronomy: 17–40. Bibcode:2013AntAs...7...17H. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  5. ^ Anita, McConnell (2013). "Jesse Ramsden: the Craftsman who Believed that Big was Beautiful". The Antiquarian Astronomer. 7. Society for the History of Astronomy: 41–53. Bibcode:2013AntAs...7...41M. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  6. ^ a b c d Astronomical Observations. By J. Pond, Published by the President and Council of the Royal Society. 1811-35. 1835.
  7. ^ "Image of shuckburgh telescope, 1820. by Science & Society Picture Library". www.scienceandsociety.co.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  8. ^ "The Royal Observatory Greenwich - where east meets west: Telescope: The Shuckburgh Equatorial (1791)". www.royalobservatorygreenwich.org. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  9. ^ a b Observations Made at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich in the Year ... in Astronomy, Magnetism and Meteorology. H.M. Stationery Office. 1904.
  10. ^ a b Christie, William Henry Maloney (1896). "1896GOAMM..55....1C Page I". Greenwich Observations in Astronomy. 55: XVII. Bibcode:1896GOAMM..55....1C. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  11. ^ Forbes, Eric Gray; Meadows, Arthur Jack; Howse, Derek (1975). Greenwich Observatory ... the Story of Britain's Oldest Scientific Institution, the Royal Observatory at Greenwich and Herstmonceux, 1675-1975. Taylor & Francis Group. ISBN 9780850660951.
  12. ^ Laurie, P. S. (1960). "The Buildings and Old Instruments of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich". The Observatory. 80: 13–22. Bibcode:1960Obs....80...13L. Retrieved 11 April 2023. See page 19.
  13. ^ a b c McConnell, Anita (2007). Jesse Ramsden (1735-1800): London's Leading Scientific Instrument Maker. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 9780754661368.
  14. ^ a b "On the transit of Mercury which took place on the 5th instant". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 2 (13). Royal Astronomical Society: 103–104. 1832. Bibcode:1832MNRAS...2..103.. doi:10.1093/mnras/2.13.103. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  15. ^ "The Royal Observatory Greenwich - where east meets west: Telescope: The Western Equatorial (c.1824)". www.royalobservatorygreenwich.org. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
  16. ^ Observatory, Royal Greenwich (1889). Introduction to Greenwich Astronomical Observations. H.M. Stationery Office.

External links