George Phillips Bond
Encyclopedia
George Phillips Bond was an American
astronomer
. He was the son of William Cranch Bond
. Some sources give his year of birth as 1826.
His early interest was in nature
and bird
s, but after his elder brother William Cranch Bond Jr. died, he felt obliged to follow his father into the field of astronomy
. He succeeded his father as director of Harvard College Observatory
from 1859 until his death. His cousin was Edward Singleton Holden
, first director of Lick Observatory
.
Bond took the first photograph of a star
in 1850 (Vega
) and of a double star
in 1857 (Mizar
); suggested photography could be used to measure a star's magnitude
; and discovered numerous comet
s and calculated their orbit
s. Bond also studied Saturn
and the Orion Nebula
. He and his father jointly discovered Saturn's moon
, Hyperion
(which was also independently discovered by William Lassell
). In addition to his astronomical contributions, Bond also surveyed the White Mountains
of New Hampshire
.
He died of tuberculosis
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
. He was the son of William Cranch Bond
William Cranch Bond
William Cranch Bond was an American astronomer, and the first director of Harvard College Observatory.- Upbringing :William Cranch Bond was born in Falmouth, Maine on September 9, 1789...
. Some sources give his year of birth as 1826.
His early interest was in nature
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...
and bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, but after his elder brother William Cranch Bond Jr. died, he felt obliged to follow his father into the field of astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
. He succeeded his father as director of Harvard College Observatory
Harvard College Observatory
The Harvard College Observatory is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomical research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. It is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, and was founded in 1839...
from 1859 until his death. His cousin was Edward Singleton Holden
Edward Singleton Holden
Edward Singleton Holden was an American astronomer.-Early years:He was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1846 to Jeremiah and Sarah Holden. From 1862-66, he attended Washington University in St. Louis, where he obtained a B.S. degree...
, first director of Lick Observatory
Lick Observatory
The Lick Observatory is an astronomical observatory, owned and operated by the University of California. It is situated on the summit of Mount Hamilton, in the Diablo Range just east of San Jose, California, USA...
.
Bond took the first photograph of a star
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
in 1850 (Vega
Vega
Vega is the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, the fifth brightest star in the night sky and the second brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere, after Arcturus...
) and of a double star
Double star
In observational astronomy, a double star is a pair of stars that appear close to each other in the sky as seen from Earth when viewed through an optical telescope. This can happen either because the pair forms a binary star, i.e...
in 1857 (Mizar
Mizar (star)
The Mizar–Alcor stellar sextuple system consists of the quadruple system Mizar and the binary system Alcor.- Description :Mizar is a quadruple system of two binary stars in the constellation Ursa Major and is the second star from the end of the Big Dipper's handle. Its apparent magnitude is 2.23...
); suggested photography could be used to measure a star's magnitude
Apparent magnitude
The apparent magnitude of a celestial body is a measure of its brightness as seen by an observer on Earth, adjusted to the value it would have in the absence of the atmosphere...
; and discovered numerous comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
s and calculated their orbit
Orbit
In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...
s. Bond also studied Saturn
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...
and the Orion Nebula
Orion Nebula
The Orion Nebula is a diffuse nebula situated south of Orion's Belt. It is one of the brightest nebulae, and is visible to the naked eye in the night sky. M42 is located at a distance of and is the closest region of massive star formation to Earth. The M42 nebula is estimated to be 24 light...
. He and his father jointly discovered Saturn's moon
Natural satellite
A natural satellite or moon is a celestial body that orbits a planet or smaller body, which is called its primary. The two terms are used synonymously for non-artificial satellites of planets, of dwarf planets, and of minor planets....
, Hyperion
Hyperion (moon)
Hyperion , also known as Saturn VII, is a moon of Saturn discovered by William Cranch Bond, George Phillips Bond and William Lassell in 1848. It is distinguished by its irregular shape, its chaotic rotation, and its unexplained sponge-like appearance...
(which was also independently discovered by William Lassell
William Lassell
William Lassell FRS was an English merchant and astronomer.Born in Bolton and educated in Rochdale after the death of his father, he was apprenticed from 1814 to 1821 to a merchant in Liverpool. He then made his fortune as a beer brewer, which enabled him to indulge his interest in astronomy...
). In addition to his astronomical contributions, Bond also surveyed the White Mountains
White Mountains (New Hampshire)
The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...
of New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
.
He died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
.
Honors
- Won the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical SocietyGold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society-History:In the early years, more than one medal was often awarded in a year, but by 1833 only one medal was being awarded per year. This caused a problem when Neptune was discovered in 1846, because many felt an award should jointly be made to John Couch Adams and Urbain Le Verrier...
in 1865. - Mount BondMount BondMount Bond is a mountain located in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The mountain is named after Professor George P. Bond of Harvard University, and is the southernmost extension of the Twin Range of the White Mountains. Mount Bond is flanked to the north by Mount Guyot.Mount Bond...
, West Bond, and Bondcliff among the White Mountains are all named after him. - The crater G. BondG. Bond (crater)G. Bond is a small lunar impact crater to the south of the Lacus Somniorum, a small lunar mare in the northeast part of the Moon's near side. It lies to the east of the larger crater Posidonius, and to the south of the flooded crater remnant Hall...
on the MoonMoonThe Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named after him, as is the crater Bond on MarsMarsMars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
. - The Bond albedoBond albedoThe Bond albedo, named after the American astronomer George Phillips Bond , who originally proposed it, is the fraction of power in the total electromagnetic radiation incident on an astronomical body that is scattered back out into space...
, which is important for describing a planetary body's energy balance, is also named for him. - A region on Hyperion is called the "Bond-Lassell Dorsum"
- Asteroid (767) Bondia767 Bondia- External links :*...
is jointly named after him and his father. - The Bond Gap within Saturn's C Ring is jointly named after him and his father.
External links
- http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/Bios/gpbond.html (note incorrect dates of birth and death)
- MNRAS 9 (1848) 1: Discovery of a new satellite of Saturn
- Presentation of RAS gold medal
- Brief obituary notice
- The Bonds: Pioneers of American Astronomy