Macfarlane Observatory
Encyclopedia
At Glasgow University, the Macfarlane Observatory was established in 1757 with instruments donated by Alexander Macfarlane, a merchant in Jamaica
. The instruments arrived to Glasgow in a deteriorated condition, and their suitability for mounting was in question before they were taken in hand by James Watt
. Watt had been trained in London and upon returning to Glasgow served as instrument maker to the university.
The benefactor Alexander Macfarlane had graduated MA from the university in 1728. Beyond his successful commercial career in Jamaica, he was an assistant judge and a member of the Jamaica legislative assembly. Macfarlane purchased the astronomical instruments of Colin Campbell
after 1742. Macfarlane died in 1755. A portrait of him appears on the Glasgow University biography site linked below.
The donation was opportune for Watt as well as the university. As Marshall writes
In 1760 Alexander Wilson was installed as professor of practical astronomy. His interest in sun spot
s made Macfarlane Observatory an early contributor to solar physics
as Wilson described the surface of the Sun. Observing the variation in width of the penumbra of a sunspot near the limb, he concluded the sunspots were depressions in the generally spherical photosphere
. The phenomenon is called the Wilson effect
to acknowledge his early observations.
In the eighteenth century, the social position of an observatory was greater than now: as Dava Sobel writes, "...The founding philosophy of the Royal Observatory, like that of the Paris Observatory before it, viewed astronomy as a means to an end. All the far-flung stars must be catalogued, so as to chart a course for sailors over the oceans of the earth." An observatory represented a place of certitude of time and place, a place to set a marine chronometer
for use at sea where longitude was found by the method of lunar distances. The establishment of the Macfarlane Observatory in 1757 was before the 1767 appearance of The Nautical Almanac
based on the Prime Meridian
at Royal Observatory, Greenwich
.
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. The instruments arrived to Glasgow in a deteriorated condition, and their suitability for mounting was in question before they were taken in hand by James Watt
James Watt
James Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...
. Watt had been trained in London and upon returning to Glasgow served as instrument maker to the university.
The benefactor Alexander Macfarlane had graduated MA from the university in 1728. Beyond his successful commercial career in Jamaica, he was an assistant judge and a member of the Jamaica legislative assembly. Macfarlane purchased the astronomical instruments of Colin Campbell
Colin Campbell (astronomer)
Colin Campbell FRS was a Scottish astronomer.He grew up in Jamaica. He matriculated at Glasgow University, in 1720. He was invested as a Fellow, Royal Society in 1733. He studied Newton's theory of the diminution of gravity away from the equator...
after 1742. Macfarlane died in 1755. A portrait of him appears on the Glasgow University biography site linked below.
The donation was opportune for Watt as well as the university. As Marshall writes
- ...within a month of [Watt’s] arrival in Glasgow, the University received a case of astronomical instruments...the sea voyage had thrown these delicate instruments out of gear, and they needed overhauling by an expert...
In 1760 Alexander Wilson was installed as professor of practical astronomy. His interest in sun spot
Sun SPOT
Sun SPOT is a wireless sensor network mote developed by Sun Microsystems. The device is built upon the IEEE 802.15.4 standard...
s made Macfarlane Observatory an early contributor to solar physics
Solar physics
For the physics journal, see Solar Physics Solar physics is the study of our Sun. It is a branch of astrophysics that specializes in exploiting and explaining the detailed measurements that are possible only for our closest star...
as Wilson described the surface of the Sun. Observing the variation in width of the penumbra of a sunspot near the limb, he concluded the sunspots were depressions in the generally spherical photosphere
Photosphere
The photosphere of an astronomical object is the region from which externally received light originates. The term itself is derived from Ancient Greek roots, φῶς, φωτός/phos, photos meaning "light" and σφαῖρα/sphaira meaning "sphere", in reference to the fact that it is a spheric surface perceived...
. The phenomenon is called the Wilson effect
Wilson effect
In 1769 a Scottish astronomer named Alexander Wilson, working at the Macfarlane Observatory, noticed that the shape of sunspots noticeably flattened as they approached the Sun's limb due to the solar rotation. These observations showed that sunspots were features on the solar surface, as opposed to...
to acknowledge his early observations.
In the eighteenth century, the social position of an observatory was greater than now: as Dava Sobel writes, "...The founding philosophy of the Royal Observatory, like that of the Paris Observatory before it, viewed astronomy as a means to an end. All the far-flung stars must be catalogued, so as to chart a course for sailors over the oceans of the earth." An observatory represented a place of certitude of time and place, a place to set a marine chronometer
Marine chronometer
A marine chronometer is a clock that is precise and accurate enough to be used as a portable time standard; it can therefore be used to determine longitude by means of celestial navigation...
for use at sea where longitude was found by the method of lunar distances. The establishment of the Macfarlane Observatory in 1757 was before the 1767 appearance of The Nautical Almanac
The Nautical Almanac
The Nautical Almanac has been the familiar name for a series of official British almanacs published under various titles since the first issue of The Nautical Almanac and Astronomical Ephemeris, for 1767: this was the first nautical almanac ever to contain data dedicated to the convenient...
based on the Prime Meridian
Prime Meridian
The Prime Meridian is the meridian at which the longitude is defined to be 0°.The Prime Meridian and its opposite the 180th meridian , which the International Date Line generally follows, form a great circle that divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.An international...
at Royal Observatory, Greenwich
Royal Observatory, Greenwich
The Royal Observatory, Greenwich , in London, England played a major role in the history of astronomy and navigation, and is best known as the location of the prime meridian...
.