Hall , Asaph

Hall , Asaph
(1829–1907) American astronomer
Born at Goshen in Connecticut, Hall had to leave school at the age of 13 and support his family as a carpenter, following the death of his father. He educated himself, and his interest in astronomy was strong enough for George Bond to employ him as his assistant at Harvard in 1857. In 1863 Hall became professor of mathematics at the Naval Observatory in Washington. He returned to Harvard as professor of astronomy in 1895.
In 1877 Mars was in opposition to the Sun at a distance of about 30 million miles from the Earth. Hall decided to search for Martian satellites using the 26-inch (66-cm) refractor that the Clark firm had provided for the Naval Observatory. On 11 August he discovered a tiny satellite (the smaller moon) but was then compelled to wait a further six nights for the persistent cloud to clear before he could confirm his sighting and discover a further satellite. Both were very small, having diameters of 17 miles (27 km) and 9 miles (15 km) only. He named the larger ‘Phobos’ and the smaller ‘Deimos’ (Fear and Terror), after the sons of Mars. One curious feature of the two satellites was that Jonathan Swift had spoken of Martian satellites in Gulliver's Travels (1726). Not only did Swift get their number correct but also spoke accurately of their size and orbital period.
In 1876, by noticing a white spot on the surface of Saturn, Hall was able to work out correctly the rotation period as 10.75 hours, which compares well with today's figure of 10 hours 14 minutes (for its equatorial region).

Scientists. . 2011.

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  • Hall, Asaph — ▪ American astronomer born Oct. 15, 1829, Goshen, Conn., U.S. died Nov. 22, 1907, Annapolis, Md.  American astronomer who discovered the two moons of Mars, Deimos and Phobos, in 1877 and calculated their orbits.       Hall came from an… …   Universalium

  • Hall, Asaph — ► (1829 1907) Astrónomo estadounidense. Fue el descubridor de los satélites de Marte …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Hall — Asaph …   Scientists

  • Asaph Hall — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Hall. Asaph Hall Asaph Hall (15 octobre 1829, Goshen, Connecticut 22 novembre  …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Hall — (Voz inglesa.) ► sustantivo masculino Pieza interior de una vivienda o de un edificio inmediata a la puerta de entrada: ■ el mayordomo nos hizo esperar en el hall. IRREG. plural halls tb:vestíbulo * * * hall (ingl.; pronunc. [jol]) m. *Vestíbulo …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Asaph Hall — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Asaph Hall en el observatorio naval de Estados Unidos Asaph Hall (Goshen, Connecticut (EE. UU.),15 de octubre de 1829 Maryland (EE. UU.), 22 de noviembre de …   Wikipedia Español

  • Asaph Hall — (* 15. Oktober 1829 in Goshen, Connecticut; † 22. November 1907 in Annapolis, Maryland) war ein US amerikanischer Astronom und ist der Entdecker der beiden Marsmonde Phobos und Deimos. Asaph Hall Nach dem Tode seiner Eltern nahm Hall eine Lehre… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Asaph Hall Jr. — Asaph Hall Jr. Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Asaph Hall Jr. (1859 1930). Astrónomo norteamericano. Fue uno de los cuatro hijos del también astrónomo Asaph Hall, quien en 1856 contrajo matrimonio con Angeline Stickney (1830 1892). Siguiendo los… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Asaph Hall Jr — (1859 1939) was an American astronomer. He the son of Asaph Hall. He grew up in Washington, DC while his father worked at the United States Naval Observatory. Hall graduated from Harvard University in 1881, and received a doctoral degree from… …   Wikipedia

  • Asaph — (Hebrew for God has gathered ) may refer to: * Asaph Hall, 19th century astronomer * Saint Asaph, first Bishop of the Diocese of Saint Asaph in Wales * The Diocese of Saint Asaph * St. Asaph, a town in North WalesAsaph also refers to four men… …   Wikipedia

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