James Pound facts for kids
James Pound (born 1669, died 1724) was an English priest and a brilliant astronomer. He made many important observations of the sky and helped other famous scientists of his time.
Contents
Discovering James Pound's Life
James Pound was born in Bishops Cannings, a village in Wiltshire, England. He went to Oxford University to study. After his studies, he became a priest.
Adventures in the East
In 1699, James Pound joined the East India Company. He traveled to Madras (now Chennai) in India as a chaplain. A chaplain is like a priest who serves a community. From there, he moved to a British settlement on Côn Sơn Island, near the Mekong River.
However, in March 1705, the local soldiers on the island rebelled. It was a dangerous time. Only eleven English residents managed to escape on a ship called the Rose. They sailed to Malacca and then to Batavia (now Jakarta). James Pound was one of these refugees. Sadly, all his important notes and collections were lost during the escape.
Return to England and Astronomy
After a year, James Pound returned to England in 1707. He became a priest in Wanstead, Essex. Later, he also became a priest in Burstow, Surrey.
He was chosen to be a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1699. This is a very old and respected group of scientists. He joined them officially in 1713. James Pound was very interested in the sky. He used a special fifteen-foot-long telescope to watch the stars and planets.
He observed a total solar eclipse in 1715. He also saw a star disappear behind Jupiter in 1715. That same year, he watched an eclipse of the Moon. He continued to study planets in 1716 and 1717.
Working with Famous Scientists
In 1717, the Royal Society lent James Pound a huge telescope lens. It was made by Christiaan Huygens and was 123 feet long! He set it up at Wanstead House. Sir Isaac Newton helped him get a tall pole to mount the lens.
Pound used this giant telescope to study the five known satellites of Saturn. His observations helped Edmund Halley, another famous astronomer, understand how these moons moved. Sir Isaac Newton also used Pound's measurements of Jupiter and Saturn for his famous book, the Principia. These measurements helped Newton correct information about the comet of 1680.
Another scientist named Pierre-Simon Laplace used Pound's work on Jupiter's moons. This helped Laplace figure out how much Jupiter weighed. James Pound even created tables in 1719 to predict the movements of Jupiter's first moon.
Teaching James Bradley
James Pound was a great teacher. He taught his nephew, James Bradley, about astronomy. Many of their observations were done together. For example, they watched Mars when it was closest to Earth in 1719. They also observed Mercury crossing the Sun in 1723.
In 1718, they measured a double star called γ Virginis. This was the first time anyone had measured the distance between the two stars in a double star system. They hoped to use this to find out how far away stars are.
James Pound also helped test a new type of telescope called a reflecting telescope. This telescope was made by John Hadley. Pound gave a good report about how well it worked. James Pound passed away in Wanstead in 1724 when he was 55 years old.
James Pound's Family
James Pound was married twice. His first wife was Sarah. They married in 1710, and she passed away in 1715. They had a daughter named Sarah, who was born in 1713. She never married and died in 1747.
In 1722, James Pound married his second wife, Elizabeth. She was the sister of Matthew Wymondesold, who owned the Wanstead estate. After James Pound died, Elizabeth lived with his nephew, James Bradley, for a few years. She passed away in 1740 and was buried in Wanstead.
