George Airy

          George Biddell Airy was born July 27, 1801 and died January 2, 1892. He made several contributions to not only astronomy but also mathematics. He was born in Alnwick, Northumberland, England and earned his early education in Hereford and then went to Colchester Grammar School before enrolling at Trinity College in 1819. He excelled at Trinity and was elected the scholar of Trinity in 1822. On October 1, 1824, Airy was elected fellow of Trinity and then in 1826, he became the Lucasian professor of mathematics.  In 1827, George Airy became the first person to successfully correct astigmatism in the human eye by using cylindrical eyeglass lens. In 1828 he was elected Plumian professor of Astronomy. He became director of the Royal Greenwich Observatory in 1845 and completely reorganized and modernized the observatory, allowing for very precise observations. Later on in his life, Airy was blamed by other British astronomers for not discovering Neptune before German astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle did using observations recorded by French astronomer Urbain-Jean-Joseph Le Verrier. This error by Airy caused poor relations between French and British Astronomers for a period of time. In 1854, Airy used a new method, which involved a pendulum and gravity, to discover the density of Earth. A year later, he proposed a theory involving isostatic equilibrium in mountain ranges. Airy also is known for contributing to studying and researching interference fringes, which is why the central spot of light in the diffraction pattern of a point light source is called the Airy disc. Throughout his life, Airy published several papers and memoirs about his research and life. George Airy was knighted in 1872 and died twenty years later in Greenwich, London. 

"Sir George Biddell Airy (British Astronomer)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia                   Britannica, n.d. Web. 12 Jan. 2014.