From the Queens House I head up the hill to the Royal Observatory and the Planetarium. The Observatory was commissioned by King Charles II in 1675 and the architect was Christopher Wren. It houses the astronomical instruments used to make meridian observations, its where we get Greenwich Mean Time or GMT from. Ticket prices are between £7 and £16 and is open daily. Outside is the remaining section of William Herschel's telescope which was built for the astronomer Herschel, who became famous for his discovery of the planet Uranus in 1781. The telescope was the largest in the world at the time, paid for by King George III, and was completed in 1789. It was 40 foot long or 12 meter's. Only a section remains today The Observatory and Planetarium are on the top of the hill and from here you get some great views of the city.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorLouis Mogg. Archives
March 2020
Categories |