John Ellard Gore Explained

John Ellard Gore
Birth Date:1845 6, df=yes
Birth Place:Athlone, County Westmeath, Ireland
Death Place:Grafton Street, Dublin, Ireland
Nationality:Irish
Field:Astronomy
Alma Mater:Trinity College, Dublin

John Ellard Gore (1845–1910) was an Irish amateur astronomer and prolific author, and a founding member of the British Astronomical Association. He was mainly interested in variable stars of which he discovered several, most notably W Cygni in 1884, U Orionis in 1885, and independently discovered Nova Persei.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] In 2009, the IAU named a lunar impact crater after Gore.

Early life

Gore was born in Athlone, County Westmeath, in 1845, the eldest son of the Venerable John Ribton Gore and Frances Brabazon Ellard. He had 3 brothers and one sister. The Gore family descended from Sir Paul Gore, 1st Baronet and John's great grandfather was Sir Arthur Gore, 1st Baronet. He studied at Trinity College and received a diploma in Civil Engineering in 1865.

Professional career

Gore worked as a railway engineer in Ireland for over two years before being appointed as an assistant engineer with the Indian Public Works Department on the Sirhind Canal project. In 1877 he returned to Ireland on two years leave of absence and lived in Ballysadare County Sligo with his father. In 1879, he retired after 11 years of service with a pension and after the death of his father in 1894, moved to Dublin where he spent the rest of his life devoted to astronomy.

Astronomy

Gore had no formal training in astronomy, and began to study the sky while working in India. While there, he relied on his naked eyes, binoculars, a three-inch telescope and a ten centimeter telescope on an equatorial mount. His first book "Southern Stellar Objects for Small Telescopes" was published in India in 1877.

On his return to Ireland in 1877, he used a three-inch telescope and binoculars.[10] He set up an observatory in Sligo, and later set up at 3 Nortumberland Street, Dublin. His greatest contribution was his studies of double and variable stars, and he published catalogues of variables and binary stars.[11]

Gore died on the 18th of July 1910 when struck by a horse and car whilst crossing Grafton St., Dublin.[12] [13]

Books

Legacy

In 2009, the IAU named a lunar impact crater located on the lunar near side near the northern pole after Gore.

Notes and References

  1. John Ellard Gore: of immensity and minuteness . 1203.6467. Shears, Jeremy . Journal of the British Astronomical Association. 2012. 123. 85. 2013JBAA..123...85S.
  2. Web site: Obituary of John Ellard Gore (The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada) . E. Briggs . 25 May 2013 . 2014-01-29.
  3. FitzGerald . A. P. . John Ellard Gore (1845–1910) . . 7 . 7/8 . 213–219 . 1966 . 1966IrAJ....7..213F . 28 January 2016.
  4. John Ellard Gore . . 71 . 4 . 256–257 . 1911 . London . 1911MNRAS..71R.256. . 10.1093/mnras/71.4.256a. free .
  5. Macpherson . Hector . Hector Macpherson (astronomer) . John Ellard Gore . . 18 . 9 . 519–525 . 1910 . 1910PA.....18..519M . 28 January 2016.
  6. Hollis . Henry Park . John Ellard Gore . . 311 . 425 . 316–318 . 1910 . 1910Obs....33..311. . 28 January 2016.
  7. Lynn . W. T. . John Ellard Gore . . 20 . 9 . 483–484 . 1910 . London, Britain . 1910JBAA...20..483. . 28 January 2016.
  8. Encyclopedia: Hollis . Henry Park . Gore, John Ellard (1845–1910), astronomical writer | Oxford Dictionary of National Biography . Elliott . Ian . Gore, John Ellard . 2004 . . . Oxford, England . 10.1093/ref:odnb/33473 .
  9. Book: Elliott , Ian . Gore, John Ellard . 2007 . 830–832 . Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers . Hockey . Thomas . Trimble . Virginia . Williams . Thomas R. . . New York . 978-1-4419-9917-7 . 10.1007/978-1-4419-9917-7_531 . Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers .
  10. Book: Jay B. Holberg. Sirius: Brightest Diamond in the Night Sky. 5 July 2007. Praxis Publishing Limited, Chichester, UK. 978-0-387-48942-1. 92–.
  11. , see p. 50
  12. Gore, John Ellard . Henry Park . Hollis.
  13. News: Dublin Daily Express . FATAL ACCIDENT IN GRAFTON STREET . 19 July 1910.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "John Ellard Gore".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.