John Couch Adams
- For other people named John Adams, see John Adams (disambiguation).
John Couch Adams (
June 5,
1819 –
January 21,
1892), was a
British mathematician. His most famous achievement was predicting the existence and position of
Neptune, using only
mathematics. The calculations were made to explain discrepancies with
Uranus's
orbit and the
laws of
Kepler and
Newton. At the same time, but unknown to both, the same calculations were made by
Urbain Le Verrier. Le Verrier would assist
Galle in locating the
planet (September
1846); which was found within 1° of its predicted location, a
point in
Aquarius. Adams was born in Laneast, England and died in
Cambridge.
External link
- http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/history/Mathematicians/Adams.html