author
James Challis
1803–1882
A brilliant Cambridge mathematician who became an astronomer and clergyman, he is often remembered for the near-miss that left Neptune to be found by others. His long career at the Cambridge Observatory also made him a notable figure in 19th-century British science.
1 Audiobook
An Essay on the Scriptural Doctrine of Immortality
by James Challis
About the author
Born in Braintree, Essex, in 1803, James Challis studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated as senior wrangler and first Smith's prizeman. He later became a fellow of Trinity, was ordained, and built a career that combined religion, mathematics, and natural philosophy.
Challis is best known for serving as Plumian Professor of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy and as director of the Cambridge Observatory. He carried out extensive observational work and wrote on astronomy and physics, but his name is most often linked to the story of Neptune: he had observed the planet during the 1840s without recognizing it as a new world.
Even with that famous missed opportunity, Challis remained an active and respected figure in British science, becoming a Fellow of the Royal Society. He died in Cambridge in 1882, leaving behind a career that reflects both the ambition and the limits of Victorian astronomy.