The Royal Observatory
Greenwich SE10
Telephone: 020 8858 4422
The Royal Observatory, is situated on a hill in Greenwich Park overlooking the River Thames. It is the centre of world time and part of the National Maritime Museum which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997.
It was commissioned in 1675 by King Charles II who appointed John Flamsteed as his first Astronomer Royal in 1675 to serve as the director of the observatory and to "apply himself with the most exact care and diligence to the rectifying of the tables of the motions of the heavens, and the places of the fixed stars, so as to find out the so much desired longitude of places - (one's exact position east and west while at sea, by astronomical means,) for the perfecting of the art of navigation."
Flamsteed House, contains the apartments where the Astronomers Royal lived. Sir Christopher Wren's original building,was the first purpose-built scientific research facility in Britain. It housed the scientific instruments to be used by John Flamsteed in his work on stellar tables.
The Greenwich Meridian was chosen to be the Prime Meridian of the World in 1884 - from this date it has been the centre of world time and the starting point of each new day, month and year.
The basis of longitude, the Prime Meridian, passes through the observatory and is marked by a stainless steel strip in the courtyard - here you can have your photograph taken while you stand with one foot in the East and the other in the West
Today the buildings include a museum of astronomical and navigational tools, notably including John Harrison's prize-winning longitude chronometer, H4 and its three predecessors. It is also home to the 28-inch Grubb refracting telescope the largest of its kind in the UK.
* It's interesting to note that the Royal Observatory owes its existence to a boast made by Charles II at a reception for a French visitor. The visitor made remarks about maritime navigation which prompted the king to boast that his astronomers could produce accurate tables of planetary movements. However, when the king ordered the Royal Society to prove him right, they told him it was an impossible task without a purpose built observatory, but, the king was determined and responded by asking Christopher Wren to design such a building.
During the construction of the Observatory, John Flamsteed took up residence in the Tower of London where his astronomical duties were often disrupted by the ravens at the Tower who regularly perched on and fouled his telescopes.
The King was almost at the point of giving orders for the ravens to be disposed of when he was told of the tradition that said when the ravens left the Tower, the Tower would fall, and probably the throne also. Charles changed his mind and spared the birds.
The first Astronomer Royal, then moved into the Queen's House, the 17th century Palladian Palace now in the National Maritime Museum grounds, along with all his equipment, to oversee the continuing building work on the Observatory.
It appears that all the planning did not result in total success because it was found that the positioning of Flamsteed House meant that the original purpose of the Observatory could not be fulfilled from the famous Octagon Room. With big windows, the Room was perfect for watching the sky, but not ideal for positional observations, because none of the walls were aligned with a meridian.
The most important positional observations had to be made in a small shed in the Observatory gardens. The King remained blissful ignorance!
Admission free
Opening times : Daily 10.00-17.00
Transport: Greenwich Rail, Cutty Sark DLR, Maze Hill Rail and River Services from London Piers.
