Royal Observatory, Greenwich

Timeline

1. 1675–1676Greenwich Hill · GreenwichCharles II appointed Flamsteed Astronomer Royal "for the finding of the longitude of places, for the perfecting navigation and astronomy," and ordered the Board of Ordnance to build an observatory in Greenwich Park, funded by the sale of damaged gunpowder, capped at five hundred pounds. Wren designed the octagonal observing room, with Hooke's assistance. The foundation stone was laid on 10 August 1675, and the following year Flamsteed moved in and began systematic observations.
2. 1676–1720Royal Observatory, Greenwich · GreenwichOver the next forty-odd years Flamsteed accumulated tens of thousands of observations of stars and the Moon, providing the star-table basis for determining longitude by lunar distance, while also feuding long with Newton and Halley over the right to publish the data. At this stage the institution was little more than the Astronomer Royal himself, one assistant, and an observing residence, yet it was already the starting point of British government-funded science.
3. 1766–1884Royal Observatory, Greenwich · GreenwichThe fifth Astronomer Royal, Maskelyne, published the Nautical Almanac based on Greenwich, making the lunar-distance method usable at sea. In the nineteenth century the observatory issued electrical time signals and a time ball, and railways adopted Greenwich Mean Time. The Washington Conference of 1884 confirmed that the prime meridian passed through Greenwich, and world time zones were reckoned from the observatory.
4. 1948Royal Observatory, Greenwich · GreenwichLondon's smoke, light, and vibration forced observing operations to move elsewhere. In 1953 the Greenwich site was incorporated into the National Maritime Museum, and in 1960 Flamsteed House opened to the public. Today the observatory continues the identity of the national scientific institution founded in 1675 through the prime meridian, the time ball, and public astronomy education.