Camille Flammarion
Camille Flammarion, born Nicolas Camille Flammarion on February 26, 1842, in Montigny-le-Roi, France, was a prominent astronomer, author, and popularizer of science. Initially studying theology, he shifted his focus to astronomy, joining the Paris Observatory at just sixteen, where he collaborated with notable astronomer Urban Jean Joseph Le Verrier, contributing to the discovery of Neptune. Throughout his career, Flammarion published over fifty books, including the highly successful "L'Astronomie populaire," which garnered significant acclaim and helped to bridge the gap between complex scientific concepts and the general public. His fascination with the possibility of extraterrestrial life is evident in his works, particularly in his exploration of Mars and his claim that advanced civilizations might exist beyond Earth.
In addition to his astronomical pursuits, Flammarion conducted psychical research and founded the Astronomical Society of France, serving as its first president. He established a private observatory at Juvisy-sur-Orge, where he continued his research until his death on June 3, 1925. His legacy is commemorated through various honors, including the naming of an asteroid and lunar craters after him. Flammarion's contributions significantly influenced the field of astronomy and the popular understanding of science in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
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Subject Terms
Camille Flammarion
Astronomer
- Born: February 26, 1842
- Birthplace: Montigny-le-Roi, Haute-Marne, France
- Died: June 3, 1925
- Place of death: Juvisy-sur-Orge, France
Biography
Camille Flammarion, whose given name was Nicolas Camille Flammarion, was born on February 26, 1842, at Montigny-le-Roi, France. He initially studied theology but became interested in astronomy and entered the Paris Observatory in 1858, at the age of sixteen, to study this subject. In the same year, he wrote an unpublished 500-page manuscript about the nature of the universe and became an assistant to Urban Jean Joseph Le Verrier, the astronomer whose calculations led to the discovery of Neptune.
From 1862 to 1867, Flammarion worked at the Bureau of Longitudes, where he assisted in the compilation of a scientific nautical almanac. Returning to the Paris Observatory, he took part in a program of double star observation, and this project resulted in the publication of a catalogue listing 10,000 double stars. For some time, Flammarion also edited the scientific columns of Siècle and was a lecturer in popular astronomy. In 1868, he made several assents in a balloon to investigate aerial currents and the humidity of the atmosphere.
In 1873, he explored the hypothesis that Mars’s color might be attributed to vegetation. He published several popular books on astronomy, including L’Astronomie populaire (1879), which sold more than 100,000 copies and appeared in an English translation, Popular Astronomy, in 1894. This book won Flammarion the Montyon Prize from the Academie Française in 1880. His book on Mars, La Planète Mars et ses conditions d’habitabilitié, argued that an advanced civilization had built canals on that planet. He was fascinated by the possibility of life on other planets and expressed this interest in books such as La Pluralité des mondes habités, published in 1862.
In 1883, he set up a private observatory at Juvisy-sur-Orge, near Paris. The observatory and an estate were given to him by a patron who admired his work. Here, Flammarion continued his studies, especially of double and multiple stars, the Moon, and Mars. As a result of his work, he was the first to suggest the names Triton and Amalthea for moons of Neptune and Jupiter, respectively, although these names were not officially adopted until many decades later. In later years, he focused on psychical research, writing many works on this subject, including his three- volume exploration of death, La Mort et son mystère.
In 1887, Flammarion founded the Astronomical Society of France and became its first president. In 1922, he was made a Commander of the Legion of Honor for his contributions to astronomy. Flammarion died in Juvisy-sur-Orge on June 3, 1925, by which time he had published more than fifty books. After his death, his memory was honored by the naming of an asteroid and craters on the Moon and and Mars after him.