Percival Lowell
March 13th 1855- November 12th 1916 By Josh Baulch
Before Astronomy
Dates of Discovery and What He Found Out
He built his observatory in Flagstone Ariziona, 1894. He built it there because of the high altitude and remote location helped him see better.
Percival Lowell though he discovered canals on Mars and said that there were intelligent life forms as well. He also said that Mars had been once covered in greenery but now was a dying planet and the canals were to spread the water around.Astronomers now believe that the marks that he mapped were faint surface features or even his imagnation. He also wrote 3 books on Mars. Mars 1895, Mars and its canals 1906, Mars as the abode of life 1908.
1896-1905 studying Venus
He also studied Venus but his telescope could see nothing through the thick atmosphere of the planet. Anything he did see was an optical illusion caused by his telescope.
1905-1916 looking for Planet X (later named Pluto)
Lowell calculated that variations in Uranus and Neptune orbits were caused by a ninth planet and he named it Planet X ( the calculations weren't actually correct).Cameras took photos of the sky but they didn't find anything. Planet X did appear in a couple of photos but being darker than expected it was not found. Pluto was partly named after Percival Lowell because it included his initials.
Technology Used
- a 61cm Clarks refracting telescope
- 40inch reflector telescope
Contributions to Our Knowledge
Bibliography
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/space/solarsystem
http://.lowell.edu/Vist-lowell
Www.discoveryofpluto.com/pluto04.html