Daniel kirkwood biography

Daniel Kirkwood (September 27, 1814 – June 11, 1895) was an American astronomer.
The eminent American astronomer Daniel Kirkwood came to Indiana University as a Professor of Mathematics in 1856 after studying at several colleges.
Daniel Kirkwood – amerykański matematyk i astronom.

•

Daniel Kirkwood

American astronomer

For the footballer and chairman of Everton F.C., see Daniel Kirkwood (footballer, born 1867). For the Scottish footballer, see Dan Kirkwood.

Daniel Kirkwood (September 27, 1814 – June 11, 1895) was an American astronomer.

Kirkwood was born in Harford County, Maryland, to John and Agnes (née Hope) Kirkwood.^[1] He graduated in mathematics from the York County Academy in York, Pennsylvania, in 1838. After teaching there for five years, he became Principal of the Lancaster High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and after another five years he moved on to become Principal of the Pottsville Academy in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. In 1851, he was elected as a member to the American Philosophical Society.^[2] The same year he became Professor of Mathematics at Delaware College and in 1856 Professor of Mathematics at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, where he stayed until his retirement in 1886, with the exception of two years, 1865–1867, at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

Kirkwood's most significant c

•

Biography of Daniel Kirkwood

"His is truly a great name in science, with a world wide renown." So wrote Professor P. Piazzi Smyth, Astronomer Royal for Scotland in 1885. He who knows Dr. Kirkwood either personally or through his contributions to science, gladly gives assent to the Astronomer Royal's eulogy. The Indiana University, who faculty he for so many years honored, has just named in his honor the large handsome new building now being contructed. This is her first building named after a living man.

Daniel Kirkwood is of Scotch Irish descent, his grandfather coming from Ireland and settling in Delaware in 1771. His parents were both born in this country. He was born in Hartford County, Maryland, September 27, 1814. He had only the usual advantages of a farmer boy in those days. Not particularly liking the life of a farmer he turned his attention to teaching and at the age of 19, he took charge of a country school at Hopewell, York County, Pennsylvania. In this school a young man desired to study Algebra. A copy of Bonnycastle was secured and together teacher and student

•

Department of Astronomy

Daniel Kirkwood

The eminent American astronomer Daniel Kirkwood came to Indiana University as a Professor of Mathematics in 1856 after studying at several colleges. Kirkwood was born on a farm in Hartford County, Maryland in 1814. His interests ran strongly to mathematics.

Astronomy at that time was considered a branch of mathematics as it was concerned mainly with planetary orbits. Kirkwood studied the orbits of asteroids. As new asteroids were found, Kirkwood noticed certain gaps in the distribution of their distances from the Sun. He correctly explained that Jupiter caused these by pulling asteroids away from those orbits. These gaps have since been called the Kirkwood Gaps. Kirkwood also showed that divisions in the rings of Saturn could be attributed to the influence of satellites of Saturn. He further demonstrated that meteor showers were the result of earth’s passing through the debris of old comets. Through these discoveries, Kirkwood became world famous -- arguably the first faculty member of Indiana University to achieve internation