César-François Cassini de Thury
César-François Cassini de Thury | |
|---|---|
 César-François Cassini de Thury, miniature watercolor on ivory by Jean-Marc Nattier | |
| Born | 17 June 1714 |
| Died | 4 September 1784 (aged 70) |
| Nationality | French |
| Known for | Topographical map of France |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Cartography Astronomy |
| Institutions | Paris Observatory |
César-François Cassini de Thury (17 June 1714 – 4 September 1784), also called Cassini III or Cassini de Thury, was a French astronomer and cartographer.
Biography
Cassini de Thury was born in Thury-sous-Clermont, in the Oise department, the second son of Jacques Cassini and Suzanne Françoise Charpentier de Charmois.[1] He was a grandson of Giovanni Domenico Cassini, and would become the father of Jean-Dominique Cassini, Comte de Cassini.[2]
In 1739, he became a member of the French Academy of Sciences as a supernumerary adjunct astronomer, in 1741 as an adjunct astronomer, and in 1745 as a full member astronomer.
In January, 1751 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.[3]
He succeeded to his father's official position in 1756 and continued the hereditary surveying operations.[4] In 1744, he began the construction of a great topographical map of France, one of the landmarks in the history of cartography. Completed by his son Jean-Dominique, Cassini IV and published by the Académie des Sciences from 1744 to 1793, its 180 plates are known as the Cassini map (fr).[5]
The post of director of the Paris observatory was created for his benefit in 1771 when the establishment ceased to be a dependency of the French Academy of Sciences.
His chief works are: La méridienne de l’Observatoire Royal de Paris (1744), a correction of the Paris meridian; Description géométrique de la terre (1775); and Description géométrique de la France (1784), which was completed by his son ("Cassini IV").
César-François Cassini de Thury died of smallpox in Paris on 4 September 1784,
Works
- La méridienne de l’Observatoire Royal de Paris (1744)
- Description géométrique de la terre (1775)
- Description géométrique de la France (1784)
- César-François Cassini de Thury (1775). Relation d'un voyage en Allemagne. Paris: Imprimerie Royale.
See also
References
- ^ Jonathan Powell, From Cave Art to Hubble: A History of Astronomical Record Keeping, (Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2019), 114
- ^ Jonathan Powell, From Cave Art to Hubble: A History of Astronomical Record Keeping, (Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2019), 115
- ^ "Library and Archive Catalogue". Royal Society. Retrieved 21 December 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Jonathan Powell, From Cave Art to Hubble: A History of Astronomical Record Keeping, (Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2019), 115
- ^ See this site for Cassini's map of France.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Cassini". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
External links
- List of online works available on Gallica
- Cassini map online on EHESS site
- cartocassini site, gathers old maps and allows for various manipulations, notably finding all Cassini maps in Gallica
- Cassini map in Géoportail (IGN)
- Cassini map superimposed over Google Maps' map of France - David Rumsey
- Paris Observatory digital library
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |
- 1714 births
- 1784 deaths
- Giovanni Domenico Cassini
- Scientists from Paris
- French astronomers
- 18th-century astronomers
- French cartographers
- Members of the French Academy of Sciences
- Fellows of the Royal Society
- 18th-century cartographers
- 18th-century French people
- Deaths from smallpox
- Infectious disease deaths in France