Edmond Halley is one of astronomy's most fascinating and colourful figures. A Londoner born and bred, his genius saw him elected FRS (Fellow of the Royal Society) at 22. His career spanned celestial cartography, an Oxford Professorship, a daring explorer-captaincy in the Royal Navy, service as a diplomat, and Astronomer Royal. Meteorology, geology, and the ancient, pre-human history of the earth were early subjects of original research for him. A half-length portrait to the left, showing Halley in a brown velvet coat, white neck-cloth and periwig. Best known for the comet bearing his name, which returned as he predicted in 1758, Edmond Halley worked on a wide range of scientific problems before becoming Astronomer Royal in 1720, at the age of 64.

Artist: Sir Godfrey Kneller

Date: circa 1721