Abstract
AT a time when it was generally believed that light was propagated instantaneously, Roemer's observations on the first satellite of Jupiter convinced most contemporary men of science that the velocity of light was finite. Mr. Cohen surveys the earlier views on the subject, and describes the immediate background of Roemer's discovery. The reception accorded to the work is given in some detail. Roemer's paper in the Journal des Scavans (1676), and its English translation in the Philosophical Transactions (1677), are reproduced in facsimile, together with a holograph manuscript of some of his observations, from which it is shown how he must have arrived at the high value of 22 minutes for the time taken by light to traverse the diameter of the earth's orbit. The last chapter gives a brief outline of Roemer's distinguished and varied later career, both as public official and as man of science.
Roemer and the First Determination of the Velocity of Light
By I. Bernard Cohen. (History of Science Series, No. 1.) Pp. 64. (New York: Burndy Library, Inc., 1944.) 1 dollar.
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NOAKES, G. Roemer and the First Determination of the Velocity of Light. Nature 157, 390 (1946). https://doi.org/10.1038/157390c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/157390c0