Essential Information
| Type | Talks and tours |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Date and Times | Thursday 16 October 2025 | 6.30pm |
| Member Exclusive. Not a member? Join now |
Please note that this event is taking place at the National Maritime Museum.
At the heart of international timekeeping and navigation stands the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, a place where science and innovation intersected to shape the modern world. Today, as the home of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and the historic prime meridian, 0° longitude, it is an institution of international renown.
Dr Louise Devoy explores the rich legacy of this famous site through 100 fascinating objects. Alongside the Observatory’s clocks, telescopes, journals and instruments are family photos, paintings and even a bespoke observing suit that reveal the domestic world of the Astronomer Royal.
From the intricacy of John Harrison’s revolutionary timekeepers to the impressive scale of the Great Equatorial Telescope, each item demonstrates the Observatory’s achievements in pioneering astronomy, innovative engineering, accurate time distribution and collaborative scientific projects.
Together they chart the development of the Observatory from its founding in 1675 to its growing influence on travel, trade and communication that continues to underpin our lives today.
Royal Observatory Greenwich: A History in Objects, published in the Royal Observatory’s 350th year, is a celebration of the people, instruments and ideas that made Greenwich a place of global significance.
Meet the speaker
Dr Louise Devoy is Senior Curator of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. With a background in astrophysics and the history of science, Louise joined Royal Museums Greenwich in 2013 and has responsibility for researching the history of the Royal Observatory's collections, buildings and staff.
Over the past five years she has been delving into the archives and museum stores to pick out the most intriguing stories for this book.
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