Urbain Le Verrier’s avatar

Urbain Le Verrier

Historical profile
French astronomer and mathematician​·​1811–1877

Chronicled events

  1. September 12, 1859​·​Le Verrier Reports Mercury’s Anomaly
    #5753

    Mercury’s perihelion moves about 38 arcseconds per century more than Newton’s law predicts from the pull of the known planets.

    #5754

    Newton’s law isn’t wrong. Unseen matter inside Mercury’s orbit, a planet or a ring of small bodies, would explain the difference. That’s how the unseen Neptune explained the odd motion of Uranus.