Nicolas Camille Flammarion (1842–1925) was a French astronomer. The author of more than fifty titles, he did more than anyone else of his day to encourage public interest in the subject. Though, many of his scientific and philosophical arguments were eccentric.
Born in Montigny-le-Roi, Haute-Marne, Flammarion worked at the Paris Observatory and the Bureau of Longitudes for some years. He set up a private observatory at Juvisy-sur-Orge in 1883 and continued his investigations, especially of double and multiple stars and the Moon and Mars. He published the magazine L’Astronomie (s.1882.)
Flammarion was the first to suggest Triton and Amalthea for moons of Neptune and Jupiter, respectively, even though these names were not formally embraced until many decades later. His first book, La pluralities mondes habites (1862; The Plurality of Inhabited Worlds,) secured his reputation as a great popularizer and a leading advocate of extreme pluralism.
Flammarion works on popular science works spanning astronomy, early science fiction novels, and works on psychical research and related topics. His famous works include Astronomie Populaire (1880; Popular Astronomy, 1894,) La Planète Mars et ses Conditions d’Habitabilité (1892, The Planet Mars,) La Fin du Monde (1893; Omega: The Last Days of the World, 1894,) and Death and Its Mystery—Proofs of the Existence of the Soul (3 vols., 1921–23.)
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Camille Flammarion
If the existence of human beings leads to nothing, what is all this comedy about?
—Camille Flammarion
Topics: Life
Wondering Whom to Read Next?
Leave a Reply