Born Doune, Perthshire, Scotland, 9 March 1889
Died Lancaster, England, 17 September 1975
William Smart was an expert on spherical astronomy.
Smart, son of Peter Fernie Smart and Isabella Marshall Harrower, acquired his interest in science and mathematics while attending McLaren High School in Callender, Scotland. Smart's high academic abilities won him a scholarship to Glasgow University (1906–1911). He graduated with first class honors and was awarded the Cunninghame Medal for Mathematics.
Smart pursued postgraduate studies at Trinity College, Cambridge, and received his doctorate in pure and applied mathematics (1914). He was awarded several other prizes, including a First in Part I of the mathematical triposexamination. During World War I, Smart became an instructor–lieutenant at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, where he developed a lifelong interest in navigation. In 1919, he returned to Cambridge as John Adams Astronomer and chief assistant at the university observatory,...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Selected Reference
Ovenden, Michael W. (1977). “William Marshall Smart.” Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society 18: 140–146.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.
About this entry
Cite this entry
Marché, J.D. (2007). Smart, William Marshall. In: Hockey, T., et al. The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30400-7_1290
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30400-7_1290
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-31022-0
Online ISBN: 978-0-387-30400-7
eBook Packages: Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics