Born Sherborne, New York, USA, 19 March 1830
Died New Haven, Connecticut, USA, 12 August 1896
Hubert Newton, who made some of the first rigorous studies of meteor orbits and their distribution in interplanetary space, was among the first to recognize meteors, fireballs, and meteorites as the same objects differing only in mass and velocity.
Newton was the fifth son of 11 children born to educators William and Lois (née Butler) Newton. At age three, he witnessed the spectacular Leonid meteor storm; his later prediction concerning its maximum activity in 1866 brought him fame. Newton was schooled locally until 1846 when he entered Yale College. He showed great aptitude for mathematics and the physical sciences, and won election to the Phi Beta Kappa Society. On 14 April 1850, Newton married Anna C. Stiles, with whom he parented two daughters.
Following his graduation in 1850, Newton studied mathematics privately for several years before accepting the position of mathematics tutor at...
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Selected References
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Beech, M. (2007). Newton, Hubert Anson. In: Hockey, T., et al. The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30400-7_1007
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