Director of the Royal Greenwich Observatory
The Director of the Royal Greenwich Observatory was the senior scientist responsible for the administration of the Royal Greenwich Observatory from 1972 until the institution's closure in 1998.History
Executive responsibility for the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, London,
had rested with the Astronomer Royal from the institution's foundation
in 1675. This practice continued when the observatory moved to
Herstmonceux Castle in 1948 and was renamed the Royal Greenwich
Observatory.
However, the title Astronomer Royal was separated from directorship of
the observatory after the retirement of Richard Woolley in 1971.
Following this, Margaret Burbidge was appointed Director, and Sir Martin Ryle
was appointed Astronomer Royal in an honorary
capacity. The Astronomer Royal no longer had any association with the
observatory after this time.
Directors took action to modernise the institution and to establish a
new observatory on the island of La Palma
in the Canary Islands.
The Director oversaw the move of the Royal Greenwich Observatory from Herstmonceux
to Cambridge in 1990, and continued in charge until the observatory was closed by the
Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council in 1998. The post expired with
the institution.The Directors of the Royal Greenwich Observatory as a post distinct from
Astronomer Royal were:
