| Intro | South African astronomer |
| Was | Astronomer |
| From | South Africa |
| Type | Science |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 17 June 1849, Liverpool, Liverpool, Merseyside, North West England |
| Death |
7 December 1924, Cape Town, City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa (aged 75 years) |
William Henry Finlay (born 17 June 1849 in Liverpool; died 7 December 1924 in Cape Town, South Africa) was a South African astronomer. He was First Assistant at the Cape Observatory from 1873 to 1898 under Edward James Stone. He discovered the periodic comet 15P/Finlay. Earlier, he was one of the first to spot the “Great Comet of 1882” (C/1882 R1). The first telegraphic determinations of longitude along the western coast of Africa were made by Finlay and T. F. Pullen.
Publications
- with T. F. Pullen:
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