Technology and Engineering Atlas

How Things Are Built
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Engineer

John Hadley

Marine Engineering

English mathematician who laid claim to the invention of the octant, the sextant's direct forerunner, around 1731, two years after Thomas Godfrey claimed the same principle independently. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Birth Year
1682 1
Birth Date
1682-04-16 1
Death Year
1744 1
Death Date
1744-02-14 1
Nationality
English 1
John Hadley
Filter Results2 entries
FAQs

Who invented the octant, and was the claim disputed?

Hadley claimed the octant around 1731, two years after Thomas Godfrey claimed the same principle.

John Hadley, an English mathematician, laid claim to the invention of the octant, the sextant's direct forerunner, around 1731. The claim was contested because Thomas Godfrey had claimed the same principle independently two years earlier.
Connections

In Field

Source John Hadley (Wikipedia)

Invented

Source John Hadley (Wikipedia)

Held Differently

Sextant, Inventions

Why this is disputed. Independently claimed the same octant/sextant principle circa 1731 alongside Thomas Godfrey (co-claimant not wired to a separate entity this pass; recorded as a gap).

Source Sextant (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases

Nationality

Also in Geography Atlas: the nationality of this subject.

Source John Hadley (Wikipedia)Lead sentence 1tier 2
Quote, Lead sentence 1
John Hadley (16 April 1682 – 14 February 1744) was an English mathematician, and laid claim to the invention of the octant, two years after Thomas Godfrey claimed the same.
Sources
1. John Hadley (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Lead section
    John Hadley (16 April 1682 - 14 February 1744) was an English mathematician, and laid claim to the invention of the octant, two years after Thomas Godfrey claimed the same.
  • Invented: Octant (Instrument), Lead paragraph
    John Hadley (16 April 1682-14 February 1744) was an English mathematician, and laid claim to the invention of the octant, two years after Thomas Godfrey claimed the same.
  • In Group: Naval and Marine Engineers, Lead
    John Hadley (16 April 1682 - 14 February 1744) was an English mathematician, and laid claim to the invention of the octant, two years after Thomas Godfrey claimed the same.
View the Source
Sextant (Wikipedia)
WikipediaInvented: Sextant, History section (inventor attribution)
Quote, Invented: Sextant, History section (inventor attribution)
The principle of the instrument was first implemented around 1731 by John Hadley and Thomas Godfrey.
View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.