Robert Russell Newton

Robert Russell Newton or Robert R. Newton (* July 7, 1918; † 2 June 1991) was an American physicist and astronomer.

He was Head of the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and was with his astronomy history book The crime of Claudius Ptolemy ( " The Crime of Claudius Ptolemy " ), published in 1977, internationally known. Newton saw in Claudius Ptolemy (c. 100 to 175 ), the " most successful impostor in the history of science." He accused him that he in his major work - have not won but described astronomical findings mainly by calculations by observations - the " Almagest ".

Distrust of the Greek observations can be traced back at least to the 18th century, such as voiced by Delambre. Newton's concentration on the adoption of a deliberate forgery goes however beyond that and did not meet with unanimous approval.

Robert R. Newton was an expert on the subject of changing the revolution rate of the earth and for historical astronomical observations.

Since 1970 he had examined the changes in the earth and moon movements more accurately.

It was not least Newton's work that inspired Anatoly Fomenko for his chronology critical research.

Works

• Ancient astronomical observations and the accelleration of the earth and moon, Johns Hopkins University Press 1970
• Medieval chronicles and the rotation of the earth, Johns Hopkins University Press 1972
• Ancient planetary observations and the validity of ephemeris time, Johns Hopkins University Press 1976
• The crime of Claudius Ptolemy, Johns Hopkins University Press 1977
• The moon 's acceleration and its physical origins, Johns Hopkins University Press 1979