Vesto Melvin Slipher Biography

Historical biography and chronological timeline for Vesto Melvin Slipher, based on 4 World History Database records associated with United States of America.

4 records1912–19344 events2 places

Chronological biography

1912

Galaxy Redshift1912

Science / Astronomy · Astronomer · Lowell Observatory

Slipher measures a large redshift for the Andromeda nebula, beginning the observational path toward an expanding universe

1929

Discovery of Pluto1929

Science / Astronomy

Lowell Observatory director Vesto Melvin Slipher assigns Clyde Tombaugh the task of searching for Planet X.

1930

Naming of Pluto1 May 1930

Science / Astronomy · Flagstaff, Arizona

Lowell Observatory director Vesto Slipher announces Pluto as the proposed name for the newly discovered world.

1934

Methane in Neptune Atmosphere1934

Science / Astronomy

Spectroscopic work identifies strong methane absorption in Neptune's atmosphere and helps explain the planet's visible colour.

Titles and roles

Astronomer

Record provenance

This biography is assembled from World History Database records filtered by country and personal-name fields. Exact duplicate display records are removed. The database is an index rather than a complete narrative biography; formal research should verify entries against relevant primary or specialist sources.