Hadley, George (1685–1768)

GEORGE HADLEY WAS an English lawyer, physicist, and meteorologist who first accurately theorized a hypothesis for the trade winds and the associated north-south circulation pattern now known as the Hadley Cell. This piece of information was particularly important in Hadley s times, as it helped the journeys of English vessels toward North American shores. Hadley was intrigued that winds that should have blown northward had, instead, a western course.

Hadley was born on February 12,1685, in London, England to Katherine Fitzjames and George Hadley. He was part of a family of six children and his father was the high sheriff of Hertfordshire. George was initially overshadowed by the fame of his brother John, the inventor of the octant. He studied law, but soon found out that ...