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We see it [the as-yet unseen, probable new planet, Neptune] as Columbus saw America from the coast of Spain. Its movements have been felt, trembling along the far-reaching line of our analysis with a certainty hardly inferior to that of ocular demonstration.

— William Herschel

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More quotes by William Herschel

That the emission of light must waste the sun, is not a difficulty that can be opposed to our hypothesis.

Sir William Herschel: His Life and Works (1880)

This tends to confirm the hypothesis that all are composed of stars more or less remote.

Sir William Herschel: His Life and Works (1880)

I have made it a rule never to employ a larger telescope when a smaller will answer the purpose.

Sir William Herschel: His Life and Works (1880)

I have availed myself of the labors of preceding astronomers, but have been induced thereto by my own actual observation of the solar phenomena.

Sir William Herschel: His Life and Works (1880)

It is very probable that the great stratum called the Milky Way is that in which the sun is placed, though perhaps not in the very centre of its thickness.

Sir William Herschel: His Life and Works (1880)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: William Herschel (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.