Map of England, showing the eclipse of 1715. A map of England drawn by Edmund Halley (1656-1742), showing the passage of the shadow of the moon during the total solar eclipse of 22 April 1715. The dark circle gives the size of the moon's shadow at a given time during the eclipse; the diagonal stripe shows locations from which totality was observed. Halley was a gifted astronomer and physicist, advancing both sciences considerably. He served as Clerk & Editor of the Royal Society (ensuring the publication of Newton's Principia), and was appointed Astronomer Royal in 1720. He is most famous for predicting the return of a comet, later named after him.