François Arago
French mathematician, physicist, astronomer and politician (1786-1853) · France · Academics · Died at 67
François Arago is read about 325 times a day, in 62 languages.
A typical day, 30 days to 15 October 2026
The middle day of the days counted, so one week of news cannot move it. The line under it is the last 390 days, one point a day.
Something wrong?A mathematician who measured the speed of light, mapped the stars, and then walked into parliament - Arago's attention comes from the rare combination: rigorous science and radical politics, both at once.
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François Arago par Ary Scheffer_Arago%2C_Ruau_(Marly%2C_le_20_novembre_1907)_-_btv1b53207290n.jpg?width=1200)
(De g. à d.) Arago, Ruau (Marly, le 20 novembre 1907) - btv1b53207290n_Petitjean%2C_Simonet%2C_Arago%2C_Chapuis%2C_(x)%2C_Cdt_(Henri)_Lasson%2C_Berteaux%2C_Cl%C3%A9menceau%2C_Ruau_(apr%C3%A8s_la_chasse_%C3%A0_Marly%2C_le_20_novembre_1907)_-_(photographie_de_presse)_-_(Agence_Rol).jpg?width=1200)
(De g. à d.) Petitjean, Simonet, Arago, Chapuis, (x), Cdt (Henri) Lasson, Berteaux, Clémenceau, Ruau (après la chasse à Marly, le 20 novembre 1907) - (photographie de presse) - (Agence Rol)
Arago 1843
Arago Francois portrait
Arago sur un éventail
Arago, 1839
Arago, François CIPA0690In their own words 5
, I was often humiliated to see men disputing for a piece of bread, just as animals might have done.
On certain occasions, the eyes of the mind can supply the want of the most powerful telescopes, and lead to astronomical discoveries of the highest importance.
The calculus of probabilities, when confined within just limits, ought to interest, in an equal degree, the mathematician, the experimentalist, and the statesman.
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Born 26 February 1786, François Arago came up through mathematics, physics, and astronomy at a time when those fields were being rebuilt from first principles. He worked on light, magnetism, and celestial mechanics - problems that required new instruments and new thinking. But he also backed the Carbonari revolutionaries and joined the Freemasons, threading political defiance through a scientific career. By midlife he'd moved into elected office, carrying both identities into the chamber. He died 2 October 1853, having lived the contradiction: a man who trusted measurement and also trusted upheaval.
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