Born Mar. 12, 1835, in Wallace, Nova Scotia; died July 11, 1909, in Washington, D.C. American astronomer.

Newcomb came to the USA in 1853. From 1861 to 1877 he was a professor of mathematics in the US Navy and an observational astronomer at the US Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. From 1877 to 1897 he was director of the American Nautical Almanac Office, which published the American Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac.

Newcomb was primarily involved in the study of the motion of the principal planets, the determination of astronomical constants, and the computation of tables of the exact positions of stars. He also studied the theory of lunar motion, the theory of the motion of planetary satellites, the theory of solar eclipses, and the problem of the origin of asteroids.