Sir Charles Todd (7 July 1826 – 29 January 1910) worked at the Royal Greenwich Observatory 1841–1847 and the Cambridge University observatory from 1847 to 1854. He then worked on telegraphy and undersea cables until engaged by the government of South Australia as astronomical and meteorological observer, and head of the electric telegraph department. Early life and career Todd was the son of grocer Griffith Todd and Mary Parker; he was born at Islington, London, the third of five children. Shortly after Charles's birth the family moved to Greenwich, where his father set up as a wine and tea merchant. Charles was educated and spent most of his life in Greenwich before moving to Australia. In December 1841, he entered the service of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, under Sir George Biddell Airy. He was fortunate that his school leaving coincided with the Astronomer Royal being granted special funding to employ an additional four young men as computers to analyse, calibrate and publish a backlog of 80 years of data. While at the Royal Observatory he was one of the earliest observers of the planet Neptune in 1846. He was promoted to Assistant Astronomer at the Cambridge Observatory in November 1847, and officially confirmed in the position the following February. While here he used the recently built Northumberland telescope, and he was the first person to take daguerreotype photographs of the moon through it. While at Cambridge he also gained experience in using the telegraph. In May 1854, shortly before his appointment to South Australia, he was placed in charge of the newly-formed Galvanic Department at Greenwich. This was to be an extension of work he had done using the electric telegraph at Cambridge. In February 1855, he accepted the position of Astronomical and Meteorological Observer, and Head of Electric Telegraph Department in South Australia. Meteorology was work done by astronomers; it was the recording of data so that the climate in different regions was known. The Royal Observatory was run by the Admiralty. Accurate calculation of time was an important part of the Royal Observatory's responsibilities. Greenwich Time had long been used at sea; ship's navigators relied on its accuracy to calculate their longitude. During Todd's time at the Greenwich and Cambridge observatories the railway system was expanding, and the electric telegraph was invented. Faster railway travel, and the need for timetables and signalling systems, necessitated a change from using