Herschel helped by making tidal observations off the coast of South Africa, and, as he complained to Whewell, he was knocked off the docks during a violent high tide for his trouble.
Herschel contribuì facendo osservazioni sulle maree al largo delle coste del Sud Africa, e si lamentò con Whewell di come fu scagliato via dal molo da un'alta marea violenta,  per essersi preso questo disturbo.