Henry Francis Blanford (sometimes spelt Blandford[1]) (3 June 1834 – 23 January 1893) was a British meteorologist and palaeontologist who worked in India.

He was a younger brother of the naturalist William Thomas Blanford, both of whom joined the Geological Survey of India in 1855.

[1] Blanford was born at 27 Bouverie street, Whitefriars, London where his father ran a workshop for gilt mouldings.

[2] Blanford and his brother William joined the Geological Survey of India in 1855 and his first work was to study the coal deposits of Talcher, Orissa (now Odisha).

He returned the next year to join as a professor of physics and chemistry at the Presidency College, a position that he kept till 1872.

Blanford co-wrote a report on the subject and was subsequently appointed secretary of the commission created to establish a system of storm warnings to protect Calcutta's harbour.