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Reading Nature, Observing Science: Examining Material Practices in the Lick Observatory Archives and Kenneth S. Norris Papers

Case 3: Illustrating and Photographing the Cosmos

Illustrating the Cosmos

Click the above link to read more about this topic. The images on the top shelf of case 3 display a selection of astronomical illustrations from the Lick Observatory archives. Notably, the archives contain sketches and correspondence from famous astronomical illustrator Étienne Trouvelot. Did the ideas and images offered by artists like Trouvelot have an impact on the way astronomers at the Lick perceived the cosmos? Can astronomical illustrations count as factual data? When observing the cosmos, can objectivity be disentangled from aesthetic experience?

Photographing the Cosmos

Click the above link to read more about this topic. The middle and bottom shelves of case 3 display documents, images, and objects related to the early astrophotographic work of the Lick Observatory. Is it possible to obtain "objective" representations of celestial objects like galaxies and nebula when their details are invisible even in the telescope? How were Lick astronomers' ideas about the objectivity of the camera filtered through the aesthetic concern to produce visually stunning photographs? How is our idea of the reality of the cosmos--then, as now--a matter of aesthetic expectations--certain standards and conventions of representation?

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2. Velvet Cases The first velvet case contains a chest of slides from Norris's slide collection. This chest has a handwritten inventory, although there is a notable discrepancy between the actual slides in the chest and the titles listed on the inventory sheet. Twelve of the slides from the chest are featured in the listed images. They document various species of lizards, snakes, frogs, and toads, as well as desert habitats throughout California, New Mexico, and Baja California. As the majority of these slides are dated 1948, they are representative of Norris's work in desert ecology during his studies at UCLA. These velvet cases also contain atlases from UCSC Special Collections that pertain to the theme of Reading Nature.
4. Case 2: Natural History, Pedagogy, and Echolocation
6. Case 4: Eclipse Expeditions in Context The photographs and prints gathered in this case pertain to the eclipse expedition program that the Lick astronomers undertook between 1889 and 1932. For the majority of these journeys, the astronomers used a 40ft portable camera designed by J. M. Schaeberle. The images displayed here foreground three themes suggested by the archive: understanding the sun, onsite labour, and the importance of framing.

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In the book, Trouvelot writes, "Those unacquainted with the use of optical instruments generally suppose that all astronomical drawings are obtained by the photographic process, and are, therefore, comparatively easy to procure; but this is not true. Although photography renders valuable assistance to the astronomer in the case of the Sun and Moon, as proved by the fine photographs of these objects taken by M. Janssen and Mr. Rutherfurd ; yet, for other subjects, its products are in general so blurred and indistinct that no details of any great value can be secured. A well-trained eye alone is capable of seizing the delicate details of structure and of configuration of the heavenly bodies, which are liable to be affected, and even rendered invisible, by the slightest changes in our atmosphere."
This is a four-hour exposure of the Great Spiral Nebula using the 36" Crossley reflector. Note the loss of detail described by Perrine or "faint nebulosity" described in the letters here; compare with the image of the spiral galaxy from 1914. N.B.: This is now known as the Whirlpool Galaxy. Astronomers did not yet understand the difference between nebulae and galaxies, believing that they were of the same nature. Most thought that all of these distant structures were contained within the Milky Way galaxy itself. The difference was confirmed in the 1920s; the work of one of the Lick's astronomers, Heber Curtis, contributed in part to this development.
Perrine and the printers at the Photogravure and Color Company exchanged a series of letters regarding the difficulties of reproducing the glass negatives of nebulae created at the Lick. Printers used chemicals to "etch" the image of the original glass plate into copper plates. The etched portions were then filled with ink to create a print. Details of the original image were often lost in the process.
Perrine and the printers at the Photogravure and Color Company exchanged a series of letters regarding the difficulties of reproducing the glass negatives of nebulae created at the Lick. Printers used chemicals to "etch" the image of the original glass plate into copper plates. The etched portions were then filled with ink to create a print. Details of the original image were often lost in the process.