September Meeting

History and Significance of Planetary Photography

In 1839 the famous astronomer Arago first announced the discovery of the daguerreotype with the prediction that perfect maps of the Moon would now be possible.  This prophetic statement, however, would take more than 50 years to come true.  Nevertheless, Arago’s statement revealed that astronomers immediately recognized the importance of photography as a data-gathering tool.   Even after 150 years, the photochemical process of capturing images ruled.  Why was photography so important?  What took so long for photographic astronomy to come into general use? How did astronomers give back to the field of photography?  We’ll explore these themes from the beginning of the daguerreian era to the dawn of the space age.