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- A Organiser of Expedition South Yarra, Australia
- B Place & Date Depicted Goondiwindi, Australia
- B Person Depicted Goondiwindi, Australia
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Glass Negative - Heoliostat & Telescope, Solar Eclipse Expedition, Goondiwindi, Queensland, Sep 1922
Reg. No: MM 030310
- Summary:
- Heliostat and telescope erected in hut in preparation for solar eclipse at Goondiwindi, Queensland, September 1922. Joseph Baldwin on the right of the picture.
In 1922, Victorian Government Astronomer Joseph Baldwin led a Melbourne Observatory solar eclipse expedition to Goondiwindi, Queensland, joining with another group from Sydney Observatory.
The purpose of the expedition was to test Einstein's general theory of relativity. Einstein's theory predicted that the light travelling to us from stars should bend as it passed the Sun, due to the curvature in space-time created by the massive object. A solar eclipse expedition in 1919 had found such a bending of the light, but in 1922 it was still important to undertake confirming observations. The Goondiwindi expedition was not very successful, as they were unable to take sufficiently precise photographs to test the theory.
The US Lick Observatory's group at Wallal, Western Australia, succeeded in making observations that confirmed Einstein's theory. - Description Of Content:
- Solar eclipse expedition, Goondiwindi, Queensland, September 1922. Expedition led by Joseph Baldwin, Government Astronomer, Melbourne Observatory.
| Discipline: | Technology |
More information
| Tagged with: | observatories |
| Themes this item is part of: | Eclipse Expeditions from Melbourne Observatory, Images & Image Making Collection, Melbourne Observatory Collection, Science & Measurement Collection, Positional Astronomy at Melbourne Observatory, Weights & Measures at Melbourne Observatory, Melbourne Observatory & Standard Time in Victoria, Astrographic Catalogue, Transits of Venus, 1874 & 1882, Joseph Mason Baldwin, Astronomer (1878-1945), Buildings at Melbourne Observatory, Establishing Mount Stromlo Observatory, 1911-1912, Star Observations & Personal Equation, Meteorology at Melbourne Observatory, 1863-1908, Melbourne Observatory, 1863-1944, Melbourne Observatory, 1863-1944, Geodetic Survey of Victoria, 1858-1872 |
| Primary Classification: | ASTRONOMY |
| Secondary Classification: | Research |
| Tertiary Classification: | expeditions |
| Format: | Glass Negative: Black & White |
| Place & Date Depicted: | Goondiwindi, Queensland, Australia, Sep 1922 |
| Person Depicted: | Dr Joseph Baldwin - Melbourne Observatory, Goondiwindi, Queensland, Australia, 1922 |
| Organiser of Expedition: | Melbourne Observatory, South Yarra, Victoria, Australia, 1922 |
Themes
This item is part of the following themes:
- Eclipse Expeditions from Melbourne Observatory
- Images & Image Making Collection
- Melbourne Observatory Collection
- Science & Measurement Collection
- Positional Astronomy at Melbourne Observatory
- Weights & Measures at Melbourne Observatory
- Melbourne Observatory & Standard Time in Victoria
- Astrographic Catalogue
- Transits of Venus, 1874 & 1882
- Joseph Mason Baldwin, Astronomer (1878-1945)
- Buildings at Melbourne Observatory
- Establishing Mount Stromlo Observatory, 1911-1912
- Star Observations & Personal Equation
- Meteorology at Melbourne Observatory, 1863-1908
- Melbourne Observatory, 1863-1944
- Melbourne Observatory, 1863-1944
- Geodetic Survey of Victoria, 1858-1872
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