Year: 
1882

Rare amateur astrophotographs of the 1882 transit. Samuel Cooper, a poor but resourceful day-labourer astronomer (to use Allan Chapman's term), was known as the Optical Bricklayer from his contributions to the English Mechanic and the World of Science. He used a 23cm silver-on-glass Newtonian reflector and a camera of his own manufacture to take these images. They survive today on this rare lantern slide. The images came into the RASC's possession in 1911, the gift of G. Parry Jenkins, an acquaintance of Cooper's. Image ©RASC.

Samuel Cooper 1882 ToV photos