Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-06-14
Corona Successfully Photo
graphed on One Plate.
DONE FOR FIRST TIME.
California Man Visiting Relatives in
the City, lnvents an Apparatus
for the Work-Was Used In
the Georgia Eclipse
From Thursdays Daily.

From Thursdays Daily.
For the first time in the history of
the world the corona of the sun has
been successfully photographed upon
one plate and the man who has
achieved distinction of being the in
ventor of an apparatus that would sue
cessfully do the work was in Ottumwa
today the guest of relatives. 1t is a
matter that is sure to make astrono-
mers in this and foreign countries.
open their eyes and, fguratively speak
ing, gaze upon Chabot observatory at
Oakland, California, and particularly
upon Charles Burkhalter, director in,
charge. Mr.. Burkhalter is visiting at
the home of his niece, Mrs. w. H.
Keating, on West Woodland avenue,
and was seen today by courier re-
porter in regard to the eclipses he has
observed and the Photographic appara-
ftus he has invented. Mr.. Burkhalter
has been sent to observe four total
eclipses of the sun, both in this and
foreign countries. The first was to
Cloverdale, California, in 1899; the Sec
ond to the Island of Yezzo, Japan, in
1896, as q member of the Lick Observa-
tory expedition; the third to India
in 1898 and the last to Silome, Georgia,
last month. All four of the eclipses
were total and successful observations.
were taken by Mr.. Burkhalter at all,
with the exception of the one visible
in Japan, which did not result SO sue
cessfully on account of the state of
the weather.
Speaking of his recent achievement
in photographing the corona at ST.
lone, Mr.. Burkhalter said:
ssThe corona has never before been
perfectly photographed because the in
ner part is very much brighter than
the outer part and anyone familiar
with photography will readily under
stand that the same exposure would
not do. For the Japan eclipse I de-
vised an apparatus to control the ex,
posure SO that the bright part could
be given less time and the faint part
more. I did not obtain satisfactory
results on this trial because no one
seemed to know just how much ex-
posure to give it. AS I said before I
did not get the results / hoped but
came very near it. But the informa-
ton gained was just what needed in
order to- successfully manipulate the
apparatus in Georgia during the eclipse
last month. / exceeded far beyond
my fondest expectations and did not
dare to hope for the results that were
obtained. Ten photographs were taxi
en-, seven of which have been developed
and they tell the story. 'l9
The Georgia Eclipse.
Speaking of the recent phenomena
which was visible in the state of Geor-
gia, Mr.. Burkhalter said thatsit was al
most fac simile of that of 1889, but
was not as bright as either of the
eclipses he witnessed in California and
in India. He says that he knows of
but one failure that being one of the
naval expeditions stationed at Griffin,
Georgia. Mr.. Burlhalter further states
the apparatus used by the Americans
in variety, perfection and power, was
undreamed of even two years ago and
as an illustration of the fact that in
1893 it was impossible to produce an
image of the sun over 41h inches where
as up to that time the limit had been
one and a half inches. Now Mr.. Burk-
halter says, a fifteen-inch image was
obtained and it was due to the perfec-
ton of the American apparatus which
he says too much cannot. be said in it's
praise. He stated to Courier repor-
ter that when European astronomers
hear of the results that were obtained
in Georgia by American observers with
an American apparatus, that they will
surely open their eyes at the progress
we have made along this line as they
have done heretofore with the progress
made in other lines.
Mr.. Burkhalter is enroute to his
home in Oakland and will be accompa-
MED by his sister, Mrs. E. b. Vogel,
and Mrs. Jacob Baer, both of this city.