HARVARD OBSERVERS GATHER FACTS ABOUT ECLIPSE OF SUN

While countless people throughout the, belt of the eclipse were craning their necks to the sky from behind pieces of smoked glass, eight observers at the Harvard, Observatory at Concord Avenue were recording the actual facts with a mass of figures and photographic plates.

The three aims of these men were to get data of the first contact, that is, the first instant that the shadow appears, and of the last contact, as well as to take photographs of the eclipse during its various stages. In watching the progress of the eclipse, a lens system was used to project the image of the sun on a white sheet. By watching this large reflected image of the sun, the observers were not troubled by the blinding light, and could accurately time the changes taking place.