Henry Draper
Henry Draper | |
---|---|
New York University School of Medicine | |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Astronomy |
Signature | |
Henry Draper (March 7, 1837 – November 20, 1882) was an American
Life and work
Henry Draper's father, John William Draper, was an accomplished doctor, chemist, botanist, and professor at New York University; he was also the first to photograph the moon through a telescope (1840).[1] Draper's mother was Antonia Caetana de Paiva Pereira Gardner, daughter of the personal physician to the Emperor of Brazil. His niece, Antonia Maury was also an astronomer.[2]
He graduated from
Draper was one of the pioneers of the use of
He resigned his chair in the medical department in 1873, to allow for more time for original research.
He directed an expedition to photograph the 1874 transit of Venus, and was the first to photograph the Orion Nebula, on September 30, 1880. Using his 11 inch Clark Brothers photographic refractor he took a 50-minute exposure. He photographed the spectrum of Jupiter in 1880.
The
Draper received numerous awards, including honorary
After his untimely early death from double
is named in his honor.Selected works
- The Changes of Blood-Cells in the Spleen, thesis, 1858.
- A Text-Book on Chemistry, 1866 revision of his father's 1846 text. Pages 1–10 of the revision give an overview of the history of chemistry.
- Are there other inhabited worlds?, 1866.
- "The spectroscope and its revelations" (PDF). Scientific American. 15 (2): 17–18. 1866.
- Delusions of Medicine, Charms, talismans, amulets, astrology, and mesmerism, 1873.
- The Discovery of Oxygen in the Sun by Photography, 1877, American Journal of Science and Arts.
See also
References
- ISBN 067401183X
- ^ "Vasser Encyclopedia: Antonia Maury". Vassar College. 2008. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ "Henry Draper (1837–1882)".
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4675-7993-3
Further reading
- Bibcode:1980S&T....60..364G.