Central Library Second Floor Gallery
Opening Reception: April 7, 2:00-3:30pm
In the study of astronomy and earth sciences, the Sun dominates the field in its importance to life on Earth. The Sun provides energy to plants which provide food and oxygen, influences weather patterns in the atmosphere, and warms the surface of the planet to a temperature which can support terrestrial life. Total solar eclipses give astronomers and solar researchers their closest look at the sun’s corona, the wispy edges of the sun where solar flares, winds, and coronal mass ejections occur.
In anticipation of the August 2017 solar eclipse, Vanderbilt University Libraries is hosting an exhibition curated by four astronomy students on the work of American astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard (1857-1823). Best known for his discovery of Amalthea, the fifth moon of Jupiter, Barnard was a photographer and astronomer who spent a lifetime observing and photographing the night sky. The exhibition draws on collections housed in the Libraries’ Special Collections, as well as loans from private collectors. Please join us for the reception and hear student curators talk about the exhibition.
