Imaging the Universe

An examination of how photographers shaped astronomy and how astronomers shaped photography, featuring both historical and contemporary images.

What does the universe look like? From daguerreotypes of the moon to colorful vistas of nebulae from space telescopes, photography and astronomy have developed hand in hand, transforming how our skies have been observed, understood, and viewed over the past two centuries. Charlotte Bigg reveals how astronomers, chemists, photographers, electronic experts, and other often forgotten individuals from different walks of life came together to develop new methods to record the light of the moon, the sun, and the stars, and to share their images with a broad audience. Featuring a wide variety of compelling images, Imaging the Universe explores the visual cultures of astrophotography and how they have shaped our visions of the cosmos.