Three Eclipse Expeditions at the Norman Lockyer Observatory

During the latter part of his career, the British solar physicist Sir Norman Lockyer (1836-1920) embarked upon three eclipse expeditions within the span of four years. Visual records of these little-studied expeditions, contained in the archives of the Norman Lockyer Observatory in Sidmouth, Devon, convey the coteries of people and photographic practices that shaped these excursions. Using newly digitized lantern slides from this collection, this paper discusses the themes that emerge from these visual narratives. In particular, these images reveal the significance of astronomy's relationship with tourism, colonial science, and the development of military technology. Through them, we can examine how turn-of-the-century eclipse expeditions contributed to the expansion and improvement of such exercises.