1840 John Draper – Earliest Image of the Moon

Draper’s 1840 moon photograph and the beginning of Astrophotography.

In 1840, John Draper's pioneering daguerreotype of the Moon opened new horizons in Astrophotography, serving as a trailblazer for celestial imaging. Draper's technique utilized a silver-plated copper sheet treated with iodine vapor to create a light-sensitive surface, capturing the Moon’s details with unprecedented clarity. This image was more than a photograph; it was a breakthrough that demonstrated photography's potential to document and study celestial bodies with precision.

This advancement was not just about the Moon; it influenced technological and scientific progress. Draper’s success catalyzed enhancements in photographic techniques and materials, such as the development of faster exposure times and more refined chemical processes. This progress expanded photography’s role from mere documentation to an essential scientific tool, contributing to astronomy and other fields by enabling accurate study of dynamic and minute phenomena.

Credit: John William Draper, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Author: John William Draper (1811–1882)
Title: Unknown
Date: 26 March 1840
Archive: New York University, Special Collections Archive, Draper Family Collection
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Original file: 733 x 903 pixels, file size: 391 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg
Available information: First Astronomical Photograph. Daguerreotype. It was taken on March 26, 1840 from the rooftop observatory at New York University.

Image Credit: Items housed at NYU Special Collections.  (Left) NYU Photo Bureau copy (Jan. 18, 1962) of damaged daguerreotype found in 1960. Credit Centre: New York University Archives colour photo of Draper daguerreotype restored by Smithsonian (catalogue number 319,990): https://wp.nyu.edu/orphanfilm/2021/02/21/moon1840/ — Retrieved 16 January 2022. (Credit Right) Draper, J. W. (n.d.). Moon, Metropolitan Museum of Art: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/ search/789162 — Retrieved 18 February 2022.

Article about this image: Orphan Film Symposium, Earth’s Moon (1840), February 21, 2021 by Dan Streible