Skulberg, Emilie (Author)
Sparre, Martin (Author)
Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences
Volume: 53
Issue: 4
Pages: 389-424
Half a century before black hole images based on observations were released, physicists used calculations and simulations to depict what they thought the surroundings of black holes would look like. We focus in particular on the framing and reception of a 1978 image by French astrophysicist Jean-Pierre Luminet. This handmade drawing was described as “realistic” even though black hole shadows had not yet been observed. Using his image to convince astronomers of the existence of black holes, Luminet argued for the accuracy of his image by emphasizing the physical effects taken into account in the simulation he used for his drawing and made references to photography in descriptions of it. At the same time, he presented the appearance of light near a black hole, as seen by a distant observer, as “optical distortions.” Like Nobel Laureate Roger Penrose, Luminet was a creator of images used in General Relativity who had found inspiration in Dutch artist M. C. Escher’s work. But unlike the plays on perspective that Escher was known for, black hole images were not used to confound the beholder or to make the beholder aware of their role as an interpreter of contradictory images. Luminet instead used apparent “optical distortions” to further intuition about black holes. Focusing on what light near a black hole looked like, Luminet explained why his image looked the way it did to communicate the nature of what was invisible.
...MoreSimilar Citations
Chapter
Krämer, Sybille;
(2008)
The Productivity of Blanks: On the Mathematical Zero and the Vanishing Point in Central Perspective. Remarks on the Convergences between Science and Art in the Early Modern Period
Article
Brauckmann, Sabine;
(2011)
Axes, Planes and Tubes, or the Geometry of Embryogenesis
Book
Davidson, Jane P.;
(2008)
A History of Paleontology Illustration
Article
Anderson, Gemma;
(2014)
Endangered: A Study of Morphological Drawing in Zoological Taxonomy
Article
Victoria Dickenson;
(2021)
Introduction: Undescrib'd: Taylor White (1701–1772) and His Collections
Book
Barbara Tramelli;
(2016)
Giovanni Paolo Lomazzos Trattato dell'Arte della Pittura: Color, Perspective and Anatomy
Book
Jorink, Eric;
Ramakers, Bart;
(2011)
Art and Science in the Early Modern Netherlands
Chapter
Vermij, Rienk;
(2011)
The Light of Nature and the Allegorisation of Science on Dutch Frontispieces around 1700
Chapter
Giudice, Franco;
(2010)
The Visible World: Aspects of Optics in the Seventeenth Century
Book
Wilder, Kelley E.;
(2009)
Photography and Science
Article
Moser, Stephanie;
(2014)
Making Expert Knowledge through the Image: Connections between Antiquarian and Early Modern Scientific Illustration
Article
Schulze, Elke;
(2005)
Zeichnung und Fotografie - Statusfragen: Universitäres Zeichnen und naturwissenschaftliche Bildfindung
Article
Nasim, Omar W.;
(2011)
The “Landmark” and “Groundwork” of Stars: John Herschel, Photography and the Drawing of Nebulae
Book
Don S. Lemons;
(2018)
Drawing Physics: 2,600 Years of Discovery From Thales to Higgs
Book
Nasim, Omar W.;
(2013)
Observing by Hand: Sketching the Nebulae in the Nineteenth Century
Chapter
Erich PAUER;
(2020)
Vehicles of Knowledge: Japanese Technical Drawings in the Pre-modern Era, 1600–1868
Book
Voss, Julia;
(2010)
Darwin's Pictures: Views of Evolutionary Theory, 1837--1874
Book
Lefèvre, Wolfgang;
(2004)
Picturing Machines, 1400-1700
Article
Kólbl-Ebert, Martina;
(2012)
Sketching Rocks and Landscape: Drawing as a Female Accomplishment in the Service of Geology
Article
Egmond, Florike;
(2013)
A Collection within a Collection: Rediscovered Animal Drawings from the Collections of Conrad Gessner and Felix Platter
Earth Sciences History: Journal of the History of the Earth Sciences Society
Isis: International Review Devoted to the History of Science and Its Cultural Influences
Journal of the History of Collections
Leonardo
Notes and Records: The Royal Society Journal of the History of Science
Be the first to comment!