Natural Philosophies: Panel 3

Starry Transit_text panel with five orbiting spheres

Starry Transit_panorama in shape of cross showing observatory space

Starry Transit_night view of cabinet and machines in observatory

Starry Transit_day view of cabinet two drawers open

Starry Transit_cast iron machine with two round maps

Starry Transit_round map detail brass rings

Starry Transit_day view in observatory with mirror cabinet machine

Natural Philosophies: Panel 3

each panel is 39" high x 24" wide x 4" deep

2005

archival inkjet print

The third source of text for Natural Philosophies comes from an article published in 1880 in the ornithological journal The Auk. The article describes an observation of night-migrating birds made by an astronomer while he was viewing the moon. The birds were illuminated as they flew across the moon's surface. Using a mathematical formula, the astronomer determined that the birds were flying one to two miles above the earth's surface, an astounding idea to contemporary ornithologists.