Today in Engineering History: Total Solar Eclipse Captured on Daguerreotype

On July 28, 1851, the first successful image of a complete total solar eclipse was captured on a daguerreotype photograph. From the article:

"On this day in history, July 28, 1851, the first correctly exposed photograph, a daguerreotype, of the solar corona was made during the total phase of a solar eclipse.

A total solar eclipse takes place when the Moon's diameter is larger than the Sun's, blocking all direct sunlight. Totality takes place in a narrow path across the Earth’s surface, with the partial solar eclipse visible over a surrounding region thousands of kilometers wide.
Berkowski attached a small 6 cm refracting telescope to the 15.8 cm Fraunhofer heliometer. He was then able to take an 84-second exposure shortly after the beginning of totality."