E. E. Barnard guiding the Willard lens

E. E. Barnard and the Willard lens, ca. 1890

Edward Emerson Barnard was an indefatigable observer, rarely missing a clear night, or even letting an opening in the clouds slip by without seizing the opportunity to observe. He was known on Mount Hamilton as "the man who never sleeps."

This picture shows Barnard with the Willard lens—the camera with which he made his spectacular images of the Milky Way and comets—in its early form, before it had a mount of its own. In the picture, Barnard is using Lick's 6-inch refractor, to which he has strapped the camera, both for its equatorial mounting and as a guide telescope for keeping the camera accurately pointed. His heavy coat and the awkward position, which he had to maintain for the long exposures—some of which lasted hours—attest to his physical stamina and dedication to his work. (The scene is, of course, posed for the picture. Barnard would have worked in darkness.)