Author(s): Simões, Ana ; Carolino, Luís Miguel ; Gessner, Samuel ; Soares, Hugo ; Luis, Cristina
Date: 2026
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/206364
Origin: Repositório Institucional da UNL
Subject(s): 1919 total solar eclipse; bending of light; circulation of news; expeditions; newspapers; role of locality; Cultural Studies; Communication; History
On 29 May 1919, one of the most famous total solar eclipses in history provided a crucial test for Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity. During approximately five minutes of totality, British astronomers photographed the star field behind the eclipsed Sun to try to detect the predicted bending of light. Their successful confirmation transformed Einstein into an international icon, and newspapers worldwide reported the results. This article examines how news of the eclipse and the scientific expeditions spread through the global press. Rather than focussing on the later impact of Einstein’s relativity, it examines coverage of the expeditions themselves. Digital newspaper archives from Portugal, Brazil, Great Britain, Germany and the United States of America were surveyed for all eclipse-related news published between 1 January 1919 and 31 December 1920. This analysis provides the first systematic overview of how information about the eclipse and the expeditions circulated internationally, reflecting its transmission across different audiences in Europe and the Americas.
