About 1870, Trouvelot turned to astronomy after observing several remarkable aurorae. His illustrations of these impressed Joseph Winlock, director of Harvard College Observatory, so that he invited Trouvelot to join the staff in 1872. In 1875, he was invited to use the U.S. Naval Observatory's 26-inch refractor. He observed the Solar Eclipse of 1878 from Wyoming and created many drawings of Sun, planets, shooting stars, etc. Overall, he produced about 7,000 quality astronomical illustrations, and about 85 astronomical publications.
Trouvelot returned to France and was appointed Astronomer at the Astrophysical Observatory in Meudon in 1882.
Trouvelot died in Meudon, France on April 22, 1895. There is an obituary by Hale (1895).
A collection of 15 of Trouvelot's most superb works was included in his "Astronomical Drawings Manual" (Trouvelot 1882); this work also contains descriptions of astronomical objects including nebulae and star clusters. Of paritcular inteest is his first formal description of the nebula in M16, the Eagle Nebula (also IC 4703).
Links