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Camera, type A-5a, with Raytheon control box, type D-5
Major collection: Science & Technology
Named collection: Harold E. Edgerton Collection
Object type: camera
Maker: Fairchild Aviation Corporation
Date made: 1940s
Materials: metal; glass
Measurements: 12 in x 14 in x 26 in
Nomenclature: photographic tools and equipment - high speed photographic equipment
Classification: tools and equipment
IN-1596
Named collection: Harold E. Edgerton Collection
Object type: camera
Maker: Fairchild Aviation Corporation
Date made: 1940s
Materials: metal; glass
Measurements: 12 in x 14 in x 26 in
Nomenclature: photographic tools and equipment - high speed photographic equipment
Classification: tools and equipment
The components of this flash system were bigger and more powerful than anything Doc had yet designed. The flash tube is a tough monster; its 30 inches of strong, quartz glass, coiled into a xenon-filled spiral, withstood the 4,000 volts discharged through it. The tube fit into a reflector mounted in the plane's belly or tail. Banks of capacitors, weighing up to 500 pounds each, were slung on the plane's bomb racks and supplied power to the flash tube. A direct contact synchronized the flash to the large camera.
IN-1596