In 1911, a relatively unknown physicist named Albert Einstein published his preliminary theory of gravity, but it hadn't been tested. To do that, he needed a photograph of starlight as it passed the sun during a total solar eclipse. So began a nearly decade-long quest by seven determined astronomers from observatories in four countries, who traveled the world during five eclipses to capture the elusive sight. As S. James Gates Jr. and Cathie Pelletier recount here, the scientists faced thunderstorms, the ravages of a world war, lost equipment, and local superstitions, but their efforts catapulted Einstein to international fame and shook the foundation of physics.