Rosalind Franklin’s Team Records Photo 51

On 2 May 1952, doctoral candidate Raymond Gosling conducted an X-ray fiber diffraction experiment at King's College London under the direction of Rosalind Franklin. Working within a research group overseen by Sir John Randall, Gosling produced a diffraction image from a paracrystalline gel composed of deoxyribonucleic acid fibers. Tagged as Photo 51 because it was the fifty-first diffraction record Gosling had obtained, the exposure captured the physical configuration of the B form of DNA with exceptional clarity.

Despite the quality of the image, Franklin chose to set Photo 51 aside. According to a later account provided by Gosling, her immediate research priority focused on solving the diffraction pattern of the alternative A form of DNA. As professional transitions approached and arrangements were made for Franklin to leave King's College London, Randall instructed Gosling to transfer his collected data to Maurice Wilkins, another senior researcher in the unit who was scheduled to assume supervision over Gosling's remaining doctoral work.