Warner and Swasey Observatory
| The Burrell Schmidt Telescope of the Warner and Swasey Observatory | |
| Organization | Case Western Reserve University |
|---|---|
| Location | Cleveland, Ohio (USA) |
| Webpage | Warner and Swasey Observatory |
| Telescopes | |
| Burrell Schmidt Telescope | 24" refractor |
| Nassau Station | 36" reflector |
| Rooftop Telescope | 9.5" refractor |
The Warner and Swasey Observatory is the name of the astronomical observatory of Case Western Reserve University. Named after Worcester R. Warner and Ambrose Swasey and originally built in 1919 in East Cleveland, Ohio (USA), the observatory currently operates two telescopes in Ohio and one at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona.
History
The observatory was originally built by Worchester R. Warner and Ambrose Swasey, who were owners of a famous tool company at the turn of the century that made precision instruments and telescopes. They became trustees of the then Case Institute of Technology, and built an observatory in East Cleveland, which they gave to the school in 1919. This original observatory building was located on Taylor Road four miles east of the university campus and housed a 9.5" refractor, and was dedicated in 1920. In subsequent years the observatory grew to house several more telescopes and instruments, such as the 24" Burrell Schmidt telescope, as well as an astronomical library and public lecture hall.
In the 1950s, it became apparent that the light pollution from Cleveland was beginning to make cutting-edge research impossible from the East Cleveland site. A new site was constructed 30 miles to the east in Geauga County, known today as the Nassau station, and the Burrel Schmidt telescope was moved to this location. In order to compensate for the move, a 36" telescope was soon installed at the Taylor Road facility.
In 1978, the Astronomy Department of Case Western Reserve University made a deal with the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) to build a new observatory at Kitt Peak National Observatory to house the Burrell Schmidt. The telescope was moved from Ohio to Arizona in May 1982, and the 36" reflector on Taylor Road was moved to the Nassau Station. This meant no further astronomical work was done at the Taylor Road facility, and as a result the faculty and resources of the original observatory were moved to the main campus of Case Western Reserve University in 1982. The Taylor Road facility was sold in 1983, became abandoned, and remained neglected until 2005 when it was sold to a couple who plan to convert the building into a residence.[1]
Telescopes
Burrell Schmidt Telescope
The Burrell Schmidt Telescope was originally built in 1939 and was housed at the Taylor Road facility. It is currently housed at Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona. The telescope recently had its optics upgraded and has a very wide field of view, and is the instrument used today by the Case astronomers.
Nassau Station Robotic Observatory
The Nassau Station, originally constructed in the 1950s, currently houses a 36" reflecting telescope. It is named after observatory director Jason John Nassau, who was a prominent astronomer at the time. Work was carried out in the 1990s to make the telescope capable of remote viewing, making it one of the first telescopes to be used in this manner.[2] However, it is now seldom used by Case astronomers due to increased light pollution from Cleveland. As a result, the future of the Nassau Station as part of the Warner and Swasey Observatory remains in question.
Rooftop Telescope
The Rooftop Telescope is a 9.5" refractor that was originally constructed in the late twentieth century by Warner and Swasey for their own use. The telescope was the first instrument of the Warner and Swasey Observatory and was originally used at the Taylor Road facility, but was put into storage in subsequent years. In the 1980s the telescope was rediscovered as part of the move to the Case Western Reserve University campus, and the telescope was restored. The observatory dome for the telescope was opened on the university campus in 1986.
The telescope remains in excellent condition today and is available for use from all students, faculty, and staff at CWRU once they go through a seminar on proper telescope use. It is also often used for public observing nights by the university's Physics and Astronomy Club.
Research
Observers using the Warner and Swasey Observatory have made important contributions to astronomical research. An early example is work carried out by the observatory's then director, Jason Nassau, on the classification of carbon stars and M-type stars in 1949[3]; more recently, observations made using the Burrell Schmidt telescope led to the discovery of the galaxy Andromeda VIII in 2003. This galaxy orbits the more famous Andromeda Galaxy, and was previously undiscovered due to its position in front of the bright disk of the parent galaxy.[4] The Burrell Schmidt has also recently been used to image the intracluster light in the Virgo Supercluster. The intracluster light is a thousand times fainter than the night sky, and was observed after combining seventy images of the cluster which were taken with the Burrell Schmidt telescope.[5]
References
- ^ M. O'Malley. "Family's New Focus: Turning Old Observatory Into Home". http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/112608543211490.xml&coll=2
- ^ S. Griffith (1997). "Observatory Upgrades Planned as 40th Anniversary arrives". http://www.cwru.edu/pubs/cnews/1997/10-2/observ40.htm
- ^ Blanco, Victor M. Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Vol. 39 1-18, September 2001. http://arjournals.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev.astro.39.1.1?cookieSet=1#h4
- ^ Morrison H.L., Harding P., Hurley-Keller D., Jacoby G. (2003), Andromeda VIII: A New Tidally Distorted Satellite of M31 Astrophysical Journal, v. 596, pp. L183-L186. (Observatory press release)
- ^ C. Mihos et al (2005). "Diffuse Light in the Virgo Supercluster". http://astroweb.case.edu/hos/Virgo/