Lowell Observatory

In the 1890's a Boston family brahmin named Percival Lowell dedicated his attention, wealth and equally considerable imagination to his interest in astronomy. Most specifically, he had been excited by the drawings of Mars by Giovanni Schiaparelli which featured "canali" on the surface of the red planet. "Canali" in Italian can mean either channels or canals, but Lowell believed they were canals and set about to study these in detail. To that end he tapped some of his fortune to having 24 inch Alvan Clark refractor built and shipped to Flagstaff, Arizona to build his observatory on a dark, dry high desert with many clear nights away from the pollution and lights of civilization.

His "discoveries" and speculations that the canals he thought he saw were made by a dying civilization fueled a lot of public interest in astronomy, and his observatory continues to inspire the public's imagination and keep us "looking up" at the night sky.

Our next meeting will feature Michael Beckage, who will talk to us about what is going on at Lowell Observatory.

Many historical discoveries have been made by some great names in astronomy. Of course Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto there, but also Vesto Slipher started to realize "nebulae" were receding from us, leading to Hubble's realization that the universe is expanding (and that these "nebulae" were galaxies like our own).

These days the observatory on Mars Hill in Flagstaff  is still a lovely spot, but has been surrounded by the growing town of Flagstaff. The observatory continues to be on the forefront for many research programs, but the original site has been added to a few other locations outside of Flagstaff. And in keeping with the excitement Percy generated with his canals on Mars, Lowell Observatory has been especially devoted to fostering public outreach and education in astronomy.

One especially exciting new development is the new Discovery Channel telescope (pictured at right and bottom), nearly 170 inches in diameter! It's primary focus will be to foster and continue that excitement about astronomy that Percy started.