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42-399: Perkins taught at the university from 1873 to 1907. The Perkins telescope was the 3rd largest telescope in the world when it achieved first light in 1931. The telescope was eventually moved to Lowell Observatory , and the 69-inch mirror was sent to a museum when it was replaced by a 72 inch one at that observatory. In 1880 Perkins built a house at 235 W. William St, which was later used as

84-701: A 156-element active optics system, regularly delivers sub-arcsecond seeing. The mirror was ground and polished into its hyperbolic shape at the Optical Fabrication and Engineering Facility of the College of Optical Sciences of the University of Arizona in Tucson . The LDT is housed in a 73-foot-tall, 62-foot-diameter metal dome located at an elevation of 7,800 feet (2,400 m) and about 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Flagstaff. Groundbreaking for

126-466: A 1m Array have been developed by NRL and Lowell Observatory, based on the funded science performed. Optical interferometers are extremely complex, unfilled aperture photon-collecting telescopes in the visual (sometimes the near infrared , too), which produce synthesized images and fringe data "on the fly" (unlike radio interferometers which are privileged to record the data for later synthesis), essentially by taking an inverse Fourier transform of

168-532: A classic interferometer, are described at Scholarpedia, and at the NPOI site. The NPOI is an astronomical interferometer laid out in a three-arm "Y" configuration, with each equally-spaced arm measuring 250 meters (820 ft) long. There are two types of stations that can be used in the NPOI. Astrometric stations , used to measure the positions of celestial objects very accurately, are fixed units placed 21 meters (69 ft) apart, with one on each arm and one at

210-421: A dorm by OWU. Perkin's house survived into the 21st century, and was used as a dorm by OWU university. The home (later dorm) was located 235 W. William St. In the 2017 the school sold it off for 170,000 USD, to a developer who planned to convert it into a hotel. This biographical article about a United States activist is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This biographical article about

252-529: A philanthropist is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This United States astronomer article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Lowell Observatory Lowell Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona , United States . Lowell Observatory was established in 1894, placing it among the oldest observatories in the United States, and

294-602: A suitable location for the observatory and in 1894 they agreed to build it in Flagstaff, Arizona due to its elevation, dark night skies, and proximity to the railroad. The materials for the construction of the observatory were all sourced locally, but the Clark Refracting Telescope was assembled in Boston. The observatory has carried out a wide array of research. One of its programs was the measurement of

336-553: A survey of the Kuiper Belt beyond Neptune , a search for extrasolar planets , a decades-long study of the brightness stability of the sun, and a variety of investigations of star formation and other processes in distant galaxies. In addition, the Observatory staff designs and builds custom instrumentation for use on Lowell's telescopes and elsewhere. For example, Lowell staff built a sophisticated high-speed camera for use on

378-508: A wide and diverse series of scientific studies, beyond just the study of absolute astrometric positions of stars,; additional NOFS science at NPOI includes the study of binary stars , Be Stars , Oblate stars , rapidly rotating stars , those with starspots , and the imaging of stellar disks (the first in history) and flare stars . In 2007–2008, NRL with NOFS used NPOI to obtain first-ever closure phase image precursors of satellites orbiting in geostationary orbit . Installation plans for

420-717: Is a partner with the United States Naval Observatory and Naval Research Laboratory in the Navy Precision Optical Interferometer (NPOI) also located at that site. The Observatory also operates smaller research telescopes at its historic site on Mars Hill and in Australia and Chile. Past Anderson Mesa, on the peak of Happy Jack , Lowell Observatory built the 4.28-meter (169-inch) Lowell Discovery Telescope in partnership with Discovery Communications, Inc. In 1877

462-486: Is capable of determining positions of celestial objects to a few milli-arcsecond, in part due to the optical anchoring of its components using a complex metrology array of lasers that connect main optical elements to each other and to bedrock. Many specialized lasers are also used to align the long train of optics. The current NPOI siderostat array remains the world's only long-baseline (437-meter) optical interferometer that can simultaneously co-phase six elements. NPOI

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504-479: Is expected to grow significantly in capability with the pending addition of four 1.8-meter aperture IR/Optical telescopes into the current array. The enhanced array will also employ adaptive optics techniques. This layout and increased sparse aperture will permit significant improvements to the science capability, from a tenfold increase in measuring ever-fainter wide-angle astrometry targets, to improved positional determination for numerous binary and flare stars. When

546-703: Is named for the Discovery Channel television network. Discovery founder and CEO John Hendricks has long been a member of Lowell Observatory's Advisory Board, and Discovery and John and his wife Maureen made gifts of $ 16 million toward the $ 53 million cost of the project. These were gifts, not purchases: Discovery has no ownership in the telescope, nor any direction of the research conducted with it. In return for their contributions, they received naming rights and first right of refusal for use of images in educational broadcasts. Research use proceeds as it would at any other professional telescope. Boston University ,

588-496: Is the 33-centimeter (13-inch) Pluto Discovery Telescope, used by Clyde Tombaugh in 1930 to discover the dwarf planet Pluto . In 2014, the 8,000 square feet (740 m ) Putnam Center was opened. This observatory included many rooms with tools that were useful to observers including a library for research, a room for processing photographic glass plates, multiple antique instruments used by previous astronomers, and many artifacts. The observatory does contain areas that are closed to

630-605: Is the world's first full-scale planetary defense test. Navy Optical Interferometer The Navy Precision Optical Interferometer ( NPOI ) is an American astronomical interferometer , with the world's largest baselines, operated by the Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station (NOFS) in collaboration with the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and Lowell Observatory . The NPOI primarily produces space imagery and astrometry,

672-642: The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). SOFIA is a joint project of NASA and DLR , the German space agency, and consists of a 2.5-meter (8.2-foot) telescope on board a Boeing 747 SP. Lowell astronomers, Nick Moskovitz, Brian Skiff, and Tom Polakis also contributed observations in NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) using both the 1.1-meter John Hall Telescope and 4.3-meter Lowell Discovery Telescope . This experiment

714-401: The University of Maryland , the University of Toledo , Northern Arizona University , and Yale University have joined Lowell as partners with access to DCT. Lowell Observatory's astronomers conduct research on a wide range of solar system and astrophysical topics using ground-based, airborne, and space-based telescopes. Among the many current programs are a search for near-Earth asteroids ,

756-466: The Anderson Mesa facility and make the observations for NOFS to conduct the primary astrometry. The Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) also provides funds to contract Lowell Observatory's and NRL's implementation of additional, long-baseline siderostat stations, facilitating NRL's primary scientific work, synthetic imaging (both celestial and of orbital satellites). When complete by 2013, NPOI will run

798-461: The Flagstaff area. The main facility, located on Mars Hill just west of downtown Flagstaff, houses the original 61-centimeter (24-inch) Clark Refracting Telescope, which is now used for public education, with 85,000 annual visitors. The telescope, built in 1896 for $ 20,000, was assembled in Boston by Alvan Clark & Sons and then shipped by train to Flagstaff. Also located on the Mars Hill campus

840-658: The Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli purported to have discovered a series of martian canals . Percival Lowell had seen these drawings and was fascinated by the idea of artificial canals in Mars. In the winter of 1893, he devoted to use his wealth and connections to establish an observatory in the US. His wealth stemmed from his connection to the influential Boston Lowell family and his successful career as an investment banker. Lowell hired American astronomer Andrew E. Douglas to find

882-694: The NOFS staff and reports to the NOFS Director. NPOI is an example of the Michelson Interferometer design, with the principal science managed by NOFS. Lowell Observatory and NRL join in the scientific efforts through their fractions of time to use the interferometer; science time is 85% Navy (NOFS and NRL); and 15% Lowell. NPOI is one of the few major instruments globally which can conduct optical interferometry . See an illustration of its layout, at bottom. NOFS has used NPOI to conduct

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924-547: The Navy Optical Interferometer, and now permanently, the Kenneth J. Johnston Navy Precision Optical Interferometer (NPOI) – reflecting both the operational maturity of the facility, and paying tribute to its principal driver and retired founder, Kenneth J. Johnston. The NPOI project was initiated by the United States Naval Observatory (USNO) in 1987. Lowell joined the project the following year when

966-454: The USNO decided to build the NPOI at Anderson Mesa. The first phase of construction was completed in 1994, which allowed the interferometer to see its first fringes, or light combined from multiple sources, that year. The Navy began regular science operations in 1997. The NPOI has been continuously upgraded and expanded since then, and has been operational for a decade. The workings of NPOI as

1008-578: The array, which were accepted by the Navy in 2010, and assigned to the Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station . They were originally intended to be "outrigger" telescopes for the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii, but were never installed and incorporated into Keck's interferometer. Three telescopes are being prepared for near-immediate installation, while the fourth is currently at Mount Stromlo Observatory in Australia and will be incorporated at some point in

1050-446: The center. Imaging stations can be moved to one of nine positions on each arm, and up to six can be used at one time to perform standard observing. Light from either type of station is first directed into the feed system, which consists of long pipes which have been evacuated of all air. They lead to a switchyard of mirrors, where the light is directed into the six Long Delay Lines, which is another set of long pipes that compensate for

1092-628: The contiguous United States and one of the most powerful in the world, thanks to a unique housing that can accommodate up to five instruments at the Ritchey-Chrétien focus. The LDT can switch between any of these instruments in about a minute, making it uniquely suited for time-domain programs as well as opportunity targets such as gamma ray bursts and supernovae. The 6700-pound primary mirror measures 4.3 m (170 in) in diameter yet only about 10 cm (3.9 in) in thickness. This finely figured, thin meniscus mirror, held in shape by

1134-544: The different distances to each station. The light is then sent into the Beam Combining Facility, where it enters the Fast Delay Lines. This third set of evacuated pipes contains mechanisms that move mirrors back and forth with a very high degree of accuracy. These compensate for the movement of the mirrors as they track an object across the sky, and for other effects. Finally, the light leaves

1176-536: The facility occurred on July 11, 2005. A little over six years later, the first image from just the primary mirror was recorded, using a small test camera mounted where the secondary mirror would eventually go. The secondary mirror was installed in January 2012. To celebrate first light, Lowell hosted a gala celebration on July 21, 2012, featuring a keynote address by Neil Armstrong . This was his final public appearance before his death several weeks later. The telescope

1218-665: The family. The first trustee was Lowell's third cousin Guy Lowell (1916–1927). Percival's nephew Roger Putnam served from 1927 to 1967, followed by Roger's son Michael (1967–1987), Michael's brother William Lowell Putnam III (1987–2013), and current trustee W. Lowell Putnam. Multiple astronauts attended the Lowell Observatory in 1963 while the moon was being mapped for the Apollo Program . The observatory operates several telescopes at three locations in

1260-473: The future. The new telescopes will help with faint object imaging and improved absolute astrometry, due to their greater light-gathering abilities than the existing siderostats. NOFS operates and leads the science for the Navy Precision Optical Interferometer , as noted, in collaboration with Lowell Observatory and the Naval Research Laboratory at Anderson Mesa . NOFS funds all principal operations, and from this contracts Lowell Observatory to maintain

1302-458: The highest resolution optical images of any astronomical instrument, though this may change when the CHARA array and Magdalena Ridge Observatory Interferometer begin optical-band operations. The first astronomical object imaged (resolved) by NPOI was Mizar , and since, a significant amount of astrometry , reference tie frame, rapid rotator star, and Be stellar disk study has been performed. NPOI

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1344-409: The incoming data. Astrometry is understood by precisely measuring delay line additions while fringing, to match the light path differences from baseline ends. Using essentially trigonometry the angle and position of where the array is 'pointed' can be determined, thus inferring a precise position on the sphere of the sky. Only a few exist that can be considered operational. To date NPOI has produced

1386-560: The latter a major component required for the safe position and navigation of all manner of vehicles for the DoD. The facility is located at Lowell's Anderson Mesa Station on Anderson Mesa about 25 kilometers (16 mi) southeast of Flagstaff, Arizona (US). Until November 2011, the facility was known as the Navy Prototype Optical Interferometer (NPOI). Subsequently, the instrument was temporarily renamed

1428-456: The longest baseline interferometer in the world. The three institutions – USNO, NRL, and Lowell – each provide an executive to sit on an Operational Advisory Panel (OAP), which collectively guides the science and operations of the interferometer. The OAP commissioned the chief scientist and director of the NPOI to effect the science and operations for the Panel; this manager is a senior member of

1470-509: The mirror at the celestial target. The reflected light from the siderostat is directed through a telescope which narrows the beam down to the diameter of the pipes, which is 12 cm (4.7 in). The light then hits the mirror of the NAT, which compensates for atmospheric effects and directs the light into the feed system. In 2009 NOFS began final plans for NPOI to incorporate four 1.8 m (71 in) aperture optical-infrared telescopes into

1512-479: The opportunity to learn hands-on about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) through a variety of activities that include games, experiments, story time, art, music, and more. In 2016, Kevin Schindler published Lowell Observatory , a 128-page book containing over 200 captions and pictures. Arcadia Publishing 's Images of America included it in their series, which increased the enthusiasm of space in

1554-524: The pipes inside the BCF and goes to the Beam Combining Table, where the light is combined in a way that allows images to be formed. Both types of station have three elements: a siderostat , a Wide Angle Star Acquisition (WASA) camera, and a Narrow Angle Tracking (NAT) mirror. The first is a precisely-ground flat mirror 50 cm (20 in) in diameter. The WASA cameras control the aiming of

1596-408: The public view, although there are multiple places that tourists are welcome to visit. Lowell Observatory currently operates four research telescopes at its Anderson Mesa dark-sky site, located 20 km (12 mi) southeast of Flagstaff, including the 180-centimeter (72-inch) Perkins Telescope (in partnership with Boston University) and the 110-centimeter (42-inch) John S. Hall Telescope. Lowell

1638-577: The public. The book itself features the popular reputation of Lowell Observatory, encompassing the revolutionary research of scientists and how they contributed to the field of astronomy. Lowell Observatory owns and operates the Lowell Discovery Telescope (LDT, formerly the Discovery Channel Telescope) located near Happy Jack, Arizona . This 4.3-meter reflecting telescope is the fifth-largest telescope in

1680-521: The variability of solar irradiance . When Harold L. Johnson took over as the director in 1952, the stated objective became to focus on light from the Sun reflecting from Uranus and Neptune . In 1953, the current 53 cm (21-inch) telescope was erected. Beginning in 1954, this telescope began monitoring the brightness of these two planets, and comparing these measurements with a reference set of Sun-like stars. Self-taught astronomer Robert Burnham Jr.

1722-487: Was an employee at Lowell observatory from 1958 to 1979, being known for his Celestial Handbook . Beginning in 2012, Lowell Observatory began offering camps for children known as LOCKs (Lowell Observatory Camps for Kids). The first camp was established for elementary students. Later on, in 2013, they added an additional camp program for preschool children. The following year they added another program for middle school students. ("Kelly", Manager at Lowell Observatory). Kids have

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1764-435: Was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965. In 2011, the Observatory was named one of "The World's 100 Most Important Places" by Time Magazine . It was at the Lowell Observatory that the dwarf planet Pluto was discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh . The observatory was founded by astronomer Percival Lowell of Boston's Lowell family and is overseen by a sole trustee, a position historically handed down through

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