Oak Ridge Observatory
Encyclopedia
The Oak Ridge Observatory, also known as the George R. Agassiz Station, is located at 42 Pinnacle Road, Harvard, Massachusetts
, and was formerly operated by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
as a facility of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
(SAO).
The observatory was established in 1933. Through its first 40 years, its primary research focus was on tracking minor planet
s and asteroid
s in the solar system
. Starting in the 1980s, astronomers began to use the facility to measure stars over long periods of time, which led to hunts for extrasolar planet
s, i.e., planet
s outside our solar system
. Surveys at Oak Ridge found many such distant planets.
Until most of its projects were discontinued in 2005, it housed the largest telescope
east of Texas
in the United States
, a 61-inch reflector. It also housed an 84 feet (25.6 m) steerable radio telescope
once used in Project BETA, a search for extraterrestrial intelligence. A 41-cm (16-inch) Boller and Chivens
Cassegrain reflector
originally housed at Oak Ridge is available for public use at the National Air and Space Museum
's Public Observatory Project on the National Mall
in Washington, DC.
Harvard University
's Optical SETI program continues at the site.
Harvard, Massachusetts
Harvard is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. A farming community settled in 1658 and incorporated in 1732, it has been home to several non-traditional communities, such as Harvard Shaker Village and the utopian Transcendentalist center Fruitlands...
, and was formerly operated by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
The Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical institutions in the world, where scientists carry out a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, earth and space sciences, and science education...
as a facility of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory is a research institute of the Smithsonian Institution headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where it is joined with the Harvard College Observatory to form the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics .-History:The SAO was founded in 1890 by...
(SAO).
The observatory was established in 1933. Through its first 40 years, its primary research focus was on tracking minor planet
Minor planet
An asteroid group or minor-planet group is a population of minor planets that have a share broadly similar orbits. Members are generally unrelated to each other, unlike in an asteroid family, which often results from the break-up of a single asteroid...
s and asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
s in the solar system
Solar System
The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
. Starting in the 1980s, astronomers began to use the facility to measure stars over long periods of time, which led to hunts for extrasolar planet
Extrasolar planet
An extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet outside the Solar System. A total of such planets have been identified as of . It is now known that a substantial fraction of stars have planets, including perhaps half of all Sun-like stars...
s, i.e., planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
s outside our solar system
Solar System
The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
. Surveys at Oak Ridge found many such distant planets.
Until most of its projects were discontinued in 2005, it housed the largest telescope
Telescope
A telescope is an instrument that aids in the observation of remote objects by collecting electromagnetic radiation . The first known practical telescopes were invented in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 1600s , using glass lenses...
east of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, a 61-inch reflector. It also housed an 84 feet (25.6 m) steerable radio telescope
Radio telescope
A radio telescope is a form of directional radio antenna used in radio astronomy. The same types of antennas are also used in tracking and collecting data from satellites and space probes...
once used in Project BETA, a search for extraterrestrial intelligence. A 41-cm (16-inch) Boller and Chivens
Boller and Chivens
Boller and Chivens was an American manufacturer of high-quality telescopes and spectrographs founded about 1946 by Harry B. Boller and Clyde C. Chivens . Headquartered in South Pasadena, California, the company was acquired in 1965 by Perkin-Elmer...
Cassegrain reflector
Cassegrain reflector
The Cassegrain reflector is a combination of a primary concave mirror and a secondary convex mirror, often used in optical telescopes and radio antennas....
originally housed at Oak Ridge is available for public use at the National Air and Space Museum
National Air and Space Museum
The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution holds the largest collection of historic aircraft and spacecraft in the world. It was established in 1976. Located in Washington, D.C., United States, it is a center for research into the history and science of aviation and...
's Public Observatory Project on the National Mall
National Mall
The National Mall is an open-area national park in downtown Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. The National Mall is a unit of the National Park Service , and is administered by the National Mall and Memorial Parks unit...
in Washington, DC.
Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
's Optical SETI program continues at the site.
External links
- Oak Ridge Observatory
- YouTube video
- Harvard Optical SETI
- Boston Globe: "Lights out", June 28, 2005
- Bok, B. J., Ewen, H. I., & Heeschen, D. S., "The George R. Agassiz radio telescope of Harvard Observatory", Astronomical Journal, Vol. 62, p. 8, 1957.