WIYN Consortium consists of the University of Wisconsin–Madison

University of Wisconsin–Madison

The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...

 (W), Indiana University (I), Yale University

Yale University

Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

 (Y), and the National Optical Astronomy Observatories (N). The consortium

Consortium

A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....

 operates two 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...

s of 3.5m and 0.9m diameters.

The universities financed the construction of the WIYN Observatory

WIYN Observatory

The WIYN Observatory is owned and operated by the WIYN Consortium. Its telescope, a 3.5-meter instrument, is the newest and second largest telescope on Kitt Peak in Arizona...

 at Kitt Peak National Observatory

Kitt Peak National Observatory

The Kitt Peak National Observatory is a United States astronomical observatory located on 2,096 m Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O'odham Nation, southwest of Tucson...

 (KPNO) in 1994.

In 2001, the WIYN Consortium took over control of the KPNO 36 inches (914.4 mm) telescope, built in 1960, and rechristened

Christen

-People:* Adolf Christen , court actor, theater director and theater manager* Brian Christen , Canadian cricketer* Fritz Christen , German Waffen-SS soldier of WWII era* Georges Christen , Luxembourgian strongman...

 it as the WIYN 0.9m Telescope. This small but popular telescope was in danger of being mothball

Mothball

Mothballs are small balls of chemical pesticide and deodorant used when storing clothing and other articles susceptible to damage from mold or moth larvae ....

ed for budgetary reasons.

External links

• WIYN Consortium - official site