Give Pittsburgh A Chance: Allegheny Observatory

A few weeks ago, in the spirit of Giving Pittsburgh a Chance, I sacrificed my Friday night to take a tour of the Allegheny Observatory.  Kidding, I went voluntarily, especially because I know how much D loves stars/space/science/dorky stuff. 

The observatory belongs to the University of Pittsburgh and is used primarily for research, but they also give free public tours on Thursday and Friday nights during the summer months.  The temperature inside the observatory, especially where the large telescopes are housed, isn't regulated, so in the winter it's too cold to host two-hour-long science lessons.

The individuals who lead the tours are all volunteers.  They're hobbyists who are just really interested in stars, space, and the equipment used to study them.  They're also some of the most knowledgeable people I've ever met.  Seriously, they knew the answer to every question that was thrown at them.  The equipment pictured above, that old, bronze, steam punk-looking-thing, is a Meridian Telescope.  It was used to determine the co-ordinates of celestial bodies. It rotates around a horizontal axis perpendicular to the meridian, so that it can only move along the meridian plane.  Used in tandem with a stellar chronometer (whatever that is), it allows the observer to record the exact time when a star crosses the meridian.  It was used to accurately determine time, which used to be a daily task of the observatory, and a service they sold.  You could buy the time from them so your clock or watch would be accurate.  Selling this service was how the observatory stayed profitable for many years.

The main attraction, of course, was this guy, the 30 inch thaw refractor.  30 inches refers to the diameter of the lens, which is just a small (but very important) part of this large piece of equipment.  The telescope tube is 47 feet long and weighs about 8,000 pounds.  It's controlled by a computer that sits in entirely different room, just off the platform that the telescope and housing is on.

When the roof started opening, everyone gasped.  It was incredible.  It was cloudy the night that we took a tour, but researchers work every clear night of the year, even holidays.  They work for as long as they have darkness, taking measurements and making pictures of the stars.

This is the rather incredible library, which no one else on the tour seemed to be very impressed with but that I would have loved to go poking around in.  Three whole floors of star history!  I told our guide that if they ever start selling off the furniture in there he should give me a call. 

There's a whole lot more to the observatory than what I took blurry iPhone pictures of, and it's definitely worth a trip if you're even remotely interested in stars or history.  There were several young kids on the tour and they were very interested and engaged.  The tours are free but you must have reservations, and they fill up fast.  Go get your star on.

Today marks one year since we moved to Pittsburgh.  Wow that went fast!  Other times I've given Pittsburgh a chance include a Pirates game, a trip to Raccoon Creek State Park, the Nationality Rooms at the University of Pittsburgh, and the Monongahela Incline.  I still kind of can't believe I live here, but at least I don't absolutely hate it anymore.  Now that's what I call progress!