New Observatory Activities
Kevin Thomas

This semester has seen the SSU optical observatory move out of obscurity and back into use. Although bad weather caused two of the public viewing nights to be cancelled, there were several successful ones. Interest by new students is giving Dr. Gordon Spear, the observatory director, something he hasn’t had in a while: a potential research staff.

Recently while at a late night study session for modern physics, the attending students all went out to the observatory to relax and learn about the stars. Despite a computer glitch with the automated telescope, the CCD imager captured a breathtaking image of the galaxy Messier 51 and its interacting companion. This was the first time many of the physics majors there had seen an astronomical CCD camera in action.

With clear skies and a new CCD camera, which totally eclipses the old one, about to be installed, this summer promises to be a productive one for the observatory. Research and public viewing are both scheduled for the summer months.