2009 has been designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations, and Mount A is getting ready to celebrate in style with the installation of an observational astronomy facility on campus.
The Mount Allison Gemini Observatory was constructed this summer and is set to open this fall at the corner of Salem and York Streets, near the University’s Dunn Physical Sciences Building.
The facility is designed using two Sirius 3.5 m diameter domes with electric rotation and shutter, two Losmandy Titan mounts, and two Celestron 11 SCT telescope optical tubes. All operations are solar powered, reducing the facility’s environmental footprint significantly. Robotic functions will also be added within the first year of operation.
The Gemini Observatory was built over the summer, and assembled entirely by a group of volunteers made up of Mount Allison students, staff, and faculty members.
Already Mount A students and faculty are benefiting from this new campus resource. Liyao Li is studying how lunar craters send ejecta on long orbits, which could be hazardous to astronauts on the moon, while Chris MacLeod is examining the ‘dark side of the moon’ — using the telescopes to see brief flashes as kilogram sized meteoroids impact the moon. Rory Woods is studying how deeply meteoroids impact into cometary nuclei. Dr. Hawkes, who was awarded an NSERC Discovery Grant this spring, is examining how meteors ablate and produce light in the Earth's atmosphere.
The Mount Allison Gemini Observatory was constructed with generous funding by the Marjorie Young Bell Endowment Fund at Mount Allison, University operating funds, as well as donations from alumni, staff, and friends of the university.
Night viewing at the Mount Allison Gemini Observatory will begin in early fall, after final installation and calibration of the telescopes, at which time a public announcement will be made. Researchers look forward to welcoming students and community members to the facility for tours and stargazing.
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