This post is by Brian Chu
Location of the Original:
Bentley Historical Library; Collection: Observatory university of Michigan records 1855-1985; Call Number: 87299 BImu Bimu C455 2; Box 4; Folder: Detroit Observatory, later U-M Observatory, Ann Arbor, Mich. Notes on testing of New Telescope, 1907, R.H. Curtiss
Date of creation: 1907, stated in the notebook.
This notebook that was used to record results for the new telescope tests fit into the history of the department of astronomy because they are part of the upgrades for the Detroit Observatory, the first research facility and observatory for both the University of Michigan as well as the department of astronomy. The new steel telescope was installed in 1907 and the pictures are of a notebook used to record test observations using the newly installed telescope. The installation of this new state of the art telescope was a crucial upgrade to the Detroit Observatory and was a milestone in the development of the first science department at the University of Michigan, the department of astronomy. The new telescope served as the university and department of astronomy’s main telescope up until the construction of the newer Angell Hall Observatory in 1927 and the construction of several others off campus. Data from the Detroit Observatory has been published since 1856 and the new telescope has allowed department of astronomy in the University of Michigan to make even more precise observations and publish better data. This notebook is undoubtedly a crucial artifact in the history of the astronomy department.
