Wednesday, October 27, 2004 12:10 PM CDT
Observatory shows sky is no longer the limit
By NATHANIEL WEST, Staff Writer
CHARLESTON -- Eastern Illinois University students can actually observe what happened a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.
But there are no Sith Lords, rebels, stormtroopers or short green dudes who say things all backwards -- just giant balls of burning gas.
For some, however, science fact is better than science fiction. In other words, the force of learning is with them.
"To see things actually happen in front of your eyes makes discussions in class become real," said David Linton, an EIU astronomy professor.
He is one of many science educators at the university who are as happy as a Jawa in a junkyard, now that the institution's new observatory is fully operational.
Spearheaded by physics Professor James Conwell, the observatory features a computer-controlled 16-inch telescope and a retractable roof, making long-distance viewing quick and timely.
EIU will dedicate the observatory -- tucked away in the southwestern corner of campus near O'Brien Stadium -- during a ceremony at 9 p.m. Friday.
"It will be a major advantage for both teaching and research," said Conwell. "There's a lot of stuff you can do with a scope of this size."
Namely, the university will commence a search for supernovas (exploding stars) and asteroids, and will also take part in a study of pulsars (rotating stars that emit a radio frequency).
The Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope is housed in a 16-by-30-foot building with a rotating dome on top. There are plans to install another large telescope eventually.
Workers laid the observatory's foundations three years ago. The building's walls went up two years ago, while Conwell and his students constructed an observation platform last year.
Beginning in May, the dome and control room were built. The 800-pound telescope went in during September.
When connected to a computerized "charged coupled device," the telescope can see distant bodies with an "apparent magnitude" of 20.
According to Jeff Bryant, president of the Champaign-Urbana Astronomical Society, that makes the EIU telescope powerful enough to spy stellar objects more than 225 million times dimmer than the brightest star, Sirius.
The faintest star still visible with the naked eye has a magnitude of 6.5, according to Bryant. The moon's is minus 12 (the larger the magnitude, the harder to see).
Linton said the EIU telescope is controlled by robotics. That means one only has to punch in a star's name or coordinates to orient the telescope.
According to Conwell, astronomers can program the telescope to photograph about a thousand galaxies every night.
He said, "We will even be able to use it from back in the physics department offices."
As many as a hundred physics and astronomy students may utilize the telescope, along with several professors and the university's astronomy club, who did most of labor in constructing the observatory.
"It gives the students opportunities, since a lot of the observing and data-taking will be done by members of the astronomy club," said Conwell.
According to Linton, the observatory will afford numerous chances for hands-on learning. And in astronomy, as in most other disciplines, that adds significant effectiveness to teaching.
"It's going to make it more interesting (to students), more real," he said.
Contact Nathaniel West at nwest@jg-tc.com or 238-6860.
Donors help EIU move up to the pro level
CHARLESTON -- While James Conwell and other physics professors and students provided much of the construction labor for Eastern Illinois University's new observatory, most of the funding came from three people: Alumnus Randall P. Wright and his wife, Brenda; and retired physics faculty member P. Scott Smith.
Wright, senior vice president of Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, is a Charleston native and a 1970 graduate of the university with a degree in physics.
Earlier this year, Wright, who is noted for his philanthropy to the university, received a Doctor of Public Service honorary degree from Eastern.
"I just happened to be (at EIU) at a meeting with a student group doing a presentation as a result of a project that (former department chair) Keith Andrews was doing," Wright said.
"He had asked students to develop plans for what an observatory should look like," he added.
"They were putting together a model, and it seemed like a good concept and an opportunity to actually build."
Meanwhile, P. Scott Smith, was a member of the physics department from 1953 to 1990.
"I taught astronomy and we were always handicapped because we had to haul the telescopes up on the roof or to a field outside of town," he said. "It was often wet or windy.
"Now, having a dome," Smith explained, "it's like going from kindergarten to professional."
-- Nathaniel West
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Karen Hill, Pikeville KY wrote on Jun 2, 2007 6:15 PM: