It's scientific, it's expensive, and Hopkins will still let you use it.
Students interested in getting a glimpse of the stars through a top-notch piece of equipment can head to the Morris W. Offit Telescope at the Maryland Space Grant Observatory (MSGO), located on the roof of the Bloomberg Center for Physics and Astronomy, to find welcoming employees who will show them a new realm not normally accessible to the general public.
The telescope, a component of the MSGO, was built with the funding from the Maryland Space Grant Consortium (MSCG), established in 1989 as part of the NASA's Space Grant program. The MSGO constructed a dome on top of the Observatory with a gift of $35,000 from Stanley and Joan Greenblatt, though, at that time, there were insufficient funds to purchase a telescope.
Eventually, an anonymous donor came to the rescue, contributing the $250,000 needed for the telescope and requested that it be named in honor of Morris W. Offit, class of 1957, past Chairman of the Board of Trustees.
The MSGC chose to build the Observatory on the Homewood campus because of its ideal location and its accessibility to a large number of people.
The Offit telescope is used primarily for educational and public use rather than for research. Usually telescopes are placed in a dark location because city locations have too much ambient light for optimum viewing, but since the Offit telescope is not used for research, the city lights are not as much of a problem.
"While darker skies are ideal, the public would have to travel farther," said MSGO Observatory technician Ryan Newcomer. Although the original telescope has been upgraded, and features newer and more modern technology, the view still remains hindered a bit by the light pollution.
Even though the telescope is not used to perform original or ground-breaking experimentations as most high tech equipment is, occasional research is performed. "We are always willing to participate if something exciting happens," Newcomer said. A recent exciting event occurred when Hopkins scientists used the Offit telescope to contribute data for the Gamma Ray Burst. Even though the burst was initially detected by an x-ray satellite, the Offit in addition to other telescopes around the globe were able to help.
There are many opportunities for Hopkins students to use the Offit telescope to view images in the sky, since the Observatory primarily focuses on education and public outreach. The Observatory has an Open House every Friday night, weather permitting, starting at dusk and ending at midnight.
The Observatory is also open to the public the first Tuesday of every month when there is an Open Night Lecture at the Space Technology Science Institute, adjacent to Bloomberg, followed by a viewing in the Observatory, again weather permitting. Updates and information concerning weather cancellations are always posted on the MSGO Web site, http://henry.pha.jhu.edu/msgc/observatory.html and on the Observatory telephone hotline, 410-516-6525.
Another interesting opportunity for those affiliated with Johns Hopkins is telescope training. As Newcomer explains, this is a very unique opportunity for Hopkins students to be able get first-hand experience with the Offit telescope and learn its operating procedures. Interested students can contact him at newcomer@pha.jhu.edu.
Students excited about astronomy can also note that the Offit telescope is used as a teaching aid for certain classes taught at Hopkins. The classes teach the students how to take measurements and compile data, learning from previous experiments. The Observatory is really excited about the upcoming eclipse; it will not be open, as the event can be seen with the naked eye and it occurs on a Sunday evening.
Those heartbroken will just have to wait for the ability to see Saturn's rings in January or February when Saturn becomes an evening object. Newcomer reminds us, however, that the planet Mars is still currently in sight, though it's getting "smaller and smaller."
Astronomical events to mark on your calendar include the lunar eclipse that will take place the evening of Nov. 9. "The eclipse will begin around 6:30 p.m. and the moon will be totally eclipsed from 8:06 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.," Newcomer said.
Light construction will keep the Observatory closed for a brief period this semester. However, once construction is complete, students do not need to wait for an event to check out the telescope. Instead consider making Friday night viewing part of a weekly ritual.
