Kenyon College's

Miller Observatory

at the Brown Family

Environmental Center

Latitude: 40 23 00 N

Longitude: 82 24 20 W

Elevation : 323 m

With many thanks to A. Danko, A. Rahill, and the Canadian Meteorological Center, we have our own Clear Sky Chart to help us spot clear, dark nights:

satellite images from weatherunderground.com
extended forecast from weatherunderground.com

Miller Observatory, overview:

Originally constructed in the fall of 1993, Kenyon's Miller Observatory was relocated in November, 2004, to a dark-sky site on property owned by the Brown Family Environmental Center at Kenyon College. Atop a hill just outside Gambier to the northwest, the relocated observatory enjoys clear, low horizons from the northeast through the southwest, as well as moderately low horizons to the west and north. At an elevation of about 1060 ft, the Observatory is above the ground fog level on most summer nights (unlike at its previous location), providing better access to clear summer skies for student observing projects. Coincident with the move, the Observatory acquired a new Paramount ME robotic telescope drive system, restoring computer pointing ability to the Celestron C-14 optical tube assembly and improving telescope tracking performance for astrophotography and CCD astronomy. Equipped with two SBIG CCD cameras, one for imaging with an Optec electronic focuser and filter wheel and SBIG AO-7 closed-loop guiding system and one for spectroscopy with an SBIG SGS slit spectrometer, physics students have pursued projects including nebula imaging, asteroid and variable star light curves, and photometric studies of atmospheric extinction at the Observatory. In August, 2012, the telescope was upgraded to a 20-inch RCOS reflector plus Takahashi refractor for wide-field imaging. Students in introductory astronomy courses use a set of 8-inch Celestron telescopes to doing lab exercises throughout the semester, and visitors to the observatory enjoy telescopic views of sights ranging from the Moon and bright planets such as Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn to distant star clusters and gaseous nebulae. The observatory is open to the public, free of charge, on the last Friday of every month, weather permitting. Open house times are 8 PM to 10 PM EST, 9 PM to 11 PM EDT. Private groups may also request to schedule observatory sessions by contacting observatory director Paula Turner in the Department of Physics, 427-5367.

Virtual tour of Miller Observatory
Intro astronomy courses and labs using Miller Observatory
Open house activities at Miller Observatory
Observational projects from Miller Observatory

Some web resources

Astronomy Picture of the Day: a new picture every day, with description written by a professional astronomer
Solarviews.com: Calvin J. Hamilton's fabulous archive of space images
Sky&Telescope On-line: electronic archive of astronomy news items and resources for amateur astronomers
The Nine Planets: multi-media tour of the Solar System by Bill Arnett

American Astronomical Society: primary professional organization for astronomers in the US
Astronomical Society of the Pacific: non-profit scientific and educational organization for astronomers and teachers
American Association of Variable Star Observers: organization of professional and amateur astronomers studying variable stars of all types
Mount Wilson Observatory Association: volunteer support organization for Mt. Wilson Observatory, Pasadena, CA
Minor Planet Center: clearinghouse for information and observations relating to asteroids, comets, and natural satellites
International Dark-Sky Association: non-profit group focusing on education and resources to reduce light pollution
The Planetary Society: non-profit space advocacy group

Planetary Sciences at the NSSDC: NASA's central archive for planetary data and images
NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database: searchable database and toolset for extragalactic astronomy
NASA Astrophysics Data System: searchable database/abstract server for astronomy and physics
Basics of Space Flight: An excellent NASA tutorial at Jet Propulstion Laboratory
Encyclopedia Astronautica: Comprehensive web resource on astronautics and space exploration

Links to Kenyon astronomy course webpages, CUREA program, Physics Dept home page, and Kenyon home page: