Saturday, May 23, 2015

Mount Wilson: Solar Telescope

The Solar Telescope at Mount Wilson is still used for studying sunspots. 
Great strides have been made in this science here.
The telescope is tall. And look what a beautiful day it was! I didn't alter this photo one bit.

The wooden frame. The screws. The old courier typeface. I wonder how long ago this sign was hung.
Craig Woods, our guide, has been up in the elevator. We were forbidden to go. I'm sure that was for the best.

This door is an entry beneath the Solar Telescope. I remembered it the moment I saw it.

Boz visited there on his Mount Wilson tour in 2011.

More Mount Wilson insider photos to come!

14 comments:

Shell Sherree said...

Gosh, a gorgeous day for it, indeed !! And it's amazing how empty that entry looks without Boz standing there. Sweet Boz.

Petrea Burchard said...

I wish we could take him there again, Shell. We will be able to take Wilma someday in the not-too-distant future. It feels like her training advances by baby steps, but it's really leaps and bounds.

Bellis said...

Not too many dogs there for Wilma to react to, but lots of squirrels. Worth taking her, though, it'd be a real treat for her. The order about the man-lift (sounds like something coming out of a man cave) was from Ira Bowen,who became director of the Observatory in 1946. What a surprise to see Boz again. His spirit lives on.

Petrea Burchard said...

Thank you, Bellis! I think Craig gave us that name, but I was having too much fun to take notes. Here's info about Ira Bowen:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ira_Sprague_Bowen

Wilma's not ready to be off leash yet, but she's finally able to get within a few yards of other dogs. I fear she will never be able to resist chasing a squirrel, however.

Dina said...

Wow, this is the greatest birthday present tour ever!
Your photos of the place are so exciting.

Petrea Burchard said...

I loved it so much, Dina. The next batch of photos is great, too.

Anonymous said...

Very impressive! And so nice to see the Boz-man again.

William Kendall said...

Great perspective in that first shot. I wonder what a dog would think of the structure.

Petrea Burchard said...

It's vertiginous fun to look up from the bottom, Hiker.

William, I have a feeling a dog wouldn't think of it at all.

Petrea Burchard said...

Solar tower is 150 feet tall and it has a live TowerCam!
http://obs.astro.ucla.edu/towercam.htm

Anonymous said...

Your first image is dizzying, love it! Looks like Boz enjoyed his visit back in 2011 too!

Pasadena Adjacent said...

Look at sweet Boz - hanging out with the sun beams

Kalei's Best Friend said...

love that shot of the solar tower as well as the door shot.. can't wait to see a photo of Wilma in the same spot as B.

Petrea Burchard said...

Geoff, if you ever get to Los Angeles you can visit there, too!

PA, Boz loved being in the sun. He liked heating and cooling himself, moving back and forth from sun to shade. I guess everyone likes that.

KBF, I hope she'll be able to do it! She's still feisty but her training is going very well.