I spent part of last week in one of my favorite places, Flagstaff, Arizona, at Lowell Observatory. This storied institution is well known, and as I have written about previously, holds a unique place in the history of American science. Founded in 1894 by the Boston explorer and scientist Percival Lowell, the institution presents a combination unlike other observatories. It has a great history, with Lowell’s famous observations, V.M. Slipher’s groundbreaking discoveries of the expansion of the cosmos and of the interstellar medium, and of course Clyde Tombaugh’s discovery of Pluto.
Far from a museum, however, Lowell is steeped in current, cutting-edge research. You may have read my story of a few days ago in which I described a night of observing several of us had with the 4.3-meter Lowell Discovery Telescope. The observatory also operates major telescopes at a site called Anderson Mesa, near Flagstaff. The observatory’s staff consists of 12 astronomers in a large spread of research areas, 17 researchers, an array of Ph.D. students, and a large support staff. The combination of significant research with Lowell’s substantial history makes it a very special place.
Over the past several years, the observatory has raised a huge amount of money and rebuilt itself, with a large Astronomy Discovery Center in addition to the historic telescopes and other facilities on Mars Hill. Chief among the attractions are the 24-inch Clark refractor used for so many famous observations in the past, and the 13-inch Pluto Discovery Telescope, or Pluto Camera as it has been known. The Giovale Open Deck Observatory presents multiple large instruments for visitors to use to view the Moon, planets, and deep-sky objects under a dark sky. And the planetarium and theater facilities, as well as exhibits and displays in the center, are amazing — the visitation to Lowell is enormously up this year, following the opening of the new center.
With the sudden cuts in funding and removal of many grants, however, the observatory is in a difficult place, particularly after the very recent financial lift of rebuilding and reinventing Lowell as a major new science center and activity for so many visitors.
In the face of federal cutbacks in research and education, Lowell is looking to move forward. So, donors are needed now to help with the immediate future of the institution. If you are in a position to do so, I urge you to help out by contacting and contributing to Lowell. This is not a time for science in the United States to march backwards, fade away, and give the leading efforts away to other parts of the world. It would signal the start of a dark age to come in this country, and perhaps for science in general.
If you can help at this important time, please do so. You can contact Lowell to help out by emailing donate@lowell.edu, or calling (928) 268-2924. Afterward, you will have the wonderful feeling of knowing that you have helped science to carry on as it should at a very critical time in American history.
