Cincinnati: Old Glass

Saturday night, August 30, I received a special treat. Visiting the Cincinnati Observatory Center I was invited to enjoy a private viewing of Jupiter through the 11" Merz und Mahler refracting telescope. That telescope went into operation on April 14, 1845 in Cincinnati and has been in nearly continuous use since. Saturday had been a very hot and moderately humid day so it took some time for the atmosphere to settle and for the dome to cool. While we waited for things to settle down my host conducted me on a detailed historical tour of the two buildings that comprise the Observatory Center. What a fine place it is with such history -- all concerned should be commended for their efforts in its rescue and ongoing restoration. Later I was treated to a fine view of the great planet and its Galilean moons. The evening's best views included relatively pale renderings of Jupiter's two major cloud bands along with several others. The moons appeared to resolve to tiny disks, no notable spots on the planetary body, but seeing remained unsteady enough to prevent much better observing. I was allowed to move the scope around a bit and fished for nearby objects. Surprisingly, though Jupiter was in the constellation Sagittarius, I didn't find any of the nearby globular star clusters. I did see what appeared to be an open cluster but could not identify it. No matter. It was a thrill and an honor to, at least temporarily, be the most recent user of the oldest operating professional observatory in the United States.

The telescope's optical tube is constructed of wood. The drive system is electrical having been converted from spring-powered some time ago. A modern Meade diagonal and eyepiece are used but the objective lens is original to the telescope. Photo by James Guilford.