Under the Milky Way

Astronomy is one of those topics that naturally generates enthusiasm. Contemplatingthe sheer scale of the universe and our place in it is a truly humbling and awe-inspiring experience. The teacher in me loves to use that moment when a student is rapt, that moment when they are looking into space saying, "Wow! What is that thing?"

The new observatory give us the opportunity to bring our universe into closer focus. The observatory was built on the top of the Anderson Parking Facility. To mitigate the vibrations created by automobile traffic, the telescope is mounted on a steel pier anchored to a support beam under the floor. It is housed under a domed ceiling thatcan be opened from a computer in the control room or from a wallmounted control panel next to the telescope. And just as important, the domed room is not heated or cooled, as air-temperature changes when the dome is open and can cause enough turbulence to distort the telescope’s image-capture.

The large spiral galaxy in the center of this image is given the poetic name of NGC 7331, as it is the 7,331st of 7,840 objects listed in the New General Catalog of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars (NGC). It is often referred to as the Milky Way's twin, as it was generally believed that the two galaxies have similar size and structure. They are both “island universes” containing several hundred billion individual stars. Located approximately 50 million light years away in Pegasus, it appears to be surrounded by a small posse of smaller galaxies. The other galaxies in the image are actually far in the background – about 10 times further away – and their alignment with NGC 7331 is purely coincidental. — The large spiral galaxy in the center of this image is given the poetic name of NGC 7331, as it is the 7,331st of 7,840 objects listed in the New General Catalog of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars (NGC). It is often referred to as the Milky Way’s twin, as it was generally believed that the two galaxies have similar size and structure. They are both “island universes” containing several hundred billion individual stars. Located approximately 50 million light years away in Pegasus, it appears to be surrounded by a small posse of smaller galaxies. The other galaxies in the image are actually far in the background – about 10 times further away – and their alignment with NGC 7331 is purely coincidental.

The famously named "Ring Nebula" is located in the northern constellation of Lyra. It is one of the most prominent examples of a planetary nebula, the gaseous remains of red giant star that has ended its life by expelling its material into the surrounding interstellar medium.- Wikipedia — The famously named “Ring Nebula” is located in the northern constellation of Lyra. It is one of the most prominent examples of a planetary nebula, the gaseous remains of red giant star that has ended its life by expelling its material into the surrounding interstellar medium. – Wikipedia

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass slightly less than one-thousandth of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined.Jupiter is primarily composed of hydrogen with a quarter of its mass being helium; it may also have a rocky core of heavier elements. Because of its rapid rotation, Jupiter's shape is that of an oblate spheroid (it possesses a slight but noticeable bulge around the equator). The outer atmosphere is visibly segregated into several bands at different latitudes, resulting in turbulence and storms along their interacting boundaries. A prominent result is the Great Red Spot, a giant storm that is known to have existed since at least the 17th century when it was first seen by telescope. Surrounding the planet is a faint planetary ring system and a powerful magnetosphere. There are also at least 64 moons, including the four large moons called the Galilean moons that were first discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610. Ganymede, the largest of these moons, has a diameter greater than that of the planet Mercury.- Wikipedia — Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass slightly less than one-thousandth of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is primarily composed of hydrogen with a quarter of its mass being helium; it may also have a rocky core of heavier elements. Because of its rapid rotation, Jupiter’s shape is that of an oblate spheroid (it possesses a slight but noticeable bulge around the equator). The outer atmosphere is visibly segregated into several bands at different latitudes, resulting in turbulence and storms along their interacting boundaries. A prominent result is the Great Red Spot, a giant storm that is known to have existed since at least the 17th century when it was first seen by telescope. Surrounding the planet is a faint planetary ring system and a powerful magnetosphere. There are also at least 64 moons, including the four large moons called the Galilean moons that were first discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610. Ganymede, the largest of these moons, has a diameter greater than that of the planet Mercury. – Wikipedia

The middle star of Orion's sword in the winter constellation of Orion is not a single star at all, but actually is a collection of four bright young stars known as the Trapezium Cluster. Each of the stars in the trapezium is 15 to 30 times more massive and 10,000 to 100,000 times brighter than the sun. The cluster itself is located within the brightest region of the Orion Nebula (pictured here). The Orion Nebula, located 1,344 light years away from the Earth, is the closest and most well studied “stellar nursery,” a region of active ongoing star formation. In addition to the trapezium, around 700 other individual stars are at various stages of formation within the great cloud of gas and dust that make up this nebula. Hubble Space Telescope images of this region have also revealed many of the stars also are in the process of forming their own planetary systems. Studying star and planetary formation within the Orion Nebula helps us to understand the origins of our own solar system. — The middle star of Orion’s sword in the winter constellation of Orion is not a single star at all, but actually is a collection of four bright young stars known as the Trapezium Cluster. Each of the stars in the trapezium is 15 to 30 times more massive and 10,000 to 100,000 times brighter than the sun. The cluster itself is located within the brightest region of the Orion Nebula (pictured here). The Orion Nebula, located 1,344 light years away from the Earth, is the closest and most well studied “stellar nursery,” a region of active ongoing star formation. In addition to the trapezium, around 700 other individual stars are at various stages of formation within the great cloud of gas and dust that make up this nebula. Hubble Space Telescope images of this region have also revealed many of the stars also are in the process of forming their own planetary systems. Studying star and planetary formation within the Orion Nebula helps us to understand the origins of our own solar system.

One of the first questions asked by someone looking through a telescope for the first time is: "How far can this thing see?" They are, quite naturally, seeking a sense of the power of the telescope. A better question, perhaps, is: "What’s the dimmest object that this thing can see?" The true power of a telescope lies in the amount of light it cangather. The light-gathering power of a telescope is measured by the size of its primary mirror or lens. As of fall 2011, the largest telescope in the world, with a 10.4-meter primary mirror, is the Gran Telescopio Canarias located on the Canary Islands. It is reserved exclusively for cutting-edge astronomical research. Our telescope, a PlaneWave CDK17, sports a 17-inch primary mirror, putting it among the largest amateur instruments and at the small end of those used for research. A large catalog of objects lies within easy reach of our telescope, including planetary targets such as Jupiter and its moons, Saturn and its rings, Mars, Venus and Neptune, as well as "deep sky" objects such as planetary nebula, stellar nurseries and galaxies beyond the Milky Way.

Although our facility clearly can’t compare in scale to the Gran Telescopio Canarias, it intentionally is designed to emulate just such a professional observatory. The telescope is attached to a computercontrolled robotic mount (the AstroPhysics el Capitan) that aims it at the desired astronomical target. An eyepiece can be used for viewing, but most of the time a digital camera will send the images from the telescope to a computer in an adjacent climate-controlled room.

The observatory is integrated into the St. Thomas physics curriculum in several ways. About 200 students a year take Physics 104, an introductory astronomy course with an associated lab, aimed primarily at non-science majors. This course is one of a small number of opportunities that we have to contact non-science students. Our overarching goal is to have them leave the course with a positive attitude toward science and with a solid understanding of the fundamental principles of scientific investigation. Hands-on experience is critical. Using the observatory in the lab, they can gather their own data and see firsthand how it is used to investigate the natural world.

Advanced physics students also can use the observatory to learn about astronomical data analysis, take part in long-term observational projects, or design and implement their own observing programs and research projects.