Raymond E. White Jr. Reflector Home Page
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Located on campus, the Raymond E. White Jr. Reflector is housed in the
historic Steward Observatory dome. Dedicated in 1923, this building is the site of the original Steward Observatory, which was established
through a gift made by Lavinia Steward in 1916. It was the first
observatory in southern Arizona and in the 1920's was the only building on the east side of campus. From 1923 until 1962, this dome housed a 36-inch (0.9 m) reflector, which was subsequently moved to Kitt Peak where it continues to operate today as the
Spacewatch
telescope.
In 1964, a 21-inch (0.53 m) reflector was installed in the historic Steward dome. This telescope is used primarily for undergraduate education and public outreach. In eyepiece mode, it is used by students taking our NATS general education courses for their observing projects and it is open for public viewing after each Public Evening Lecture on Monday nights. The telescope is also equipped with a CCD camera (an SBIG STL-1001E) which is used by undergraduate Astronomy majors and Honors students. On April 23, 2007, the "21-inch Telescope" was officially renamed the "Raymond E. White Jr. Reflector". |
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This telescope is dedicated to the memory of Raymond E. White, Jr., in recognition of his many years of service to Steward Observatory as teacher, scholar, astronomer, and friend, and of his tireless efforts on behalf of the students of the University of Arizona. He enriched the cosmic perspective of a whole generation of budding young scientists. Ray was a colorful personality with wide-ranging interests. In the course of his career, he received one of two inaugural University Distinguished Professorships in 1995, served as a Faculty Fellow, organized numerous conferences that linked astronomy and the arts, and taught introductory astronomy to thousands of undergraduates. He was a leader in archeoastronomy research, relating pre-Columbian observations with modern astronomy. By action of the President of the University of Arizona, this telescope was named the Raymond E. White Jr. Reflector on Monday, April 23, 2007. |
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