The Hall Telescope dome
Acronym ListThe Hall Telescope provides gives us insights into comets, asteroids and Sun-like stars.
History
Named in honor of Lowell’s fifth director, this fork-mounted telescope was substantially modernized and upgraded in 2004, thanks to funding from the John M. Wolff Foundation and Friends of Lowell Observatory.
Instruments & Uses
Now equipped with a lightweight Hextek primary mirror and an f/8 Ritchey-Chretien optical configuration, the Hall Telescope is optimized for CCD imaging, photoelectric photometry, and spectroscopy. Three primary instruments are mounted on the telescope:
- A NASA-funded CCD camera, which Lowell astronomers use to study the motion and rotational period of comets and asteroids
- The Kron Photometer, which is named for long-time Lowell supporters Gerald and Katherine Kron and used for compositional studies of comets
- The NSF-supported Solar-Stellar Spectrograph (SSS), used for long-term comparative studies of the Sun and Sun-like stars
More Information
