General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

1

Total Parts

1

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Metal body and parts/ Glass optical elements and mirrors/ Synthetic parts

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

68.3 cm

Width

45.6 cm

Height

38.0 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Astronomy

Category

Research

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Zeiss

Country

German Democratic Republic

State/Province

Unknown

City

Jena

Context

Country

Canada

State/Province

Ontario

Period

circa 1935+

Canada

An instrument used at the David Dunlap Observatory at the University of Toronto, one of Canada's most important astronomical observatories. The David Dunlap Observatory opened in 1935 as the result of a bequest from the wife of David Dunlap. The telescope was a 74 inch (188 cm) reflector built by Grubb Parsons of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in England. The 74 inch was then the largest telescope in Canada (surpassing the 72 inch telescope of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory in Victoria) and became the second largest in the world after the 100 inch Hooker Telescope of the Mt. Wilson Observatory outside Los Angeles. DDO's reputation grew and following WWII, it began to graduate most of the astronomers produced in Canada with University of Western Ontario far behind. Beginning in the 1960s a number of other astronomy departments were created but UofT/DDO held its place, a position it probably still holds. The DDO had a good technical staff which gave them an advantage and, with most of the 1940s to early 1970s top astronomers coming from UofT, grants from NRC and then ENSERC were almost guaranteed and allowed UofT's top astronomers -- Hogg, van den Berg, Fernie, Bolton, Kamper, Martin, etc. to acquire or build some of the best equipment available in university observatories. For optical observatories, only the DAO had technical staff and budgets that surpassed those of DDO. In 2007, citing increasing light pollution, the University of Toronto announced plans to sell the Observatory property. In June 2008, it was sold to Corsica Development Inc., a subsidiary of Metrus Development Inc. and the Observatory was closed. In 2009 the Observatory buildings and 80% of the site were designated a cultural heritage landscape. Also in 2009 Corsica and the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Toronto Centre announced an agreement allowing the RASC to provide public education and outreach programs at the observatory, and to operate the 188 cm telescope.

Function

An instrument used in an astronomical observatory to measure spectral lines in spectra taken with a spectrograph.

Technical

This instrument was used to measure spectral lines in spectra taken at the DDO with the original spectrograph (in the dome but now partially cannibalized). The Zeiss serial number indicates a date of manufacture of circa 1927-1928. The DDO did not open until 1935; these instruments may have not been delivered for a number of years or were ordered early in the planning of the DDO. It is mounted on a carrying base added by the Observatory

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

Lettering on plate reads 'JENA/ 237324/ 1'/ lettering on sinister optical element housing reads 'JENA/ Orth 12.5x'

Missing

Unknown

Finish

Glossy pale green painted body and parts/ Metallic grey table and parts/ Plated and black painted parts/ Colourless transparent eyepiece glass and silvered mirror glass/ Black synthetic parts/ Brown stained and coated board with grey painted metal bars (now corroded)

Decoration

N/A