The observatory at Connecticut College resides atop the F.W. Olin Science Center in New London, CT. From 2024 to 2026, the observatory underwent a significant refurbishment, including work on the observatory dome control system and the replacement of the 30-year-old 20-inch optical telescope with a new modern system. Olin Observatory now houses the 14-inch Leslie F. Brown Telescope. It uses the Corrected Dall-Kirkham (CDK) optical design and was manufactured by Planewave Instruments, Inc. of Adrian, Michigan.
The main observatory telescope sits on an L-350 Direct Drive Telescope Mount, also manufactured by Planewave Instruments, Inc. It features direct-drive motors for zero backlash, zero periodic error, and fast 50-degree-per-second slew speeds. Although designed as an altitude/azimuth (Alt/Az) mount, the optional equatorial wedge was added to transform it into an equatorially mounted system. The primary mirror is a 14-inch ellipsoidal fused silica mirror. The spherical secondary mirror combines with the primary mirror to give the telescope an f/ratio of 7.2.
The system uses a monochrome QHY600 CMOS camera system manufactured by QHYCCD to capture digital images. This camera is 9576 x 6388 pixels, with a pixel size of 3.76 μm square, and is thermoelectrically cooled. The system also includes a 7-position QHY CCD filter wheel, which currently includes standard luminance, B, V, R, and H-alpha filters. In addition, the telescope boasts a side port where a variety of different eyepieces are mounted for public viewing.
Enjoyed by the College community and local and regional visitors, Olin Observatory stargazing events, both entertaining and educational, are hosted throughout the academic year, featuring meteor showers, aurora, eclipses, and general night sky observations. Campus astronomers are pleased to discuss anything from the formation of the universe and black holes to the exploration of the Moon and telescopes. Learn more about observatory events here.
A venerable 1881 Alvan Clark refractor telescope dominates the College's older observatory, located on the roof of Frederic Bill Hall. Bill Hall also houses laboratories, seminar rooms, and classrooms used by the Department of Psychology.
Olin Observatory Clear Sky Chart
Below is the "Clear Sky Chart" for Olin Observatory. Updated several times a day, it provides a quick snapshot of the observing conditions expected in the hours and days ahead. Clicking on the chart will take you to the source website where you can learn more about how to read the chart.
