Name: Grant O. Gale Observatory
Nicknames: The Observatory
Address: 1203 10th Ave.
Purpose: Academic building
Year Built: 1984
Named for: Grant O. Gale, one of the College's longest-serving and most distinguished teachers. He held the S.S. Williston Chair in Physics and served as the curator of the Physics Historical Museum for many years.

Building Features

Designed by Woodburn and O’Neil of Des Moines, Iowa, the building is a 38-foot by 55-foot structure rising 26 feet to the top of the dome. It houses a 24-inch Cassegrain reflecting telescope and two computer systems: The first controls the telescope, and the second accommodates data acquisition and analysis and can be used to store television images.

Fun Fact

In addition to its prime function as an instructional and research tool, the observatory is also a facility for public viewing, under staff supervision, of astronomical phenomena.