Chabot Space and Science Center, located in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, is a center for science learning featuring interactive exhibits, planetariums, a large screen theater, hands-on activities and three powerful

telescopes A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, absorption, or reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally meaning only an optical instrument using lenses, curved mirrors, or a combination of both to observe ...

. The center is the continuation and expansion of a

public observatory A public observatory is an astronomical observatory mainly dedicated to public and educational purposes. It is often supported by a municipality, a school or an astronomical society. The primary purpose of public observatories is to offer exte ...

that has served

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

schools and citizens with

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

and

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

education programs since 1883. It is named after the father of

hydraulic mining Hydraulic mining is a form of mining that uses high-pressure jets of water to dislodge rock material or move sediment.Paul W. Thrush, ''A Dictionary of Mining, Mineral, and Related Terms'', US Bureau of Mines, 1968, p.560. In the placer mining of ...

and benefactor of the original Oakland Observatory,

Anthony Chabot Anthony Chabot (August 13, 1813 – January 6, 1888) was a nineteenth-century businessman and entrepreneur, notable for his contribution to developing hydraulic mining and for building water systems, especially in the Bay Area, so much that he ...

. Since 2000, the center has been located on the western border of Redwoods Regional Park.

History

The institution began in 1883 as the Oakland Observatory, through a gift from

to the City of Oakland. The original Oakland Observatory was located near

downtown Oakland Downtown Oakland is the central business district of Oakland, California, United States; roughly bounded by both the Oakland Estuary and Interstate 880 on the southwest, Interstate 980 on the northwest, Grand Avenue on the northeast, and Lake ...

and provided public telescope viewing for the community. For decades, it also served as the official timekeeping station for the entire Bay Area, measuring time with its

transit telescope In astronomy, a transit instrument is a small telescope with extremely precisely graduated telescope mount, mount used for the precise observation of star positions. They were previously widely used in astronomical observatory, astronomical obse ...

. The observatory moved to its Mountain Boulevard location near the current State Route 13 ( - telescope domes visible in satellite view) in 1915 due to increasing

light pollution Light pollution is the presence of unwanted, inappropriate, or excessive use of artificial Visible spectrum, lighting. In a descriptive sense, the term ''light pollution'' refers to the effects of any poorly implemented lighting, during the day ...

and urban congestion. In the mid-1960s, the facility was expanded considerably. Throughout this time, Chabot Science Center, as it was renamed, was staffed mainly by Oakland Unified School District personnel and volunteers. In 1977, seismic safety concerns terminated public school students’ access to the original observatory facility. The observatory building remained open to the general public, but school activities were limited to outlying classroom buildings and the planetarium. Wightman Observatory Plaza at Chabot Space and Observatory Center

Wightman Observatory Plaza at Chabot Space and Observatory Center

Recognizing the need to restore full access to the facility, either by repair or relocation, in 1989 Chabot Observatory & Science Center was formed as a Joint Powers Agency with the City of Oakland, the Oakland Unified School District, and the East Bay Regional Park District, in collaboration with th
Eastbay Astronomical Society
and in 1992 was recognized as a nonprofit organization. The project was led by Chabot's Executive Director and CEO, Dr.

Michael D. Reynolds Michael David Reynolds (October 15, 2019) was an American author and educator who served as professor of astronomy at Florida State College at Jacksonville in Jacksonville, Florida. He served as the director of Chabot Space and Science Center in ...

, breaking ground for the facility in October 1996 with construction of the new Science Center beginning in May 1998. In January 2000, anticipating the opening of the new facility, the organization changed its name from Chabot Observatory & Science Center to Chabot Space & Science Center. The new name was chosen to better convey the organization's focus on astronomy and the

space sciences The following outline is provided as an overview and topical guide to space science: Space science encompasses all of the scientific disciplines that involve space exploration and study natural phenomena and physical bodies occurring in outer s ...

, while communicating both the broad range and the technologically advanced nature of programs available in the new Science Center. Opened August 19, 2000, the Chabot Space & Science Center is an , state-of-the-art science and technology education facility on a site in the hills of Oakland, California. The museum was formerly an affiliate in the

Smithsonian Affiliations Smithsonian Affiliations is a division of the Smithsonian Institution that establishes long-term partnerships with non-Smithsonian museums and educational and cultural organizations in order to share collections, exhibitions and educational stra ...

program but is currently no longer an affiliate.

Attractions

Aside from its telescopes, it contains: *A "full dome digital projection system" with various shows running daily, and a Zeiss Universarium fiber-optic projector with weekly shows. *NASA Ames Research Center, a hands-on exhibition that brings to life the thrilling, challenging and inspiring process of scientific discovery by showcasing the real stories and people at NASA’s Ames Research Center. *The Theater, a dome screen auditorium which presented various

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme F ...

-like shows. (now no longer in regular use). *Many changing exhibits, full of hands-on displays, that highlight space and science topics.

Telescopes

Chabot Space and Science Center has three observatory telescopes, all of which are open to the public on weekends. * "Leah" is an 8"

refractor telescope A refracting telescope (also called a refractor) is a type of optical telescope that uses a lens as its objective to form an image (also referred to a dioptric telescope). The refracting telescope design was originally used in spyglasses and as ...

built in 1883 by

Alvan Clark & Sons Alvan Clark & Sons was an American maker of optics that became famous for crafting lenses for some of the largest refracting telescopes of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1846 in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts, by Alvan Clark (1804&n ...

and donated by Anthony Chabot. * "Rachel" is a 20" refractor telescope, commissioned in 1914 from Warner & Swasey, with optics by

John Brashear John Alfred Brashear (November 24, 1840 – April 8, 1920) was an American astronomer and instrument builder. Life and work Brashear was born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, a town 35 miles (56 km) south of Pittsburgh along the Monongah ...

. It is the largest refractor in the western United States regularly open to the public. * "Nellie" is a 36"

Cassegrain reflector The Cassegrain reflector is a combination of a primary concave mirror and a secondary convex mirror, often used in optical telescopes and radio antennas, the main characteristic being that the optical path folds back onto itself, relative to th ...

telescope which opened in August 2003, housed in a rolling roof observatory. The primary mirror was donated by

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is a federal research facility in Livermore, California, United States. The lab was originally established as the University of California Radiation Laboratory, Livermore Branch in 1952 in response ...

and figured and polished by

Rayleigh Optical Corporation Rayleigh may refer to: Science *Rayleigh scattering * Rayleigh–Jeans law *Rayleigh waves *Rayleigh (unit), a unit of photon flux named after the 4th Baron Rayleigh *Rayl, rayl or Rayleigh, two units of specific acoustic impedance and charact ...

. Control systems and mount drives were purchased from

DFM Engineering DFM Engineering is an American telescope and optics manufacturer founded in 1979 by Frank Melsheimer in Longmont, Colorado. DFM makes medium size Cassegrain telescopes and their associated systems including telescope optics, control systems, and ...

Observatory quick facts

*Original Observatory built: 1883, near Downtown

*Second Observatory built: 1915, at Mountain Boulevard *Third (Present) Observatory built: 2000, at Skyline Boulevard

Telescope Details

Leah *Type -

Refracting telescope A refracting telescope (also called a refractor) is a type of optical telescope that uses a lens (optics), lens as its objective (optics), objective to form an image (also referred to a dioptrics, dioptric telescope). The refracting telescope d ...

*Maker -

, 1883 *Aperture – 8 inches *Focal Length – 112 inches *Mount – German equatorial *Benefactor:

*Usage Intent – popular and educational use
Meridian Transit Telescope *Type -

Transit telescope In astronomy, a transit instrument is a small telescope with extremely precisely graduated telescope mount, mount used for the precise observation of star positions. They were previously widely used in astronomical observatory, astronomical obse ...

*Maker - Fauth & Co., 1885 *Aperture – 4 inches *Focal Length – *Mount – Double Pier Transit *Usage Intent – popular and educational use / time determination
Rachel *Type -

*Maker - Warner & Swasey /

, 1914 *Aperture – 20 inches *Focal Length – *Mount – German equatorial *Cost – $20,000 *Usage Intent – popular and educational use, formerly used for spacecraft tracking
Nellie *Type -

Reflecting telescope A reflecting telescope (also called a reflector) is a telescope that uses a single or a combination of curved mirrors that reflect light and form an image. The reflecting telescope was invented in the 17th century by Isaac Newton as an alternati ...

, specifically a classical

cassegrain reflector The Cassegrain reflector is a combination of a primary concave mirror and a secondary convex mirror, often used in optical telescopes and radio antennas, the main characteristic being that the optical path folds back onto itself, relative to th ...

*Maker - Chabot Space & Science Center, 2003 *Aperture – 36 inches *Focal Length – *Mount – equatorial fork *Usage Intent – popular and educational use, research including tracking of Near Earth Objects.

Planetariums

The Planetarium seats 250 people under a diameter dome and features live weekly shows presented by a staff astronomer, also daily pre-recorded "

fulldome Fulldome refers to immersive dome-based video display environments. The dome, horizontal or tilted, is filled with real-time (interactive) or pre-rendered (linear) computer animations, live capture images, or composited environments. Although t ...

" shows. *Zeiss Universarium: The custom-built Zeiss Universarium Mark VIII fiber-optic star projector was recently refurbished. World-class optics create a precise, deep-field sky with up to 9,000 celestial objects. *Live Show: ''Cosmos 360'' uses the planetarium's digital system to view the night sky. The guided tour includes in-depth views of planets, constellations and other current astronomical events. The show is updated to reflect seasonal night skies. A complete schedule and listing of daily shows as well as current show times can be found at the center'
planetarium page

Retrieved August 19, 2006.

Galaxy Explorers program

The Chabot Space and Science Center offers volunteer and educational opportunities to local teens, who work as explainers on the museum floor or on outreach trips. The program was initiated by a grant from ''YouthALIVE!'' (Youth Achievement through Learning Involvement, Volunteer and Employment!) through the Association of Science-Technology Centers.

References

External links

Chabot Space & Science Center
Official website {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Oakland, California Education in Oakland, California Astronomy education Telescopes Astronomical observatories in California Public observatories Planetaria in the United States Science museums in California Museums in Oakland, California Smithsonian Institution affiliates Tourist attractions in Oakland, California Science and technology in the San Francisco Bay Area