The University of Toronto Southern Observatory (UTSO) was an
astronomical observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...
built by the
University of Toronto at the
Las Campanas Observatory in
Chile. It hosted a single 60 cm
Cassegrain telescope
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 the ...
and a small cottage for the operators, located amongst the instruments funded by other organizations. The first observational runs started in 1971, and like many smaller instruments, it was later shut down in favor of a partial share in a much larger telescope in 1997. Although small by modern standards, the Southern Observatory nevertheless became famous for its role in the discovery of
SN 1987A when UofT astronomer
Ian Shelton spotted the
supernova
A supernova is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. It has the plural form supernovae or supernovas, and is abbreviated SN or SNe. This transient astronomical event occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star or when ...
while observing with another little-used telescope at the site.
History
The Southern Observatory came about as a side-effect of problems being caused by the
urban sprawl in the
Toronto area. Originally located far in the country outside the city, the university's
David Dunlap Observatory was being encroached on by new
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...
s to its west. There seemed to be no end in sight to the outward growth of the city, and the process would eventually result in the Observatory being completely surrounded by housing, rendering it largely unusable due to street lighting. The director considered looking for a new site further north of the city, but at this time in the late 1960s a number of major observatories were starting to set up stations in Chile. Astronomers at the university, Garrison, Racine and van den Bergh, all had experience with Chile, and strongly urged establishing a site there.
The result was a
National Research Council of Canada (NRC) grant in 1969 to purchase a 60 cm prototype telescope from Competition Associates in
Boston. An agreement was reached with the
Carnegie Institution of
Washington to locate this telescope at their Las Campanas site in Chile, and further funding for a cottage, ''Casa Canadiense'', was provided by University of Toronto Astronomy endowment funds. Operating costs were originally paid for by a grant from the University of Toronto Associates in New York, and later by grants from the NRC (NSERC after its name changed). The first regular observing run with the telescope started in 1971 under Bill Harris.
The telescope was equipped for
spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the field of study that measures and interprets the electromagnetic spectra that result from the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and matter as a function of the wavelength or frequency of the radiation. Matter wa ...
,
photometry, and photography;
CCD's were installed later. In 1992 it was named the Helen Sawyer Hogg Telescope (HSHT) in recognition of
Hogg's work on measuring the distance to
variable stars in
globular clusters. Work continued on the telescope until 1997 when funding was directed to buying a share of the
Gemini Observatory being built on
Cerro Pachón. HSHT was then donated to the CASLEO (
Leoncito Astronomical Complex), the National Observatory of Argentina, and moved, along with the entire dome and building, to their observatory in
El Leoncito National Park, where it began operations in 2001. UofT retains a 25% share in observational time on the HSHT.
See also
*
List of astronomical observatories
References
External links
Astronomy and Astrophysics, A Short History of the Department and Observatory
{{Portal bar, Chile, Astronomy, Stars, Spaceflight, Outer space, Solar System, Education, Science
Astronomical observatories in Chile
Buildings and structures in Coquimbo Region
University of Toronto buildings
Science and technology in Canada
Defunct astronomical observatories