Lake Afton Public Observatory

Lake Afton Public Observatory
Organization Wichita Board of Education and Wichita State University's Fairmount Center for Science and Mathematics
Location Wichita, Kansas (USA)
Coordinates 37°37′20″N 97°37′37″W / 37.6222°N 97.6269°W / 37.6222; -97.6269Coordinates: 37°37′20″N 97°37′37″W / 37.6222°N 97.6269°W / 37.6222; -97.6269
Website webs.wichita.edu/lapo
Telescopes
Unnamed telescope 16-inch reflector

Lake Afton Public Observatory (LAPO) is an astronomical observatory located nine miles (14 km) from Cheney, Kansas, in the Lake Afton County Park. At the heart of the observatory is a 16-inch (410 mm) Ritchey–Chrétien telescope. The observatory offers programs for the public every weekend throughout the year along with various private, and school programs throughout the week. The observatory is currently scheduled to close after August 22, 2015.[1] As of August 12, 2015, the Kansas Astronomical Observers, a local astronomy club, has submitted a business plan to keep the observatory operating.[2]

History

It was established in 1979 through the cooperation and support of Sedgwick County, the City of Wichita, and Wichita State University's Fairmount Center for Science and Mathematics Education. Since then the Observatory has been operated by Wichita State University's Fairmount Center with additional funds from Sedgwick County for facilities.

Location

The observatory is located at 25000 West 39th St. South on MacArthur Road, near Goddard, Kansas.[3]

Observatory Hours

The Observatory is open to the public every Friday and Saturday, with varying times.

May 1 to August 31, 9:00-11:00 p.m.

The observatory will close after August 22, 2015.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lake Afton Public Observatory to close; The Wichita Eagle; July 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ Shaar, Deborah (12 August 2015). "Local Astronomy Group Working To Keep Lake Afton Public Observatory Open". KMUW 89.1 Wichita Public Radio. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  3. ↑ Lake Afton Public Observatory Map

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, August 14, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.