Group Pushes for Revamped Observatory
If the stars align properly, Georgetown’s lightly used Heyden Observatory may be getting a makeover.
Completed in 1843, the observatory is the third-oldest university observatory in the country and was designated a national historic landmark in 1973. However, the building is only currently used to house a few biology department offices and several telescopes.
In an effort to preserve the observatory, the Georgetown University Astronomical Society has begun this year to move to safeguard the future of the landmark by restoring it to its original splendor.
GUAS President Robyn Liska (SFS ’08) said the club is lobbying to not only restore and improve the observatory’s condition, but also to increase its role in serving students.
“In the past couple of years, they did some repairs, they painted the dome, they did some restorations to the exterior,” she said. “We want to turn it into something that makes it more accessible to the broader Georgetown community.”
According to Liska, the club has been urging the university to at some future point turn the observatory into a museum.
“We think a museum would be most compatible and most conducive to making it accessible for as many people as possible, but we want to make sure that the astronomy club maintains the ability to use the dome for astronomy purposes,” she said.
The first step would be to conduct an audit and then renovate the building completely, the cost of which could range from $15,000 to $75,000, Liska said.
“[Our] club’s plan is to move ahead and pay for a firm to do a historical audit for the building,” Liska said. “We’re going to try and work with the university architect to initiate a process to get one of those.”
She stressed that financing the renovations would also be in the university’s best interest.
“It [the observatory] is nationally well-known among the astronomy community. It’s an asset for the university,” she said.
Ali Whitmer, an assistant College dean who has been discussing the project with GUAS, said she thinks the club and the university should work together to fund the project.
“We recognize the rich history of science at the observatory and its status as a historical building and observatory,” she said. “I believe the campus has an interest in celebrating that history through the restoration of the building, and we welcome the efforts of GUAS to move this effort forward.”
Funding is not the only obstacle to creating a museum, as the biology department offices would need to be relocated.
“It certainly is not going to be easy to find another location given how tight space is on campus,” Liska said.
Karen Frank, vice president of facilities and student housing, said that there is no room to expand the observatory.
“It’s being used to its fullest capacity. There is no empty space,” she said.
The club plans to consult an auditor from the Smithsonian Institution to look at the observatory’s equipment as a way to evaluate how it could be incorporated into a museum, Liska said.
“It’s flexible to what type of museum it would be,” Liska said. “It would be nice if we could have a hands-on astronomy part so people could learn about astronomy and do it at the same time.
Georgetown had a large astronomy department until 1971, at which time it was the largest in the country, according to the GUAS website.
GUAS hopes to at least work with the university to further the legacy that the building has already started, Liska added.
Frank said the university has worked to maintain the observatory, despite limited resources.
“I think that it is preserved,” she said. “We do maintenance and audit as needed. It is historic, so maintenance is always a challenge. Our dreams and desires are always greater than the resources that we have.”
— Hoya Staff Writer Amelia Salutz contributed to this report.
Apr 21 2008 at 4:52 a.m.
It would be nice if the Hoya or the astronomy club had consulted the occupants of those "biology department offices." It is actually a biology department labratory for one of the ecology faculty that is located in the observatory. That particular lab is greatly benefited by the location next to Glover-Archbold National Forest (part of Rock Creek Park). The biology department and faculty has never blocked the access of astronomy club to the building and it is certainly kept up as best as an older building can be. It is inconsiderate of the astronomy club to dismiss the biology department and lab as unimportant compared to a museum.
While I certainly appreciate the history of the observatory and hope that its historical function can still be recognized, turning the observatory from a working space to a museum is illogical. The observatory will never regain its promeninence or usefulness as a telescope. It is simply too old and there is too much light pollution for it to be anything but a fascinating piece of history. There are astronomical artifacts on display in the observatory and I'm sure that tours can be arranged on an as desired basis for those who are interested. Why destroy a useful space to create a museum that few would see?
May 05 2008 at 5:17 a.m.
I would like to respond to the comment posted on (4/21). I feel it is important to emphasize that GUAS has never dismissed nor denigrated the importance of the biology and ecology activities taking place in the Observatory. Our position is not that the biology lab work is unimportant, merely that it could be pursued in an alternate location, perhaps on the back of Observatory Hill in a new building more suited to modern scientific experimentation.
A 164-year-old Observatory is not ideal for any modern scientific discipline, but would be uniquely suited to a museum celebrating the long history of Georgetown. A working museum is a logical use for a historic building of national significance, and would ensure the preservation of the valuable antique equipment that is currently unprotected and scattered throughout the building due to inadequate storage space. There are many people who love Georgetown University and I think that a museum would receive many visitors, certainly more than the lucky few who happen to have biology classes in the Observatory these days.
The information may not have made it into the article, but GUAS did send out letters to the Chairs of each science department inviting them to participate in the initial stakeholder meeting that we staged with university administrators in Dec. 2007. Only Dr. Barrows accepted the invitation, and we have made a concerted effort to apprise him of our efforts at all points along the way. So it is unfair to say that GUAS did not consult the occupants of the biology lab - on the contrary, we have been in close contact over the last several years. We are both residents of the Observatory, and we all care for the state of the Observatory. We are working together to find a long-term solution that suits all parties and welcome the input of anyone who feels invested in this effort. Please contact Hanna at hem5@georgetown.edu for more information on how to get involved.