Engineering Tour

The engineering that went into the 60- & 100-inch telescopes, both the biggest in the world for their time periods, represented the cutting edge of technology when they opened in 1908 and 1917 respectively.

The Snow Solar Telescope, the first instrument constructed on Mount Wilson, established the world’s first consistent scientific study of the physics of the sun and was also the largest instrument of its kind between 1905 and 1908.  It is still the oldest permanently installed working solar telescope in the Western Hemisphere.

The powerhouse is where, in the early years, all power to run the observatory was produced. The adjoining machine shop is an example of a nearly 100-year-old facility used to repair or fabricate parts to keep the telescopes operating.