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ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN AFRICA
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Boyden
Observatory (Harvard)
1889 to Present
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Boyden
was located at two sites:
- Arequipa:
1889 - 1927
- Bloemfontein:
1927 - present
Current
Information:
- Director:The
Observatory has no director. As the Observatory belongs to
the University of the Orange Free State, the director responsibilities
lie with the Dean, Prof. C.N. van Wyk.
- Note
on structure: Boyden's activities consist of two categories,
each with its own director:
-Science (Research): Dr PJ Meintjes
-Education: Dr MJH Hoffman
Telephone no.: (051) 441 2191
Fax no.: (051) 401 3507
P.R.O. e-mail: Matie Hoffman: hoffmaMJ@sci.uovs.ac.za
Website:
Physical address:
Postal address: Department of Physics, University of the Orange
Free State, P.O. Box 339, Bloemfontein, 9300, South Africa
- The
Bloemfontein Centre of ASSA has a very active Historical Section
resorting under the Friend of Boyden. They also have their
own website.
Historical Website: www.assabfn.co.za/friendsofboyden
Location:
Longitude:
26 24 20 East
Latitude: 29 02 20 South
Altitude: 1 387 m (4 550 ft)
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Noted
for:
Summary:
In 1879 Uriah A. Boyden made a bequest to Harvard University in
USA. As Harvard was at the time a world leader in stellar spectroscopy,
they needed an Observatory in the Southern Hemisphere to extend
their groundbreaking work. The Boyden bequest was used in 1889 to
set up the first Boyden Observatory in Arequipa, Peru. However
the observation conditions were not very good and Arequipa was
situated in very inaccessible terrain. The decision was made
to move the Observatory. In 1927 Boyden Observatory moved across
continents to Maselspoort, just outside of Bloemfontein, South Africa.
Boyden
underwent a very productive period until politics impeded the workings
of science. In 1976 the Observatory was handed over to the University
of the Orange Free State, who did not have the funds and astronomy
student numbers to keep the Observatory operating. When the Professor
of Astronomy retired in 1989, the University closed down the
Astronomy Department and the Observatory underwent a period
of inactivity.
Internationally,
astronomers struggle to acquire observing time. Therefore, when Apartheid
ended, the international astronomical community started investing
money in Boyden to make the Observatory operational. The revival
of Boyden is due not only to the efforts of the international
professional community, but also due to the efforts of the amateur
astronomers. During the years of inactivity, amateur astronomers
had free use of the Observatory, including the use of what was
then the second largest telescope in South Africa, the 60 inch Rockefeller.
The amateurs started an organisation, the "Friends of Boyden,"
to promote and resurrect the site. (Look Society: Friends
of Boyden)
They were successful.
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Historical
Index: South
America;
South
Africa;
Politics;
New
Era.
In
South America
-
The name comes from a gentleman named Uriah A. Boyden, who
was a mechanical engineer in the American City of Boston.
In 1879 he left a sum of 238 000 dollars to Harvard College for
the express purpose of furthering astronomical research and in
1887 the Trustees of the Fund transferred it to the Harvard College
Observatory.
- One
of the main branches of work at Harvard has always been stellar
spectroscopy. The original work on classifying stellar spectra
was undertaken by men such as Angelo Secchi in Italy and Sir William
Huggins in England. Harvard University developed a new system
of classifying the spectra that soon became the norm. Each
stellar type was given a letter of the alphabet and the series
ended up with the well-known sequence; 0,B,A,F,G,K,M,R,N and S -
0 stars, having the hottest surface, and R, N, and S the coolest.
-
In the late 1800's data was still being collected for analysis
and Harvard astronomers such as E. C. Pickering and Miss Annie Cannon
were anxious to extend their surveys as far as possible. This
meant that a southern station was essential. This was where the
Boyden bequest came in.
-
Harvard decided to locate their Southern site in South America where
seeing conditions are excellent. Surveys were made and the
choice fell upon Arequipa in Peru.
-
The southern Harvard station (or first Boyden Observatory in Arequipa)
was build, and it operated reasonably well. And yet it was
not ideal. The meteorological conditions did not really come
up to expectations and there were communications difficulties
as well; even today Peru is not one of the most accessible of places.
-
After a few years the Harvard astronomers began to look for alternative
sites. Due to Sir
David Gill,
who was particularly vocal in stressing the advantages of South
Africa, Harvard became keenly interested. In 1908 Solon I. Bailey,
an eminent American astronomer, arrived to investigate - and
he was very thorough. Armed with a portable telescope, he went from
place to place studying the skies as carefully as he could. Sites
tested ranged from Worcester, Kimberley and Hanover. [Smits]
He was in favour of Maselspoort, which not only has great
skies, but also is only a few minutes drive from Bloemfontein.
Thus their major problem of accessibility was solved.
-
There was a major problem. A great deal of equipment had been set
up at Arequipa, and moving it from one continent to another would
be an expensive operation. So, for a long time nothing could be
done and Arequipa continued to function as effectively as it could.
-
The next developments did not happen until 1926, by which time the
Harvard Directorship had been assumed by Dr Harlow Shapley- the
man who first measured the size of our star-system or Galaxy.
(He was able to do this, because of the observations made at Arequipa.)
Shapley was able to obtain generous grants from both Harvard University
and the International Education Board and decided to move the
observatory.
-
In 1923 Dr
John Stefanos Paraskevopoulos
had become astronomer in charge of Arequipa. In July 1927
he came to Maselspoort together with his wife, who was also
an astronomer. They made a final evaluation of the merits
of the site and were satisfied. Paraskevopoulos was officially appointed
Director of the new Boyden Observatory at Maselspoort.
Move
to South Africa
-
The move was well organised. The move was approved in July of 1927;
first observations were made in September1927. The Observatory
was declared in full working order in 1933.
- Paraskevopoulus
was an excellent Director. He retired in1951. (He died on 15 March
1961.) After his retirement, there was no official Director and
it was tacitly agreed that the senior visiting astronomer
should be regarded as taking charge. This was by no means a satisfactory
arrangement, but it persisted until 1968, when Dr Alan H. Jarrett
was appointed Director. Some of the famous astronomers who were
at Boyden for periods during this time: Bart J. Bok, A. G.
Velghe, M. Haffner, A. van Hoef, E. M.Lindsay, E. H. Geyer,
T. Schmidt, A. D. Andrews, J. Dommanget. For much of this
time M. Bester acted as Chief Observer.
-
Boyden was initially an American venture, as sponsored by
the Boyden bequest to Harvard University. Because of the good qualities
of the terrain, it attracted some international attention. The Boyden
Council was set up in 1954 to run the Observatory, a consortium
consisting of Armagh, Dunsink, Hamburg, Harvard, Stockholm and Uccle
Observatories.
-
Due to South Africa's policy of apartheid and international
pressure, politics started to interfere with science. In 1966 Sweden
(Stockholm University) withdrew, and the University of the
Orange Free State filled the vacancy. (Prof. Jarret of this University
became Director in 1968).
-
In 1968 a new Director was appointed in the person of Professor
A. H. Jarret. (1968 - 1989) (Professor of Astronomy at the University
of the Orange Free State, situated in Bloemfontein, approximately
30 km from Boyden)
Politics
-
Due to international pressure, the Boyden Council ceased to exist
on 30 June 1976. (In 1971 Hamburg University withdrew. In 1976 Harvard
& UCCLE Universities withdrew.) Funding to Boyden ceased and
the Observatory was handed in its entirety over to the University
of the Orange Free State. (Many of the Boyden Council members
decided to establish a new site, the European Southern Observatory
[ESO], in the Chilean Andes, where even better conditions
existed)
-
The University directed Boyden until Prof. Jarret retired in 1989.
The University was struggling to keep the Observatory financially
alive and student numbers were declining. The decision was made
to scale the Observatory down and cease all research. The
Observatory entered a period of inactivity. The assets of the Astronomy
Department were transferred to the department of Physics.
-
During the period of inactivity, a growth of amateur observers
occurred in the Free State, partially due to access to the observatory.
This was in large part due to Hannes Calitz, then still an
amateur astronomer and also a member of the Physics Department at
the of the University. The amateur numbers "grew exponentially"
until the astronomy society had to split, in order to accommodate
both the serious observer (Bloemfontein Branch of A.S.S.A.), and
the interested public (Friends of Boyden). The Friends of Boyden
strives to promote the Observatory. (Look Societies) [Personal experience;
Chris de Coning]
A
New Era
-
Internationally, astronomers struggle to acquire observing
time. Therefore, when Apartheid ended the international astronomical
community started investing money in Boyden to make the Observatory
operational. In ? a new director from the University of the Free
State was appointed, Dr. P.J. Meintjes. (Need more info)
-
The largest telescope is the 60-inch Rockefeller reflector, and
at the time of the move (1927), it was the largest telescope in
South Africa. (Currently the third largest). In the 1960's
it was fitted with new optics and photoelectric photometers. One
convenient feature of the 60 inch is that the change over
from one optical system to another can be carried out quickly and
smoothly. This instrument was mainly used for variable star
research.
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List
of Directors:
- John
Paraskevopoulos:
1927 - 1951. He was appointed Chief Astronomer (Director) of Boyden
Arequipa in 1923, and 1927 Director of Boyden Bloemfontein.
-
1951 - 1968: No official Director. The most senior visiting
astronomer was in charge. M Bester acted mostly as Chief Observer.
- Allen
Jarret: 1968 - 1989.
-
Director is Dean of University: 1989 - present.
-Retief ?
-C.N. Van Wyk
Astronomers:
- Eric
Lindsay:
He was assistant at Boyden (Bloemfontein) Observatory until
he became Director of Armagh Observatory in Ireland (1930?). Lindsay
did a wonderful job to revive Armagh Observatory.
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Research
/ public service:
In 1938, A.W.
Roberts,
an important South African variable star observer died. Paraskevopoulus
and Harlow Shapley, director of Harvard
Observatory,
visited his house and with permission removed Roberts's books, which
catalogues all his observations. Boyden has been the custodian of
the documents ever since. They are of extreme importance as Roberts
made over 250 000 measurements of 98 variable stars during 1891 to
1920, a time period when few other variable star observers were active
in the Southern Hemisphere. These observations were never reduced
and published. In 2003 the American Association of Variable Star Observers
(AAVSO) made funds available and in association with Boyden and ASSA
the Roberts data will now be reduced and added to the AAVSO database.
[Van Zyl, MNASSA Vol. 62]
Projects:
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Arequipa:
-60 inch (1.5 m) (Rockefeller) reflector.
-13 inch (33 cm) Clark Refractor.
-10 inch (25 cm) Metcalf telescope.
Bloemfontein:
Telescopes:
-60 inch (1.5 m) Rockefeller
reflector. This telescope was for two decades the largest telescope
in South Africa.
-36 inch (91 cm) ADH
Baker Schmidt
telescope.
-13 inch (33 cm) Clark
Refractor.
-10 inch (25 cm) Metcalf
telescope.
-16 inch (41 cm) Nishimura
Reflector
-14 inch (36 cm) Hamburg
Schmidt.
-24 inch (61 cm) Bruce
Astrograph.
-8 inch (20 cm) Celeostat
Solar Instrument
Instruments:
-Joyce
Loebl
micro densimeter.
-Askania
diaphram photometer
-Pye
two-dimensional measuring microscope
-Aluminising facilities
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Pictorial
Sources:
Bibliography:
- Moore,
P. & Collins, P., Astronomy in Southern Africa, pp.120 - 129.
(General Source)
- Smits,
P., A Brief History of Astronomy in Southern Africa. (Unpublished)
- Van
Zyl, B., ASSA, Boyden and AAVSO to digitise the AW Roberts Archives.
MNASSA October 2003, Vol. 62 nos. 7 & 8, pp. 186 -188.
Archival:
FREE
STATE ARCHIVES, BLOEMFONTEIN [JHA8, p.219.]
Correspondence between Mr James Lyle of Grey College, Bloemfontein
and Pickering at Harvard, concerning establishment of an observatory
in Bloemfontein 1908 (Ref. Governor No. 337).
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