A Visit to UCLO

23 April 2021

On Friday 23 April 2021, The Master and just over 20 members from both the UK and USA were given a virtual tour of our affiliate, the University College London Observatory.  We were hosted by Director of the observatory, Professor Giorgio Savini and virtually led around the site by Dr Mark Fuller, who runs the observatory outreach programme.

Dr Mark Fuller sharing an image of Jupiter captured at UCLO

Attendees were given a tour of the buildings, including a live demonstration of the latest telescope at UCLO and its camera.

Court Assistant Dr Peter Thomas was in the audience. During his time working at the Observatory he was responsible for the restoration and updating of the instrumentation, refurbishing one of the telescopes, the Radcliff, as well as designing its digital control system, and masterminding the new buildings and expansion of the observatory in 2000.

In addition to the UK's unreliable weather, students at Mill Hill have to contend with the ever increasing number of satellites streaking across the sky, as well as the Heathrow flight path.

We look forward to making a return visit in person when conditions allow.

The Fry telescope is an 8-inch refractor made by Cooke of York in 1862.