Weitkamp Observatory and Planetarium

Spring Quarter 2002

The Weitkamp Observatory will be open in accordance with the Spring Quarter offering of INST 410: Our Place in the Universe, which meets Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:30 AM in the LeMay Auditorium.

Four observing sessions are scheduled:

Wednesday, April 17 (evening)
Wednesday, May 1 (evening)
Wednesday, May 15 (afternoon)
Tuesday, May 28 (evening)

For the three evening sessions, the Observatory will be open beginning at sunset (approximately 8 PM EDT), for 2 hours or until no visitors remain. If the weather is not suitable for viewing, the Observatory will be open at the same time on the Tuesday of the following week.

For the afternoon session on May 15 the observatory will open at 4pm, for 2 hours or until no visitors remain. If the weather is not suitable for viewing, the Observatory will be open at the same time on the following Tuesday (May 21).

Otterbein College's observatory and planetarium were donated in 1955 by Alfred Henry Weitkamp '04 in memory of Mary Geeding Weitkamp '09, and rededicated in honor of both in 1982. The Arch B. Tripler, Jr. Solar Observing Facility was donated in 1990.

Facilities include 14 and 8 inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes, a Meade CCD camera and guidance system, and a Spitz planetarium projector.

Current Weather Conditions

Location

The Observatory is located on the fifth floor of the McFadden-Schear science building at Otterbein College, 155 W. Main St., Westerville, Ohio (building 37 on the campus map). Use the stairwell with the planetarium signs (north side of the building, second from the eastern end).

Dial 823-1516 for more information.
Go to the astronomy course materials.

Go to the Physics Department home page.