Mittelman Observatory is proud to announce the opening of the exhibit “Through the Telescope: The Observatories of Middlebury College” by Alexandra Izzard ’20. Please visit go/throughthetelescope.

This exhibit explores the history of observatories, and of astronomy, at Middlebury College from the institution’s very beginning through the present day in the chronological context of both institutional history and scientific discovery.

Key highlights of this exhibit include:

• astronomy has been taught at Middlebury since its inception, being a required third-year course when the College opened its doors in 1800;
• the early Laws of Middlebury College have now been made broadly available and accessible online;
• Old Chapel served as the College’s first astronomical observatory upon its opening in 1836;
• the 1937 observatory that once stood on the knoll north of Pearsons Hall served both the College and community for more than 50 years;
• the modern day Mittelman Observatory atop McCardell Bicentennial Hall draws strongly from the tradition and inspiration of 220 years of history of observatories and astronomy at Middlebury.

The historical research project that serves as the foundation for this exhibit has been two years in the making. Creator Alexandra Izzard ’20 graduated Summa Cum Laude and highest honors with a major in the History of Art and Architecture and a minor in Italian. Alexandra pursued numerous interdisciplinary primary research opportunities that bridged the liberal arts and included the sciences while at Middlebury.

The project’s exhibit also features art by Eva Bod ’20 as well as broad collaboration with the Middlebury College Special Collections team and numerous others.

The online exhibit can now be enjoyed at the link above. The physical exhibit will be opening soon.

Mittelman Observatory. Because the sky is always open!

While thoughts this time of year often turn to the community gathering atop McCardell Bicentennial Hall on mild summer evenings under dark Vermont skies for stargazing at the Observatory, this coming summer will necessarily be somewhat different.

Mittelman Observatory has been developing a variety of potential programming that may involve live virtual stargazing, skywatching advice, astronomy dispatches, social media, online student exhibits, student astronomical imagery, and perhaps even an astronomy talk. However, the community situation is obviously quite fluid and subject to prevailing directives.

Please visit go/observatorynews to join our Observatory News e-mail list if you would like to be kept abreast of our evolving summer activity plans.

Mittelman Observatory. Because the sky is always open!

Mittelman Observatory requests your participation! The Observatory is embarking on a project to study awareness, knowledge, perceptions, perspectives, and sensibilities of the local Middlebury community about issues related to dark skies, light pollution, and the environment. Please visit go/darkskysurvey to anonymously participate in our 2019 Middlebury Dark Sky Survey.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this autumn. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, September 13 and September 20, from 8:30 PM until 10:00 PM, weather permitting.

Jupiter and Saturn will be in the evening sky on these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.
Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. However, these events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 6:30 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.

Additional shorter-notice weather-optimized events may also be scheduled aperiodically and announced through our Observatory-News e-mail list, to which one can subscribe at go/observatory-news.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this summer. These Observatory events are scheduled for Wednesday evenings, June 26, July 3, July 24, July 31, and August 7, from 9:00 PM until 10:30 PM, weather permitting.

Jupiter and Saturn will be in the evening sky on many of these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. As these are minimal language events, they are also appropriate for Language Schools students. These events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 7 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this spring. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, April 26 and May 3, from 9:00 PM until 10:30 PM, weather permitting.

Mars will be in the evening sky on these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. However, these events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 7:00 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this autumn. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, September 14 and September 21, from 8:30 PM until 10:00 PM, weather permitting.

Saturn and Mars will be in the evening sky on these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. However, these events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 6:30 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this summer. These Observatory events are scheduled for Wednesday evenings, June 27, July 18, July 25, August 1, and August 8, from 9:00 PM until 10:30 PM, weather permitting.

Jupiter and Saturn will be in the evening sky on many of these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. As these are minimal language events, they are also appropriate for Language Schools students. These events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 7 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.

Please also consider taking a moment to view our new David Mittelman Astrophotography web site and our new Mittelman Observatory Weather Station web site.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this spring. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, April 27 and May 4, from 9:00 PM until 10:30 PM, weather permitting.

A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. However, these events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 7 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.

The Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this autumn. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, September 15, September 22, and October 6, from 8:00 PM until 9:30 PM, weather permitting.

Saturn will be in the evening sky on many of these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Observatory open house nights are free and open to the public. However, these events will take place only if the sky is expected to be mostly clear. Please check the Observatory web site at go/observatory or call the Observatory at 443-2266 after 6 PM on the evening of the event for weather status.