Stony Ridge Observatory is an

astronomical Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxies, ...

observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. H ...

built by and for amateur astronomers in the mountains of

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is th ...

, in 1957. When installed, its Newtonian-Cassegrain likely ranked as 8th largest of all telescopes in California, and one of the largest amateur telescopes in the United States. The telescope is designed so that one of four Newtonian foci, or a Cassegrain focus, can be used. Asteroids

10168 Stony Ridge 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length ...

, 144633 Georgecarroll and 327030 Alanmaclure, were discovered at the observatory, and other scientific research (including an extensive lunar photography and mapping project in cooperation with Lockheed upon which the decision on the lunar lander touchdown site was based) has been conducted there. The observatory also has a 12-inch Cassegrain telescope and a number of accessory items, including CCD cameras and computer equipment. Facilities include an administration building with a small galley and bunkroom, the dome containing the 30-inch telescope, and a vault-style outhouse. The facility has Edison electric power and a landline telephone connection, but water must be carried in. Stony Ridge is located on a remote, restricted-access site north of Mt. Wilson, near Charlton Flat in the Angeles National Forest. In September 2009, Stony Ridge was at risk of being lost to a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

but escaped with minimal fire damage to one side of the outhouse building, although nearby ground cover was burned away, and the foliage of surrounding Coulter pines was destroyed. Recent restoration projects, completed in mid-2017, included: Re-installation of the original, George Carroll-designed right ascension and declination drive systems; installation of a Software Bisque-based "go to" system which will point the telescope at a computer-selected celestial object too faint to be seen with the naked eye or the telelescope's finder scopes; stripping and re-aluminization of the primary and secondary mirrors, which were significantly deteriorated by age, as well as smoke and heat from the infamous Station Fire, which burned more than 200 square miles of the Angeles National Forest surrounding the observatory in 2009.

References

External links

Stony Ridge Observatory website
{{Portal bar, California, Astronomy, Stars, Spaceflight, Outer space, Solar System, Education, Science 1957 establishments in California Astronomical observatories in California Buildings and structures in Los Angeles County, California Angeles National Forest

See also

References

External links