Double Roll-Off Roof Observatory

During the summer of 1987 a new 12-foot by 24-foot double roll-off roof observatory was built at Seagrave Observatory. This project was a joint venture of Skyscrapers and Brown University. In the north end of this building Skyscrapers would place its 14-inch Dobsonian. The south end would become home to the Schwarzschild camera, built by Skyscrapers in 1940 for the October 1940 total solar eclipse in Curema, Brazil, and found languishing in basement storage at the University. The Schwarzschild was refurbished and mounted in 1988. It saw little use by Brown students.

Meanwhile, a 20-inch Dobsonian was donated and it was decided to mount that scope in the north end of the new observatory instead of the 14-inch. In May 1992, the Schwarzschild was moved to Bill Penhallow’s Quonochontaug Observatory in Charlestown to make way for the Patton telescope. Both the 20-inch and 14-inch Dobs were sold.

Today the 12-inch Meade sits in the south end of this observatory while Patton telescope resides in the north end.