Tue Jan 28, 02025, 12:00AM UTC
Philippe Reekie
An Evening at the Harvard Observatory
[SOLD OUT] Join Long Now Boston for an evening of science, history, and exploration at the Harvard-Smithsonian Observatory with Philippe Reekie. We’ll have a talk on the search for life on other worlds, a tour of the Observatory, including a visit to the Great Refractor telescope, and, weather permitting, a viewing of deep-time celestial objects.
Long Now Boston had an awe-inspiring evening at the Harvard College Observatory on Jan 27, 02025. We had excellent presentations by Philippe Reekie leading us through the Observatory's history and his own research into the possibility of extraterrestrial life – how organic molecules and microbes could be preserved for millennia in salt crystals, and Thom Burns and Lisa Bravata of the Harvard Plate Stacks at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, showing off some of their beautiful, rare early astrophotographs, and offering glimpses into the rich history of astronomical discovery, focusing on the women who did a large share of the work and the preservation efforts needed to maintain this collection of valuable historical assets.
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Long Now Boston had an awe-inspiring evening at the Harvard College Observatory on Jan 27, 02025. We had excellent presentations by Philippe Reekie leading us through the Observatory's history and his own research into the possibility of extraterrestrial life – how organic molecules and microbes could be preserved for millennia in salt crystals, and Thom Burns and Lisa Bravata of the Harvard Plate Stacks at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, showing off some of their beautiful, rare early astrophotographs, and offering glimpses into the rich history of astronomical discovery, focusing on the women who did a large share of the work and the preservation efforts needed to maintain this collection of valuable historical assets.
We then went to see the Great Refractor, Harvard’s 15-inch telescope from the 1840s. At the time, it was the most significant American astronomical instrument, equal to the finest in the world, playing a pivotal role in astronomical discovery. A gorgeous instrument, reminding us of the importance of scientific research and discovery throughout our history.
A special thank you to William Gottemoller and Abigail White for guiding us through the night sky with three telescopes on the roof of the observatory! Even though it was cold out, the clear skies gave us beautiful views of Saturn, Jupiter and Mars, as well stars and nebulae – celestial objects whose light has traveled millions of years to reach us. It was an inspiring connection to the deepest time in the universe.
You can see photos of the event here and here.