Observatory
The Observatory will be open on April 4 and 18, from 8:30pm - 10:00pm. If it is clear, we will take out telescopes and look at some beautiful astronomical objects. We also give a tour of the facility, which includes the one-tenth scale model of the Hale Telescope at Mt. Palomar and images that we have taken with the telescopes on campus.
The Observatory will be open the first and third Fridays of the month for the spring semester: February 7 and 21, March 7 and 21, April 4 and 18, May 2 and 16. Beginning in April, the observatory will change our hours - we will be open from 8:30pm - 10:30pm. No prior reservations are required, but if you have a group of greater than 10 people that you would like to bring to the observatory, call 607-962-9494 and leave a message with a phone number so we can return your call.
Parking for the Observatory is available in the Digital Dome parking lot. Parking at the Observatory is reserved for our visitors who require accessible parking. All of our events are free and open to the public!
If you are interested in attending a Digital Dome Show, please check out their link here.
EVENTS
Origins, Worlds, and Life
Zoe Learner Ponterio, Manager of the Spacecraft Planetary Image Facility (SPIF) at Cornell
May 2, 2025
7:30pm at the Eileen Collins Observatory
Previous spacecraft missions have discovered multiple potentially habitable environments in the Solar System, both past and present. This raises many profound questions about the Earth and our origins that we have so far been unable to answer. How do planetary environments change over time? How, when, and where did life begin on Earth, and did it begin elsewhere as well? Is life common or rare in the universe, and what forms can it take? Now, we are taking the next steps in pursuing what could be the most significant discovery ever made by humans. Current and newly selected missions are poised to begin answering the age-old question – where did we come from, and are we alone in the universe?
This talk is part of our monthly meeting of the Elmira-Corning Astronomical Society. Please join us! All are welcome.
TELESCOPES
We have many types and sizes of telescopes here at our Observatory. Our two largest telescopes are both reflectors — the 20" and the 16". Our 20" telescope is the one-tenth scale model of the Hale Telescope at Mount Palomar in California.
We have 14", 12", 10", 8", and 6" reflectors that were built by members of the Elmira-Corning Astronomical Society. We have 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain reflectors in addition to 4" refractors and a solar telescope.
Everything at the observatory is free and open to the public! Please note that most of our time is spent outside, if the weather is clear. So please dress for the weather!
Parking is available in the Planetarium parking lot. The only parking at the Observatory is reserved for our visitors requiring accessible parking.
Questions?
Deborah Dann, Director of the Observatory