We are so excited to reveal the amazing telescopes of the Giovale Open Deck Observatory that we are going to reveal just one telescope each night ahead of the October 5 Grand Opening. Join us on September 30 through October 4 as we unveil a different telescope each night, included with your Lowell Observatory admission.

Please Note: Just one telescope of the Giovale Open Deck Observatory will be in use on each of the nights. Our other telescopes, including the historic Alvan Clark & Sons 24-inch refractor, will be available for viewing as usual (weather depending).

Monday, Sep 30 | 5.5-inch TEC Wide-Field Refractor
Take in rich Milky Way star fields with our wide-field refractor. Possible sky targets on its reveal night include the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), one of our nearest galactic neighbors, the Perseus Double Cluster (NGC 884 and 869) and the star cluster M39. (sunset: 5:45 pm)

Tuesday, Oct 1 | 16-inch Meade ACF Catadioptric Reflector
See planets and compact deep sky objects under high magnification with our Meade ACF. Possible sky targets on its reveal night include the Ring Nebula (M57), the Dumbbell Nebula (M27) and binary stars Albireo or Mesarthim. (sunset: 5:44 pm)

Wednesday, Oct 2 | 8-inch Moonraker Victorian Refractor
Come early to see our fire engine red Moonraker telescope sparkle in the sunlight; stay late to see stars and planets shine through it. Possible sky targets on its reveal night include the crescent Moon (early in the night), Saturn and the Wild Duck Star Cluster (M11). (sunset: 5:42)

Thursday, Oct 3 | 32-inch Starstructure Dobsonian Reflector
Examine star clusters, nebulae or galaxies in great detail with the largest telescope now on Mars Hill. Possible sky targets on its reveal night include the globular star cluster M15, the Ring Nebula (M57) and the Dumbbell Nebula (M27). (sunset: 5:41 pm)

Friday, Oct 4 | 17-inch & 14-inch PlaneWave CDK Reflectors
Compare views of stars and nebulae on the live monitors connected to our two PlaneWave CDK reflectors. The Shelyak spectroscope on the 17-inch can teach us about the elements abundant in our universe, and the MallinCam color video camera on the 14-inch will display live color images of some of the night sky’s most breathtaking objects. Possible sky targets on their reveal night include planetary nebulae M57 and M27, galaxies M31 and M33, and globular star clusters M15 and M2. (sunset: 5:40 pm)