Timeline of telescopes, observatories, and observing technology

Timeline of telescopes, observatories, and observing technology.

Before Common Era (B.C.)

2100

*Xiangfen Astronomical Observatory, Xiangfen County, Linfen City, Shanxi Province, China

1100

* 11th-7th century B.C., Zhou dynasty astronomical observatory (灵台) in today's Xian, China

300

* Thirteen Towers solar observatory, Chankillo, Peru

200

* 206-220 B.C., Han dynasty astronomical observatory (灵台) in Chang'an and Luoyang. During East Han dynasty, astronomical observatory (灵台) built in in Yanshi, Henan Province, China

Common Era (A.D.)

600s

*632-647 Cheomseongdae, an astronomy build in the reign of Queen Seondeok in Gyeongju, then the capital of Shilla, now in present day South Korea
*618-1279 Tang dynasty-Song dynasty, observatories built in Chang'an, Kaifeng, Hangzhou, China

700s

* 700-77 - The first Zij treatise, "Az-Zīj ‛alā Sinī al-‛Arab", written by Ibrahim al-Fazari and Muhammad al-Fazari
* 700-96 - Brass astrolabe constructed by Muhammad al-Fazari based on Hellenistic sources
* ca. 777 - Yaqūb ibn Tāriq wrote "Az-Zij al-Mahlul min as-Sindhind li-Darajat Daraja" based on Brahmagupta and "Surya Siddhanta"

800s

* 800-33 - Baghdad observatory in Iraq by Arabic astronomers under al-Mamun
* 800-50 - "Zij al-Sindhind" written by Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī (Algorismi)

900s

* 900-29 - "Az-Zij as-Sabi" written by Muhammad ibn Jābir al-Harrānī al-Battānī (Albatenius)

1000s

* 1000 - Mokattam observatory in Egypt for al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
* 1023 - Hamedan observatory in Persia
* ca. 1030 - "Treasury of Optics" by Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen) of Iraq and Egypt
* 1074-92 - Malikshah observatory at Isfahan used by Omar Khayyám
* 1086 - Northern Song dynasty astronomical observatory

1100s

* 1114–87 - "Tables of Toledo" based on Abū Ishāq Ibrāhīm al-Zarqālī (Arzachel) published by Gerard of Cremona
* 1115-16 - "Sinjaric Tables" written by al-Khazini
* 1119-25 - Cairo al-Bataihi observatory for Al-Afdal Shahanshah
* cs. 1020 - Geared mechanical astrolabe invented by Ibn Samh

1200s

* 1252-72 - "Alfonsine tables" recorded
* 1259 - Maragheh observatory and library of Nasir al-Din al-Tusi by Mangu under Hulagu Khan
* ca. 1270 - Terrace for Managing Heaven 26 observatory network of Guo Shoujing under Khubilai Khan
* 1272 - "Zij-i Ilkhani" written by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi
* 1276 - Dengfeng Star Observatory Platform, Gaocheng, Dengfeng City, Henan Province, China

1400s

* 1400-29 - "Khaqani Zij" by Jamshīd al-Kāshī
* 1417 - "Speculum Planetarum" by Simones de Selandia
* 1420 - Samarkand observatory of Ulugh Beg
* 1437 - "Zij-i-Sultani" written by Ulugh Beg
* 1442 - Beijing Ancient Observatory
* 1467-71 - Observatory at Oradea, Hungary for Matthias Corvinus
* 1472 - Nuremberg observatory

1500s

* 1540 Apian "Astronomicum Caesareum"
* 1560 - Kassel observatory under Landgrave Wilhelm IV of Hesse
* 1575-80 - Istanbul observatory of al-Din under Sultan Murad III
* 1576 - Royal Danish Astronomical Observatory Uraniborg at Hven by Tycho Brahe
* 1577 - Istanbul observatory of al-Din by Taqi al-Din
* 1577-80 - "Unbored Pearl" by Taqi al-Din
* 1581 - Royal Danish Astronomical Observatory Stjerneborg at Hven by Tycho Brahe

1600s

* 1600 - Prague observatory in Benátky nad Jizerou by Tycho Brahe
* 1603 - Johann Bayer's "Uranometria"
* 1608 - Hans Lippershey tries to patent an optical refracting telescope
* 1609 - Galileo Galilei builds his first optical refracting telescope
* 1633 - Construction of Leiden University Observatory
* 1641 - William Gascoigne invents telescope cross hairs
* 1641 - Danzig/Gdansk observatory of Jan Hevelius
* 1642 - Copenhagen University Royal observatory
* 1661 - James Gregory proposes an optical reflecting telescope
* 1667 - Paris Observatory
* 1668 - Isaac Newton constructs the first optical reflecting telescope
* 1672 - Laurent Cassegrain designs the Cassegrain telescope
* 1675 - Royal Greenwich Observatory of England

1700s

* 1704 - First observatory at Cambridge University (based at Trinity College)
* 1724 - Indian observatory of Sawai Jai Singh at Delhi
* 1725 - St. Petersburg observatory at Royal Academy
* 1732 - Indian observatories of Sawai Jai Singh at Varanasi, Ujjain, Mathura, Madras
* 1733 - Chester Moor Hall invents the achromatic lens refracting telescope
* 1734 - Indian observatory of Sawai Jai Singh at Jaipur
* 1753 - [http://www.astro.ff.vu.lt Vilnius observatory] at Vilnius University, Lithuania
* 1758 - John Dollond reinvents the achromatic lens
* 1761 - Joseph-Nicolas Delisle 62 observing station network for observing the transit of Venus
* 1769 - Short reflectors used at 63 station network for transit of Venus
* 1780 - Florence Specola observatory
* 1789 - William Herschel finishes a 49-inch (1.2-meter) optical reflecting telescope, located in Slough, England

1800s

* 1840 - John William Draper invents astronomical photography and photographs the Moon
* 1845 - Lord Rosse finishes the Birr Castle 72-inch optical reflecting telescope, located in Parsonstown, Ireland
* 1849 - Santiago observatory set up by USA, later becomes Chilean National
* 1859 - Kirchoff and Bunsen develop spectroscopy
* 1864 - Herschel's so-called GC (General Catalogue) of nebulae and star clusters published
* 1868 - Janssen and Lockyer discover Helium observing spectra of Sun
* 1871 - German Astronomical Association organized network of 13 (later 16) observatories for stellar proper motion studies
* 1872 - Henry Draper invents astronomical spectral photography and photographs the spectrum of Vega
* 1878 - Dreyer published a supplement to the GC of about 1000 new objects
* 1887 - Paris conference institutes "Carte du Ciel" project to map entire sky to 14th magnitude photographically
* 1888 - First light of 91cm refracting telescope at Lick Observatory, on Mount Hamilton near San Jose, California
* 1889 - Astronomical Society of the Pacific founded
* 1890 - Albert Michelson proposes the stellar interferometer
* 1892 - George Ellery Hale finishes a spectroheliograph, which allows the Sun to be photographed in the light of one element only
* 1897 - Alvan Clark finishes the Yerkes 40-inch optical refracting telescope, located in Williams Bay, Wisconsin

1900s

* 1902 - Dominion Observatory, Ottawa, Canada established
* 1904 - Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington founded

1910s

* 1917 - Mount Wilson 100-inch optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Mount Wilson, California
* 1918 - 1.8m Plaskett Telescope begins operation at the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
* 1919 - International Astronomical Union (IAU) founded

1930s

* 1930 - Bernard-Ferdinand Lyot invents the coronagraph
* 1930 - Karl Jansky builds a 30-meter long rotating aerial radio telescope
* 1933 - Bernard-Ferdinand Lyot invents the Lyot filter
* 1934 - Bernhard Schmidt finishes the first 14-inch Schmidt optical reflecting telescope
* 1936 - Palomar 18-inch Schmidt optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Palomar, California
* 1937 - Grote Reber builds a 31-foot radio telescope

1940s

* 1941 - Dmitri Maksutov invents the Maksutov telescope which is adopted by major observatories in the Soviet Union and internationally. It is now also a popular design with amateur astronomers
* 1946 - Martin Ryle and his group perform the first astronomical observations with a radio interferometer
* 1947 - Bernard Lovell and his group complete the Jodrell Bank 218-foot non-steerable radio telescope
* 1949 - Palomar 48-inch Schmidt optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Palomar, California
* 1949 - Palomar 200-inch optical reflecting telescope (Hale telescope) begins regular operation, located in Palomar, California

1950s

* 1953 - Luoxue Mountain Cosmic Rays Research Center, Yunnan Province, in China founded
* 1954 - Earth rotation aperture synthesis suggested (see e.g. Christiansen and Warburton (1955))
* 1957 - Bernard Lovell and his group complete the Jodrell Bank 250-foot (75-meter) steerable radio telescope (the Lovell Telescope)
* 1957 - Peter Scheuer publishes his P(D) method for obtaining source counts of spatially unresolved sources
* 1959 - Radio Observatory of the University of Chile, located at Maipú founded
* 1959 - The 3C catalogue of radio sources is published (revised in 1962)
* 1959 - The Shane 120-Inch Telescope Opened at Lick Observatory

1960s

* 1960 - Owens Valley 27-meter radio telescopes begin operation, located in Big Pine, California
* 1961 - Parkes 64-metre radio telescope begins operation, located near Parkes, Australia
* 1962 - European Southern Observatory (ESO) founded
* 1962 - Kitt Peak solar observatory founded
* 1962 - Green Bank 90m radio telescope
* 1962 - Orbiting Solar Observatory 1 satellite launched
* 1963 - Arecibo 300-meter radio telescope begins operation, located in Arecibo, Puerto Rico
* 1964 - Martin Ryle's 1-mile radio interferometer begins operation, located in Cambridge, England
* 1965 - Owens Valley 40-meter radio telescope begins operation, located in Big Pine, California
* 1967 - First VLBI images, with 183 km baseline
* 1969 - Observations start at Big Bear Solar Observatory, located in Big Bear, California
* 1969 - Las Campanas Observatory

1970s

* 1970 - Cerro Tololo 158-inch optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Cerro Tololo, Chile
* 1970 - Kitt Peak National Observatory 158-inch optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located near Tucson, Arizona
* 1970 - Uhuru x-ray telescope satellite
* 1970 - Antoine Labeyrie performs the first high-resolution optical speckle interferometry observations
* 1973 - UK Schmidt Telescope 1.2 metre optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Anglo-Australian Observatory near Coonabarabran, Australia
* 1974 - Anglo-Australian Telescope 153-inch optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Anglo-Australian Observatory near Coonabarabran, Australia
* 1975 - Gerald Smith, Frederick Landauer, and James Janesick use a CCD to observe Uranus, the first astronomical CCD observation
* 1975 - Antoine Labeyrie builds the first two-telescope optical interferometer
* 1976 - The 6-m BTA-6 (Bolshoi Teleskop Azimutalnyi or “Large Altazimuth Telescope”) goes into operation on Mt. Pashtukhov in the Russian Caucasus
* 1978 - Multiple Mirror 176-inch equivalent optical/infrared reflecting telescope begins operation, located in Amado, Arizona
* 1978 - International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) telescope satellite
* 1978 - Einstein High Energy Astronomy Observatory x-ray telescope satellite
* 1979 - UKIRT 150-inch infrared reflecting telescope begins operation, located at Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii
* 1979 - Canada-France-Hawaii 140-inch optical reflecting telescope begins operation, located at Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii
* 1979 - NASA Infrared Telescope Facility [http://irtfweb.ifa.hawaii.edu/] 120-inch infrared reflecting telescope begins operation, located at Mauna Kea, Hawaii

1980s

* 1980 - Completion of construction of the VLA, located in Socorro, New Mexico
* 1983 - Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) telescope
* 1987 - 15-m James Clerk Maxwell Telescope UK submillimetre telescope installed at Mauna Kea Observatory
* 1987 - 5-m Swedish-ESO Submillimetre Telescope (SEST) installed at the ESO La Silla Observatory
* 1988 - Australia Telescope Compact Array aperture synthesis radio telescope begins operation, located near Narrabri, Australia
* 1989 - Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite

1990s

* 1990 - Hubble 2.4m space Telescope launched, mirror found to be flawed
* 1991 - Compton Gamma Ray Observatory satellite
* 1993 - Keck 10-meter optical/infrared reflecting telescope begins operation, located at Mauna Kea, Hawaii
* 1993 - Very Long Baseline Array of 10 dishes
* 1995 - Cambridge Optical Aperture Synthesis Telescope (COAST) -- the first very high resolution optical astronomical images (from aperture synthesis observations)
* 1995 - Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope of thirty 45 m dishes at Pune
* 1996 - Keck 2 10-meter optical/infrared reflecting telescope begins operation, located at Mauna Kea, Hawaii
* 1997 - The Japanese HALCA satellite begins operations, producing first VLBI observations from space, 25,000 km maximum baseline
* 1998 - First light at VLT1, the 8.2 m ESO telescope

2000s

* 2001 - First light at the Keck Interferometer. Single-baseline operations begin in the near-infrared.
* 2001 - First light at VLTI interferometry array. Operations on the interferometer start with single-baseline near-infrared observations with the 103 m baseline.
* 2005 - First imaging with the VLTI using the AMBER optical aperture synthesis instrument and three VLT telescopes.
* 2005 - First light at SALT, the largest optical telescope in the southern hemisphere, with a primary mirror diameter of 11 meters.

ee also

* Timeline of telescope technology

References

* Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy ISBN 0-521-41158-0
* History of Science and Technology ISBN 0-87196-475-9
* Wilson Chronology of Science and Technology ISBN 0-8242-0933-8
* Encyclopedia of the history of Arabic science ISBN 0-415-12410-7