New Observatory Opens at APSU Farm
August 24, 2011
Clarksville, TN – Shortly before sunset last Friday evening, a large crowd of stargazers gathered at the Austin Peay State University Environmental Education Center off Pickens Road, hoping to get a good look at the moon or possibly Mars.
The center, also known as the APSU Farm, sits only a few miles from Governor’s Square Mall and is somewhat affected by that area’s light pollution, but as of Friday, it has become the one of the best spots in Clarksville for astronomers to congregate.
That’s because, next to the barns and hay bales, APSU has opened a new observatory with a retractable dome and a 20-inch Ritchey-Chretien telescope, featuring the same optical design as NASA’s Hubble Telescope.
New APSU Observatory offically opens.
