Airdrie Public Observatory

Airdrie Public Observatory is part of the library building in the town of Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. There are only four public observatories operating in the United Kingdom, all of which are in Scotland. Airdrie Observatory is the smallest and second oldest. The observatory is owned and funded by Culture NL, and operated on their behalf by Airdrie Astronomical Association, a local astronomy club and registered charity. The current observatory curators are AAA members Bob Webster and Hannah Malone. Main TelescopeAirdrie Observatory is home to a 6" Victorian refracting telescope with an equatorial mount and clockwork drive which is used to track objects across the sky. A manual mechanism is used to open and rotate the observatory’s dome. The telescope eyepieces for the telescope provided a range between 60 and 350 times magnification. The telescope was adapted to use more modern eyepieces. In its day the Airdrie Observatory telescope would have been considered to be a research grade telescope. HistoryFrom 1896 to 1925 Airdrie Observatory was located in the original Airdrie Public Library (which became Airdrie Arts Centre). This library was funded in part by a £1, 000 donation from Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish-American philanthropist. The original 3. 25“ refracting telescope was given to the town by Dr Thomas Reid, an eminent Glasgow oculist and philanthropist. This telescope is no longer in use as repairs cannot be undertaken due to its age and fragility, but it can be seen in the local history room of today’s library.

Airdrie Public Observatory is part of the library building in the town of Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. There are only four public observatories operating in the United Kingdom, all of which are in Scotland. Airdrie Observatory is the smallest and second oldest. The observatory is owned and funded by Culture NL, and operated on their behalf by Airdrie Astronomical Association, a local astronomy club and registered charity. The current observatory curators are AAA members Bob Webster and Hannah Malone. Main TelescopeAirdrie Observatory is home to a 6" Victorian refracting telescope with an equatorial mount and clockwork drive which is used to track objects across the sky. A manual mechanism is used to open and rotate the observatory’s dome. The telescope eyepieces for the telescope provided a range between 60 and 350 times magnification. The telescope was adapted to use more modern eyepieces. In its day the Airdrie Observatory telescope would have been considered to be a research grade telescope. HistoryFrom 1896 to 1925 Airdrie Observatory was located in the original Airdrie Public Library (which became Airdrie Arts Centre). This library was funded in part by a £1, 000 donation from Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish-American philanthropist. The original 3. 25“ refracting telescope was given to the town by Dr Thomas Reid, an eminent Glasgow oculist and philanthropist. This telescope is no longer in use as repairs cannot be undertaken due to its age and fragility, but it can be seen in the local history room of today’s library.