COLLEGE WILL HAVE NEW TELESCOPE IN AFRICA

The largest telescope in the Southern Hemisphere, an instrument exceeded in size by only two others in the world, will be in operation at the new South African station of the College Observatory within the next two years, it was announced today by Dr. Harlow Shapley, director of the observatory. The contract for this giant research instrument has just been awarded to a firm in Pittsburgh, Pa., that has made many large telescopes, including the 72-inch reflector at the Dominion Observatory, Victoria, B. C., the world's second largest.

The new Harvard telescope will be a reflector also, in which a concave mirror sixty inches in diameter replaces the convex lens of the more familiar, or refracting type. The mirror faces the star and, as it is concave, or dish-shaped, the light rays converge after being reflected from it. They are reflected to the side of the instrument by a second, flat mirror, in one type, and are brought to a focus on a photograph plate, or in an eyepiece, if the telescope is being used visually.

Bloemfontein Being Considered.

So far, the exact site of the new station has not been decided, but it will be somewhere in the Union of South Africa, and the capital of Orange Free State, Bloemfontein, is being given serious consideration. Since 1890 the Harvard Observatory has operated a branch station at Arequipa, Peru, for the purpose of studying stars and other celestial objects that never rise above the horizons of Northern countries. However, as cloudy weather handicapped the observation from Peru for a large part of each year, the high plateaus of South Africa were found to be better for continued work the year round. The instruments from the Peruvian station are now being prepared for moving by Dr. John Paraskevopoulos, who has been in charge for the last four years. These include a photographic telescope with a double lens 24 inches in diameter, one of the largest of its kind: another with a triple lens ten inches in diameter, and three other photographic telescopes. New mountings are being provided for the first two instruments.

Besides having the largest telescope in the southern hemisphere, the new Harvard Station will probably be the most completely equipped southern observatory. However the same plans will be followed that have proved successful in the operation of the Peruvian station: the programs of research will be made in Cambridge, and the photographic plates taken will be shipped to Cambridge for study by the observatory staff, and for filing in the observatory's large collection.