Brooks Observatory opened in 1987 at the University of Toledo. The observatory is operated by the Ritter Planetarium and is dedicated to public education. The observatory houses a six-inch Brashear refractor under a twelve-foot Ash dome. The dome is in the center of a 25- by 50-foot observing deck which has an additional four observing piers for smaller semi-portable instruments, including two 10-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes. The entire facility is located on the roof of McMaster Hall.
Most Friday evening public planetarium programs are followed by observing at the Brooks Observatory, weather permitting. Depending on the sky conditions, attendance, and astronomical events, the nightly observing schedule contains one to three objects. Observed objects have included all of the planets save Pluto, the Moon, comets, binary stars, and dozens of nebulae and galaxies. Currently we offer spectacular views of the ringed planet Saturn.
Brooks Observatory also holds numerous open houses and special event observing sessions. These sessions are usually associated with an astronomical event that has received wide publicity in the news media, including Jupiter during its collision with Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, the spectacular Comet Hale-Bopp, lunar eclipses, and planetary conjunctions and oppositions.
Utilizing the Observatory equipment, we have been able to develop many hands-on workshops and classes on amateur astronomy, including programs that allow Boy Scouts to earn their Astronomy Merit Badges, Girl Scouts to achieve their Space Exploration Units, and a special program for Cub Scouts and Brownies. We have also developed numerous in-service workshops for area teachers using the equipment at the observatory.
