Cloudcroft Observatory facts for kids
| Organization | U.S. Air Force | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Established | 1962 | ||||
| Closed | 1982 | ||||
Quick facts for kids
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The Cloudcroft Observatory is a special place where people study space. It's located in the Lincoln National Forest near Cloudcroft, New Mexico. This observatory is now owned by the Tzec Maun Foundation, which is a private group interested in astronomy.
This observatory was built in 1962. Back then, it was called the Cloudcroft Electro-Optical Research Facility. The U.S. Air Force (USAF) owned it until 1982. Its main job was to find new ways to spot satellites using electronic cameras. This was a big step forward from older ways of tracking objects in space. From 1995 to 2002, the observatory was used by NASA and was known as the NASA Orbital Debris Observatory.
Contents
A Look Back: The Observatory's Story
Building the Observatory
The U.S. Air Force picked the Cloudcroft site in 1961. They started building the observatory in 1962. The main telescope, called the Electro-Optical Surveillance Telescope (EOST), first saw light in 1964. This telescope was very large, about 1.22 meters (4 feet) wide. It was designed to track objects in space easily, even those directly overhead.
Early Research and Changes
The Air Force used the observatory to research how to identify objects in space until 1975. After that, the facility was managed by a different Air Force group. In the late 1970s, the Air Force Geophysical Laboratory took over. They worked with the Sacramento Peak Observatory on various projects. The observatory was closed down in 1982. Its main telescope was later moved to another observatory.
NASA's Time at Cloudcroft
In 1995, NASA started using the facility. They renamed it the NASA Orbital Debris Observatory. From 1996 to 2001, NASA used a special 3.0-meter (10-foot) liquid-mirror telescope there. This telescope helped them study space junk orbiting Earth.
The Observatory Today
The government no longer owns the Cloudcroft Observatory. It is now owned by the Tzec Maun Foundation. This private group continues to use the observatory for astronomy. As of 2013, they were testing a 1.0-meter (3.3-foot) reflecting telescope in the main dome.
