Oak Ridge Observatory

Alternative names	George R. Agassiz Station
Observatory code	801
Location	Harvard, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°30′18″N71°33′29″W / 42.505°N 71.558°W /42.505; -71.558
Established	1933
Website	tdc-www.harvard.edu/oakridge/oakridge/
Telescopes	Project BETA Telescope Wyeth 61-inch reflector
Location of Oak Ridge Observatory
Related media on Commons
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TheOak Ridge Observatory (ORO, code:801), also known as theGeorge R. Agassiz Station, is located at 42 Pinnacle Road,Harvard, Massachusetts. It was operated by theCenter for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian as a facility of theSmithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) from 1933 until August 19, 2005.^[2]

The observatory was established in 1933. Through its first 40 years, its primary research focus was on trackingminor planets andasteroids in theSolar System. Starting in the 1980s, astronomers began to use the facility to measure stars over long periods of time, which led to hunts forextrasolar planets.

The largesttelescope east ofTexas in theUnited States is the 61-inch reflector(seeHobby-Eberly Telescope). However, most of its projects were discontinued in 2005.Harvard University'sOptical SETI program continues at the site.^[3]

It also housed an 84-foot (26 m) steerableradio telescope once used in Project BETA, a search forextraterrestrial intelligence. A 41-cm (16-inch)Boller and ChivensCassegrain reflector originally housed at Oak Ridge is available for public use at theNational Air and Space Museum's Public Observatory Project on theNational Mall in Washington, DC.^[4]

The innermain-belt asteroid4733 ORO, discovered at Oak Ridge in 1982, was named in honor of the observatory.^[5]

In addition to the discoveries below, theMinor Planet Center inconsistently credits some asteroids such as4760 Jia-xiang directly to theHarvard College Observatory although they have been discovered at Oak Ridge.

• Harvard University seismograph station
• Hobby–Eberly Telescope
• List of minor planet discoverers § Discovering dedicated institutions
• List of astronomical observatories
• Phoebe Waterman Haas Public Observatory
• Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

• Bok, Bart J. (1956). "The George R. Agassiz Radio Telescope of Harvard Observatory".Nature.178 (4527):232–234.Bibcode:1956Natur.178..232B.doi:10.1038/178232a0.ISSN 0028-0836.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toOak Ridge Observatory.

• Oak Ridge Observatory
• Slacker Astronomy: Optical SETI at Harvard's Oak Ridge – via YouTube
• Harvard Optical SETI
• The Boston Globe: "Lights out", June 28, 2005

• Astronomical observatories in Massachusetts
• Buildings and structures in Worcester County, Massachusetts
• Discoveries by the Oak Ridge Observatory
• Harvard University
• Minor-planet discovering observatories

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