There's something better than a pot of gold at the end of this rainbow: the historic Clark Telescope Dome! Credit: Tyler Flake
Itinerary for a Rainy Day at Lowell
Picture this: you planned to visit the observatory, but clouds are rolling in and it’s starting to rain. You may think that this means that it’s time to rethink your plans for the day, but never fear—rainy day programming is here! Read on for a sample itinerary for how to spend a rainy day at Lowell.
☔ 12:00pm: Arrive at the Observatory
You find a spot in the parking lot and walk to the Steele Visitor Center, umbrellas in hand, just as a light drizzle is starting. You’re greeted by a friendly face at the front desk who lets you know that while telescope viewing will most likely be unavailable today, they can give a schedule of all the rainy day-friendly activities you and your group can do during your visit. You purchase your general admission tickets and put on your visitor stickers, ready to enjoy a lowkey day of viewing exhibits and hearing science talks.
☔12:10pm: Head to the Rotunda Museum Open House
As you walk to a large domed building in the center of campus called the Rotunda Museum, you take some time to admire the bright flowers growing along the path—they must be loving this weather! You enter the museum through a set of grand double doors and find yourself in what looks like an old library, with a stained-glass light fixture shaped like Saturn hanging from the domed ceiling and two sets of spiral staircases leading up to a small mezzanine lined with bookshelves. A volunteer standing nearby informs you that the books belonged to Dr. Carl O. Lampland, a former astronomer at Lowell who designed cameras for telescopes, measured temperatures of the planets in our solar system, and captured more than 10,000 images of planets, comets, variable stars, nebulae, and star clusters in our galaxy. You begin to look around at the exhibits on display in the museum, including Percival Lowell’s first telescope, the blink comparator Clyde Tombaugh used to discover Pluto, and an interactive projector globe.
☔1:00pm: Take the Lowell Tour
Once the film wraps up, you stay in your seats in the lecture hall and wait for the Lowell Tour to begin. The educator meets you there, and you have a chance to chat with them and ask questions about the observatory before the rest of the group arrives. Once the tour begins, you learn about the careful process of selecting the observatory’s location, its founding, the fascinating Mars research conducted by Percival Lowell himself, and much more! You also get an up-close look at the world-famous Clark Telescope, which was used by the astronauts of the Apollo 11 Moon mission for training purposes.
☔2:30pm: Watch ‘Surviving the Final Frontier’ in the Giclas Lecture Hall
After you finish perusing the exhibits in the Rotunda Museum, you head back to the Steele Visitor Center to catch ‘Surviving the Final Frontier,’ a short documentary about the past, present and future of space health research, science and innovation through NASA’s Human Research Program and spearheaded by its Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH). The film combines archival footage from the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Sky Lab, Space Shuttle and International Space Station programs together with live in-person interviews to discuss the history, current state and future challenges of space health.
☔ 3:30pm: Take the Story of Pluto Tour
Time for another tour! You meet an educator at the Rotunda Museum to hear about the groundbreaking discovery that put Lowell Observatory on the map. You learn about Clyde Tombaugh, the tenacious 23-year-old Kansanite who discovered Pluto in 1930, as well as the arduous process that led to his historic discovery. You also get to see the historic Pluto Discovery Astrograph that Tombaugh used to photograph the area where Pluto was eventually found!
☔4:15pm: Embark on the Galaxy and Universe Walks
A lesser-known hidden gem on Lowell’s campus is a pair of paved walking path behind the GODO, lined with busts of influential figures in astronomy history! As you walk along the path at a leisurely pace, you pause to read the plaques under each bust describing the figure’s contributions to the study of the cosmos. The Galaxy Walk takes you past the Mars Hill Chalet, the building where astronomer Vera Rubin discovered dark matter.
☔5:00pm: Enjoy the Journey to Pluto Science Show
After your walk, you head back to the Giclas Lecture Hall for a science show that imagines a space journey to Pluto! A Lowell educator takes you along for the ride as you explore the challenges presented by atmospherics, gravity, and the cold little rock that waits at the end of your voyage in a series of hands-on demonstrations.
☔5:30pm: Head to the Putnam Collection Center Open House
After the Journey to Pluto show wraps up, you head over to the Putnam Collection Center to browse a selection of fascinating exhibits, including Vesto Slipher’s spectrograph and Percival Lowell’s 1911 Stevens-Duryea automobile “Big Red,” plus rotating exhibits like Lowell’s Lunar Legacy and the Lampland Diaries. You also catch a glimpse of the archive conservatory through a floor-to-ceiling window, which houses thousands of precious artifacts from Lowell’s history!
☔6:00pm: Check out the Clark Open House
After you’ve browsed the exhibits in the Putnam Collection Center, you make your way to the historic Clark Dome. You get an up-close look at the world famous 24″ Clark Refractor, take photos, and hear a bit about the history of the storied telescope and its dome.
☔ 6:30pm: Enjoy a Cloudy Night Constellation Tour
Though the clouds are preventing the usual laser-guided, outdoor constellation tours given at the Giovale Open Deck Observatory (GODO), an educator informs you that there is an indoor version of the tour beginning soon in the Astrolab, a classroom located inside the GODO. Once inside, an educator takes you through the thrilling Greek mythology behind the constellations of the night sky using images.
☔ 7:00pm: Watch Colors of the Cosmos
What can blue fire tell us about the nature of the universe? In this interactive science demonstration talk, you watch as Lowell educators reveal secrets of the cosmos by playing with light, rainbows, and fire in a series of family-friendly experiments!
☔ 7:25pm: Browse the Starry Skies Shop
Satisfied with your day at Lowell, you return to the Steele Visitor Center to browse the Starry Skies Shop’s selection of products. It seems to have something for everyone, and each member of your group is able to find the perfect item to commemorate their amazing day at the observatory. After checking out in the giftshop, you take in the view of downtown Flagstaff’s glimmering city lights (which are in compliance with local dark sky ordinances, of course!) as you drive back down Mars Hill.
☔ 8:00pm: Discover the Secret Life of Stars
So what is star-stuff, exactly? In this science talk, the origins of life on Earth are examined through the lens of the life of a star, from birth to extinction, featuring the astrophotography of Lowell Observatory!