Today the LA Times is reporting that the Mount Wilson Observatory may be destroyed by wildfires. As of 2:15 Eastern time today, the Station fire was only a half mile from the observatory. Fire crews on the ground and in the air have been working furiously to save the historic and still operating observatory, but the situation looks dire. Below is a sequence of photos from the observatory's webcam looking towards the fire before it cut out Sunday evening.
It would be an enormous tragedy to lose this historical and still powerful scientific tool. My prayers today are with the fire crews at Mount Wilson.
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Update: As of 9 AM EDT the fire appears to have burned all the way around the observatory thanks to the heavy use of fire retardant dropped in my fire crews. It appears that for now at least the observatory is safe. Three cheers for the fire crews!
My thesis advisor lives close enough to the fires that he can see them. (He lives out that way because he has a joint appointment with Caltech and his wife works with JPL.)
ReplyDeleteHe says the fire looks crazy at night. I sure hope we don't lose Mt. Wilson.
I hope as well that it will not be destroyed !
ReplyDeleteI remember school field trips to Palomar as a kid. It would be a shame to lose Mt Wilson, which I'm sure has seen its share of school kids. It's a piece of history that has inspired countless children to pursue science.
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