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FeedStardate Chabot
By the Numbers
By S.C.
The Chabot Space and Science Center originally opened in downtown Oakland 125 years ago. The Oakland Observatory, as it was then known, provided a telescope for astronomers to search for new planets and served as the Bay Area’s official timekeeping station. The center eventually reopened in the Oakland hills in an 86,000-square-foot, $84 million home that features three telescopes and a planetarium. A series of celebrations this year mark Chabot’s 125 years, starting with Space Games, a free family fun day on June 21. 1883
Year that Leah, a refracting telescope, was built and given to the Oakland observatory by hydraulic engineer Anthony Chabot.10,000
Number of people who looked through Leah in 1910 to see Halley’s Comet.150,000
Number of people who visit the center annually; one-third of those come in school groups.2.44
Distance in billions of light-years to the farthest object visible from the observatory, 3C 273, a quasar in theVirgo constellation.
For information about Chabot Space and Science Center events, visit www.chabotspace.org.
