The Link Observatory Space Science Institute Fund for STEM Program – 1092

Fund Type: Passthrough Fund

Fund Description:

Purpose: The Link Observatory Space Science Institute provides an outstanding organizational structure within which educational programs, site improvements ath the Link Observatory site, and various events of interest to both amateur and accomplished students of space.

History: The Goethe Link Observatory is located on a high bluff about 3 miles south of Mooresville, Indiana on US 67 Indiana. The large 36″ telescope was built as the private observatory of Dr. Goethe Link, a noted Indianapolis surgeon and amateur astronomer.

Construction of the Observatory started early in 1937 and was operational in early 1939. It contains a 36-inch folded Cassegrain reflector.

The Goethe Link Observatory was donated to Indiana University in 1948 and was used regularly for astronomical research until the mid-1980’s, by which time the night sky brightness from the Indianapolis suburbs had substantially restricted the breadth of research possible from the site. Instruments used there during the 1950-80’s include a photographic camera, photoelectric photometer, scanning spectrometer, and slit spectrograph. Topics studied include galactic clusters, cool star spectrophotometry, and spectroscopy of interacting binary stars.