thumb|Mount John from [[Lake Tekapo]]

thumb|262px|UCMJO site at sunset in 2007

University of Canterbury Mount John Observatory (UCMJO), previously known as Mt John University Observatory (MJUO), is New Zealand's premier astronomical research observatory.

Facilities

There are 5 large telescopes on the mountain that are in regular use. There is also a cafe and night-tours run by tourist operators, Dark Sky Project. There is accommodation for visiting researchers within the 1.0 m telescope building. A superintendent lives on the mountain.

MOA telescope

Opened in December 2004, this telescope was built by Japanese astronomers and is dedicated to the Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics (MOA) project. It is a 1.8 m prime focus reflector.

Optical Craftsmen telescope

This is a 0.61 m fork mounted reflecting telescope operating at f/16. This telescope is used exclusively for CCD photometry. It has been upgraded and commissioned for robotic use as part of the AAVSO's Robotic Telescope Network. This is the AAVSO's first Southern Hemisphere telescope.

Dark Sky Project telescope

This telescope, used exclusively for visual tourist operations is a 0.4 m Meade LX200 telescope.

Discoveries

In June 2008 it was reported at the meeting of American Astronomical Society that using their new MOA-II telescope, the observatory discovered what was at the time the smallest planet known outside of the Solar System. The planet MOA-2007-BLG-192Lb is just 3.3 times larger than Earth and is orbiting a small star, MOA-2007-BLG-192L (3000 light years from Earth). There is some possibility the planet has a thick atmosphere and a liquid ocean on its surface.

Notable people

Notable people who have been associated with the Mount John University Observatory include:

  • Frank Bateson
  • Alan C. Gilmore
  • Gerard F. Gilmore
  • John Hearnshaw
  • Pamela M. Kilmartin
  • Alister McLellan
  • Norman Rumsey
  • William Tobin

References

<!-- end of reflist -->

  • University of Canterbury Mount John Observatory - current webpage
  • Mount John University Observatory - 2004 webpage
  • HERCULES website
  • MOA website
  • Stars in a Cluster and other documents relating to the Observatory on archive.org
  • Dark Sky Project website