Winds gusting up 114 mph significantly damaged the University of California Lick Observatory early Thursday morning, closing the nearly 140-year-old telescope located in the hills east of San Jose until structural assessments and repairs are completed.
The wind tore loose half of the shutter on the Great Refractor dome. The multi-ton shutter piece fell onto the roof of the adjacent building and crushed several of its structural beams. The Great Refractor telescope wasn’t damaged, but the telescope’s precision lenses and electrical equipment are now exposed to rain. No one was injured as the series of storms that also occasioned a tornado warning in Santa Cruz moved through the region.
The Mount Hamilton observatory is a research facility of the University of California Observatories, headquartered at UC Santa Cruz. Bruce MacIntosh, the observatories’ director, said in a statement that it’s “heartbreaking” to see the damage. The repairs will likely take months to complete. There was no initial estimate on how much repairs will cost.
Matthew Shetrone, the observatories’ deputy director, said the incident was “a frightening moment for our staff.”
“When the storm broke, everyone was safe, but the spiritual core of our observatory had been damaged,” he said in a statement. “What followed was a remarkable response by staff to protect the telescope and stabilize the site.”
The remaining telescopes at the site are more modern, were not directly damaged and are continuing to operate. But to ensure safety, the staff are working to prevent further damage, assessing how it will be restored and planning when the facility can reopen to the public. The observatory hosts more than 3,000 visitors each year.
While UCSC staff are responsible for the facility, senior astronomers and undergraduate students from all nine UC undergraduate campuses, and community college partners, use it for their research.
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