The last of the dome: the South African project is decommissioned

1996 · local · Prince Albert

Chile won. Cerro Tololo had about 40 per cent more clear nights than Zeekoegat and far smaller temperature swings, and the Zeekoegat telescope was shipped to La Silla. Adriaan Blaauw: the switch "did not pass without bewilderment to the young astronomers... their disappointment was undeniable". A tired sign reading FRENCH OBSERVATORY still marks the turn-off.

Sources

• Rose Willis & Doreen Atkinson, "Zeekoegat: Explorations in the Koup Karoo" (2022) 38pp cameo

Told in

• subject The French Observatory