This book, written by Professor Adriaan Blaauw (ESO Director General 1970 - 1974), tells the early story of ESO. It begins in the early 1950's when leading European astronomers initiated the project and started a search for the best possible site under the comparatively unexplored southern sky. It describes the development of ESO up to about 1975.
Author(s): Adriaan Blaauw
Publisher: European Southern Observatory
Year: 1991
Language: English
Pages: 286
City: München
ESO Early History Titelpage
The European Southern Observatory in 1991
Contents
Foreword
Preface
I. Striving Towards the Convention
A Historical Statement
Towards the Convention
Withrawal of Great Britain
The Grant of the ford Foundation
Founding Fathers
The Final Struggles
II. Searching for a Site in South Africa
Introduction
First Impressions
Astronomical "Seeing"
Adding Some "Real" Astronomy
The Quick-Look Expedition
The Comprehensive Programme, 1961-1963
Last Tests in South Africa: the Siedentopf Experiment
The Tübingen Photometric Project
The Marseilles GPO Project
The Comprehensive Reports on the South African Tests
At the End, Bewilderment and Consent
For South Africa, A Word of Gratitude
III. 26 May 1964: ESO Chooses La Silla
Jürgen Stock´s Early Explorations
ESO´s Growing Interes in the Andes
Muller and McSharry Join Stock´s Group
The June 1963 AURO-ESO Summit Meeting in Chile
Follow-up on the Summit Meeting
ESO Chooses the Andes Mountains for its Observatory
The Convenio with Chile
The Relation to AURO
ESO Chooses La Silla
IV. Council and Directorate set to Work; the Initial Programme of Middle-Size Telescopes
Introduction
Heckmann Becomes ESO´s First Director, November 1962
Council and Finance Committee
Earliest Developments in Instrumentation
ESO´s Oldest Committee, the Instrumentation Commitee
The Middle-Size Telescopes
The 1-Metre Photometric Telescope
The Spectrographic Telescope
The GPO (Grand Prism Objectif.)
The Astrolabe
ESO Chooses its Emblem
V. Earliest Developments in Chile; 24 March 1966: The Road on La Silla dedicated
Introduction
The Acquisition of the La Silla Territory
Building up the Opservatory; First Step: Road and Camps
The Problem of the Mining Rights
The Building Programme; Early Architectural Planning
Progress over the Years 1964-1966
Organizational Structure and Employees
The ESO Guesthouse
Council Meeting and Dedication, March 1966
VI. Further Developments in Chile; 25 March 1969: The First Phase Dedicated; The Introduction of National Telescopes
The Inauguration
Developments on La Silla, 1967-1969
The Santiago Headquarters
The Vitacura Donation
The National Telescopes
The First National Telescope: the Bochum 60-cm
The Danish 50-cm Telescope
The Danish National 1.5-m Telescope; Basic Considerations
The Dedications
The Dedication Symposium on the Magellanic Clouds
VII. The Late 1960´s: Structural Changes, First Scientific Activities and Some Soul-Searching; the Journal A & A
Introduction
Changes in the Directorate
Earliest Scientific Activities and the Creation of the SPC
The Scientific Programms Committee (SPC)
The First Coopérants
The Roden Colloquium on Photometry of February 1966 and the Nice Colloquium on Spectroscopy of June 1969
The Allocation of Observing Time
The SPC and the future: More Telescopes and an ESO Centre?
The Proposed New Telescopes
Soul-Searching in the Late 1960´s
The Report of the Working Group
Creation of Committee of Council
ESO and the Creation of the Journal Astronom
y and Astrophysics
VIII. The 3.6-m Telescope Project from Concept to the Late 1960´s
Introduction
Basic Concept
Early Conferences and Texts
The choice and Ordering of the Optics
The Mirror Cells
Tube and Mounting; Strewinski´s Pre-Design
The Combined Horse-Shoe and Fork Mounting
Stagnation- and Growing Impatience
The IC Meetings in 1969
The Building
The Dome
Automation in telescope Control
IX. the 3.6-m telescope Project Division ESO Collaborates with Cern
ESO Approaches CERN
Consultation with ESRO
The Documents Cou-59 and Cou-60 of December 1969
Pursuing the In.House Group Concept: Doc. Cou-66
First ESO Committee of Council Meeting, May 6, 1970
Council Resolves to Collaborate with CERN
September 16, 1970: the ESO-CERN Agreement Signed
A Few Further Milestones
X. The Schmidt Telescope: Design, Construction, the ESO-SRC Agreement and the Onset of Survey Projects
Bernhard Schmidt and Early Developments at Hamburg Observatory
Planning the ESO Schmidt
Mechanical Engineer and Manufacturer
Some Design Features
A daring Design, Not Realized
The Optics
Mechanical Construction and First Tests
Heckmann´s Concern in Retrospect
Steps Toward Perfection
The Sky Atlas Laboratory
The Quick Blue Survey
A British Sister for the ESO Schmidt
The Hamburg Conference on Schmidt Telescopes
The ESO-SCR Agreement
The ESO-Uppsala Faint Galaxies Survey
XI. Policy, Payments and a bit of Politics
Introduction
Matters of Policy
(A) ESO, A Centre for Research?
The Scientific Policy Committee Created
A Research-Oriented Group at ESO?
The Workshop Proposal
A Formal Statement from German Side
The Political Aspect
The Year 1974: the centre in Sight
(B) ESO´s Geographical Dispersion
Extension of Facilities in Chile
Moving "Vitacura" to La Serena?
The Year 1974: Restructuring in Sight
The Financial Story
The Pre-Convention Period, 1954-1963
About Dollars and Deutschmarks
Early Annual Contributions and Project Costs
Early Cost Estimates
The Post-Convention Years
The Annual Contributions from 1964
Conflicting Interests and the Bannier Procedure
First Post Conventions Years, 1964-1969
The Years 1971-76; The TP Division
Overall Developments Sinve 1954
References and Notes
Annexes
The ESO Historical Archives (EHA)
The Ford Foundation and the European Southern Observatory
Meetings of the ESO Committee, 1953-1963
Meetings of the Instrumentation Committee, 1961-1974
Meetings of Council and Finance Committee, 1964-1969
Meetings of Council, Committee of Council and Finance Committee, 1970-1974
Meetings of Scientifi Programmes Committee, Observing Programmes Committee and Scientific Policy Committee, 1968-1974
Subject Index
Name Index
