"Winds exceeding 110 mph that tore across the top of Mount Hamilton early Christmas morning blasted a massive steel protective door off the iconic white dome at Lick Observatory. Now, with back-to-back rainstorms bearing down on the Bay Area, officials this week are racing to seal the gaping hole and protect the historic Great Lick Refractor telescope beneath it. I've never seen or even heard of damage like this to a dome, said Lick Observatory site superintendent Jamey Eriksen."
"From the Bay Area below, the dome sheltering the Great Refractor still appears intact. Up close, the damage is stark: a multi-ton, 60-foot crescent of steel that once covered half the dome's vertical opening is gone. It was one of two giant doors that slid open to reveal the night sky, then closed again to protect the telescope from the elements. Now it lies on the pavement beside the dome."
"Inside, an all-hands scramble by a skeleton holiday-season crew helped avert worse damage. Beneath the dome, the 57-foot-long Great Refractor telescope is wrapped in black plastic tarps from eyepiece to lens assembly. Above it, the fallen door has left a gap in the steel dome roughly 4 feet wide and 10 feet tall, with a larger opening below it covered only by a fabric windscreen."
A powerful wind event blew a multi-ton, 60-foot crescent steel door off the Lick Observatory dome, exposing the Great Lick Refractor telescope to the elements. The fallen door now rests on pavement beside the dome and left a gap about 4 feet wide and 10 feet tall, with a larger opening below covered only by fabric. A skeleton holiday crew wrapped the 57-foot telescope in black plastic tarps to limit damage. Two incoming rainstorms could dump roughly two inches of rain combined, creating urgent risk to lenses and electrical systems. Temporary and permanent repair plans remain unclear, and contractors have proposed drilling into the dome surface as one option.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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