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Buildings at Melbourne Observatory
Image: Negative - View of Melbourne Observatory, 1880s
Source: Museum Victoria
The location of buildings across the Observatory site was a direct outcome of the scientific requirements of the work being undertaken.
When Melbourne Observatory opened in 1863, all the astronomical functions of the Observatory were initially gathered in the main building, including the transit telescope, equatorial telescope and prime vertical telescope. However the sensitive magnetic instruments needed to be kept way from any other metal objects that might disturb the measurements. The instruments were kept in two separate magnet houses, the Absolute House and the Horary House, both some distance from the main Observatory building, and separate from one another. The meteorological instruments were also kept in a separate cluster to the east of the main building, so that the air could circulate freely around the thermometers.
The location of additional buildings and structures was also dictated by scientific and astronomical considerations. Transit telescopes could be attached to the main building as they only had to have line of sight in one plane; thus new transit rooms were added to the main building in 1866 and 1883. New equatorial-mounted telescopes were placed elsewhere on the grounds so that they could have clear views at lower altitudes; attaching them to the main building would have added considerably to the costs, as they would need to be raised higher to give them a clear view over the main building's roofline. The Astrograph could be relatively close to the main building to its north, because its allotted task was to photograph stars towards the south celestial pole.
The location of the Great Melbourne Telescope some distance from the main building was dictated by the concern that it should be removed as far as possible from the existing magnet houses on the south and west of the site, to reduce the chance of the large metal telescope, lenses and associated machinery interfering with the magnetic observations. Its location to the north of the site also gave it clear lines of sight in most directions, except for its own roll-back roof to the south.
Timeline of Main Buildings
Absolute Magnet House, 1861
Horary Magnet House, 1861; demolished & replaced by Differential Magnet House, 1867
Main Observatory Building, 1861-1863
Astronomer's Residence (original), 1861; demolished 1914
Assistant Astronomer's Residence, 1861; demolished 1914
Second Transit Room added to Main Building, 1866
Differential Magnet House, 1867; demolished & replaced by Magnet House, 1877
Great Melbourne Telescope House, 1869-1870
Thermograph House, 1870; demolished
Photoheliograph House, 1873
South Equatorial House, 1874
Magnet House, 1877
Thermometer Shed, 1879; moved 1885; demolished
East Transit Room added to Main Building, 1883
New Workshop added to Great Melbourne Telescope House, 1888
Astrograph House, 1889
Astronomer's Residence (new), 1889
Computing Room added to Main Building, 1892
Caretaker's Quarters, 1902
Astrophotographic Room added to Main Building, 1902
Strong Room added to Main Building, 1902
Whirling Room added to Great Melbourne Telescope House, 1904
Anemometer Tower, 1906
Items per page: 10 50 (showing 51 - 60) 351 items
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Negative - Jeffree Telescope, Melbourne Observatory, circa 1960
The Jeffree telescope in the Astrograph House at Melbourne Observatory, circa 1960. The Jeffree Telescope was built in the 1930s at the Bendigo Railway Workshops, and purchased by the ...
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 1 -
Negative - View of Melbourne Observatory, 1880s
View of Melbourne Observatory, taken from the tower of Government House. Photo taken after construction of Thermometer Shed in 1879 and prior to construction of Astrograph House in 1889 ...
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 4 -
Negative - Whirling Room, Melbourne Observatory
Interior of the Whirling Room, erected at Melbourne Observatory in 1905, at the south end of the Great Melbourne Telescope House. The whirling machine in the centre was used to test air ...
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 1 -
Negative - South Equatorial House & Photoheliograph House, Melbourne Observatory, 1969
View of South Equatorial House and Photoheliograph House, Melbourne Observatory.
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 1 -
No Image Available
Telescope & Striding Level - Theodolite, Troughton & Simms, 10 Inch
Telescope and striding level of 10 inch theodolite made by Troughton & Simms, London. Used at Melbourne Observatory.
From: London, United Kingdom Images: 0 -
Photograph - Great Melbourne Telescope, South Yarra, Victoria, circa 1870
Great Melbourne Telescope at Melbourne Observatory, circa 1870. The 48 inch equatorial reflecting telescope was constructed by Thomas Grubb, Dublin and installed at the observatory in ...
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 2 -
Photograph - Main Building, Melbourne Observatory, South Yarra, Victoria, 1880s
Photo taken between 1883 (after construction of East Transit Room, on left, and 1892, when Computing Room was constructed to the right of the East Transit Room). Photograph in a photog ...
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 1 -
Negative - Erection of Great Melbourne Telescope, 1869
Erection of the Great Melbourne Telescope at Melbourne Observatory, 1869.
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 2 -
No Image Available
Stand & Horizontal Circle - Theodolite, Troughton & Simms, 10 Inch
Stand and horizontal circle of 10 inch theodolite made by Troughton & Simms, London. Used at Melbourne Observatory.
From: London, United Kingdom Images: 0 -
Photograph - Main Building, Melbourne Observatory, South Yarra, Victoria, circa 1890s
Main observatory building, Melbourne Observatory. Photo taken between 1883 (after completion of East Transit Room, on far right) and 1902 (before construction of Astrophotographic Room) ...
From: South Yarra, Australia Images: 1
