Toronto Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory

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The observatory as it was originally built. The main building on the right, with the "dome" visible. The roof of the smaller buried building is just visible over the fence. Painted by William Armstrong in 1852.
The observatory as it was originally built. The main building on the right, with the "dome" visible. The roof of the smaller buried building is just visible over the fence. Painted by William Armstrong in 1852.
The newer observatory before it was moved, looking to the southwest. This image is the same orientation (although a different direction) as the one below; the reduction in size and general realignment made during the move is evident.
The newer observatory before it was moved, looking to the southwest. This image is the same orientation (although a different direction) as the one below; the reduction in size and general realignment made during the move is evident.
The "Old Observatory" looking east-southeast. The dome has been sealed for some time.
The "Old Observatory" looking east-southeast. The dome has been sealed for some time.

The Toronto Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory, also known as the Louis Beaufort Stewart Observatory, is a small observatory located on the grounds of what is now the University of Toronto. The observatory was originally part of a worldwide research project run by Edward Sabine, constructed in 1840 in order to determine what was causing fluctuations in the magnetic declination. Measurements from the Toronto site demonstrated that sunspots were responsible for this effect on Earth's magnetic field.[1] When this project ended, the observatory was taken over by the Canadian government, greatly expanded in 1855, and operated as a meteorological station for over fifty years. The Observatory was the first scientific institution in the country,[2] and is considered to be the birthplace of Canadian astronomy.[3] Although move and modified over the years, it remains the oldest building on campus.

Contents

[edit] Sabine's study

It had long been noticed that compasses tended to "wander" from north when measured from different locations, or even at a single location if measured over a period of time. This affected navigation to varying degrees, and was a topic of some interest for that reason. It was also believed that the same effects might be causing weather to change, so that studying the magnetic variance might lead to better weather prediction.

In 1833 the British Association for the Advancement of science commissioned a series of magnetic measurements across the United Kingdom. Under the direction of Edward Sabine, a multi-year measuring project was started with the results published in 1838.[4]. As the measurements were being made, a number of proposals were put forth to take the program worldwide. In 1836 Alexander von Humboldt wrote to the Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, then President of the Royal Society, stating that a formal program was important to a nation with dominions spread across the globe.[4] At the seventh meeting of the Royal Society in Liverpool in 1837, Sabine stated "the magnetism of the earth cannot be counted less than one of the most important branches of the physical history of the planet we inhabit" and that a worldwide effort would be "regarded by our contemporaries and by posterity as a fitting enterprise of a maritime people; and a worth achievement of a nation which has ever sought to tank foremost in every arduous undertaking."[5]

In 1837 the University of Dublin funded the installation of a magnetic observatory at Greenwich. The Association continued to press for the construction of similar observatories around the world, and in 1838 their suggestions were accepted.[4] In 1839 the British Government and the Royal Society prepared four expeditions to build magnetic observation stations in Cape Town, St. Helena, Hobart, Tasmania, and (eventually) Toronto.[6] Teams of Royal Artillery officers were sent out to make the measurements. The team assigned to Canada originally planned to build their observatory on Saint Helen's Island off Montreal, but the local rocks proved to have a high "magnetic influence", and the decision was made to move to Toronto instead.[7] The team arrived in 1839, and set up camp at Fort York in a disused barracks while construction started on new buildings. A ten-acre plot of land on King's College was eventually secured. At the time, the college itself was located where Queen's Park stands today; the observatory was given land in what was then an unused field to the west.[6]

The observatory, officially Her Majesty's Magnetical and Meteorological Observatory at Toronto, was completed the next year. It consisted of two log buildings, one for the magnetic instruments, and a smaller semi-buried building nearby for "experimental determinations". The main building also had a small conical "dome" connected to it on its northern end, containing a theodolite used to make astronomical measurements for the accurate determination of the local time. The buildings were constructed with as little metal as possible, and what it did use was made of brass or copper, non-magnetic materials.[2] A small barracks was built nearby to house the crew.

Using the measurements from the Toronto and Hobart sites, Sabine noticed both short term fluctuations over the period of hours, and longer term variations over months. He quickly concluded that these were due to the number of visible sunspots. He published two introductory papers on the topic in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, the first in 1851, a collection of early measurements, the second in 1852 correlated with Heinrich Schwabe's sunspot measurements, which had been made widely available in Alexander von Humboldt's Cosmos, also published in 1851.[8] With further data collected from the Toronto site, he was later able to demonstrate conclusively that the eleven-year sunspot cycle was the cause of a similar variation in the Earth's field.[2] He published a third and conclusive paper on the topic in 1856, On Periodical Laws discoverable in the mean effects of the larger Magnetic Disturbances. In this paper, he singled out the Toronto site for particular praise.[9]

[edit] Meteorological Service

In 1853 the Royal Society's project was concluded, and the observatory was to be abandoned. The fledgling colonial government had a lengthy debate on the issue, and eventually decided to take over operations. While the other three sites soon disappeared, the Toronto observatory was instead upgraded, expanding its mission to become a meteorological station under the direction of the Ministry of Marine and Fisheries. Along with this expansion, it was decided to replace the original cabins with a permanent structure.[10]

The current building was designed in 1853 by local architect, Frederick Cumberland, who was also working on the design of University College, which was being built just north of the Observatory to replace King's College. The new design, built of stone, consisted of a single building with an attached tower containing the theodolite. The new building was completed in 1855, located directly opposite the entrance of today's Convocation Hall. University College was completed in 1857, making the new Observatory the oldest remaining building on campus. Among its other uses, in 1880 measurements from the site were used as part of the effort to develop standard time.[11] It remained the official time keeper for Canada until 1905, when that responsibility was transferred to the Dominion Observatory in Ottawa.

In 1881 the director of the observatory, Charles Carpmeal, suggested that a quality telescope be added to the observatory. He felt that direct solar observations would lead to a better understanding of sunspot effects on weather, it still being believed that there was some direct connection. Coincidentally, the Canadian government (having formed in 1867) was interested in taking part in the major international effort to accurately record the Transit of Venus in December 1882. This led to the purchase of a 6-inch refracting telescope from T. Cooke & Sons, which was mounted on a large stone pillar that raised it high enough up the tower to have a reasonable field of view. Unfortunately, the new telescope was unable to take part in the transit measurements due to bad weather,[12][3] and missed the Transit of Mercury in 1895 for the same reason.[13]

[edit] The move

The observatory viewed north-northeast, with Hart House in the background,
The observatory viewed north-northeast, with Hart House in the background,

By the 1890s, the observatory was being crowded by the rapidly growing university. Electrification of the tramways along College Street, just to the south, and the large amounts of metal being used in the modern buildings surrounding the site threw off the instruments.[12] A new magnetic observatory was opened in 1898 in Agincourt, a suburb northeast of the city, leaving the campus location with its meteorological and solar observation duties.[14]

By 1907, the new university buildings completely surrounded the observatory; dust from the construction clogged the meteorological instruments, and the use of electric lighting at night made useful astronomical work impossible. The Meteorological Office decided to abandon the site, and move to a new building on the north end of campus on Bloor Street, trading the original Observatory to the University in exchange for the new parcel of land.[15] There was some discussion of what to do with the Cooke telescope, as the Meteorological Office had little use for this purely astronomical instrument. No other use was immediately forthcoming, and the telescope moved along with the Meteorological Office to their new Bloor Street Observatory.

Ownership of the now-disused Observatory building was turned over to the University. The University was aware of the problems with the site, and was originally going to simply abandon it. Louis Beaufort Stewart campaigned for it to be saved for the Department of Surveying and Geodesy he belonged to, eventually arranging for it to be re-constructed on a more suitable site. Demolition work was carried out in 1907, the stones simply left in place over the winter, and a re-arranged building was constructed out of them in 1908 just east of the main University College building (south of Hart House).[16][15]

In 1930 the Meteorological Office no longer used the Cooke and agreed to donate it to the University if they would handle its removal. Both the telescope and the observatory dome were moved to the Stewart Observatory.[17] The telescope moved once again in 1952 to the David Dunlap Observatory north of the city, and was more recently donated to the Canada Science and Technology Museum in 1984. The Department of Surveying and Geodesy used the observatory until the 1950s. Since then the office areas have been used for a variety of purposes, including a police substation, a phone switchboard,[12] and today the University of Toronto Students' Union (UTSU)'s head office.[11] The dome, now unused, receives a yearly multi-color paint job by the engineering students.

[edit] References

  1. ^ J.G. Hodgins (1910). The Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory, Toronto. L.K. Cameron / Schools and Colleges of Ontario. Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  2. ^ a b c Canada's First Magnetic Observatory. Canadian Space Agency (2005). Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  3. ^ a b Astronomy in Canada. The Discovery Channel (1999). Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  4. ^ a b c Thiessen, pg. 309
  5. ^ Thiessen, pg. 308, from Report of the Seventh Meeting of the British Association of the Advancement of Science, 1838
  6. ^ a b Thiessen, pg. 310
  7. ^ Thiessen, pg. 312
  8. ^ Morley K. Thomas (1970). Brief History of Meteorological Services in Canada. Volume 9 Number 1. Canadian Meteorological Service. Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  9. ^ Lieut.-Col. Sabine (1854). "On Periodical Laws Discoverable in the Mean Effects of the Larger Magnetic Disturbances". Royal Society of London. 
  10. ^ Beattie, pg. 109
  11. ^ a b University of Toronto Museum of Scientific Instruments. The Toronto Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory. University of Toronto Museum of Scientific Instruments. Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  12. ^ a b c Beattie, pg. 117
  13. ^ Beattie, pg. 115
  14. ^ Geomagnetism. Natural Resources - Canada (2005). Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  15. ^ a b Beattie, pg. 118
  16. ^ Brad Faught. Heavens Above: The Stewart Observatory has always inspired lofty dreams. University of Toronto Magazine. Retrieved on September 4, 2007.
  17. ^ Beattie, pg. 123

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links

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Coordinates: 43°39′47.47″N 79°23′40.6″W / 43.6631861, -79.394611