The April society meeting was on Wednesday 22nd. ‘George Ellery Hale, and the Golden Age of American Astronomy”, was the title of the presentation at Aprils society meeting delivered by Rod Hine from our neighbours at Bradford Astronomical Society. George Ellery Hale, was a driven individual, who worked to found a number of significant astronomical observatories, including Yerkes Observatory, Mount Wilson Observatory, Palomar Observatory, and the Hale Solar Laboratory.
At Mount Wilson, he hired and encouraged Harlow Shapley and Edwin Hubble toward some of the most significant discoveries of the time. He was a prolific organizer who helped create a number of astronomical institutions, societies and journals. Hale also played a central role in developing the California Institute of Technology into a leading research university. After retiring as director at Mount Wilson, he built the Hale Solar Laboratory in Pasadena, California, as his office and workshop, pursuing his interest in the sun.
