OVER 140 YEARS after it was made, one unassuming astronomical instrument at Butler University continues to put the stars in focus. It’s a 6-inch-diameter lens refracting telescope first crafted for a Madison, Indiana, contractor in 1883. It was made by famed optic manufacturer Alvan Clark & Sons, which was responsible for creating some of the largest refractors ever. Refractors use lenses to bend light to make distant objects visible. Aarran Shaw, Butler assistant professor of physics and astronomy, says they function much like binoculars or eyeglasses. (Reflectors, which are more common today among large telescopes, use mirrors.) The refractor survived Butler’s relocation from Irvington to the north side in 1928 and a pause in astronomy courses during World War II before arriving at its current home at Holcomb Observatory & Planetarium in 1954. It sits astride a 38-inch reflector, the largest telescope in Indiana. That’s not to say the smaller telescope is obsolete; it’s still used as a “finder telescope” to verify the larger one is aligned, explains Shaw. He also says it’s sometimes better to view the moon through the 6-inch lens because the light is almost overpowering through the reflector. Shaw notes that the telescope also grants a glimpse at the history of astronomy in the Hoosier state. “You’re looking through this eyepiece that is as old as the history of the university itself, essentially.”
