| Thomas Cave,
distinguished planetary observer and founder of Cave Optical Company,
built an observatory in his backyard in 1940. The observatory is
still in use, and although it is now surrounded by newer construction,
it still has a clear view of the ecliptic. The more than 16,000
Astrola telescopes produced between 1950 and 1980 still have loyal
fans. A web site for Astrola enthusiasts can be accessed at this
URL: Cave Astrola Telescopes.
These photographs were taken on May 16, 2003. I had talked with Tom the previous week and was hoping to continue our conversation on this visit. Unfortunately, on the 16th he was back in the hospital and died two weeks later (see below).
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Thomas Cave 1923 - 2003 Thomas Cave passed away on June 4, 2003. I was fortunate enough to have talked to him only three weeks before his death at a meeting of the Orange County Astronomers. To the end he still had vivid memories of his career in astronomy and optics and could recall all of the oppositions of Mars he had witnessed and recorded. Sadly, he will miss the upcoming "great opposition" this August, an event he was hoping to see. Astronomy magazine has a tribute to his legacy posted here: http://www.astronomy.com/Content/Dynamic/Articles/000/000/001/371sejig.asp Sky and Telescope's tribute is here: http://skyandtelescope.com/news/article_974_1.asp
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Today the Cave observatory has only a view to the southeast. To see how it appeared in 1940 have a look at this site: Cave Observatory 1940 |
Interior view of Cave's "Mars Hill" (Lowell Observatory) type dome. |
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| Cave Observatory's 12.5 in (32 cm) Newtonian |
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Mounting detail No. 1 |
Mounting detail No. 2 |
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Thomas Cave drawings on observatory wall |
Mars 1956 (detail) |