Station fire nearby the Wilson Observatory and Jet propulsion Observatory
217P/LINEAR is breaking up or giving birth?
August 24, 2009Mount Wilson Observatory – an update
August 31, 2009Hello,
A station fire burning North of La Canada, nearby Los Angeles, CA, is moving toward the Wilson Observatory (MWO). This is a serious threat and for the moment the fire is supposed to reach the observatory on Sunday afternoon.
The fire started on Wednesday afternoon and situation aggravated with several mandatory evacuations of areas located nearby the 5,500 acres fire. The director of the observatory Hal McAlister was posting several updates on their website over the Saturday afternoon. However at around 4:40pm the observatory was completely evacuated so it will be difficult to get updates about the situation until tomorrow. However the webcam of the observatory is still working and shows the proximity of the fire.
A snap shot of the Mount Wilson Observatory taken at 8:05pm. The wild fire is nearby,
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory is also a few miles away from the fire but it is not in direct threat yet. However, “as a precautionary measure, JPL’s Oak Grove site (the main location) has been closed. JPL will remain closed through the weekend except for essential personnel.” The spreading of the fire can be monitored on the LA Times web site.
The mount Wilson was funded in 1904. Let’s hope everything is going to be fine for this 100-year old observatory. This bad situation remains me the wild fire near Canberra, Australia which entirely destroyed the Mount Stromlo (telescopes, offices and workshops) in January 2003 unfortunately 🙁
Clear Skies
Franck M.
