This presentation sees the return of Steve Barrett from Liverpool University, who, in his own inimitable style, will tell the story of the development, construction and history of the truly iconic ‘Hale 200″ Telescope’, which has operated on Mount Palomar since ‘first light’ in 1949.

Despite it no longer being the largest telescope in the world, the development of active optics has kept this instrument at the cutting edge of astronomical research.