Astronomy Videos

For thousands of years, people used sundials to tell the time. The first sundials were used more than 3,500 years ago in Egypt.

The sundial showcased in this video was designed by Otto Klotz, an astronomer who worked at the Dominion Observatory. It was made by Pritchard and Andrews, a company from Ottawa, Canada. This sundial was made over 100 years ago for a Member of Parliament, W. Paterson, who lived in Ottawa and later became a Senator.

Radio Telescopes

The Sun and stars emits radio waves — not just visible and infrared light. In the 1930s, Karl Jansky built the first devise to “listen” to the sun, collecting radio waves from far off stars and focusing them onto a detector. This invention provided astronomers with a completely different view of the Universe — prompting the discovery of radio stars, quasars, and black holes.

This video features a model of the Algonquin Radio Observatory (ARO), located in Ontario’s Algonquin Provincial Park. In 1968, astronomers combined signals from the ARO with those from the Dominion Astrophysical Radio Observatory in Penticton, British Columbia forming a new instrument called a Long Baseline Interferometer.

Optical Telescopes — Part I

The beginning of modern astronomy is often linked to Galileo building his first telescope in 1609 — roughly 400 years ago! While he was not the first person to use a telescope, Galileo made many fascinating discoveries, ultimately revealing that the Earth orbits the sun.

This video showcases the Zenith Telescope, built by Troughton & Simms in London, England circa 1872. Surveyors used this telescope to mark the boundary between Canada and the United States along the 49th parallel in western Canada.

Optical Telescopes — Part II

The first national observatories were built for two practical reasons: to provide accurate timekeeping, and to assist surveyors with mapping. As technology developed, telescopes became larger and provided more detailed images. Astronomers, in turn, became increasing interested in understanding the stars and objects that they could now see using these higher-resolution telescopes.

The 15” refracting telescope featured in this video was built by the Warner and Swasey company of Cleveland, Ohio. It was originally located at Ottawa’s Dominion Observatory. With the closure of this observatory in 1970s, it was moved to the Canada Science and Technology Museum. It is now housed in the Museum’s Helen Sawyer Hogg Observatory, where it is used for public astronomy education.