The first exhibit visitors encountered in 1935 was the Foucault pendulum, which was designed to demonstrate the rotation of the Earth. ( May 2014) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. This section needs additional citations for verification. He has been responsible for updating the technology and the building for over 45 years. On July 10, 2018, the Griffith Observatory was evacuated after a brush fire burned 25 acres and damaged cars but was extinguished before it damaged any buildings.Įd Krupp has been the director of the Observatory since 1974. On October 15, 2017, brush fires approached the Observatory Trail, but were extinguished before causing any structural damage. On May 25, 2008, the Observatory offered visitors live coverage of the Phoenix landing on Mars. Ī wildfire in the hills came dangerously close to the observatory on May 10, 2007. The building was expanded underground, with completely new exhibits, a café, gift shop, and the new Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater. The $93 million renovation, paid largely by a public bond issue, restored the building, as well as replaced the aging planetarium dome. It reopened to the public on November 2, 2006, retaining its Art Deco exterior. The observatory closed on Janufor renovation and a major expansion of exhibit space. The foundation continues to promote the observatory as an agent of science literacy, education, and experiential astronomy. The foundation supports the observatory in its mission of public astronomy and advocated the restoration and expansion of the observatory. Krupp (the current Observatory Director) and a small group of dedicated partners. It was founded by Debra Griffith and Harold Griffith (the grandson of the observatory's benefactor) with Dr. Griffith Observatory Foundation was chartered in 1978 as Friends Of The Observatory. The planetarium was again used for this purpose in the 1960s to train Apollo program astronauts for the first lunar missions. ĭuring World War II, the planetarium was used to train pilots in celestial navigation. The building combines Greek and Beaux-Arts influences, and the exterior is embellished with the Greek key pattern. Dinsmore Alter was the museum's director during its first years. In its first five days of operation the observatory logged more than 13,000 visitors. The observatory and accompanying exhibits were opened to the public on May 14, 1935, as the country's third planetarium. Austin and Frederic Morse Ashley (1870-1960), based on preliminary sketches by Russell W. Īs a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project, construction began on June 20, 1933, using a design developed by architects John C. In drafting the plans, he consulted with Walter Sydney Adams, the future director of Mount Wilson Observatory, and George Ellery Hale, who founded (with Andrew Carnegie) the first astrophysical telescope in Los Angeles.

Griffith drafted detailed specifications for the observatory. Griffith's objective was to make astronomy accessible to the public, as opposed to the prevailing idea that observatories should be located on remote mountaintops and restricted to scientists. In his will Griffith donated funds to build an observatory, exhibit hall, and planetarium on the donated land. On December 16, 1896, 3,015 acres (12.20 km 2) of land surrounding the observatory was donated to the City of Los Angeles by Griffith J.

Griffith observatory at night