Hall Science Building dome and telescope saved by Berea alum 

In April, Berea College alum Jeff Hutton heard the Charles M. Hall Building was scheduled to be demolished during the spring of 2021 and knew he had to act.

In his time at Berea, Hutton worked as a tour guide of the Hall Building's Boiler and Chivens telescope and observatory dome. That equipment was now in danger.

As a self-described science and astronomy geek, Hutton viewed the telescope and dome preservation as a duty to science.

"Science is hard work, it's creativity, it's not men in white coats talking shop that no one can understand," he said.

According to Hutton, science is for everyone, and recycling the equipment in the Hall Building observatory is critical for that mission.

On June 6, Hutton and a team removed the 16-inch Boiler and Chivens telescope and observatory dome installed in the Gib Roberts Observatory atop the Hall Building.

The instruments are to be repurposed.

The process to find a new owner for the telescope and observatory dome was a lengthy one. First, Hutton had to receive approval from the college for the undertaking.

President Roelofs was quick to give his support as he has a love for old scientific equipment.

Hutton put the word out to the astronomy community, and several responses came in within hours. People around the United States and Canada expressed their interest in acquiring the equipment.

Hutton was able to narrow the applicants down to three people who expressed interest in the equipment and also possessed the capability to transport the telescope and other instruments from Berea.

The college told Hutton they could not pay the $15,000 required to have the equipment removed from the building by a crane. This cost would have to be covered by the receiver of the telescope and dome.

Only one candidate remained after that announcement.

A man from British Columbia, Canada, offered to pay the $15,000 to have the telescope and dome removed. However, he could not travel to the United States because of COVID restrictions.

A friend in the states stepped in to save the day.

He offered to accept the dome at his home in Pennsylvania and deliver it to the buyer later.

After everything was settled, the time came to remove the telescope and the dome. Berea resident and retired engineer Howard Carlberg helped Hutton prepare the telescope for removal. This process involved disassembling hardware and the telescope's optical tube assembly.

A crane service completed the removal of the observatory dome and two main components of the Hall Science Building without incident.

Hutton said he only felt relief as the dome and telescope came off.

"I knew it was going to be safe," he said.

Hutton also credited the help of everyone who assisted in the preservation to the mission's success.

"I could not have done it without them," he said.

The telescope and the dome found new homes far away from each other.

The telescope found its way to Canada, where it will be used to measure the atmospheric densities of Uranus and Neptune by a process called stellar occultation. Hutton suspected the telescope could also be used in tracking asteroids that have the potential of striking earth.

The dome shipped to New Mexico where it will become part of a remote observatory for cadets enrolled at the U.S. Naval Academy.

By successfully removing the dome and the telescope, Berea College comes one step closer to the full demolition of the Hall Science Building.

After a delay in the demolition process, the demolition of the Hall Building will start on Monday. Visitors and residents can expect the demolition to be completed by August 23.