The PenOpticon

A response to Bob McDonald's April 18, 2008 blog about Black Holes, Dr. Tom Bolton and David Dunlap Observatory:

Thank you for bringing attention to the plight of the David Dunlap Observatory and the accomplishments of Dr. Tom Bolton.   The imminent sale of the Observatory and surrounding property has unlocked a complex set of issues that deserve to be fully examined by the people of Ontario.   As the Honourable Lincoln Alexander, Chair of Ontario Heritage Trust wrote in a February 8 letter to Richmond Hill Town Council , "the property possesses an exceptional range of heritage values and heritage significance including architectural, historical, scientific, landscape, natural and recreational."

Alexander adds: "The [Ontario Heritage] Trust supports the preservation and protection of the David Dunlap Observatory and Park for the benefit of present and future generations of the people of Ontario."

The David Dunlap Observatory was always intended to be used for three purposes:  public education, research and as public park. As the longest-running astronomy education facility in Ontario (if not Canada), the DDO has hosted thousands of school groups and adults at public lectures and tours of the telescope.  During the recent Earth Hour celebrations, some 500 guests visited the grounds. They were awed by the 74-inch telescope and inspired by the passion and knowledge of DDO astronomers and technicians.

When it comes to research, the DDO's international reputation is still well known and well-deserved.  It is true that the 74-inch telescope can not be used for cutting edge observation of extra-galactic objects, but the facility has worked well for resident astronomers, such as Dr. Slavek Rucinski's studies of close binary systems and continues to attract international observers for stellar spectroscopy projects.

So why is the University of Toronto so eager to close David Dunlap Observatory when American and European astronomers recognize the need to maintain small and medium aperture telescopes?  For instance, the NOAO ReSTAR Committee (Renewing Small Telescopes for Astronomical Research) states in their 2007 final report:  "The science to be done with small and mid-size telescopes remains compelling and competitive in the era of big telescopes. Small and mid-size telescopes continue to produce innovative science in themselves, and to provide precursor and follow-up observations that enhance the scientific productivity of larger telescopes. Small and mid-size telescopes also enable scientific investigations that are not possible on larger telescopes."

Despite the evidence that the DDO and other facilities in its class continue to produce quality science, we are told the University of Toronto is more interested in "big science" projects such as the Thirty Meter Telescope. This is understandable, even commendable.  However, the closure and sale of the Dunlap property will fetch only a pittance compared to the vast sums needed for the TMT.  Its sale will not solve U of T's funding issues – and it shouldn't.  Selling the land beneath our feet to fund public institutions is unsustainable and socially reprehensible.

As a "park", the Dunlap property has long been a hidden jewel in the middle of Richmond Hill.  Despite Jessie Dunlap's original intent, the DDO has never been actively presented as a public space, but it has been regularly used by DDO staff and by the wider Richmond Hill community since it first opened. For many years part of the property was also operated as research arboretum by the U of T faculty of forestry.  Over 75 years, the DDO has morphed from clear-cut farmland to a diverse mixture of forest and meadowlands that provide habitat for dozens of bird species and many large and small mammals. The result is a unique urban wilderness that Phil Goodwin, Chair of the Don Watershed Council, calls "a rarity within the urban landscape that should be respected and nurtured" [link ]

It is disheartening to think one of Canada's most respected universities is willing to sell off a 75-year-old legacy with no public debate and very little planning (only scant details of the new "Dunlap Institute" have been publicly announced).  

It is to be hoped that after reconsidering the value of small telescopes in general and the "sustainable science" the DDO produces just a few kilometers from U of T's main campus, along with its value for public education and as a green urban oasis, the University will decide to hold onto the DDO for many more years.

However, if the University is determined to dispense with 75 years of its own history, then it should work with the DDO astronomers, the people of Richmond Hill and the Canadian amateur astronomy community to transition the facility into a self-sustaining institution.  Such a process could take several years, but it would be worth it.  As we begin to understand the full range of consequences of climate change and other growth-related environmental problems, the rapacious era of "greenfield" development must come to an end.  Ironically, the University of Toronto is home to hundreds of academics that specialize in climate change, biodiversity, forest ecology, conservation biology and sustainability.  Let us hope the University listens to these experts and turns irony into action by refusing to sell the Dunlap property to developers.