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TC: MTC [Mirror Transit Circle] Drawings, 1951 - 1962

 Sub-Series
Reference Code: GBR/0180/RGO 101/1/TC

Scope and Contents

A set of 37 drawings of the Mirror Transit Circle labelled 'TC MTC, 1st system Nos. not m/f'. Includes drawings of sizes V, W, X, Y and Z, V being the largest.

The Mirror Transit Circle was a proposed RGO instrument which was never built. The idea for the instrument developed in the late 1940s and 1950s and was promoted by Chief Assistant, Robert Atkinson. It was intended for the measurement of both declination and right ascension. By 1963 a design had been worked out in detail with the manufacturers Grubb Parsons and by 1964 a 1:10 scale model of the MTC pavillion, pier and instruments had been made. Atkinson retired later that year, a factor which may have contributed to the fact that the telescope was never built.

Dates

  • Creation: 1951 - 1962

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

From the Management Group:

Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).

Extent

37 sheet(s) (rolled in 1 tube and 2 boxed rolls) : paper

Bibliography

For further information, see http://www.royalobservatorygreenwich.org/articles.php?article=1073.

Repository Details

Part of the Cambridge University Library Repository

Contact:
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