CCD experiments started at the OAO by Kawakami Hajime and his group in the
early 1980s. The first observations with a CCD camera were made in 1985 for both
the 188- and 91-cm telescopes (Kawakami et al. 1985). The age of photographic
observations ended in around 1990. Thereafter, CCD became the main detectors of
observations and rapidly spread to every observatory in Japan.
6.3.2 Dodaira Station of TAO
As an attached station of the Mitaka Campus of the TAO, Dodaira Station was
established in 1962 atop Mt. Dodaira in the Chichibu Mountains of Saitama Prefecture (TAO 1977, pp. 89–92).
The main telescope was the 91-cm equatorial reflector made by Nihon Kogaku in
Japan. A photographic camera was attached in the primary focus, and the photometric photometer was first prepared in the Cassegrain focus, and later a prism
spectrograph was installed. Kitamura Masatoshi (Chap. 7), who participated in the
construction of the station, used a photometric photometer for the 91-cm telescope
and observed variable stars and binary stars. According to his memoirs, sky transparency during the winter in the period 1960–1970s was excellent for photometric
observations (Kitamura 2000).
A Schmidt telescope with a 50-cm aperture (50, 65 cm, f ¼ 100 cm) was moved
from the Mitaka campus and used to observe comets, asteroids, and artificial
satellites. An automatic photographic camera attached to a prism spectrograph was
constructed in 1964 by Hirose’s group for observations of meteor showers (see
section on Hirose in Chap. 3). Other facilities included a polar tube for the observations of the North Pole, an observation room with a night sky light.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the night sky of Dodaira was becoming bright because of
the city lights of the Tokyo area. Finally, Dodaira Station was closed at the end
of 2000.
6.3.3 Kiso Observatory and Schmidt Telescope
A large Schmidt telescope was built following long discussions in an interuniversity
group on galactic astronomy (SAM, see Sect. 3.6). The SAM meeting in 1965 was
devoted to the design of a Schmidt telescope as well as to the future research
programs to be pursued with the new telescope.
In 1974, the Schmidt telescope was installed at the Kiso Observatory on a peak on
the Kiso Mountains, Nagano Prefecture. The site was selected for its ample dark sky
as a result of its location far from the two big cities of Tokyo and Nagoya.
The telescope was made by Nihon-Kogaku, and it has a correcting plate (105 cm)
and main spherical mirror (150 cm), with a focal length of 330 cm (the focal ratio is
3.1). The 30 Â 30-cm photographic plate covers a sky field of 5
 5
. Compared to
142
6 Postwar Development of Astrophysics, 1946–2000 (Part I: Instrumentation)
early 1980s. The first observations with a CCD camera were made in 1985 for both
the 188- and 91-cm telescopes (Kawakami et al. 1985). The age of photographic
observations ended in around 1990. Thereafter, CCD became the main detectors of
observations and rapidly spread to every observatory in Japan.
6.3.2 Dodaira Station of TAO
As an attached station of the Mitaka Campus of the TAO, Dodaira Station was
established in 1962 atop Mt. Dodaira in the Chichibu Mountains of Saitama Prefecture (TAO 1977, pp. 89–92).
The main telescope was the 91-cm equatorial reflector made by Nihon Kogaku in
Japan. A photographic camera was attached in the primary focus, and the photometric photometer was first prepared in the Cassegrain focus, and later a prism
spectrograph was installed. Kitamura Masatoshi (Chap. 7), who participated in the
construction of the station, used a photometric photometer for the 91-cm telescope
and observed variable stars and binary stars. According to his memoirs, sky transparency during the winter in the period 1960–1970s was excellent for photometric
observations (Kitamura 2000).
A Schmidt telescope with a 50-cm aperture (50, 65 cm, f ¼ 100 cm) was moved
from the Mitaka campus and used to observe comets, asteroids, and artificial
satellites. An automatic photographic camera attached to a prism spectrograph was
constructed in 1964 by Hirose’s group for observations of meteor showers (see
section on Hirose in Chap. 3). Other facilities included a polar tube for the observations of the North Pole, an observation room with a night sky light.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the night sky of Dodaira was becoming bright because of
the city lights of the Tokyo area. Finally, Dodaira Station was closed at the end
of 2000.
6.3.3 Kiso Observatory and Schmidt Telescope
A large Schmidt telescope was built following long discussions in an interuniversity
group on galactic astronomy (SAM, see Sect. 3.6). The SAM meeting in 1965 was
devoted to the design of a Schmidt telescope as well as to the future research
programs to be pursued with the new telescope.
In 1974, the Schmidt telescope was installed at the Kiso Observatory on a peak on
the Kiso Mountains, Nagano Prefecture. The site was selected for its ample dark sky
as a result of its location far from the two big cities of Tokyo and Nagoya.
The telescope was made by Nihon-Kogaku, and it has a correcting plate (105 cm)
and main spherical mirror (150 cm), with a focal length of 330 cm (the focal ratio is
3.1). The 30 Â 30-cm photographic plate covers a sky field of 5
 5
. Compared to
142
6 Postwar Development of Astrophysics, 1946–2000 (Part I: Instrumentation)