Lowell Observatory Lowell Observatory Lowell Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. Lowell Observatory was established in 1894, placing it among the oldest observatories in the United States, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965. In 2011, the Observatory was named one of "The World's 100 Most Important Places" by TIME. It was at the Lowell Observatory that the dwarf planet Pluto was discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh. The observatory was founded by astronomer Percival Lowell of Boston's Lowell family and is overseen by a sole trustee, a position historically handed down through the family. The
Lowell Observatory and Chile. Past Anderson Mesa, on the peak of Happy Jack, Lowell Observatory has also built and is commissioning the Discovery Channel Telescope in partnership with Discovery Communications, Inc. The observatory has carried out a wide array of research. One of its programs was the measurement of the variability of solar irradiance. When Harold L. Johnson took over as the director in 1952, the stated objective became to focus on light from the Sun reflecting from Uranus and Neptune. In 1953, the current telescope was erected. Beginning in 1954, this telescope began monitoring the brightness of these two planets, and