Percival Lowell detail in mid-1896 soon after the Alvan Clark & Sons refracting telescope was installed at his new Flagstaff, Arizona observatory. Lowell observed the planet high in the daytime sky with the telescope's lens stopped down to 3 inches in diameter to reduce the effect of the turbulent daytime atmosphere. Lowell observed spoke-like surface features including a central dark spot, contrary to what was suspected then (and known now): that Venus has no surface features visible from Earth, being covered in an atmosphere that is opaque. It has been noted in a 2003 "Journal for the History of Astronomy" paper and
Michigan State University Observatory MSU campus. In 1880, Professor Rolla C. Carpenter built an observatory for the (then) State Agricultural College to house an Alvan Clark & Sons refracting telescope of 5.5 inches aperture. The observatory was located behind his residence at Faculty Row No.2, near where Sarah Langdon Williams Hall stands today. The original telescope is on exhibit at the Abrams Planetarium. Approximately one pair of evenings per month, if the sky is sufficiently clear, the MSU observatory opens its doors for public observing. The MSU 0.6 meter telescope will be set up for viewing on selected astronomical objects throughout the evening. Also,