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
Blue Mesa Observatory Blue Mesa Observatory Blue Mesa Observatory (BMO), also referred to Magdalena Peak Station for the International Planetary Patrol Program, was an astronomical observatory owned and operated by New Mexico State University (NMSU). It was located on Magdalena Peak in the Sierra de las Uvas (Grape Mountains) of southern New Mexico (US), approximately northwest of Las Cruces. Founded in 1967 under the supervision of Clyde Tombaugh, the observatory was closed in 1993. The site and the surrounding it were conveyed to the Federal Aviation Administration, which tore down the observatory building and replaced it with a radar installation. BMO's main telescope