Harvard College Observatory Harvard College Observatory The Harvard College Observatory (HCO) is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomical research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. It is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, and was founded in 1839. With the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, it forms part of the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. HCO houses a collection of approximately 500,000 astronomical plates taken between the mid-1880s and 1989 (with a gap from 1953–68). This 100-year coverage is a unique resource for studying temporal variations in the universe. The Digital Access to a Sky Century @ Harvard project
Heraldry of Harvard University Heraldry of Harvard University Harvard University adopted an official seal soon after it was founded in 1636 and named "Harvard College" in 1638; a variant is still used. Each school within the university (Harvard College, Harvard Medical School, Harvard Law School, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, etc.) has its own distinctive shield as well, as do many other internal administrative units such as the Harvard College residential "Houses" and the Harvard Library. Many extracurricular organizationssuch as clubs, societies and athletic teamshave their own shield as well, often based on the coat of arms of Harvard itself. The Harvard University