Muskego Observatory Will Need Help to See the Heavens Again

The recently "rediscovered" observatory at Muskego High School was brought about ironically by the passing of the man who brought it to the school in the first place, more than 50 years ago, Jerry Stueber.

However, science instructor Greg Drake seemed to feel the future of the telescope and viewing station that was once the center of the astronomy club's interest would need a lot of help to overcome various obstacles to be fully operational.

"When this was built, you have to realize there was nothing around the high school - nothing, except a few farms," Drake said. "Now we have developed the high school and included the large football field, which has some light on it, and the newer cafeteria sits just below us, and that light really limits our viewable sky."

Basically, Drake said the best shot for viewing stars, planets and other heavenly bodies like comets is dead-center, overhead, and "that's not the optimal position for this telescope," he explained.

It was likely a problem that Stueber saw coming decades ago, and he was an active proponent with the International Dark-Sky Association still exists to "preserve the night" by cutting down on the amount of light polution that limits the ability to view the stars overhead.

The hope is that the school and community can come together to resolve some of the issues, and if it's the light that needs to go, some suggestions have been to provide some shading in the cafeteria during viewing hours, and to see what can be done to pot down the field lights temporarily when the telescope is being used.

Luckily, the equipment also has a special filter for viewing solar events as well, so daytime use is still a possibility.

In addition, Drake said the motor for the 50-year-old telescope could probably use some attention, along with other instruments on the walls. The roof, which can be manually pulled away, likely will need some fixing, although in the midst of a very rainy stretch of weather, the roof was only showing some minimal leaking.

Drake said the astronomy club that he took over when he began teaching, about four years after Stueber's 1990 retirement, had generally about four to eight members and was showing signs of waning.

However, as scientists often note, everything is cyclical, and it could be that this is the time for the observatory to see a new dawning interest in the community.