The Rosette Nebula, photograph by SPS student, John Zurn. Many projects will be possible with the new telescope. Measure orbits of binary stars from their light curves. Plot the orbital motions of asteroids. Measure the spectra of different kinds of stars.
Spectral features allow measurements of temperature and chemical composition.
Measure brightnesses and colors of stars in nearby clusters. Such measurements were used early in the century to arrive at an understanding of stellar evolution. Monitor bright active galaxies and quasars. Brightness variations are thought to arise from irregularities in material falling into a central black hole. Detailed monitoring of brightness variations provides information on the geometry of the material surrounding the black hole.