On This Day

A 5.08-meter (200-inch) mirror for the Hale Telescope at the Palomar Observatory is successfully cast

The Hale Telescope is a 200-inch (5.1 m), f/3.3 reflecting telescope at the Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, US, named after astronomer George Ellery Hale.

The Hale Telescope is a 200-inch (5.1 m), f/3.3 reflecting telescope at the Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, US, named after astronomer George Ellery Hale. With funding from the Rockefeller Foundation in 1928, he orchestrated the planning, design, and construction of the observatory, but with the project ending up taking 20 years he did not live to see its commissioning. The Hale was groundbreaking for its time, with double the diameter of the second-largest telescope, and pioneered many new technologies in telescope mount design and in the design and fabrication of its large aluminum coated "honeycomb" low thermal expansion Pyrex mirror.

Historical Significance

The Hale Telescope is a 200-inch (5.

Events Before

  1. "Cavalcade" based on the play by Noël Coward, directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Diana Wynyard and Clive Brook premier

    "Cavalcade" based on the play by Noël Coward, directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Diana Wynyard and Clive Brook premieres in New York (Best Production/Picture 1934)

  2. Cricket's Bodyline Tour: Australian batsman Bert Oldfield suffers a fractured skull after being struck by a ball bowled

    Cricket's Bodyline Tour: Australian batsman Bert Oldfield suffers a fractured skull after being struck by a ball bowled by England's Harold Larwood during the Third Test in Adelaide

  3. The name "Pakistan" is coined by Choudhry Rahmat Ali and gradually accepted by Muslims in the Indian subcontinent, who u

    The name "Pakistan" is coined by Choudhry Rahmat Ali and gradually accepted by Muslims in the Indian subcontinent, who use it to push for a separate Muslim homeland in South Asia

  4. President Paul von Hindenburg appoints Adolf Hitler as Reich Chancellor of Germany who forms a government with Franz von

    President Paul von Hindenburg appoints Adolf Hitler as Reich Chancellor of Germany who forms a government with Franz von Papen

  5. Nazi Germany's parliament building, the Reichstag, is destroyed by fire, possibly set by the Nazis, who blame and execut

    Nazi Germany's parliament building, the Reichstag, is destroyed by fire, possibly set by the Nazis, who blame and execute Dutch communist Marinus van der Lubbe

Events After

  1. David McKee is born

    David McKee, British writer and illustrator, known for british writer and illustrator, was born on 1935-01-02.

  2. 1st Orange Bowl: Bucknell beats Miami (FL), 26-0

    1st Orange Bowl: Bucknell beats Miami (FL), 26-0

  3. RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging) is first demonstrated by Robert Watson-Watt and Arnold Wilkins in Daventry, England

    RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging) is first demonstrated by Robert Watson-Watt and Arnold Wilkins in Daventry, England

  4. Adolf Hitler orders German rearmament in violation of the Treaty of Versailles

    German rearmament was a policy and practice of rearmament carried out by Germany from 1918 to 1939 in violation of the Treaty of Versailles, which required German disarmament after World War I to…

  5. Nazi politician Hermann Goering (42) weds Emmy Sonnemann (42) in Berlin

    Nazi politician Hermann Goering (42) weds Emmy Sonnemann (42) in Berlin

More from the 1930s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on December 2, 1934?
The Hale Telescope is a 200-inch (5.1 m), f/3.3 reflecting telescope at the Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, US, named after astronomer George Ellery Hale. With funding from the Rockefeller Foundation in 1928, he orchestrated the planning, design, and construction of the observatory, but with the project ending up taking 20 years he did not live to see its commissioning. The Hale was groundbreaking for its time, with double the diameter of the second-largest telescope, and pioneered many new technologies in telescope mount design and in the design and fabrication of its large aluminum coated "honeycomb" low thermal expansion Pyrex mirror.
Why is A 5.08-meter (200-inch) mirror for the Hale Telescope at the Palomar Observat... significant?
The Hale Telescope is a 200-inch (5.

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