Telescopes - Observatory Science Centre & Museum

The 38″ Congo Schmidt

04/03/2026

Telescopes

Located in Dome F Aperture 960mm, 1.93m focal length, f/2 The 38″ Congo Schmidt is the largest and newest of the Herstmonceux telescopes, but has never been used for serious observing. It was designed and built by Cox, Hargreaves and Thomson in 1960 and was installed at Herstmonceux in 1972. This telescope was originally destined

$The Thompson 26-inch refractor$

The Thompson 26-inch refractor

04/03/2026

Telescopes

Located in Dome E Aperture 660mm, 6.86m focal length, f/10.4 The Thompson 26-inch Refracting Telescope, situated in Dome E is open to the public during the day and is used on Open Evenings. You can learn more about it during our telescope tours. This telescope is the twelfth largest refracting telescope in the world and

$The 13-inch Astrographic Refractor$

The 13-inch Astrographic Refractor

04/03/2026

Telescopes

Located in Dome D Aperture 330mm, 3.43m focal length, F/10.7 The 13-inch (330mm) Astrographic Refractor, situated in Dome D is not open to the public during the day but is used on open evenings. Built in 1890 by Grubb in Dublin, the telescope was used specifically to make use of the new technique of astronomical

The 34-inch Hewitt Camera

04/03/2026

Telescopes

Located in Dome C Aperture 860mm, 680mm focal length, f/1 The 34-inch Hewitt Camera, situated in Dome C is not open to the public but the dome may be accessed on some Open Evenings when the 16-inch Meade telescope is in use. The Hewitt camera was designed by Joseph Hewitt in the 1950s for use in

The Thompson 30-inch reflector

04/03/2026

Telescopes

The Thompson 30-inch Reflector (1886) is situated in Dome A.

The 36-inch Yapp Reflector

04/03/2026

Telescopes

Located in Dome B Aperture 910mm, 4.57m focal length, f/15 The Yapp 36-inch reflecting telescope situated in Dome B is open to the public during the day. Learn more about it on one of our telescope tours. Built in 1932 by Grubb Parsons of Newcastle-upon Tyne at a cost of about £15,000 (including the dome), the 36-inch

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The 38″ Congo Schmidt

The Thompson 26-inch refractor

The 13-inch Astrographic Refractor

The 34-inch Hewitt Camera