FUKUSHIMA -- A private senior high school here damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake has completed the installation of an observatory, which students hope will help heal the psychological scars of victims of the March 11 disaster.
FUKUSHIMA -- A private senior high school here damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake has completed the installation of an observatory, which students hope will help heal the psychological scars of victims of the March 11 disaster.
The observatory was installed on the roof of the reconstructed two-floor south building of Fukushima Toryo High School. The telescope measures 45 centimeters and, according to school officials, is among the largest at any high school in the Tohoku region.
"While everyone is facing difficult times with the natural disasters and nuclear accident, they should become energized when they look at the stars and think about the wide universe," said Saki Ezawa, 17, a third-year student who is chairman of the student body. "We would be happy if the people in the community became brighter in their outlook due to the observatory."
There are plans to make the observatory available to local residents.
A filter makes it possible to observe the stars at night even with the bright city lights. The telescope can also be used to observe the sun during the day.
Construction of the observatory began last December in conjunction with the reconstruction of the school building. School officials wanted to give students something they could dream about.
However, the quake damaged the auditorium of another school building, leading to a suspension of the construction work on the observatory for about one month. The observatory was completed along with the reconstruction work of the school building on Aug. 22, about two weeks later than originally scheduled.
Toryo High School officials asked students and local residents to submit ideas for a name for the observatory.
The winning entry among the 138 received was "Kirari Toryo Observatory."
Before the opening of the observatory, school officials sought the cooperation of Hiroaki Ohno, a photographer of celestial objects who also heads the Hoshi no Mura Observatory, operated by the city of Tamura in Fukushima Prefecture.
One piece of advice given by Ohno was to install a computer system with a program that automatically aims the telescope toward a star selected for observation.
The main telescope at the Hoshi no Mura Observatory was damaged by the quake and will require another year of repairs.
"I hope people will look at the stars that have not changed from before the quake and feel a little more at ease," Ohno said.
Toryo High School uses the observatory for some of its classes.