Lowell Observatory
Historian
Topic: High Plains Celestial Drifter: Clyde Tombaugh and the Discovery of Pluto
The story of Clyde Tombaugh and his discovery of a new world is at once unlikely, inspirational, and breathtaking. A passionate student of the night skies, this Kansas farm boy couldn’t afford to buy telescopes to explore the night sky so he built his own. He skill at recording night sky phenomena landed him a job at Lowell Observatory in Arizona, and within a year of starting there, he discovered the ninth planet. His story is as captivating as the best novel.
Kevin Schindler is the historian at Lowell Observatory – where he has worked for 29 years – and an active member of the Flagstaff history and science communities. He has authored eight books, on topics ranging from Arizona history and astronomy to the Lincoln Memorial, and contributes a bi-weekly astronomy column, “View from Mars Hill”, for the Arizona Daily Sun newspaper.
Fun fact: Kevin has both a fossil crab and asteroid named after him.