Harvard College Observatory

**Mission Vision** The Harvard College Observatory (HCO) is apart of The Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS). Together the FAS seeks to foster an environment of ambition, curiosity, and shared commitment to knowledge and truth that elicits excellence from all members of our community and prepares the next generation of leaders through a transformative educational experience. **About** **Harvard College Observatory (HCO)** + **[Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO)](https://pweb.cfa.harvard.edu/about/about-smithsonian-astrophysical-observatory)** = **[Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA)](https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/about)** Founded in 1839, the HCO carries on a broad program of research in astronomy and astrophysics, collaborating with the [SAO](https://www.si.edu/) at the [CfA](https://hco.cfa.harvard.edu/www.cfa.harvard.edu/) and providing substantial support to Harvard’s [Department of Astronomy](http://astronomy.fas.harvard.edu/). HCO and the SAO jointly run the CfA. There are a number of research divisions at the CfA and many people have affiliations with more than one division. Most divisions have a mix of both SAO and Harvard researchers and staff. HCO houses a collection of approximately 500,000 astronomical plates taken between the mid-1880s and 1989 (with a gap from 1953–68). The glass plates together weigh about 170 tons and occupy about 465 square meters of Cambridge real estate. This 100-year coverage is a unique resource for studying temporal variations in the universe. The [Digital Access to a Sky Century @ Harvard (DASCH)](http://dasch.rc.fas.harvard.edu/project.php) project is digitally scanning and archiving these photographic plates.