{{Short description|Observatory in Beirut, Lebanon}} {{Infobox Observatory |name = Lee Observatory |background = |image = 225px|none |caption = |organization = American University of Beirut |code = |location = Beirut, Lebanon |coords = {{coord|33|54|1.96|N|35|28|47.29|E|region:LB_type:edu|display=inline,title}} |altitude = {{convert|38|m|ft|abbr=on}} |weather = |established = |closed = |website = [https://web.archive.org/web/20060926125349/http://www.aub.edu.lb/tour/nojava/b12.html] |telescope1_name = telescope |telescope1_type = 12 inch refractor |telescope2_name = telescope |telescope2_type = 3-inch transit |telescope3_name = helioscope |telescope3_type = Spectro-helioscope |telescope4_name = Detector |telescope4_type = Cosmic Ray Detector }} The '''Lee Observatory''' is an astronomical observatory on the campus of the American University of Beirut in Beirut, Lebanon. Opened in 1873, it is the first and the oldest observatory{{clarify|date=August 2020}} of the Middle East in modern times.
Nowadays the observatory has only an academic role.
==History== The Lee Observatory opened in 1873, with Doctor Cornelius Van Dyck as its pioneer. The observatory was named in reference to Henry Lee, a wealthy British merchant from Manchester, who had made a significant donation to help finance its construction. The observatory had twin roles of sky gazing and serving as a meteorological station for the middle east. Several directors and assistants managed the Observatory, including Van Dyck, who pursued astronomy as a hobby and had bought most of the equipment himself, and Professors Mansour Jurdak and Owen Gingerich, who organised the "Open Nights Observatory" events and made contributions to the observatory library.
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20060926125349/http://www.aub.edu.lb/tour/nojava/b12.html AUB's detailed history of the Lee Observatory] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070208063620/http://www.aub.edu.lb/tour/admissions/AUB-VR_141.html A virtual view of the Lee Observatory] *[http://wwwlb.aub.edu.lb/~weboutl/archive_vault/observatory.htm Saad Sami HADDAD alumni article on the Lee Observatory]{{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
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Category:Astronomical observatories in Lebanon Category:American University of Beirut
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