May 17, 1941
Dr. J. A. Anderson
California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, California
Dear Dr. Anderson:
Just recently the Corning Glass "forks agreed to stock
Pyrex disks, 16 inches diameter, 5 inches thick, at 35.00
each, f.o.b. Corning, if 20 guaranteed orders are received
within a few months. Otherwise, the price is 155.00 each.
I have undertaken the task of conducting a poll among
professional and advanced amateur opticians who are likely
to use 16-inch Pyrex disks within the near future. It occurred to me that you mjpht have use for a few disks of
this size for eoelostats, either at the Mount Wilson Optical
Shop or the one at the California Institute of Technology.
Probably half the necessary quota of disks can be raised
from advanced amateurs. But amateurs are fickle, and their
votes often merely express wishful thinking* In order to
prevent a repetition of the disappointment Mr. Perkin experienced a few years ago in conducting a poll for Pyrex
20-inch disks, I am requiring a 35*00 deposit be sent to
Corning accompanying each order or vote for a disk. At my
request, the Corning people have consented to handle it in
this way. Since checks should be cashed promptly, the money
will be hjld on credit account at Corning. If the required
quota of*£o orders are not received within a period ef six
months, the money will be refunded to those who did subscribe.
If the quota is obtained, it will be quite a saving of expense for those who can use disks of this size.
If you are interested in 16-inch Pyre^ disks, how many
would you take?
I hope the optical work on the 200-inch disk is progressing satisfactorily^ It must be a tremendous Job with
unexpected difficulties cropping up here and there.
I suppose Dr. Russell Porter is still in Pasadena. It
was my pleasure to have a chat with him and his two companions
when they stopped at Flagstaff on a tr;$p east a few years ago.
Best wishes,
Sincerely yours,
Tombaugh, Clyde William, 1906-1997; Anderson, John A. (John Augustus), 1876-1959
Folder Description
Contains documents from Tombaugh's tenure on the Observatory staff, 1929-1945, as well as a small amount of material relating to later projects that Tombaugh worked on at Lowell Observatory in the 1950s.
Subject
Telescopes--Lenses--Prices; Optical glass
Relevant Names
Corning Glass Works; California Institute of Technology
Digital Publisher
New Mexico State University Library
Collection
NMSU Department of Astronomy: Clyde W. Tombaugh Papers
Source
Scan produced from physical item held by the NMSU Library Archives & Special Collections Department
Corning Glass Works; California Institute of Technology
Date Original
1941-05-17
Digital Publisher
New Mexico State University Library
Collection
NMSU Department of Astronomy: Clyde W. Tombaugh Papers
Digital Identifier
Ms0407pp068004_0010001.tif
Source
Scan produced from physical item held by the NMSU Library Archives & Special Collections Department
Type
Text
Format
image/tiff
Language
eng
OCR
May 17, 1941
Dr. J. A. Anderson
California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, California
Dear Dr. Anderson:
Just recently the Corning Glass "forks agreed to stock
Pyrex disks, 16 inches diameter, 5 inches thick, at 35.00
each, f.o.b. Corning, if 20 guaranteed orders are received
within a few months. Otherwise, the price is 155.00 each.
I have undertaken the task of conducting a poll among
professional and advanced amateur opticians who are likely
to use 16-inch Pyrex disks within the near future. It occurred to me that you mjpht have use for a few disks of
this size for eoelostats, either at the Mount Wilson Optical
Shop or the one at the California Institute of Technology.
Probably half the necessary quota of disks can be raised
from advanced amateurs. But amateurs are fickle, and their
votes often merely express wishful thinking* In order to
prevent a repetition of the disappointment Mr. Perkin experienced a few years ago in conducting a poll for Pyrex
20-inch disks, I am requiring a 35*00 deposit be sent to
Corning accompanying each order or vote for a disk. At my
request, the Corning people have consented to handle it in
this way. Since checks should be cashed promptly, the money
will be hjld on credit account at Corning. If the required
quota of*£o orders are not received within a period ef six
months, the money will be refunded to those who did subscribe.
If the quota is obtained, it will be quite a saving of expense for those who can use disks of this size.
If you are interested in 16-inch Pyre^ disks, how many
would you take?
I hope the optical work on the 200-inch disk is progressing satisfactorily^ It must be a tremendous Job with
unexpected difficulties cropping up here and there.
I suppose Dr. Russell Porter is still in Pasadena. It
was my pleasure to have a chat with him and his two companions
when they stopped at Flagstaff on a tr;$p east a few years ago.
Best wishes,
Sincerely yours,
