Robert Ferguson Observatory

We are volunteer amateur and professional astronomers organized as a non-profit association to provide educational programs about science and astronomy for students, the public, and in support of educators. We do this by building and operating the Robert Ferguson Observatory.

The Observatory was built and is maintained by volunteers. All of the public events, private events, classes, and labs were conceived by and brought to fruition by volunteers. RFO’s volunteers work together, combining skills and talents to create this special place. Volunteers help us bring the sky to our visitors in ways that don’t require them to know any astronomy. Docents are volunteers with some knowledge of astronomy. They enjoy interacting with the public by explaining the night sky and answering general astronomy-related questions. We also have many volunteer jobs that you can do with only a little training. Some involve support positions at public viewing session, others are administrative support positions that are essential to our operations. Out of the many volunteers at RFO, some take special responsibility for various tasks such as building and maintenance, website work, marketing, retail, IT work and so on. Additionally, teams of docents work together on various projects at the observatory to further improve the experience for visitors and volunteers alike. For more information or to get involved, contact the Volunteer Coordinator.