In 1847 magnetic recording by photography was introduced at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich. This early example of observatory automation was prompted by the difficulty and expense of maintaining a schedule of hourly observations coupled with the scientific desire to see a fuller spectrum of magnetic variations. Economics is a major factor behind the present‐day move to automate as many observatory operations as possible. If Canada, for example, were to place a full‐time observer at each of its 13 observatories, the cost of operating the network would roughly double. Fully automated observatories can be deployed in remote locations where staff is unavailable, including the ocean bottom. Automation is also a natural consequence of the necessity for observatories to meet the present‐day scientific requirements for digital data. Digital magnetometer systems naturally lend themselves to automation.
All aspects of observatory operations are subject to full or partial automation: (1) data...
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Newitt, L. (2007). Observatories, Automation. In: Gubbins, D., Herrero-Bervera, E. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4423-6_226
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