Prepared by Lori Stiles, Office of Public Information, University of Arizona, with updates by CJC.
1983: Site testing begins on Mount Graham
1985: March – Spin-casting of 1.8-meter primary mirror in Steward Observatory Mirror Lab; The Vatican Observatory and Steward Observatory agree to build a telescope with the 1.8-meter primary mirror
1986: September – Incorporation of Vatican Observatory Foundation (nonprofit); November – Design of telescope begins
1987: March – First fundraising campaign begins
1988: July – Contract for telescope mount with L?F Industries; November – Arizona-Idaho Conservation Act authorizes construction on Mount Graham
1989: January – Second fundraising campaign begins; February – Design of astrophysics facility begins; May – Contract for secondary mirror with Space Optics Research Labs.
1990: February – Telescope mount delivered to test facility near Tucson; October – Contract with T.L.Roof signed, and site clearing for facility building on Mount Graham begins
1991: June – Weather-delayed start of concrete foundation work on Mount Graham; November – Steward Observatory completes polishing of the primary mirror
1992: April – Construction resumes on Mount Graham; May – Polishing of secondary mirror completed; October – Telescope mount and dome installed on Mount Graham
1993: February – Substantial completion of facility building; March – Installation of scientific equipment; September – First light with primary mirror in place, and beginning of commissioning phase; September 18 – VATT dedication
1994: July – Second light with secondary mirror in place
1995: January – Scientific observations begin
1999: March – Kresge Science Initiative Grant work begins, with substantial completion a year later, bringing VATT close to planned optical and mechanical performance and reliability
2002: December – Installation of CorMASS, a low resolution, near infrared, slit spectrograph
2003: September 18 – Tenth Anniversary! See Fall 2003 Newsletter.
