Percival Lowell

American culture was obsessed with Martians in the early 1900s. In a new book, bestselling author David Baron explains how this “alien craze” started with one astronomer in Flagstaff.

Flagstaff’s Lowell Observatory has announced the inaugural Percival Lowell Postdoctoral Fellowship for early-career scientists. It’s a four-year appointment for those pursuing independent research in astronomy, planetary sciences, instrumentation, and related fields.

The expansion plans of Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff include opening a new open-deck observatory, a movable-roof facility featuring six telescopes for…