[1] The Center was constructed in 1966 on the Lake Michigan shore in the northeast corner of the recently completed Northwestern University Lakefill and its twin domes and distinctive crisscrossed supporting braces instantly made it a campus landmark.

It was funded by a gift from the estate of prominent Chicago businessman and sporting executive Benjamin F. Lindheimer along with a grant from the National Science Foundation.

Beneath the larger dome was a 40-inch Cassegrain equipped with a rapid-scanning optical spectrometer, intended especially for astronomical research.

[1] Accordingly, the University decided, despite expressions of public support for the well-known landmark, that the cost-effective course of action was to tear down the Center.

[5] As a testimonial to the integrity of the original design, the explosive detonations used for the first demolition attempt resulted in the whole structure remaining intact and simply listing to one side, still held firmly together by its network of external supporting braces.