US university discovers 142-year-old observatory buried on campus

Michigan State discovery of building demolished in 1920s provides rare on-campus experience for archaeology students

Construction workers at Michigan State University hit something hard earlier this summer while installing hammock poles into the ground outside a residence hall.

A closer inspection then revealed it was the foundation of a 140-year-old observatory that was demolished in the 1920s and - over the course of a century - became buried underground.