History

MACRO was founded in Fall 2022 by James Wetzel (Coe College), Bill Peterson (Augustana College), and John Cannon (Macalester College) to manage what was the Iowa Robotic Observatory (IRO) at the University of Iowa.

Dr. Wetzel, Dr. Peterson, and Dr. Cannon were each mentored by or students of Robert L. Mutel, the creator of the IRO. Upon retirement, the IRO was at risk of being decommissioned. Dr. Wetzel immediately moved to stand up an organization to take over stewardship of this incredible instrument, aided by Dr. Peterson at Augustana College, now led by Dr. Cannon at Macalester College.

On January 1st, 2023, the University of Iowa officially transferred management of the IRO to MACRO.