Everyone needs an Observatory because...

[glend]

After two glorious all night sessions imaging from my new observatory I am kicking myself for not building it sooner. No more: lugging out and back the mount head, and trying to polar align yet again, standing around with cold feet in wet grass, or sitting on a wet chair, or trying to find a way to cover up equipment and batteries, or trecking back into the house looking for something I forgot to carry out. The absolute luxury of having carpet underfoot, sitting in a comfortable chair at my workstation in my slippers sipping a drink, while my equipment does it thing is truely rewarding. And being able to go back inside and go to sleep, safe in the knowledge that your system will look after the run, when you need some rest. Why did I wait so long? It didn't cost much (cheaper than any boat I ever owned) and takes up about the same space. If you own your land most observatories would be "exempt developments" under NSW planning rules (no council approval required). Now if I could just move it out to a darker site I would be in heaven, or the heavens.:eyepop:

[Amaranthus]

Glen, you're living my dream. But I'm in the process of building one now (actually, getting someone to build it for/with me). Fortunately, I live in a dark site, so I can have a backyard observatory AND a great location. Oooooh, I can't wait. Just a few more months of lugging, then I'm in AP heaven.

[jenchris]

I must agree, the ease of wandering down to the Obsy and undoing a clip, sliding back the roof with one hand and flicking two switches and turning on the camera is smile inducing.
It far outweighs the horror of trying to lift an NEQ6 head onto a tripod without chipping the paint or trying to juggle the weights and OTA's without trapping fingers or dropping them.

[lazjen]

I'm underway with getting my observatory setup and I can't wait. I keep missing out on nights because I just don't have enough time to set everything up, go through the process and then take it all down again. I'm looking forward to being able to just go out, open up and go for it.

So, I can well understand your post Glen.

[scagman]

Couldn't agree more Glen. Makes life so much better. Got mine operational mid last year, its not finished yet and probably wont be for a while, but it works.

Cheers

[Dealy]

Yep, me too. Mine is 95% finished but 100% operational.

Less than 10 minutes to get going, 3 minutes to pack up. What a luxury.

I'm a very happy boy.

[Ryderscope]

Am with you all the way. After selling one place in which I had an observatory and moving into town it eventually got the better of me so I moved out of town again and built another observatory. This time I'm staying put.

[MattT]

Lucky devil Glen...well done.

Hi John....bet there are lots of rules in VIctoria???? Or is it like a shed with a size limit.

Matt

[Blue Skies]

I second that. Sadly, I'm in a period of transition and have to stick with the portable gear :sadeyes: but I hope one day in the not too distant future I'll have a more permanent set up in place.

[Amaranthus]

Bah, huntsmen are harmless. You should be glad of the company :)

[strongmanmike]

:eyepop:I'm with Steve :lol: I have killed 9 huntsmen spiders of various sizes now since moving into the new observatory out at Wallaroo in August last year, I know I should catch and release and I normally would but it is just too hard to do in a dark shed full of shelves, scopes and storage gear, can't risk it running out of sight and behind something. So far none have appeared in the dome though which sits up on an elevated deck, only the adjacent admin/accommodation shed :D which sits on the ground :help: Had a dead rabbit Friday night though, could smell something funny all night..wasn't till I was packing up the visual scope that I noticed a dark lump at the side of the admin shed....luckily I have a shovel and woosh, swung it over the trees 20m away :D ...stinky..

I know they are essentially harmless but Huntsmen spiders creep me out :scared2:, sorry...

But yes, having an observatory is pure bliss Glen :thumbsup:

[BPO]

It's nice to be reminded that there are some good reasons to live in New Zealand...

[sharpiel]

Wussy...

[strongmanmike]

Yeah I guess, oh well...wuss it is :scared2:

[SteveInNZ]

We have them here. The Avondale spider is a Huntsman with a Kiwi accent. They make you jump just as much when they run out of the newspaper and up your arm.

Steve.

[BPO]

Must be a North Island thing...

:lol:

[ZeroID]

The Avondale Spider is a sook, harmless, nonpoisonous. It's just a big scary hairy set of legs. At least that's what I tell myself. <slight shudder of Arachnaphobia>.
Haven't come across one yet in my Ob and we're only about 3 km from their ancestral home, Avondale. (Where are you Steve ? 4 km it says)

But have to agree with the absolute bliss of having an Ob in the back yard. I've done quick runs on solar, lunar or planetary which would never have happened otherwise and it's wee night time retreat for some peace and contemplation.

[SteveInNZ]

We're on the Avondale/Blockhouse Bay border but nobody told the spider that they shouldn't cross the road.

The wife is convinced that we need an observatory so stage 1 is completed.

Steve.

[glend]

What a woman!

[spinnaker]

TWO Avondale's were discovered in my step-daughters bedroom a few months back. My ears are still ringing from the screams!

[BPO]

There are a few spiders up on the mountain but they're smaller than the grasshoppers. For most people the scariest thing around here is the isolation but it never bothers me. I'll take a lack of company over creepie-crawlies any day.

:lol:

[alistairsam]

Second that.
Lucas should really post here, his wife arranged to have an Obsy made, delivered and installed for his Birthday without him knowing.
Got the surprise of his life when he got home with a new Obs sitting in the back..

You guys make me so jealous. I'm hoping to move into my own place in a year and an Obs is a major must have, and the wife doesn't know this but I'm narrowing down suburbs based on the Bortle sky rating... I may or may not win but hey I can try.

Alistair

[scagman]

Hi Matt,

I didn't ask.:D I converted a no longer used concrete water. Just cut a doorway in and put a stronger roof on with 2 x 2.4m holes in the roof with 2 separate roll off sections. See this thread here for pics. http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=88784

Cheers

[ZeroID]

Ha !
All we need now is a third nearby and we've got a large aperture array !! :D A 4 km baseline should get us a fair ways out

Excellent wife you have there, like mine. She reckons as long as it isn't (overly) dangerous or stupidly expensive I can do what I like. She just shouted me a drive round Hampton Downs Racetrack in a Lamborghini Murcielago for my birthday. Followed by a Hot Lap in an EVO X with a nutcase driver. Awesome !! :thumbsup:

So pretty much a free hand then .. :P

[SteveInNZ]

Yeah, I'm pretty happy with her. We have a philosophy of trying to make each others lives as pleasant as we can. Marriage isn't meant to be a contest.

It's me who's unsure about the obs. I really like getting out to a dark site but I can't do that very often. So will I get more 'jollies' from imaging from an obs in town or with a better camera, less often, out in the sticks ?

Steve.

[ZeroID]

I can guarantee more 'jollies' from the Ob. I use my Ob several nights a week if the weather permits. Power up, set up whatever run I desire then go back inside and watch bit of telly and have time with my better half. It also keeps all my toys out of the house and easily managed, reduces any alignment time, finding SCP and reduces problem finding time as it does not get bumped around and bits lost\forgotten or damaged through travel or setup.
If the clouds come in I can grab a few frames through the gaps and be all closed down in 10 mins and back inside if it closes over completely. I can be brushed teeth and in bed in 15. I can do a few solar, lunar or planetary runs and within 30 mins be closed down, back inside and processing the avis or outside on the deck with wine glass in hand and BBQ tongs flashing.

My setup is pretty simple, I don't do remote, no real need and I just use BYE to automate exposures, PHD2 for guiding. I may look at remote later but at present it is quite pleasant to walk out during an Ad break and check on things or make any minor changes. If the TV is rubbish I can stay out there with the binocs and hunt satellites, meteors or just scan the skies.

I'd suggest you try to maximise your south and west sky view. East is obviously your most LP'd direction ( I have some trees that side anyway ) and South gives you SCP and all that rotates around it. Your north might be OK but I've got Mt Albert blocking my view in that direction.
Your wife will see more of you as any astro time will be better managed and minimal once you are setup. And when she calls you in you are handy and able to comply and still carry on with astro stuff after.

Harmony will ensue.. :thumbsup:

Basically if you want to maximise your time for astro it is by far the best option.

[BPO]

What do you mean "if"?

[Jen]

you lucky devils :) i so cant wait to get an observatory in my backyard :) if and when i dont know yet :rolleyes:

It took me forever to set up tonight and i actually dropped the EQ5 on my foot :mad2: ouchhhhhhhhhhh it hurt :shrug: luckily i only broke the plastic cap that covers the polar scope ( can we buy those )

And lol at Steve i would freak out if i was that close to a huntsman OMG :help:i wouldnt go back in there for days until i knew it was dead :lol:

[DarkArts]

Ooh, lucky you didn't break something more painful or expensive! A few years ago I dropped an EQ6 head on to my polished wooden floor boards .... :mad2:


Yes. Try Bintel. I got my replacement from there. :thumbsup:

--------------

I'm sizing up houses/yards at the moment with a view to having a backyard Obsy - it's not easy to find the 'right' place.

[Jen]

Oh bugger that would have done some damage :mad2: thanks I will check out Bintel :)

[mswhin63]

Hey Jen, really hope you get something up and running sooner rather than later. I have mine now and it is by far the bee's Knee's to having a great night imaging and relaxing under the stars.

Unfortunately I will be moving soon so I have to start dismantling but is also the reason for creating the "Rental Obs" should prove it worth I hope.

[ZeroID]

True !! too true .... :shrug:

Just means I'll spend a lot of time in the Ob ... :D

[BPO]

Bintel sell floorboards now?

[BPO]

TV is bad for the nightvision. It also destroys braincells.

[glend]

That brings up an interesting side question; What strange accessories do you have in your observatory?

For example: Do you have a TV in the observatory? A Lazy Boy chair? a fridge? A coffee machine? :lol:

[strongmanmike]

Nothing very special this end...I've got a desk with draws, an office chair, two large shelving units, folding sofa bed with doona and pillows, a small gas stove and billy coffee pot, long life milk and dry food stash (including a bottle of port and a bottle of whisky), 20Ltr fresh water dispenser, a digital weather station, small portable cooling fan but no heater yet, various tools, fasteners and other hardware in case of necessary repairs and a big red portable workman's tough AM/FM radio (bit like a ghetto blaster)...oh and a few huntsman spiders of course :P

Mike

[ZeroID]

My Ob is quite small, a 2.7m X 1.8m tinshed so not much storage room. No fridge or TV etc although I manage to store the Newt in it's Dob base in one corner. What I do have though is a number of cuphooks and bulldog clips around the walls screwed into the wood bracing inside. They hold charts and cables, baht masks, lens caps etc etc all out of the way and handy. Also a lot of bungee cords which secure the roof, keep the door closed when windy and hold the weather cover over the scopes and mount when I think the roof might drip in a blow.
I think the Ob looks more like the interior of a stationery cabinet than anything else sometimes. :P


Still one of my favourite places to be ... :)

[strongmanmike]

He, he, sounds very quaint Brent :thumbsup: got a photo perhaps..?

Mike

[Geoff45]

Yep, I have the same setup. Very useful.

[glend]

I like to use my Coleman Pop-up Cupboard it has four solid shelves with a door and lots of pockets on the side, and the top counter makes a good laptop height desk. I bought it originally for a dark site workstation because it folds down flat but its so useful its in the obs now.

[ZeroID]

I'll try. Have to be from outside the door looking in, there ain't no room to step back into to get some perspective. :lol:
I'd better tidy it up a bit too .... :rolleyes:

A night time shot, no flash would be the way to go. Use the tripod and just the red lights. I'll have a fiddle around, see what i can come up with.

'Quaint" !!! :rolleyes:

[strongmanmike]

By Quaint, I meant high tech, sci fi quaint :face:

[kinetic]

A radio/mp3/multimedia device is a must! Nothing better than listening to music or just AM radio mid-dawn. They have a great quiz on ABC radio most nights.
It is a good distraction and keeps you awake if you are babysitting the scope and growing tired.

Also, I use one of the kid's megasketchers mounted on the dome wall as a way of quickly
jotting something important down, the magnetic pen never gets lost! It is tied to the Msketcher
with a string!

As you can see from the following pic, I have put graffiti on my own dome wall, mainly important stuff like bayer matrix data and pixel sizes, or webcam settings that worked!. I bet they have similar graffiti on Keck...NOT! :)

I also have several lights, all controlled by UHF remote, red safelight, main dome lights and under desk and over keyboard red lights.
The multi button remote from all of these lights sits next to the illuminated keyboard, (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=39271) which has a dimmer on it as well.
A bit of side light comes out of each end of this kb and illuminates the remote...so I never lose the remote! :)

One thing I would also suggest in hindsight, is having a lip on all desks to stop pens, eyepieces, screwdrivers all rolling off the desk and on the floor.

I must have lost count of the number of times I have knocked something like the flyspray
can with my coat and it hits the floor in the deadly quiet night, sounding like a metal rubbish tin dropping in a library!

[ZeroID]

Yeah Right !! :D :lol:

Hey it works for me, handy in the back yard and doesn't annoy the neighbours or my better half. I reckon I've already had my moneys worth out of it long ago and it has certainly kept me busy and amused.

[ZeroID]

Here's a photo showing the use of the ubiquitous 'bulldog' clip and bungee.
Please note the towel around the Lunt OTA. Heater is under that and it's all secured with a clip or two. Couple of other clips in the background holding red lights and stuff.
Bungee cord part of the roof lock down system, can't lose it. Hang it up close by.

[DJT]

Favourite gadget at the moment is a Sonos speaker in the obsy so I can stream whatever's on the telly ( well, sound anyway which suits me) or whatever podcasts the wife is listening to in the house.

Next best weird gadgets are 4 roller blinds setup in the roll off roof obs to keep all the stray light out from the neighbours search lights, street lighting in front of the house and other sources like the monitor when I am in the obs. Am in a deep deep orange bordering on red zone so everything helps.

[The_bluester]

Plans for whenever my obs gets set up (Slowly, slowly) will be for my network to be extended out to it via my shed (I am actually putting in a fibre optic link from the house to the shed)

That would allow access via a media PC to the entire music and video collection. Not to mention if AP is happening, direct saving of images on our home NAS as they come in. Net access also becomes an easy thing and an intercom from inside the house! The original purpose of my current connection to the shed via somewhat flaky wifi was an IP intercom system and music.

The other plans will include 240V power, bar fridge and fresh water, meaning COFFEE! (And ice to go in scotch) without getting into trouble for making noise in the house at 2AM.

[strongmanmike]

Now ya talking!! Cheers to that

I have a bottle of port in the obso at the moment but no scotch :question:....hmmmm? better remedy that, don't need ice with the Canberra winter on it's way and in summer I just drink it neat :D

Mike

[The_bluester]

In the really cold weather we would generally change to brandy and let the ice gather on the scopes as it will (not kidding!)

[Nikolas]

How loud did you scream????:D

[spinnaker]

LOL:lol:. I should have stressed that is was her screams - and then those I my wife when she went to see what the initial screams were about!