Is having an observatory actually easier?

[xelasnave]

I am begining to wonder..we all remember the past favourably and apart from PA being a pain setting up gear does not seem as much effort as building an observatory and giving it an electric supply opening the roof etc etc etc

It seems there is always something that takes the "simple" observatory into the land of hair pulling dramas...well for me at least...is it just me..do other have terrible stories that will make us laugh?

Last night I caused the roof to jump it's track because I forgot to release a security tie...what a drama because I just did not realise and could not find the problem and thought getting it moving back and forth would sort it out..a bang the box approach which has always worked with delicate equipment..it either works or you realise it's broken;)

OK your roof is a dream but please tell me how good it is to resurrect my dream of "the observatory"...but then there are the electrics..once I kept a battery in the back of the car and charged it the day after...now I have a shed, a genny, a battery bank, an inverter, and dials...and a huge charger...now last night I find the charger had been switched off presumably since the batteries were last serviced and so the only power the batteries have been receiving has been via the solar panels..did I mention solar panels?..and sure when it all works it really is a dream..but why does something go wrong so often..I know..increased complexity introduces more opportunity of things going wrong..

Thanks for listening and helping me find the answer ..but please tell me of all your observatory problems so I know it is not just me ...it can't be old age can it?

Alex

[TheCrazedLog]

I do a bit of flight simming, both combat and civil.


For some sim aircraft, I'll break out a second monitor that has displays and buttons on it that replicate the real aircraft. Its very cool, very immersive and makes flying the aircraft a lot easier. Its also a pain in the backside to setup, so I'll just as often fly a different aircraft that doesn't have those screens and buttons just because its simpler to set up.


I'm still south of 40, so nope, not just an old age thing. Having said that, my sister described me as the "youngest old man she knows" so... :shrug:

[alan meehan]

Hi ALEX you are correct in saying that increased complexity introduces more problems ,that said my observatory is 3m x3m no electric rolloff roof just slides out of the way and when iam finished i go outside and push it back in and had no problems and its been up for 8 yrs now i ,although the older you get the chances of getting something wrong in imaging run seem to increase .T he other night i couldnt understand why my stars where not guilding only to realize i had not tuned on the dew heater

[glend]

Alex, I agree with Alan 100%. I have a very similar setup to his observatory. Manual roll off, and roll back. It has served me flawlessly for 8 years. Not suggesting you have done anything wrong. Your dreams were bigger than mine and that's fine. ;)

[xelasnave]

The reason I went motor was it was hard to push..after I fitted new wheels ( but too late as I had installed motors) I found it manageable...the other night I opened by pushing :D

Adding the gate motor was a challenge and the main problem ( apart from not releasing the securing mechanism and destroying it trying to open) comes from the roof not having necessary support ( like the bar in the letter A) because the gate motor prevents this.....however even this issue I have overcome.....it openned nicely tonight and is still open and even though I can operate the remote from bed I must still go down to switch stuff off and throw covers over the scopes....already there is ice everywhere...

Alex

I

[glend]

Alex, I was not being critical of your approach. I understand you relish the challenge.

[leon]

Alex, when I had my Observatory it was the best thing I had ever done in respect to Imaging and astronomy.
I loved it and would play in it like a little kid in day or night times.

There was always something to do, may it be tidy up some wiring, making new stuff and general enjoying it.

I am sorry you are experiencing some issues, but then again you find issues a challenge and work so hard under the most difficult issues and come out on top ever time.

Stay well my friend you are doing great.:thumbsup:

Leon :thumbsup:

[xelasnave]

I did not take it that way Glen.

Alex

[xelasnave]

I am not hold yet but I do worry about it now that it is only about ten years away.
Alex

[xelasnave]

Yes yes I forgot to mention my dew heater and guiding issues...but really most of my imaging issues are either seeing or the gear let's me down ..very few times is it actually me at fault;)

I hope you are doing well.

Alex

[xelasnave]

Anyways last night was great..the roof was OK after the work I did on it in the afternoon and I had two phones running Asiair so each scope (2) had its own control...you can run both via one phone but as I ended up with a second phone ( my old one would not work until I bought the second one) I find two phones is efficient...particularly when focusing you can't do a thing but wait..now I do stuff on the other phone.

The batteries ran all night having benefited from a good charge both via solar panels and genny...nothing went wrong and I think I got some decent data...but cold..ice on the cars and even in the observatory..zero in the van when I woke up.

Alex

[xelasnave]

Sorry to grizzle Leon ...I think it is just lack of sleep..I just don't handle it as well as I once did..three nights up to 1 am and I seem to feel it more...maybe I need some tonic.

I do spend a lot of time in the observatory and there is always more to do that's for sure.

I hope both you and Alice are well.

Alex

[glend]

This is a classic quote. Everyone should note that the definition of Old is always ",about ten years away"; regardless of your present age.

.:lol:

[xelasnave]

Yes Glen but that is just old people...not me:lol:

Alex

[Drac0]

I would just love somewhere I could put a pier & safely leave my mount on it...but that requires moving. :P

[xelasnave]

We all seem to want what we dont have...but just a pier is a step forward.. polar is near taken care of and you could leave power in place .
...but why not move :D

Alex

[AstroViking]

Sounds to me like the move from "setup and tear down each night" to "have an observatory" just changes the problems you have...

Having said that, I'd swap from "setup & tear down" to "open the pod bay doors, HAL" any time!

[Hans Tucker]

https://youtu.be/ns0CTtd8WxM

[AstroViking]

:thumbsup: That was brilliant. Thank you!

[glend]

The debate over setup and take down, verses observatory operation, is just about a degree of difficulty and cost.
An observatory is a significant investment (even if you build it yourself), as your committing room in your property to housing it, ongoing maintenance required, facilities like power and perhaps data cabling or wifi etc. You also have to deal with the right to modify the property and any Council regulations, approvals, etc. If your renting it is out of the question probably, and owners may have to deal with demolition prior to selling the property (not many buyers are seeking tacky DIY observatories), and good luck removing that pier footing.

The set up and take down people have a much easier set of hurdles to enjoying astronomy, based on my experience having done it both ways. The portable option also facilitates astro dark site trips , as you already have the practice and equipped necessary.

That said, as an old guy, an observatory is nice to have (now that it is already there), and I am fairly confident that any possible demolition is going to be someone else's problem. Would I build it again now, no, but that is because I am physically unable to do it again, and I have no spouse to complain about that eyesore.

As to the argument that you can leave equipment setup in an observatory, well that is true, but it is also true that said equipment will be subject to climatic fluctuations, constant condensation problems, etc. I find I bring the scopes back inside the house anyway.
Good luck. I support Steve's conclusion, just a different set of problems.

[Startrek]

I have the best of both worlds for Astro imaging in 2 locations
My permanent NexDome Obs South Coast NSW Bortle 3 ( takes 5 to 8 mins to start imaging )
My semi permanent set up in backyard Sydney Bortle 8 ( takes 20 mins to start imaging )

I use to set up and tear down when I first started at both locations 6 years ago

I’d look for another hobby if I had up to set up and tear down now as my gear is too complicated and heavy

Set up and tear down is definitely more suited to the light weight portable wide field guys

Cheers
Martin
( Posted from Wexford , Ireland )

[The_bluester]

I am currently setting up and tearing down a 10" Newt and/or an 80mm refractor, night by night or at least most nights (Covered with a tent during the day) not to mention a friends gear which has been here for a few months to take advantage of my skies.

I am keen enough on an obs to be looking at a temporary and smaller one while I keep building piers, just to be able to leave the bigger scopes set up.