Hi folks,
It seems increasingly difficult to find a back yard that's actually dark, so I've started wondering whether a remote observatory is a better option. (BTW, by "remote" I only mean somewhere that's further than the backyard and a lot darker, not a five hour hike up a mountain.
)
There are plenty of folks sharing their ideas and designs for piers, ROR/dome obs setups and automation ... and I thank every one of them.
But how the heck does one go about finding a place (I guess a
very small parcel of land in a suitable rural or semi-rural spot) to buy or lease? And what would be the indicative costs involved?
Any ideas or past experience? Suggestions on cost? Other issues? Would it work better if a few people joined together to setup a small cluster of remote obs's and shared some infrastructure? (Strongmanmike has an excellent thread, but it looks like he knew the landowner in question, so not sure that would apply to others looking for a dark site).
All suggestions welcome. (And if this all sounds crazy tomorrow, I'll blame it on the long-weekend celebrations).