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Practical Astronomy Springer London Berlin Heidelberg New York Barcelona Budapest Hong Kong Milan Paris Santa Clara Singapore Tokyo Other titles in this series The Modern Amateur Astronomer Patrick Moore (Ed.) The Observational Amateur Astronomer Patrick Moore (Ed.) Telescopes and Techniques: An Introduction to Practical Astronomy C.R. Kitchin Amateur and Professional Designs and Constructions Patrick Moore (Ed.) 13 Small Astronomical Observatories The cover shows the glass-fibre-domed observatory built by Brian Manning (Chapter 12) ISBN 3-540-19913-6 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg New York British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Small astronomical observatories: amateur and professional designs and constructions. ± (Practical astronomy) 1.Astronomical observatories 2.Astronomical observatories ± Design and construction I.Moore, Patrick, 1923± 522.1 ISBN 3540199136 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Small astronomical observatories: amateur and professional designs and constructions / Patrick Moore (ed.) p. cm. ± (Practical astronomy) ISBN 3-540-19913-6 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. ±Astronomical observatories±Design and construction- -Amateurs' manuals. 2. Astronomical observatories±Great Britain- -Amateurs' manuals. I. Moore, Patrick. II. Series. QB82.G7S63 1996 96-13224 522'.1±dc20 CIP Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside those terms should be sent to the publishers. # Springer-Verlag London Limited 1996 Printed in Great Britain 2nd printing 1998 The publisher makes no representation, express or implied, with regard to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and cannot accept any legal responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions that may be made. Typeset by T&A Typesetting Services, Rochdale, England Printed at the Alden Press, Osney Mead, Oxford 34/3830-54321 Printed on acid-free paper Contents Introduction Patrick Moore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix 1 A Practical Roll-off Roof Observatory in Michigan, USA Dennis Allen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2 Mount Tuffley Observatory in Gloucester, England John Fletcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 3 A Solar Observatory with a Slide Roof in Jordanstown, Northern Ireland Bruce Hardie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4 The Edenvale Observatory in Edenvale, South Africa M.D. Overbeek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 5 A Roll-off Roof Observatory in New Boston, New Hampshire, USA Lawrence D. and Linda Lopez . . . . . . . . . . 37 6 A Suburban Observatory in Worcester Park, England Maurice Gavin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 7 A Simple Rotating Observatory in Nottingham, England AlanW.Heath 59 8 The Taunton School Radio Astronomy Observatory in Taunton, England Trevor Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 9 The Starlight CCD Observatory in Binfield, England Terry Platt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 v 10 The University of Hertfordshire Observatory in Bayfordbury, England C.R. Kitchin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 11 An Amateur Observatory with a Glass Fibre Dome Ron Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 12 A Glass Fibre Dome for a 260mm, 1.9 m Focal Length Reflecting Telescope B.G.W. Manning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 13 Chigwell School Observatory in Chigwell, England A.J. Sizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 14 The Torquay Boys' Grammar School Observatory David Reid and C. Lintott. . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 15 Patrick Moore's Observatory in Selsey, England Patrick Moore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 16 A Deep-Sky Observatory Jack Newton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 17 Worth Hill Observatory D. Strange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 18 Red Hill Observatory Chris Plicht . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 19 Powys County Observatory Cheryl Power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 20 A Large Run-off Shed Observatory for a 0.49 m Newtonian Martin Mobberley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 21 Tenagra Observatory Michael Schwartz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 22 The Observatory at Birr Castle in Co. Offaly, Ireland Patrick Moore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 vi Contents 23 A Lancashire Observatory with a Glass Fibre Dome David Ratledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 24 A Solar Observatory Eric H. Strach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215 25 The Carter Observatory ± One That Didn't Make It John Watson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223 Contributors 227 viiContents Introduction Astronomy is still one of the very few sciences in which the amateur can play a valuable role. Indeed, amateur work is warmly welcomed by professional astronomers. During the past few dec- ades the whole situation has changed; whereas the average amateur used to own a modest telescope and concentrate only upon various well-defined branches of observation (notably Solar System re- searches, and variable star work), the modern ama- teur can make use of affordable but highly sophisticated equipment. Obviously, the serious amateur will need an ob- servatory, and while there are many books dealing with telescope construction and use there are very few dealing with actual observatories. The present book will, I hope, fill this gap in the literature. The observatories described here are of various types, ranging from simple run-off sheds to complicated domes; there are observatories designed for studying the Sun, others suited to ``deep-sky'' enthusiasts, others built for the benefit of radio as- tronomers or astro-photographers. In each case use- ful hints are given, and it is hoped that the would-be observatory builder will find a great deal here to help in the construction. No two observatories are the same; each has its own advantages ± and its own drawbacks! No attempt has been made at ``standardisation'' of style; each author has been free to write in his own way, and to explain the procedure followed and the various difficulties encountered. Measurements are given in both Imperial and Metric units, with author's own preference coming first. If you intend to build an observatory ± good luck! Patrick Moore ix Dennis Allen My family owns property up in west-central Michi- gan. This is an area known for its relatively dark skies. It's a place I go to hunt, fish, and enjoy the occasional clear night. Early this spring, I was treated to a whole flock of clear nights. One problem: too much snow on the ground. There was simply no place to set up my telescope. So this year, I vowed to build an observatory. My original idea was to create a peaked roll-off roof. This building would have a 12 ft (3.6 m) square 1 Chapter 1 A Practical Roll-off Roof Observatory in Michigan, USA Figure 1.1 Dennis Allen's roll-off roof observatory.