Shutter shock I've been largely happy with my NexDome since setting it up at the start of this year. It's not perfect but all the issues it can present are generally quite manageable and at
Cable Crisis: How to make your own DB9-RJ12 cable for Synscan Handcontrollers After finishing the observatory and starting to shift my scope and gear into it, I very quickly found that all my essential cables were not where I thought they were... USB cables for
Final prep for Dome & Observatory With the dome finally in place, the hard part of the project was complete. Getting the observatory to a usable state still required a little more work though. First up was the weatherproofing.
NexDome online After returning from a 3 month hiatus in Australia to a spell of fine weather, the Dome is finally up and in place. There's still a little bit to be done before the
Pier is ready So the pier is now complete and I'm happy with the final result. Pretty much everything is to specification (with the exception of one minor niggle) and it's extremely sturdy, which is something
Finish line in sight After just over 1 year the observatory is finally nearing completion! All that remains is to install the dome and pier and it will be ready for observing. *Now with bonus deck for
Back in action After a long hiatus through the winter I'm back in action on the astronomy front. We've resumed work on the observatory installing the windows and door. Next step is to put the roof
Building an observatory.. with no telescope to put in it After a long period with no new content I figure it's about time for an update. Unfortunately ongoing tracking issues with my mount has put a stop to all astrophotography activity in recent
Seeking balance Part of the setup process when using a German Equatorial mount is getting both it's right ascension and declination axes in balance. Failure to balance properly will put additional strain on the mounts
The story so far Part 2: Polar alignment Polar alignment (PA) is basically the alignment of a telescopes rotational axis with that of the earth's. The mounts motor system can drive the telescope at a rate that keeps it in sync
The story so far Part 1: The beginning My whole life I've always had a keen interest in astronomy and owning a proper telescope has always been a desire of mine. Living under the harsh, light polluted skies of Auckland city
Equipment Equipment This is a complete list of all equipment I'm currently using. All images I've produced so far were generated with this assembly. Orion ED80T CF 80mm Refractor OTA Orion Skyview Pro Equatorial Mount
A brief introduction... After recently acquiring a telescope and diving into the complex art of astrophotography, I've very quickly found myself drowning in the technical details of data acquisition and image processing. I'm approaching the limit
