Contains:  Gear
First steps, Claudio Tenreiro

First steps

Revision title: New set up...soon

First steps, Claudio Tenreiro

First steps

Revision title: New set up...soon

Description

Sequence of images from the preparation of the foundations work for the ARTAMI observatory, it must be able to withstand earthquakes, the last big one in this area was in 2010, 8.8 Richter Scale. We use to have about one/month of the level 4.5 to 5.5, so it must have an structure to cope with that. The big ones, above 7.6 are only once every a few years.
When you are guiding and you get one of those minor ones 4-5, your guiding system will not like it at all...you can imagine the pier and the scope shaking..., below 3 you don't feel them, but your system does!

The gear right now is the WO SpaceCat 51, on an CEM25, and the Vixen ED80Sf, on the CEM70, plus their cameras. I have the wheel for the filters (and the filters) to do NB images but that is still on the training, well it is me the one on learning phase..., kind of "on the job training based on YouTube ".

The whole system took about 4 month to be ready, and the structure is a kind of steel cage with wooden walls, surrounded by a anti humidity material (it also serve as isolating material), there is another layer in a kind of sandwich to the interior wall. The roof is mounted on two rails, with 6 wheels on each side, so its weight is well balanced, and is really smooth and light to move just with the hand. The floor is a triple layer of: wood, plywood and a kind of rubber.

The electrical system is based on a solar panel (270 W), a Pylontech Li-ion battery of 100Ah, plus an  inverter to 220 VAC of 380 W Phoenix, and another output of a regulated 12V 18A source Orion, both are made by Victron Energy. The charge controller is an EPEVER Tracer MPPT.

The large Bathinov mask you see on the wall...hopefully will be part of an upgrade.

Comments

Revisions

  • First steps, Claudio Tenreiro
    Original
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    I
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  • Final
    First steps, Claudio Tenreiro
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B

Description: Pier made of concrete with internal structure and every base point to the ground is also deep with concrete.

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C

Description: Structure of the floor, steel cage (main square profiles of 3"x3"x4mm) and the roof, mounted on wheels inside the metal structure. Floor elevated from the ground.

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D

Description: Early stages of walls, starting internal isolation, pier ready for cabling and hole for the window.

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E

Description: Almost finished and the roof rolled out

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F

Description: Electric system from the solar panel on the roof.

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G

Description: The two scopes that are in operation at this time, the SpaceCat 51, and the Vixen ED80Sf

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H

Title: Looking north

Description: A view of my scope working at night. That is the view to the north, where right now I get Orion and Canis Major.

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I

Title: Looking East

Description: My scope working at night, and the east view I can get (5AM early December) Carina and the southern cross among other things.

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J

Title: Last member of the family

Description: Now the ASKAR FRA600 went to the pier and the Vixen to the CEM25P.

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K

Title: Vía Lactea in December

Description: A view of the via lactea from the door of the observatory, in December, looking east.

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L

Title: Changes and upgrade

Description: As it was pointed out a while ago, the observatory at home could host another pier, so I got a new mount, the GEM45, that so far is being tested on a tripod, and with my actual scope, the FRA600. So far so good, the out of the box guiding is around 0.7" - 0.8", with polar alignment around 1 arc-min. So , now I will start to build the independent and fixed pier for this mount. The previous CEM70 will host the 10" f/4 reflector, which still I have to collimate before going to its place on that mount. So far collimating has been a bit of a pain...
Just a comment, with my normal seeing my guiding goes closer to 1", and, on some really bad nights, even 1.2"

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M

Title: New Pier for the FRA600

Description: I built a new pier, with a concrete base and stell pier, made of a very thick steel tube and two 10mm thick plates for the bottom and top part of the structure. Here will host the GEM45 mount.

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N

Title: The two piers now are ready.

Description: Here is a view of the two piers, the big old one and the new one made of steel tube and concrete base. A bit more detail in the revision M, where you can see the parts. The old one, with the CEM70, will host the 10" Newton f/4 tube.

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O

Title: Garden set up

Description: My garden set up for solar system objects. Sometimes I need more north horizon, so from my garden is better than from my observatory. I have done 3 concrete bases, with indications, in order to place the tripod in the same orientation. This also is to be used with the small iOptron skyguider and the camera Sony, for very wide angle images.

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P

Title: New set up...soon

Description: I am mounting the new scope in my obs, a GSO 10" f/4 Newtonian telescope. The Telescope has been siting there for more than a year, waiting for me to get slowly all the additional stuff needed to become operational. So I am getting close now, and in the image you can see the FRA600 in the GEM45 and the GSO into the CEM70. I had to get additional 5 kg counterweight...
All the cables are just hanging from the equipment, hopefully within a few weeks I manage to get the first DSO with this equipment.
Aligning the scope has been not easy, and still further refinement is needed. The balancing also is a bit of an issue, but I will care more about that when all the additional equipment is in place.

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S

Title: Nice upgrade of my Vixen ED80Sf, a dual speed focuser, compatible with electronic focusers.

Description: Thanks to Dan, https://www.astrobin.com/users/dan_pritzl/, I did also an upgrade of the focuser, from the simple original one to a dual speed focuser, compatible also with an electronic focuser. Dan described it at https://www.astrobin.com/42mwi9/, and it works exactly as he described, it fits immediately and even the old screws are the correct ones for the new focuser.

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Histogram

First steps, Claudio Tenreiro