The observatory installation

The observatory consists of a run-off shed housing a 12-inch diameter concrete pier on which stands, at present, a Takahashi EM200 Temma II equatorial mount. The attachment of the mount to the pier is by means of two stout aluminium plates 12 inches square. The lower plate is anchored to the pier with three "J" bolts buried in to the concrete when the pier was cast. The upper plate is attached to the lower by four lengths of studding. This allows for precise levelling of the upper plate.

An SBIG ST11000M camera is used for imaging and this attaches to the E-160 by way of a custom-made adapter. Focussing is achieved with a Robofocus.

Image acquisition is normally done with Maxim DL/CCD and TheSky v6. FocusMax is currently being evaluated for auto-focussing.

A Meade 8-inch LX200 SCT OTA is also available for longer focal length imaging.

I have recently (June 2005) purchased a Vixen ED103 apochromatic refractor. primarily for solar imaging. This was purchased from Ian King Imaging, a dealer I can heartily recommend for his willingness to help and advise and excellent service. Click here to visit Ian's web site.

The arrangement of two aluminium plates attaching the mount to the pier.
An ST2000XM mounted on the E-160. This has since been sold and replaced by an STL11000M. The Robofocus motor can be seen at the bottom centre of the picture.
Another view of the E-160, with the shed rolled back.
The Tak Epsilon-160 on the EM200 mount. The small black box resting on the top aluminium plate is a Robofocus control box.
The roll-off shed. Runs on four wheels in track made from "U" section aluminium channel supported on 4 X 2 wooden beams, in turn supported on a course of bricks.

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