(This website is currently under construction)
The observatory is presently still under construction, just like this website, but progress is ongoing. The major work of building the dome has been completed, but there are still many smaller tasks waiting to be finished before first light can happen. This is a private observatory, but once the build is finally completed, there are plans to create a public outreach program. Currently, work is focused on installing and automating the dome’s azimuth and shutter drives. Only after that will the instruments be installed and aligned.
The observatory is tucked away in a quiet, rural area of the Potomac Highlands of West Virginia that has Bortle scale class 3 skies, and sits at an elevation of around 1120-feet.
The main structure is a twelve-and-a-half foot diameter Galvalume dome atop a round building with an elevated floor. Another larger building, some distance from the dome, serves as the “warm room” and office, with both buildings interconnected via a gigabit network.
The plan is to automate most functions of the observatory so it can be remotely operated. But achieving 100% remote control is not an absolute necessity since I live onsite. The main goal is to be able to control the telescopes and cameras within a classroom environment. When completed, the dome will house a modified Celestron C-11 XLT 11-inch f/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain as the main telescope, an Astro-Tech 6-inch f/9 Ritchey-Chretion Astrograph for deep sky imaging, and a modified Orion 80mm f/5 refractor as an autoguider scope. I may even add a Coronado PST solar telescope into the mix. The telescopes will sit atop an Orion HDX-110 (Skywatcher EQ-8) heavy duty equatorial mount.
Click on the chart for more details of weather and viewing conditions.