âAttached is what I did to keep the Sun off the equipment as well as handle
the high winds, and rain.
(Ignore the AVX mount on the left.That comes inside for the Summer.)
Here's a close-up:
â
The wind screens on the larger structure are held in place with bungee cord.
What that does is permit the wind to pass through when the force is strong
enoughâ to move the sun/windscreen.
To keep the sides from going horizontal, cord is also attached (probably
can't see it.
The white cord hanging down from the 4 corners, in the attached photo, is
to tether the shelter in strong winds.
Also, I agree that once you get the hang of polar aligning the AVX, it
becomes simpler.
The main telescope under the shelter is also brought in for the Summer.
But, the mount and computer cart remains outside.
This configuration has been in use for several years now and has held up
well during the monsoons.
On Tue, Jun 12, 2018 at 6:51 AM, Jimmy Ray <Jimmy_Ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Roger that Mike.
FYI, HOA's and streetlights can be handled fairly easily. The last three
are the Holy Grail ;-)
Jimmy
-----Original Message-----
From: az-observing-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:az-observing-bounce@
freelists.org] On Behalf Of Michael McDonald
Sent: Monday, June 11, 2018 10:09 PM
To: az-observing@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [AZ-Observing] Re: Telescope mounts and the monsoon?
Yeah, I dream about some kind of observatory but thatâs probably not going
to happen anytime soon. HOA, budget, space, street light, wife, ⦠I am
campaigning for a pier though. Thatâll probably have to wait until the
fall. Iâm getting too old to be doing heavy work outside during the summer!
Really, Iâm just turning into a wuss! :-) (Turning?)
I always take the OTA inside. I donât trust that it would withstand the AZ
sun let alone the monsoon winds. Some of those âouthouseâ roll-off
observatories I see on YouTube look like theyâd take off in a light breeze.
I was just hoping someone had a bright idea that I hadnât thought of.
Mike McDonald
mikemac@xxxxxxxxxxx
On Jun 11, 2018, at 8:57 PM, Jimmy Ray <Jimmy_Ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>wrote:
the strength of the wind on a mount and or mount scope when a "sail" of a
Hi Mike,
While there are weather resistant covers and such. Do not underestimate
cover is fastened over it.
tossed over 205 pounds of OTA and mount (tossed it 3 feet down wind as well
The incident most folks will recall had to do with a dust devil which
as over), the monsoon winds are as strong or stronger than what "Toto"
encountered with a resulting $1600 worth of damage.
observatory (roll-off or other is probably in order. The monsoon rain and /
A Small anchored out building wheeled over the scope or a full blown
or hail is not to be trivialized either.
I do understand the total pain of it.
In the end, re-polar aligning the mount is significantly cheaper. Though
Thank you,
Jimmy Ray
Arizona Sonoran Desert Observatory - Glendale
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