Facilities of the Chaco Observatory

Facilities of the Chaco Observatory

Equipment Photos | Instructions for use of Observatory | Celestron 14-inch | SBIG-7 Camera


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Facilities/Equipment Photos

Chaco Astronomy Facilities
PUBLIC OUTREACH: The Chaco Observatory has a number of components which can be seen in this photograph. To the left is the dome for the 25-inch, F/4 Obsession Equatorial Dobsonian. In the foreground is a Celestron 14-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain equipped with an SBIG-7 CCD camera. The imaging room is to the right. The room is used for public digital slide presentations using only photos that have been generated at Chaco. To the far right is the amphitheater which is used for large group presentations about astronomy and archaeoastronomy.


Star Party in back of the Visitor Center
STAR PARTIES: After sunset on clear nights, the parking lot area in back of the Visitor Center often turns into an impromptu star party. Visitors who bring astronomical telescopes into the Park are encouraged to set up their equipment here for everyone to enjoy. All lights at the Visitor Center can be turned off to facilitate a truly dark sky experience.


25-inch Dobsonian
ASTRONOMY IS AN OBSESSION: The largest telescope at Chaco Observatory is a 25-inch, F/4, Obsession reflector on an equatorially driven Dobsonian mount. The telescope has digital encoders to help with the location of celestial bodies. In this photo, Angie Richman takes a peek at the dark Chaco skies.


Group with 25-inch Dobsonian
DEEP-SKY OBSERVING: The 25-inch Obsession is a focal point for evening presentations. After the main archaeoastronomy talk in the amphitheater, audiences are eager to observe the heavens through Chaco's telescopes. One group usually uses the 25-inch, while another is treated to images taken at the Chaco Observatory. Other groups join volunteers for an upclose and personal tour of the universe which sometimes lasts into the early hours of the morning.


Group in Image Room
IMAGE SHOW: Former astronomy SCA (Student Conservation Association) volunteer, Derek Dillman, better known as "Teflon Jimmy," gives Chaco visitors a slick presentation about astronomy using CCD images that have been taken using the Observatory's equipment.


SBIG Camera
CHARGED COUPLE DEVICE CAMERA: The heart of the electronic CCD imaging system at Chaco is an SBIG-7 camera with an adaptive optics package attached to the unit. John Sefick, founder of the Chaco Observatory, stands in back of the Celestron 14-inch catadioptric system that has been used for most of the imaging at Chaco.


Viewing the sun at Chaco
SOLAR WATCH: The tradition of sunwatching begun by the Chacoans thousands of years ago continues in the Park today. A Helios sun telescope allows visitors to safely view the sun in red hydrogen light. This sun scope allows observers to not only see sunspots with ease, but also to view prominences, flares, and filaments, something that could never be accomplished with an ordinary telescope and filtration system. Fran Kittek photo...


Chaco Observatory seen from Una Vida
CHACO'S ASTRONOMY COMPLEX: Seen from Una Vida, the Chaco Observatory has superb views of the sky from one of North America's darkest observing sites. Come join us for a memorable evening.



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Domed Observatory
Preparation of the 25-inch Telescope and Observatory for Night Viewing

Chaco Observatory Interior
1. Unlock and open door. Turn on red light on dimmer switch.

 
Power Supply
2. Flip the switch on the power strip above the red light to the on position.
3. Turn on the power panel which controls the dome and the shutter.

 
Opening/Closing Shutter
4. Remove the keys from the power panel, and unlock the dome shutter guard. Then lock down the shutter guard in the unlocked position.

 
Electrical Contacts
5. Move the dome so that the electrical contacts are engaged.
6. Open the dome shutter. Align the two marks on the moving shutter with the two stationary arrows on the dome.
7. Rotate the dome off the electrical contacts which cause the shutter to operate.

 
Telescope Front
8. Remove the front end cover (Velcro) from the telescope.
9. Replace the eyepiece cap with the two-inch eyepiece holder and eyepiece.

 
Telescope Drive
10. Turn on the telescope drive by flipping the switch located near the base of the instrument. Now you’re ready to observe.

 
Preparation of the 25-inch Telescope and Observatory for Night Viewing (text only)

  1. Unlock and open door. Turn on red light on dimmer switch.
  2. Flip the switch on the power strip above the red light to the on position.
  3. Turn on the power panel which controls the dome and the shutter.
  4. Remove the keys from the power panel, and unlock the dome shutter guard. Then lock down the shutter guard in the unlocked position.
  5. Move the dome so that the electrical contacts are engaged.
  6. Open the dome shutter. Align the two marks on the moving shutter with the two stationary arrows on the dome.
  7. Rotate the dome off the electrical contacts which cause the shutter to operate.
  8. Remove the front end cover (Velcro) from the telescope.
  9. Replace the eyepiece cap with the two-inch eyepiece holder and eyepiece.
  10. Turn on the telescope drive by flipping the switch located near the base of the instrument. Now you’re ready to observe.

Closing Down the 25-inch Telescope and Observatory

  1. Turn off the telescope drive system. The switch is located near the base of the instrument.
  2. Stow the eyepieces and cap the two-inch eyepiece holder.
  3. Fasten the Velcro cover to the front of telescope.
  4. Rotate the dome shutter mechanism so that electrical contacts match.
  5. Close the shutter, aligning the moving marks on the shutter with the stationary ones that are found on the lower portion of the dome.
  6. Move the dome off of the electrical shutter contact points.
  7. Secure the dome with the locking mechanism.
  8. Switch off the power panel which controls the dome rotation and the shutter movement.
  9. Turn the power strip switch off.
  10. Turn off the red dimmer light in the observatory and exit, locking the door.


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Celestron 14-inch
Preparation of the Celestron 14-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain for Visual Observing

  1. Unlock and lift the cover off of the telescope. The bottom of the cover must be pulled up to clear the pier first. The cover should be hung on the hook by the entrance doorway in the computer room.
  2. Remove the front dust cover on the Celestron telescope and the 2-inch plastic eyepiece stop.
  3. Attach and lock down the Telrad finder onto the Celestron.
  4. Secure the Meade 2-inch right angle diagonal with attached eyepiece. Be sure to remove the F/6.3 focal reducer from the diagonal unit. This is its stow location. The reducer will be attached to the CCD unit after the setup procedure of the telescope is complete. Note that the focus position of the diagonal and CCD camera are already preset. Please do not adjust the focus of the telescope.
  5. Unlock the power cabinet attached to the exterior of the building facing the telescope. First turn on the transformer (middle shelf), telescope power (top shelf--toggle in back of unit), and the fan to cool the cabinet (middle shelf by the transformer). Leave the control cabinet door open to facilitate better cooling the of the system.
  6. Make sure the telescope is in its correct starting position, -90 degrees declination, with its fork arms in a horizontal position.
  7. Return to the observing room and push the Begin button. When the computer is first turned on, the entire console display will flash on and off for several seconds. When it stops flashing you are ready to begin.
  8. Enter the GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) from the digital clock found on the desk. Use an HH-MM-SS format. Then press the Enter key.
  9. Enter the GMT year, month, and date, keeping in mind that GMT time is 7 hours ahead of Mountain Standard Time, 6 hours ahead of Mountain Daylight Time. As an example, if it is July 5, 10:00 p.m. MDT, at Chaco Observatory, it will be July 6, 4:00 a.m. at Greenwich (GMT). The computer is not Y2K compatible. Please note the year as 1999. When the correct data is entered, press the Enter key.
  10. Enter Chaco Observatory’s western longitude position, 107 degrees, 54 minutes. It can also be found on the C-14 keypad. Press the Enter key on the C-14 keypad.
  11. Enter Chaco Observatory’s northern latitude position, 36 degrees, 01 minutes. Press the Enter key on the C-14 keypad.
  12. The telescope will now start slewing to find Polaris. Observe the telescope’s motion to insure that the cables on the telescope do not snag while the telescope is in motion.
  13. Position Polaris in the center of the field of view using the altitude and azimuth controls on your pier or wedge. If the procedure has been done before, this last step need not be taken.
  14. Press the Enter button again. The telescope will move to find a reference star near the meridian which must be accurately aligned through the Telrad device. While the telescope is slewing, watch the cables to insure that they do not snag.
  15. Align the reference star by using the motion control buttons on the Celestron computer console. The control pad should be passed through the small mailbox opening in the image room to the outside. Be careful not to pull the cable too far.
  16. Press the Synch button when you have the reference star in the center of the field of view. Pass the control pad back into the image room. The telescope is now ready for Go To commands.


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CCD Camera
Preparation of the SBIG ST-7 CCD Camera for Astrophotography

  1. Attach (screw) the CCD camera with the focal reducer to the 14-inch Celestron telescope. The ST-7 camera should be in the up position while the adaptive optics unit (AO-7) is below the camera.
  2. Attach the parallel port cable to the ST-7. Always do this first. If perchance the power cable was connected first, and the ST-7 was powered up, the insertion of the parallel port cable could cause serious damage to the system.
  3. Attach the power cable to the ST-7.
  4. Switch on the power for the ST-7 camera. The power strip is located on the accessory table attached to the mount. The slight noise from the running fan motor will be your signal that the camera has power.
  5. Return to the computer room and boot the computer. Go to the Ccdops program, Setup and set the temperature of the camera approximately 50 degrees F. below the outside air temperature. Once the camera has cooled, the power output on the camera should be no higher than 80 percent. If it is higher, raise the temperature of the camera. If lower than 80 percent, the camera temperature can be lowered. A low camera temperature is important because there is less background noise to be found on the image. Set Darkframe to none and Resolution to medium.
  6. Go to the Grab mode under Camera and take a 0.11 second exposure of the reference star. Center the reference star using the telescope motion keys found on the upper right hand corner of the keypad. The up and down buttons on the keypad will move the star up and down on the computer screen, but the left and right motion keys will be reversed.
  7. Repeat this sequence until the reference star is located in the center of the computer screen. You are now ready to begin photography.


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