A Different Kind Of Workshop

[Tom Clark FL]

The wife took this photo a couple of months ago, and I thought some of you woodworkers might get a kick out of it. This 'workshop' is my latest woodworking project, a new home for my telescope. I am not a contractor, just an amateur woodworker, and my only experience in this area is when I built a similar observatory back in FL in 2012. This year we moved to the desert, and although a lot of friends asked if we were going to take our 24' diameter observatory with us (wouldn't that be an adventure?) we had to build a new one.

In an observatory dome like this, the top part of the building rotates along with the telescope, so the scope can be pointed to all parts of the sky. That does make it easier to build, as the part you are working on is just rotated around to the scaffold…

[Tom Clark FL]

Fortunately, this project is located right behind my workshop, so making the parts has been a lot easier than if it was out somewhere far off.

[Andy Fox]

Awesome intergalactic workshop there! I would be interesting to hear about how you did the curved structural pieces.

Did you move to the desert for better seeing?

[Art Mulder]

I've been following this off and on.

Here are the links to page 1 (http://www.tomclarkbooks.com/Dome.html), and page 2 (http://www.tomclarkbooks.com/Dome_2.html) of Tom's dome-building work.

It's fun to watch.

[James Baker SD]

what's the scope you are going to put inside?

[Tom Clark FL]

The scope is a 42" Newtonian. It was built in 2002, and was just moved to New Mexico for darker and clearer skies. The design is nothing fancy; just a giant plywood box made with 13 sheets of 3/4" plywood. Total weight is around 1600 pounds.

[James Baker SD]

The scope is a 42" Newtonian.

That is one BIG eye. Sweet.