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Building the Observatory
Building the Observatory
The observatory dome is a 2.2 metre NexDome which comes in kit form. I built it over a couple of days in April 2019.
Below is a selection of photos from the build process which can also be viewed as a Google Photos Album.
At right is an extended album with many more photos of the whole process - from before we bought the house until the completion of the observatory.
After ordering the dome from Sidereal Trading in Melbourne, it arrived in a big truck after only a few days.
The shipment consisted of three big boxes.
This box contains the door and some wall panels.
Matching up the parts with the instructions.
First I assembled the dome section on our back patio.
The view from the living room.
Meanwhile, the concreters came and poured the slab. The orange conduit carries power from the house and the black things are plastic flower pots to create holes in the slab for the tripod legs.
The dome section fully assembled.
Testing the tripod for fit. Each leg rests on a paving stone in a hole in the slab. This isolates the tripod from the slab to minimise vibration.
Assembly begins with the bay.
The walls take shape.
The walls are cpleted with the panel containing the door.
As the observatory is at the side of the house, it is visible from the street.
The structure is almost complete except for securing the shutter. So it's held on with tape temporarily until the next day.
The toothed track is attached to the inside by double sided tape.
The track is a single piece supplied in a roll.
The tripod leg rests on a paving stone which is isolated from the concrete by gravel.
The structure is not yet attached to the slab, so paving stones and bricks are laid on the brackets at the bottom of each post to weight it down. The tools belong to the electrician who is installing power points in the middle of the floor.
The dome rotation motor is bolted to one of the posts and the gear wheel meshes with the track.
Rubber mats are cut to fit the floor. These provide a small air gap between the concrete and the carpet which will go on top.
The first layer of the floor is complete.
Rubber backed carpet mats are added to complete the floor. Note the three paving stones for the tripod legs and the white power outlet.
The telescope goes in.
The telescope is installed with tripod legs on the paving stones.
Equipment and cabling is now being mounted on the scope.
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