Sprinting
March 27th, 2003 | by Tony Steidler-Dennison |
It seems like I’ve been at a dead sprint all week. We’ve been pushing to meet a milestone at work. The completion of that milestone is pictured at left. I’ve also been coding PHP like a madman, trying to get a new company site online. It’ll focus on the optics element of our business exclusively. I’ve handled marketing and customer relations throughout the week - all in tandem with the normally minimal IT stuff in the shop. If I’d been needed in the optics shop this week, I think I’d have a royal flush.
The image, by the way, gives you an idea of the scale of the telescopes we build. I’m 6′4″ and standing halfway up an eight-foot ladder in the picture. I’m bolting in the fork extension - it holds the optical tube assembly (the OTA - both primary and secondary mirror). The bottom of the OTA is between the arms of the fork. This telescope will go to Spain in May, and I’ll be there for the install. My mechanical skills aren’t those of a master, but installs are almost more a matter of on-site software configuration than actually putting the telescope on the pier.
With the milestone reached and the milestone payment wire on its way (hopefully), I can kick up my feet for a few days.
6 Responses to “Sprinting”
By Ryan on Mar 28, 2003 | Reply
I want your job.
Diversity in the workplace is the key to happiness as far as I am concerned.
By Ian Christie on Mar 28, 2003 | Reply
As Ryan says, “Diversity in the workplace is the key to happiness…”, I have to agree. Here’s hoping the install goes smoothly.
By Chris S on Apr 1, 2003 | Reply
What’s the diameter of the primary? That thing looks huge. I thought my 130mm f/5 gave nice views of Jupiter. I would LOVE to try that thing…
I’m trying not to get aperture fever but I don’t think it’s working.
By Tony Steidler-Dennison on Apr 1, 2003 | Reply
The primary is 80cm - roughly 31.5″. It’s a big piece of glass. We’ve built them as big as one meter.
This one will weigh in the neighborhood of 3 tons when it’s complete, including all the glass.
I keep thinking I want a small one for myself. But then, I have these huge ’scopes pretty much at my disposal …
By Chris S on Apr 1, 2003 | Reply
I would love to see the sights through one of these monsters. If I am ever in your neighborhood don’t be surprised if I “stop by”.
By Tony Steidler-Dennison on Apr 1, 2003 | Reply
I had to smile a bit at your original comment, Chris. These telescopes are so big, you can’t even really look at most planets. a) They’re too bright and b) You can’t take a short enough CCD exposure to prevent the chip from blooming all to hell. You just can’t believe how much light an 80cm primary can gather. With proper collimation, we’re looking at objects that are hundreds of millions of light years away. In fact, given the limiting magnitude of some galaxies, we can probably look back 1 billion years. It takes an incredibly long exposure and the ability to track the object with pinpoint precision over that time period.
It’s still mind-boggling to me - looking at light that has taken 750,000,000 years to reach Earth. Staggering.