Orion out of control

[Testing]

Posting this on it's own so that it can quickly go down the pike. From an SDC link so don't say I'm advertizing.
Who needs a 50", 900lb dobby?

http://www.telescope.com/control/catego ... onsterdobs

 

[MeteorWayne]

Re: Orion ot of control

Wow, see the price on that puppy? $123,000!!!!

 

[Astro_Robert]

Re: Orion ot of control

50 inches!

Isn't there still the odd 36" (probably mostly refractors) scope hanging around some professional observatories. I mean what would an amatuer do with a 50" monster light bucket?

I also do not understand this claim of transportability. I mean a 50" mirror is going to be a tight fit even in a large SUV or pickup, let alone the rest of the scope and the weight of loading and unloading.

 

[crazyeddie]

Re: Orion ot of control

50 inches!

Isn't there still the odd 36" (probably mostly refractors) scope hanging around some professional observatories. I mean what would an amatuer do with a 50" monster light bucket?

I also do not understand this claim of transportability. I mean a 50" mirror is going to be a tight fit even in a large SUV or pickup, let alone the rest of the scope and the weight of loading and unloading.

Yes, the Samuel Oschin telescope is a 48-inch Schmidt camera and is still being used at Palomar Observatory. I image that most large colleges and universities that offer degrees in astronomy or astrophysics probably have telescopes in this size range. The Mount Laguna Observatory, east of San Diego and owned by San Diego State University, has scopes that range in size from 16" to only 40", so a 50" telescope would be a step up for them.

You would need a trailer to haul such an instrument, I would think. That might make it "transportable", but not very practical. Still, you do see such monsters when you go to amateur star parties around the country. The lines to view through them are always quite long!

 

[crazyeddie]

Re: Orion ot of control

Has anyone else been intrigued by Orion's new motorized GOTO dobs? They are quite affordable compared to some systems I've seen:

http://www.telescope.com/control/produc ... t_id=08948

$850 for an 8-inch go-to dobsonian....not bad! Sky-watcher is coming out with one, too, which I like even better:

http://www.skywatchertelescope.net/swti ... class2=109

 

[Boris_Badenov]

Re: Orion ot of control

The specs in the advert say the 50" mirror alone weighs in at 500lb. While I would have no trouble transporting that in my pickup there would be no way to get it out without a forklift or at the very least 4 or 5 really big guys, & that's just the mirror. Trying to haul the whole thing assembled to a remote Star Party location seems like a sure way to knock the mirror out of alignment. It sure would be drag to get out to your mountaintop & not be able to even look at the Moon through your $123k investment.
The biggest I've ever seen at a star party out here was a 12" Meade & that took two guy's about an hour set up.

 

[dragon04]

Re: Orion ot of control

*drool*


You don't move that puppy. You build an observatory around it. :lol:

 

[Gravity_Ray]

Re: Orion ot of control

when you click on it, i love the way it goes into a on-line shopping cart... :lol: Oh yeah, wait one sec, let me get my credit card out real quick and plop $123,000.00 down. :shock: