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Astronomy
Situated in the New Forest @ Lat: 50.884031, Lon: -
The Haven Observatory
The ‘dome’ was originally a hand built hexagon structure made from OSB board an 2x2
timber framing. The wall were 5ft high and allow me to get the scope almost horizontal.
The roof rotated on 6 castors mounted on a double thickness 8ft wide ring of OSB,
and rest on another double thickness ring mounted on the top of the hexagonal base.
All components were coated in 3 coats wood preservative and then 2 coats water repellent.
The roof additionally is felted.
The roof has an opening 27" wide in two parts -
opens past the vertical, and a sloping piece. They can be removed separately if needed.
It has now been replaced by a fibreglass 7ft Sirius dome.
The dome base rests on a concrete base 6" thick, dug out and laid by hand:-
It has survived 90mph winds and temps as low as -
surrounded by a garden flood nearly 6" deep at one point. The carpet never even got
wet!
You can see from the pics that my site is arboreally challenged.
The 9ft hedge and (~50ft) conifer block the north east -
where the sky glow from Southampton is at its worst. The oak tree is due east and
the other tree is due south. Believe it or not the dome is placed to maximise the
amount of sky I can access.
