We Built an Observatory!

Рет қаралды 7,029

2 ай бұрын

Hey everyone, this video is about the starfront remote observatory. I show you its construction in progress, and explain more of the methodology behind our observatory. I also give you a breakdown of the basics for what is required for remote observing.
You can find our website for pier reservations here:
starfront.space/
The power strip I'm recommending is this one:
www.amazon.com...
The mini PC we recommend is this one:
www.amazon.com...
The pegasus powerbox is a nice luxury for remote USB/power cycling:
bit.ly/3KhCCKZ
Hope y'all enjoyed!

Пікірлер: 81

@NebulaPhotos 2 ай бұрын

Looking good Bray - way to go!

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Thanks nico!

@ChucksAstrophotography 2 ай бұрын

Well done, Bray!

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Thanks chuck!

@raajessahu6301 2 ай бұрын

thank you bray

@ianlauerastro 2 ай бұрын

Glad my guide cam is getting first light at the observatory before my telescope 😂 Observatory looks awesome, stoked to see it when it’s full of systems

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

I used your camera again tonight :)

@anthonyparrett2779 2 ай бұрын

There's never been a better time to be an astrophotographer. Thanks for making this happen!

@michaeltelesco4764 2 ай бұрын

Can’t wait!!! Little nervous going remote but it’s exciting!!

@pickleroo253 2 ай бұрын

To be honest being from The UK I probably won't use your service I'm just glad you are using a ZWO am3 as that is my first mount. I know I'm learning all the time but I'm really in awe of the people who have the knowledge and experience to bring this level of dedication.

@TheDartFrog Ай бұрын

hmm, we have a little "summer cottage" thing where I usually do my astrophoto from, but as I've moved away from my parents for uni, I hardly ever get to spend time here nowadays (pretty much just during the summer..) really tempted to try to build some kind of a remote thing for my telescope here so that I can do astrophoto more often remotely haha

@Robservatory 2 ай бұрын

The pricing looks reasonable and Bray knows his stuff, so this looks like a nice spot to put a scope!

@wdavis6814 2 ай бұрын

I've been wanting to buy some land out in West Texas for a time now to set something like this up. I've travelled out there a bunch of times and the observing conditions are phenomenal.

@chrisruthford4492 2 ай бұрын

I want to live in the Davis mountains or Big Bend area badly, but I don't think my wife will go for it. I've got some land in a very rural area of east TX, but it's not dark there like it used to be.

@ColeRees 2 ай бұрын

Good luck, bray! Been planning mine now for two years, can’t wait to make it happen as well!

@yoeuk 2 ай бұрын

Great work, Bray! Can't wait!

@kfm6296 2 ай бұрын

Looks awesome Bray. Can’t wait for this to happen!!

@bradleypreiss9274 2 ай бұрын

This is such a great project! Thanks for the tour!

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Thanks Bradley!

@scidav87 16 күн бұрын

Very interested! I just shipped one of my mounts to you there that someone purchased from me. I'll look into this

@easyastroimages5818 Ай бұрын

Fantastic business decision. I hope it keeps going well. I’ll have a spot one day soon. Ever thought about selling data from your scopes there? Another revenue stream?

@grigoryvidishev1810 2 ай бұрын

Very nice, thank you for the update!

@LogansAstro 2 ай бұрын

Fantastic video Bray - excellent walkthrough on how to get a scope setup remotely there which really demystifies remote imaging for people who aren't familiar with it. And it's awesome that you are trying to make it avoidable for the average astrophotographer that doesn't have the finances to fork out for Planewave gear to be set up on top of a South American mountain. If you are planning to have complete setups available for hire at some stage, I would be very interested in that possibility given that I am on the other side of the world and sending gear will be potentially problematic with shipping costs, insurance etc. .

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Thanks Logan! Will keep you posted. One interesting possibility is to just purchase a setup in the states and ship it to the site, you can avoid shipping that way

@LogansAstro 2 ай бұрын

@@astrofalls Yes that is another possible option.

@drunk_astronomy 2 ай бұрын

That building will look sick when it's full of rigs, very cool. 💯

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

I’m excited for it! It’s gonna be a ton of work but it’ll be fun

@drunk_astronomy 2 ай бұрын

@@astrofalls Hell yea, it’s great to see a plan come together. Btw I ordered one of your In the shadow of the moon prints yesterday. I’m super stoked to get it and have it framed, museum grade! Thanks Bray!

@plumberman19 2 ай бұрын

I am more and more interested as these videos roll in. Im seriously considering this..

@old_photons 2 ай бұрын

This is interesting to see. A suggestion to consider, provide the terms, conditions, and like business info on the site would be helpful in accessing your services. If it is on the site, I failed to find it.

@bmbaum 2 ай бұрын

Such a great project!

@wesleydonnelly2141 2 ай бұрын

Awesome project Bray! I wish you every success, and I'm sure you will do very well with this endeavour! I am even considering paying to have my mount setup there when it's completed, because the clouds/weather in England combined with LP is truly awful! God Speed my friend!

@shotsbystefan 2 ай бұрын

This is awesome! I have one question though; what about collimation?

@LeonBewersdorff 2 ай бұрын

That's looking fantastic 🙌

@MrMrduke1975 2 ай бұрын

Pretty sweet! I appreciate you and your work. You have the dream job my friend. Wanted to add a cool thing if you could go at night away from the observatory and use your scope. Maybe I’m weird lol.

@epielanonimo 2 ай бұрын

This is such a cool project. I'm really considering sending my modest equipment to a "cheap" remote observatory in Spain, cause I work in shifts and since I got my current setup I've been able to use it 2 times (work, weather, other plans), which sucks. i want to send a widefield setup (Samyang 135, Touptek 585 camera) piggibacked on a 200mmF4 newtonian reduced to F3 (for 600mm focal length) with another 585 camera, mounted on a UMi 17. I might even consider sending the widefield before I even get the newt if I can get some money for a filter wheel and rotator.

@hael8680 2 ай бұрын

Amazing undertaking!! Would you make a video on the connection/software to a remote rig? That's the missing bit.

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Yes this is definitely something I will touch on

@kmh032008 2 ай бұрын

This is a great setup! Question - What about bandwidth? I could imagine everyone uploading their images to home in the AM could get challenging.

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

We have fiber internet! So this won’t be a concern

@morfoto 2 ай бұрын

Looking great, very interested in this! The website could use some more detail, though. All it has is the reserve/deposit option but no other information about what comes after the deposit, or how much a pier will cost moving forward after the deposit...

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

We are sending out an email in a couple days with our shipping address and instructions, and I’ll have a video soon with more details on this front. And the deposit is equal to one months lease!

@rudyastro 2 ай бұрын

Living the dream man. I’d love to come down and check it out someday 🫡 good luck with the project and clear skies!

@mecatx 2 ай бұрын

Great project. I am using Slooh at present, but would like another option. need info coast.

@grigoryvidishev1810 2 ай бұрын

Thank you Bray for the great video! I appreciate your concerns on safety, I would rather you install it and I don't mind paying for it. I am looking for an observatory home for a large CDK 14" and I am not sure if you would accept that type of scopes. I wish all the success to your business venture!

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Thanks! We can definitely handle a CDK14. In fact we have a couple of CDK17s and CDK12.5s already set to be installed.

@mariospenard5125 2 ай бұрын

Very interesting. Is the deposit payment is the monthly cost to operate a setup... say 100mm refractor will cost 199$ per month? Thank you

@TevisC 2 ай бұрын

A few things I didn't see in the comments or mentioned in this video. 1. Concern for dust buildup on the optics? Up to owner to put auto cover on, I guess? Filtered positive air pressure system? 2. Structural ability to handle strong winds? What is the structure engineered to tolerate? 3. Insurance in case of tornado damage? 4. What are the size classifications, refractor, reflective and sct?

@TevisC 2 ай бұрын

Nevermind #4 website updated since I last checked it out

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

1. Dust is inevitable, but on site support is available for cleaning. 2. We experienced a very strong storm yesterday and everything help up perfectly, not sure what the exact numbers are for the load tolerance. 3. Insurance is up to each individual user, we will link an insurance provider, but it is very cheap (around $100 per year likely)

@orpheuscreativeco9236 2 ай бұрын

I read it as remote viewing 😅 Still super cool! 👍

@John_Hudson_922 2 ай бұрын

Love the idea. Sorry if I missed this in the video, where is this located exactly? Also what are the monthly rates?

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Central texas under b1/b2 skies. Lowest pricing tier is $199/month

@John_Hudson_922 2 ай бұрын

@@astrofalls thanks. if you fill up will you build another one?

@tombock336 2 ай бұрын

Lets GO!!!!

@johnadastra1754 2 ай бұрын

For the PC to turn on with a power cycle on and no push switch is this WOL - Wake on LAN, or is this referring to something else. Many thanks.

@JackGroves-tv9sc 2 ай бұрын

Hi bray - i assume since the protocol will be for you and your partners to install the equipment that that would also entail polar alignment too?

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

That is correct! I’ll use a polemaster or asiair to do this for everyone’s scope. If you have a mount with point modeling we can also make adjustments on the fly later

@grigoryvidishev1810 2 ай бұрын

Could you please tell if you will accept small and big telescopes. Specifically, will you accept something like PlaneWave L-350 mounts?

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

We will accept all telescope sizes! If you have an L350 that is fine too

@rs1107 Ай бұрын

🔭"And I Can't Find My Way Home"🔭

@davedaniels3252 2 ай бұрын

What application software do you suggest for the BeeLink SER5 MAX to control a ZWO AM5 mount? The SkyX does not seem to support AM5's.

@davedaniels3252 2 ай бұрын

In your tour video, I think you mentioned NINA, but not sure I heard it clearly

@kenkoskela3357 2 ай бұрын

Hi, Bray - Thanks for the great update. For those of us with PLL Eagles, do you still recommend a wireless switch? Is there still an advantage to having one?

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Yes still recommended. This lets you power cycle your computer if needed

@AstroDanno 2 ай бұрын

How many total piers are available? This is very tempting. My front yard sucks! 😂

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

We have space for 100 right now, but we plan to expand as much and as quickly as possible!

@barbaraharris6102 2 ай бұрын

Nice. What about price?

@astrofalls 2 ай бұрын

Check out website, it is $199 per month for a small scope

@mpk2707 2 ай бұрын

I went to the website and there was no "general information" stating the obvious information that the booking of a Pier is the price pr. month. No location information or Avg clear days pr month/year, how you get your gear on site etc....