Rounding out Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope's 1-meter southern ring development, the final two enclosures were completed last week at Siding Spring Observatory. Telescope Operations Manager Mark Willis led the effort, first building two 19-ft Ash domes on site, then erecting the prefabricated wall set from LCOGT's headquarters in Goleta, California. Finally, the two domes were mated with the two wall sets.
Willis, who is based at the Siding Spring facility, left in the middle of the process to help install the electrical and IT systems in LCOGT's South Africa Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) site. Three 1-m LCOGT telescopes will ship to the SAAO site before year-end. Prior to his trip to South Africa, Willis was at the Chile Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), installing systems in preparation for the three telescopes that were recently installed there, and which are all now on-sky in the science commissioning phase.
The two telescopes planned for Siding Spring are expected to ship in the first quarter of 2013.
A photo sequence of recent construction at Siding Spring Observatory
Dome A in the background, and the base ring for Dome B.
Wet Willis forced to work in down-under conditions.
Dome B taking shape.
Prefab walls from Las Cumbres rounding out.
Topping up.
Awaiting electrical panels, cabling, lights and wall covering.
Two new domes at Siding Spring, awaiting two 1-meter telescopes. The large clamshell to the left houses LCOGT's 2-meter Faulkes Telescope South.
