Category Archives: Uncategorized

While I don’t want to clutter up my website with a bunch of ads everywhere, in some respects these days it seems like they make a site feel more complete!  At a minimum they’re more dynamic than just static pages. … Continue reading →

I’ve finally been getting a few good nights of imaging, and have been making some progress with my post processing.  I’m  still taking wide field shots with my AT-80LE, and now have the field flattener installed and working correctly, so … Continue reading →

I’ve decided to add some additional photo gallery sections for some of my other types of photography.  I don’t know what I’ll add or when, but I’ve added a section for all the various animals I catch around the ranch … Continue reading →

I managed to find a couple of windows to capture some images of Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2.  The first is a wide field showing Lovejoy west of Orion, visible as the green dot if you look just to the right of … Continue reading →

My Ambient Weather WS-2090 was failing after about a year of use, and had plenty of intermittent problems throughout the year, so I decided to invest in something better.  Unfortunately that something better is also something much more expensive.  On … Continue reading →

Ok, I just finally upgraded to the latest version of the Gallery 3 software. So far things look normal on the gallery pages, but please let me know if you see something that doesn’t look like it should. Thanks, Michael

So a few weeks ago I added one of the last finishing touches to the observatory, adding my new faux wood blinds.  I had to get some replacement parts to install the valance correctly.  Here’s the final result.  

So in the process of developing custom automation for all of the components in the observatory, I’ve built the first of several focus motors using a 3-D printer I bought last October (and finally received in February!). The control uses … Continue reading →

I’m proud to announce the completion of the new Orion Ranch Observatory logo. I think this captures the spirit of the observatory and its history, as well as my memories as a child looking up at one of the most … Continue reading →

I was always a science nerd growing up, and even though my physics R&D lab in grad school was on the same floor as the astronomy department, I never even had time to take an astronomy class in college! Years … Continue reading →