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Observatory Training - CLASS FULL

Event Date
Your Mar 3 Trainers
  • Building Operations: John Haynes, Ed Fraini
  • C14 and f/5 Telescopes: Rene Gedaly
  • Student skills validation:John Haynes, Ed Fraini
  • Building access: Chris Ober

Club Members,

The Observatory Training Schedule for 2018 has been set. 

Training Dates: March 3rd, May 19th, Aug 11th, Oct 20th (rain dates will be the following weekend for each date.)

Training will be done on the use of the Observatory, F5 telescope, and the C14 on the listed dates at the Observatory building.  Separate training on “The Bob”, the RC Astroimaging system will be announced soon.  You must take the general training before you can register for the upcoming “Bob” training.

To be eligible for these training sessions the following requirements must be met.  They are specified in the Observatory Operator Guide.   You can request a copy of the Guide by sending an email request to the Observatory Director Chris Ober at chriso@astronomyhouston.org and a PDF copy will be mailed to you.

Prerequisite Requirements for students:

A.      Must be at least 16 years of age or older.

B.      Must be a Society member in good standing with all dues paid.

C.      Have full knowledge of all general site rules and have completed the general site orientation.

D.      Must have been a Society member for at least 6 months.

E.       Will be required to execute an observatory building use agreement which is a contract of limited liability covering all rules, regulations, and requirements governing the use of observatory building facilities. Members under 18 years of age must have a parent or guardian execute the agreement on behalf of a minor user that is 16, or 17 years of age.

The training will start at 2:00 PM with teaching sessions, then after a break for dinner.  Students will return at sundown to demonstrate competence in these areas:

A.    Understanding of the burden of responsibility for the facility

B.    How to Document  "as found condition and as left condition" of the observatory

C.    Proper use of Startup and Shut down of the telescopes

D.    Use of emergency procedures

Each student should print and bring a copy of the Observatory Operators Guide with them to the class.

The classes are scheduled on or near a full moon to minimize the impact on the observing field.  The sessions will be conducted even with the cloudy skies; the backup dates will be utilized only in the event of or threat of rain on a primary night.  This would preclude the opening of the roof and training emergency procedures.

Your RSVP will be accepted on a first come basis as the training sessions are limited to six students per session.  More sessions can be added based on the need.

To reserve your spot please send an email request for training to our Observatory Director at chriso@astronomyhouston.org

HAS Observatory Committee