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Astronomy Club Equipment

Being an astronomy club, several club members have their own  telescopes, which they often bring to club events.  In addition, the Astronomy Club has access to equipment owned by the CSM Physics Department:

  • 6", 900 mm focal length Newtonian telescope with a homemade German equatorial mount.

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  • 8", 1000 mm focal length Newtonian telescope with a motorized, forked equatorial mount.

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  • Three eyepieces with focal lengths of 18 mm, 12.5 mm, and 6 mm.
An ongoing Senior Design project is the homemade 12.5" Newtonian telescope (pictured below).  Several CSM students have been involved in the design and construction of the telescope since mid-1997.  In its final form, the telescope will be mounted on a forked equatorial mount.  Both axes will be motorized and controlled by computer using software called "The Sky," developed by Software Bisque.


The CSM Telescope
The CSM Telescope on a test run.  Click on the picture for a larger image.