BSM_Hamren is located near Waimea on the Big Island of Hawai'i. It is now operating reasonably reliably, and needs someone to start up at sunset, monitor it a couple of times through the night (especially when flats are taken and when science images begin), and then make sure it closes ok in the morning.
I've been operating BSM_Hamren for the past couple of weeks while we made sure everything was working ok. However, it is 5 hours earlier in time than Eastern time. That means I usually only operate from local midnight to dawn, about a half night. It would be good to have someone take over this task who can at least watch weather conditions and open at sunset. Unless you are a night person, I'd suggest someone on the west coast (or in Hawaii) would work best.
The system has a cloud monitor/weather station that is quite accurate and can be relied upon for weather closures through the night (important for a tropical climate, where clouds/rain can arrive quickly and leave nearly as quickly!). There are also local weather sites that give cloud motion maps and the like. Because the weather is quite variable around the Big Island, making judgements takes a little experience.
I estimate that you would need to allow 30-60 minutes per observing night to get things started, monitor and close up. The weather has been quite good (maybe an anomaly, maybe normal), so you would need to do this somewhat more than half of the time.
Let me know if you would be interested.
Arne
We are still looking for an operator for this telescope. It will only take 30mins or so per night to perform the duties, and you would be helping to make use of this neat system as efficient as possible. Thanks!
Arne
Hello Arne,
I might be interested in helping out. Do you expect that the system be run on most possible nights or only nights when it will be clear the entire evening? Does the weather monitor system reopen/restart if cleared or does the operator need to do that? What system do you use to log into the control machine? TeamViewer has lapsed for me, it seems to think I need a license, so I moved on to other systems.
Bill Goff
Hi Bill,
The Hawaiian weather over the past 3 months has been pretty consistent. Almost every night has a clear patch, often many hours long and especially after midnight, but I haven't seen a totally clear night yet. So the telescope should be operated every night, with a few exceptions:
- if it is overcast at sunset, I'd leave the system off and just monitor the weather. If it improves before you go to bed, then start it up.
- if it has rained in the past hour or two, don't operate. I don't know how much moisture might be on the roof, and would prefer not to dump any on the telescope or camera.
- if you have other commitments in the early evening, then just start the system when you have a chance.
- I can act as a backup operator if you are not available for any reason.
The Boltwood weather system has been highly reliable. It closes if it is cloudy or wet, and then opens if the conditions improve for at least 10 continuous minutes. It can do this automatically several times through a night.
The main task is startup. I prefer to start each of the programs (MaximDL, ACP, FocusMax, ACP Scheduler in that order) manually, to ensure that everything starts up cleanly. Once the Scheduler Dispatcher is enabled, the system continues the startup process, opening the roof, taking any twilight flats, doing autofocusing and then science imaging. I usually watch one of the science fields to ensure everything is working, and then let it run until dawn. At dawn, I disable Scheduler.
We use AnyDesk for access, as we have a multi-seat license. We'll give you the access information if you take over this duty.
Arne
Hi Arne,
Ok, much of that I do myself with my scope, except the weather monitor. I'll email you privately the details.
Bill