-
Notifications
You must be signed in to change notification settings - Fork 0
/
Copy pathh2o.shtml
180 lines (143 loc) · 10.9 KB
/
h2o.shtml
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd">
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1">
<meta name="author" content="Hilary Jones">
<meta name="copyright" content="Tri-Valley Stargazers, 2014">
<meta name="description" content="The Tri-Valley Stargazers H2O Observatory">
<meta name="keywords" content="Tri-Valley, Stargazers, astronomy">
<title>Tri-Valley Stargazers H2O Observatory</title>
<link href="tvs.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css">
<script src="tvs.js" type="text/javascript"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
lastUpdateDate = "February 12, 2021";
//-->
</script>
<!-- The id for the button that needs to be underlined. -->
<style type='text/css'>#appleNav li a#m_sites { text-decoration: underline;}</style>
</head>
<body>
<!--#include virtual="free_find.shtml" -->
<!--#include virtual="leader.shtml" -->
<div style="border-style: solid; background-color:#003354; color:white; padding: 12px;">
Please read the latest about our COVID-19 rules:
<a href="covid3.shtml" title="Click me to read the rules">
<button style="margin-left: 10px; border-radius: 6px; background-color: white; color: black;">Rules</button>
</a>
</div>
<a name="Anchor"></a>
<h1 class="title" style="width: 400px;">H2O (Hidden Hill Observatory)</h1>
<div class="content" style="width:930px;">
<h2 class="subtitle">TVS Club Observatory and Dark Observing Site</h2>
The club leases a comparatively dark-sky observing site on a hilltop in the Diablo Mountains south of Livermore
and east of San Jose. The name of the site is "Hidden Hill Observatory". The reason for that name is that the
site is not open to the public and we do not want its location publicized. Also because it has a cool
abbreviation: H2O.<br><br>
The site is well located for long-exposure astrophotography and deep-sky observing, especially in the southern
part of the sky (we can see Omega Centauri in binoculars, well above the horizon but mostly obscured by
lights). The site is at about 2400 feet in elevation and has an excellent low southern horizon looking over a
large dark valley. It is not as dark as a remote location in the Sierra Nevada mountains, of course, but it is one
of the darkest locations that is a convenient driving distance from the East San Francisco Bay Area. The site's
location is not public, but we can tell you that it is approximately a 40 to 60 minute drive to the site from
Livermore. The road is a mountain road: well paved, but narrow, windy, steep, unlit, one lane much of the way and
there are no services available of any kind. Much of the road does not have any cell phone coverage. We do get a
good signal from Verizon at the site, but not AT&T. There is no electricity or water at the site. The
toilet facilities are primitive. There are no gas stations in the area. So if you go, be prepared. <br><br>
This is private property, secured and restricted for authorized members and their guests at all times. Authorized
(key holding) members can access the site any day of the year. Non-key holding members and the general public must
be escorted to, while at, and from the site by key holding members -- NO EXCEPTIONS. To become an authorized
member, visit our <a href="h2oagreement.shtml">user agreement</a> web page. <br><br>
At least twice a year we try to hold an "open house" so that new and prospective members can visit the site. But
the house is not really completely open. This is just a scheduled opportunity for a group to be escorted to the
site and enjoy a night of observing.<br><br>
<img src="images/group.jpg" alt="Group of people" height="361" width="540" border="0"><br>
<i>A group of people at a recent H2O Open House. Photo by H. Jones.</i><br><br>
<img src="images/h2osouth.jpg" alt="H2O south" height="232" width="540" border="0"><br>
<i>The View to the South from the Observatory. Photo by G. Gottschalk.</i><br><br><br>
<img src="images/h2oeast.jpg" alt="H2O north and east" height="242" width="540" border="0"><br>
<i>The View to the North and East from the Observatory. Photo by G. Gottschalk.</i><br><br><br>
<img src="images/west.gif" alt="Observing sites" height="144" width="319" border="0"><br>
<i>
Looking west we see three tiers of parking/observing sites<br>
and a neighbor's [1] little observatory [2] on the hill [3] on the horizon.<br><br>
</i>
They, being higher, have better seeing, but we have a darker sky.<br>
[1] University of California, Santa Cruz<br>
[2] Lick Observatory with the 120 inch Shane Telescope<br>
[3] Mount Hamilton<br><br>
Here is the Clear Sky Chart for our observing site:<br>
<a title="Click here to see the Clear Sky Chart for H2O" href="http://cleardarksky.com/c/HiddenOBCAkey.html" target="_blank">
<img src="http://cleardarksky.com/c/HiddenOBCAcs0.gif?1" alt="Clear Sky Chart" >
</a><br><br>
<a id="history"></a>
<h2 class="subtitle">H2O history</h2>
Jack and Pat started using the club's dark sky site soon after the club was formed. Records show
that on 12/09/82 Jack signed a $100 lease agreement with the owners of the property where the
site is located. Then a road was built and the south side of the hill was terraced so multiple
observers could use the site without blocking each other's views. The site had been referred to
by the name of the ranch for many years (a name which we no longer speak, to avoid unauthorized
access). Under President David Anderson the board of directors named the building the "Sky
Shack". After a vote by the Board in September 1998, the site was named "Hidden Hill
Observatory". For many years in the 1990's and 2000's, star parties were held every month at the
site.<br><br>
Jack, Pat and Roger Peterson built the original slide-off roof observatory in 1982-1983, and
Jack built the observatory's Coulter 17.5" telescope and mount, which were operational in
1983. He donated the observatory to the club later. The scope was known as the Jack Marling Telescope
and the building was known as "The Sky Shack".<br><br>
<img src="images/h2oobsy.jpg" alt="Observatory" height="240" width="540" border="0"><br>
<i>The original Sky Shack Observatory. The roof slid off to the left. Photo by G. Gottschalk.</i><br><br>
On August 31 2019, we finished a complete renovation of the observatory, including beefing up
the foundation, replacing half the flooring, replacing the battery and solar charger, and
redesigning the electrical system. We replaced the mount with a modern AP1200 mount that had
been donated to the club by Nancy Finley with the help of the EAS. This effort was led by Gert
Gottschalk and Chuck Grant. Unfortuntately most of this work was lost during a wildfire in
2010.<br><br>
Herb Quick started building his fiberglass Home-Dome with Meade DS16 telescope in 1999 and
donated it, unfinished, to the club in 2007 upon his death. In the early days a log book was
kept to keep track of the site's usage. The dome remained unused until 2019, when Ross Gaunt
undertook to restore it. He completed repairs to make it water-proof and rodent-proof, and
added new floor and carpeting. He also installed a new electrical system with a battery and
solar charger. We purchased a new Software Bisque mount and installed a Celestron C14 that
had been donated to the club by the estate of John Westfall. The Paramount was made possible
by a donation from Ross Gaunt. The Herb Quick Observatory is still on the site at H2O. The
building and the telescope have not been formally named, but the dome has acquired the
nickname "The Thunder Dome" due to the noise generated when it rotates. <br><br>
The site also has four permanent piers which have bolt hole patterns suitable for mounting
Schmidt-Cassegrains and other portable telescopes and lots of flat, hard ground suitable for
Dobsonian and tripod mounted telescopes. There is room for parking 12-15 cars on top of the
hill, with more parking below (our observing area is entirely on the top of the hill). As many
as 10 cars can be parked in good observing locations with room to set up your telescope next
to your car. <br><br>
<img src="images/Ross_Dave_D0042_0010.jpg" alt="Herb Quick observatory" width="360" height="240" border="0"><br>
<i>Ross and Dave with the Herb Quick observatory's equipment. Photo by H. Jones.</i><br><br>
<img src="images/marling.jpg" width="360" height-"270" border="0"><br>
<i>Jack Marling with his scope and club's new AstroPhysics mount. Photo by G. Gottschalk.</i><br><br>
<img src="images/dedication.jpg" width="360" height-"270" border="0"><br>
<i>Patron members with Jack Marling at the dedication ceremony. Photo by G. Gottschalk.</i><br><br>
Gert Gottschalk has also taken some nice
<a href="http://www.trivalleystargazers.org/gert/h2o_openhouse_20130504/h2o_openhouse_20130504.htm"
target="_blank" title="See photos from a recent open house">photos</a>
at a recent open house.<br><br><br>
<h2 class="subtitle">H2O Reconstruction</h2>
In August of 2020, a large wildfire of nearly 400,000 acres burned through the area. It
destroyed the slide-off roof observatory and the equipment inside. Fortunately the dome survived
with almost no damage. You can see pictures of the damage done and reconstruction progress
by clicking the picture:<br><br>
<a href="images/fire/album/index.html" title="Fire images">
<img src="images/fire/img_1547b.jpg" width="372px" alt="Fire damage"
title="Click to see more fire damage and reconstruction" style="display:block;
margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto;">
</a>
<br><br>
<h3 class="subtitle">Donations to TVS reconstruction</h3>
In the wake of the SCU Lightning Complex Wildfire that destroyed the H2O main observatory there was an outpouring
of generosity to TVS from astronomy enthusiasts worldwide. We are pleased to announce a major donation to the TVS
by David Friedberg, CEO of <a href="https://www.theproductionboard.com/" title="Visit The Production Board"
target="_blank">The Production Board</a>, of a 20" PlaneWave Corrected Dall-Kirkham (CDK) Telescope, a Mathis
MI-750 Fork mount, and a motorized 3.5 meter Observa-DOME! This donation was brokered by Prof. Alex Filippenko of
UC Berkeley.<br><br>
<b>See <a href="donors.shtml" title="List of donors">here</a> for a list of donors.</b><br><br>
</div> <!-- end div class=content -->
<!--#include virtual="trailer.shtml" -->
</body>