|
The Killarney Provincial Park Observatory is a small observatory located in Killarney Provincial Park near the George Lake Campground (near Killarney, Ontario, Canada). Opened on July 17, 2010〔http://www.parkreports.com/parksblog/?p=959〕 it is the first public observatory running in any Ontario Provincial Park (the Algonquin Radio Observatory, stationed in Algonquin Provincial Park is privately operated). The Killarney Provincial Park Observatory utilizes a (SkyShed GPOD ) XL3 with two doors and houses a Meade 10" LX5 telescope. The dome is made completely from Re-Cycled plastic (Re-HDPE)〔http://www.skyshedpod.com/〕 and the telescope sits on a steel pier. The observatory and telescope were donated by the Waters family to celebrate 25 consecutive years of astronomy lectures by Bruce Waters to over 5,000 park visitors. The telescope and observatory sit on a deck with two ramps (to ease the movement of people) donated by the (Friends of Killarney Park ). On January 29, 2011 Bill and the Gardner family, donated and installed a top quality ( Losmandy G11 mount with Gemini GoTo ). This generous donation has greatly augmented the capability of the system; especially making it easier for first time observers to use the facility. As of the summer of 2014, the Observatory includes Skyfi wireless telescope controller for the Gemini allowing users to control the telescope via any suitable WiFi application (iOS, Android, etc.) as well as an SPC900nc with Baader IR filter and 1.25" eyepiece adapter ideally suited for planetary photography. While the Observatory will be used for special large audience presentations (with upwards of 200 people) and by the Natural Heritage Education (NHE) park interpreters, the real beauty of the facility is that it has been optimized for self serve use. This allows anyone visiting the park free access to a high quality amateur observatory and, in this regard, the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory may be the first free, public, self use facility in North America. No longer available for public use. ==Astronomer in Residence Program== Established in 2012, the Killarney Provincial Park "Astronomer in Residence" program sees experienced guest astronomers providing their services to the park on a daily basis. These resident astronomers provide a variety of educational services in support of the NHE programs. Such services include: daily observatory training, solar observing, night sky observing and other programs that encompass a wide variety of information that is related to both astronomy and its relationship to the Killarney Provincial Park experience 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Killarney Provincial Park Observatory」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|