my astro story

I was 16 years old when Neil Armstrong took that first step on the moon. Astronaut missions and my  fascination faded as learning, career and wonderful family filled days and nights. 

Image credit: NASA GPN-2001-000009

A new stage of life began with retirement and free time along with it. My first step into astronomy was with a wonderful birthday gift of a quality 8" telescope from my ever-patient partner.

I began to wonder how I could capture some of the amazing things I was able to see... and started taking 'nightscapes' - long exposure photos with a DSLR.

My next big learning came from attending a masterclass by Christian Sasse of iTelescope at Siding Spring Observatory -  what a blast that place is! 

From iTelescope I learned so much...about calibration, processing and used their world-wide network of telescope to take my first deep space photos. I was hooked!

For some time we have been fortunate to have a 1950's 'fibro' holiday house on a large block on the Mornington Peninsula, close to the ocean.

I began first to wonder about... then to plan a dream observatory - a permanent, sheltered  place where I could leave equipment set up - and maybe even operate it remotely.

After much planning, construction finally began. For astrophotography, long exposures are vital, and so a solid central pier is essential. 

Here the steel pier is being completed. The pier sits in a cubic metre of concrete.

A huge step forward was sourcing and assembling a good quality observatory dome from Sidereal Trading. Here the amazing Diego assembles the three metre Scopedome. 

Diego and the team were a huge help on software and helping with the automation gear needed for a remote observatory.