We’ve had several days of rain, so it was a good test for the dome. I left the cover off the whole time, to evaluate the water-tightness of the structure itself. No more water intrusion around the floor or the 1/2 dome seals. However, there was a fairly large splash of water under the pivot point on one side. Inspecting why this would be so, I found the gasket between the primary and secondary domes had folded back the wrong way – it was inside the dome instead of outside it, and was allowing a clear channel for rain water. So I fixed that, and am pretty sure it will be fine – the other side of the dome, where the gasket was sitting properly, had no leakage.

I did a quick observing session tonight, only about 90 minutes, to generally check things out. Setup took about 5 minutes. Since this included balancing the scope, which I won’t have to do again, it’ll be even less time next time. The dome nicely blocks house lights, and I did a quick calibration of the mount and observation of a half-dozen favourite objects: M27, M57, NGC869/884, Albireo.

Tonight was about testing out the setup, not observing, so no observing reports. I did find the scope’s dew shield got in the way of the dome in certain sky positions, so I’ll trim it a bit shorter (or maybe just not use it and permanently install the heater strips instead). I am starting to understand the mount/dome geometry that determines what sky can be seen and cannot be seen. I also found a couple of cases where doing a meridian flip opened up another strip of sky. I’ll give it a few sessions to get used to this, but the thought of the PZT accessory, next spring, entered my mind. The pier is nice and sturdy and I tried powering-off the mount then doing a one-star re-synch to start up again – something that only works with a permanent mount. Worked like a charm.

I definitely need to spend a couple of sunny days in the dome organizing where to put things – running cables out of the way, etc. I lost things a couple of times and need to develop some routines on where everything goes. The real treat was at the end of the session – I decided I was cold and wanted to go in the house. Park the mount, dust cap the scope, pull in the extension cord, lock the dome, done. Shutting down took about 3 minutes, and is done in a way that can be easily restarted next time. This – instant start-up and shut-down – is the reason I wanted a permanent installation. Clear skies forecast for tomorrow night again, so I’ll have a chance to do some more testing. Now I need to put together a plan so I’m not making it up as I go.