Sky & Telescope - November 2021 - 62

80 Years: Where We've Been
Increasingly Motivated Observer: 28-inch f/4
alt-az Newtonian
In 2003 I ordered a 28-inch f/4 mirror from Kennedy Optics,
which was completed in early 2004. I financed the purchase
of the mirror by reluctantly selling my 20-inch Obsession and
SOLAR SYSTEM SPECIALS
WITH THE 12.5-INCH I observed
Comet IRAS-Araki-Alcock in 1983
and recorded the eyepiece view
in the sketch shown below. The
sketch at right shows how I saw
Mars in 1988. The Red Planet will
emerge at dawn in November -
keep on eye on the east-southeastern
horizon before sunrise toward
the end of the month.
its equatorial platform. I designed and constructed my current
scope by combining the innovative designs of Tom Osypowski's
Spica Eye telescopes and Dan Gray's 28-inch f/4.5 string
telescope. Both were made entirely of metal - I wanted mine
to be all aluminum to better withstand the damp observing
conditions of western Oregon. First light was in May 2004,
and the scope was fully functional a month later.
One of the best choices I made while designing the scope
was accepting Dan's offer to test his brand-new Sidereal
Technology telescope controller. I'd originally planned to
make an equatorial platform for the 28-inch, but with
Dan's system all I have to do is push the scope manually
from object to object and let the controller track the sky. As
a result, once I find an object the scope will keep it in the
eyepiece until I'm ready to move on.
For me that's ideal - plus it makes the 28-inch easier to
set up and take down than the 20-inch was with its equatorial
platform. This ease of use and seamless tracking made
sketching even easier, and my observing kicked up another
notch because of it.
A Renewed Dedication to Sketching
In March 2009 I had a transformative experience with the
28-inch: an astonishingly detailed view of M51, the Whirlpool
Galaxy. More importantly, that view sparked the idea that I
needed to start sketching bright and detailed objects such as
M51. When I first started drawing at the eyepiece in 1974, I
focused on vivid and splashy objects. As my scopes got larger,
the objects I sketched got smaller, fainter, and less detailed.
That may seem counterintuitive, but there are several reasons
for this. First, small and faint objects are quick and easy
to sketch, while bright, complex ones are multi-night projects.
That's why I continued observing Abell planetary nebulae and
Arp peculiar galaxies. Since M51 is also known as Arp 85, I
knew I was going to have to sketch it at some point. That's
when I decided to sketch every possible detail.
Properly motivated, I started to focus on M51 in earnest in
June 2009. This was a return to my sketching roots, but now
I was insanely well-equipped and with a ton more observing
and drawing experience. I sent my sketch to Sky & Telescope
for consideration in the Gallery section. A few months went
by and I figured the magazine had no interest - after all, Gallery
features astrophotos, not sketches.
Out of the blue I received an email from S&T inviting me
TINKERING AWAY Above is the rebuilt 12.5-inch f/7.8 Dobsonian as
it appeared after getting the 20-inch Obsession. The original was a basic
but functional Dob built from bits and pieces of repurposed wood. It
sported a long Sonotube optical tube painted green - which I apparently
never photographed.
62 NOVEMBER 2021 * SKY & TELESCOPE
to write an observing article about M51 featuring my sketch.
No promises of publication, but just having a shot at it was
tremendously exciting. After writing 176 observing articles
for the Rose City Astronomers' newsletter, and reading S&T
for three decades, the M51 article popped into my head nearly
fully formed while on a long plane ride during a business trip.
The M51 sketch led to my first article in this magazine (S&T:
July 2011, p. 36), which is in the top five most astonishing
events in my life as an amateur astronomer. I'm still excited,
amazed, and grateful.
Before the M51 article, I'd already begun sketching the gal
Sky & Telescope - November 2021

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