Unusual Astronomical Accessory - A Truck

Old CW4

Old CW4

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I live in semi rural western New Mexico with a pretty good view of the night skies. However, there are times when I would like to drive a few miles out into the desert to really dark areas with very little to no light pollution. I've been toying with the idea of building a home observatory for some time, but such projects are expensive, really time consuming, and you'd better be right the first time to avoid constant mods later. Plus the home setup would likely require building permits, increased property taxes, etc. No thanks.

Well, hell. Then I saw an ad in a local ad rag, the type you pick up at the supermarket door. A guy had a 95 Ford Box Van for sale. A fairly big rascal with a 8x8x20 foot 'box' behind the cab and a four foot wide powered tailgate rated for 1600 lbs. Hmmm? How about a mobile star gazing observatory? A big roomy, weather tight, mostly metal box on the back of a nicely maintained truck with a gas 460 V8? Hell, yes! No more than I'll drive it, fuel costs are not that much of a consideration.

So now I'm the proud (I think) owner of a 26,000 lb gross vehicle weight truck, really a mini moving van. The beast runs like a dream with no drips under it and should last me for the years I've got left to enjoy my star gazing hobby. Now I'm planning how to mod the 20 foot box. I'll need jacks at all corners for stability and possibly even a roll out floor section although the lift gate will probably suffice. I'll need lights, white and red, more electrical power back there, and some fixed work tables for computers, video, and so on. Also some added ventilation. I have several scopes but only one rather big beast which is too large for a padded transport container. I think I can now move it slung in a hammock across the box toward the front so the tube and its primary mirror won't be jolted too much. We shall see. I know I don't want to have to realign and calibrate the mirrors and so on, a real PITA, out in the boondocks.

Anyway, nice to have a fun new project, as if I don't already have enough damned projects, but the less critical can wait while I play with the, to me, big truck. It's also a place where I can store some of my bulky astro goodies and get them out of the house, which also means an alarm system for the truck. Now, on nice evenings, I can drive out to the desert before dark, take some guns along for plinking and do that before night falls. Maybe also take the metal detectors for meteor and relic hunting. Hey, three itches scratched with one truck.
 
Sounds like a cool project. I'd love to see pictures when you finish it. Good luck.
 
Now that's what I call an innovative approach.

Good thinking.
happy0034.gif
 
Sounds like a really neat idea. Hope it works out like you want it to. For the jacks, how about the ones they use on RV? Or maybe on a boat trailer?
 
With a truck that size, you need one of those bumper stickers that read "Yes this is my truck, no I won't help you move."

Bruceter
 
Old CW4 said:
... It's also a place where I can store some of my bulky astro goodies and get them out of the house, which also means an alarm system for the truck. Now, on nice evenings, I can drive out to the desert before dark, take some guns along for plinking and do that before night falls. Maybe also take the metal detectors for meteor and relic hunting. Hey, three itches scratched with one truck.
Click to expand...

Would you need climate control or is the weather stable and dry enough? It sounds like a terrific project. Unfortunately, where I am at, electronics and astrogoodies would rot in under a month, unless I could find a way to insulate and aircondition the thing.

edited to add some inspirational reading (see pg 138 for picts of a 11" refractor mounted in a car's sunroof)
http://books.google.com/books?id=p2...=onepage&q=refractor mounted on truck&f=false

n2s
 
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Hey, guys! Thank you for the comments and suggested sites. I didn't realize someone was making mobile observatories. However, they do seem a bit pricey plus much smaller than what I can rig in the 8x8x20 foot cargo box of the truck. So now I'm doing some more web reading and looking for new ideas. I've looked a lot at the various schemes for opening, hinging, and sliding roofs to get to the sky but I'm not too thrilled with most of them. It's been my experience that it's darn near impossible to keep any roof weather tight when it's designed to open in some fashion. Accordingly, I'm leaning toward a slide our or swing out room and/or stable platform that comes out from under a fixed roof. It should be easier to keep wall joins from leaking than a roof and I will start keeping a photo record of the truck as it evolves. A neighbor lady, unfortunately a dwarf, is nevertheless a master mechanic and a darned good carpenter, painter, and all around 'handywoman.' I've already contracted with her to help me with this project; she needs the money and I need her expertise in a number of areas so it will be a good match. Anyway, thanks again, guys and if anyone has a brainstorm, let me know.
 
not2sharp,

We've had less than 1/2 inch of precip in the past FIVE MONTHS and are in a serious drought. Our normal precip in my area is about 8 to 10 inchs per year with most of that falling in June and July during our annual 'monsoon.' The Rio Grande, never very high in my area, is a muddy creek right now. I saw some kids the other day wading it, not smart because of the quicksand, but there they were and they made it across. Other than the five or six week rainy spell in summer, we have about 300 sunny days per year. I rarely turn on the AC in my vehicles and seldom in the house. It can get to 105 during high summer but it's usually a high of 95 or so during the day but that will drop to 60 by midnight and a 50 degree swing is not uncommon. Around here, it's wise to keep a heavy coat or a blanket or two in the car in case of breakdown. Fifty to sixty F can get darned chilly after a few hours if you're not warmly dressed. We're hitting the low 80s now during the day and high 30s/low 40s at night. 80 plus degree days are common from April thru October. Didn't mean to bore you with a lengthy weather report but it is a lot different here than Florida....
 
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