by Rex Parker

In March the club was the recipient of a generous donation by Bob Wolf, amateur astronomer and recent AAAP member. Bob donated a Losmandy G-11 Gemini Go-To mount.  This is a “portable” German equatorial design similar to the classic G11 but with a more robust, DC-servo drive, mechanism instead of stepper motors.  It includes the Gemini Go-To electronics and extensive deep sky database of 41,000 objects.  The mount is in pristine condition and is packed in a Scopeguard transport case.

At first the mount seemed to be a solution to the issues we’ve had on the classic G11/refractor mount at the Observatory.  Those problems now appear to be solved by the recent repair efforts of John Giles and others.  Alternatively, the new mount could be a great addition to AAAP’s member observing and outreach activities by providing a solid platform for another telescope in the field adjacent to the observatory.  Ideas for the mount are being considered and options will be reviewed by the Observatory committee. Thanks very much to Bob for this very generous gift which bolsters our capabilities for member and public access to the stars!