Guest article by Dave Selinger, Vermont Astronomical Society

One of my favorite astronomy projects has been building a binocular chair. I brought it to a University Space Club star party, where many people had a chance to try it. It was also featured in the July 2026 issue of Sky & Telescope in the Astronomer’s Workbench column.

   The concept is simple: instead of moving a telescope mount, you move yourself. My left hand controls the chair’s rotation while my right hand adjusts the binoculars up and down. The result is smooth, comfortable movement that makes it easy to scan the entire sky.

Many binocular observers use reclining lawn chairs, but I wanted something that would allow me to observe comfortably without constantly repositioning either the chair or the binoculars. There’s an old saying that comfortable observing is like adding aperture, and I think there’s a lot of truth to it. When you’re relaxed, it’s easier to spend more time observing and notice more detail.

The chair rotates on a large turntable bearing underneath the platform. A simple drive wheel lets me rotate the chair with just a finger or two. In fact, when I first demonstrated it at the 2023 Stellafane Mechanical Competition, the motion was so smooth that I later added a little friction to keep the chair from drifting.

Before observing, I make a few adjustments for chair height, eye relief, and balance. Once those are done, I can sit down and observe almost anywhere in the sky without getting up. The binoculars stay aligned with my eyes as I move, and the headrest makes viewing near the zenith surprisingly comfortable.

The bino-chair is especially useful for observing objects high in the sky, where the atmosphere is thinner and sky glow is usually reduced. I enjoy slowly sweeping through Cygnus during late summer, moving from one star cluster or nebula to the next. If clouds move into one part of the sky, it’s easy to rotate the chair and continue observing somewhere else.

People often ask whether the chair is difficult to set up. Fortunately, it isn’t. Once the parts are outside, assembly usually takes only five to ten minutes. The base is leveled, the chair platform is dropped into place, the reclining chair unfolds onto the platform, and the drive wheel, counterweights, and binocular holder are attached. After balancing the binoculars, everything is ready to go.

One unexpected benefit has been improving my star-hopping skills. Since it’s so easy to move around the sky, I’ve become much more familiar with star patterns and finding objects without relying entirely on an app. I still use SkySafari from time to time, but I enjoy locating objects on my own whenever I can.

As Sky & Telescope noted, the bino-chair is “a piece of observing gear that all but disappears when you use it.” I think that’s exactly right. Once you’re settled into the chair, your attention stays on the sky instead of the equipment.

If you’d like to build one yourself, I’d be happy to share the plans. You can contact me at contact@milkywaylounge.com for free PDF copies of the construction drawings.

This article originally appeared in the Vermont Astronomical Society Summer 2026 Newsletter.