Date: May 27-39, 1983
Attendance: 1,080
The 15th Annual RTMC was remarkable for the many large telescopes which were displayed on the telescope field. Dominating the center of the field was the impressive 24" f/4.7 build by Roger Sanders. This massive telescope only weighed 205 pounds because it was built from fiber composite materials.
Ken Mills also brought a 17" f/4.5 which only weighed 280 pounds. It won an award for best use of wood. Not to be outdone, Tom Greska constructed a 17" f/4.5 whose bearing was a 50 year old interferometer.
However, David Shipman (a retired wrestler) made up for the lack of weight with his 29" f/4.5. The mirror alone weighed in at 70 pounds while the whole telescope itself was estimated to weigh 1,000 pounds.
Finally, the famous story that Rick Shaffer keeps repeating was born as he says he invited Bob Cox up to the stage to "say a few words" about his 3" pocket Cassegrain and launched into an hour-long talk.
Speakers
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Ray Martin, "Telescope Gadgets" |
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Cliff Holmes, "U.S.A. by Whirlwind" |
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David Levy, "To the Hearts of Children" |
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Richard Hill, "A Homebuilt Amateur Solar Observatory" |
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Richard Balogh, "Yosemite Observatory Built on a Shoestring Budget" |
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Hal Jandorf, Randy Walker, "The Lighter Side of Astro Photography" |
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Mary Firth, "The Tupperware Dome" |
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Norm Sperling, "The Pursuits of Amateur Astronomy" |
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Bob Schalck, "The Building of a Nation's Largest Telescope, or How to be a Diplomat" |
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John Diebel, "Commercial Manufactures and the Serious Amateur Astronomer" |
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John Dobson, "Dobson on Dobsonians" |
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Walter Scott Houston, "The Surfboard Will Go On" |
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Dr. Allan Patterson, "The Big Bear Solar Observatory in Action" |
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Don Davis, "The Art World of Don Davis" |
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Roger Sanders, "Aircraft Type Structures Suitable for Telescopes" |
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Raymond Coutchie, "Do It Yourself Stellar Spectrograph" |
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Clyde L. Tichenor, "Kitt Peak Style' Observatory Buildings" |
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Richard Buchroeder, Ph.D, "The Problem with Eyepieces" |
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Robert E. Cox, "Measuring Eyepiece Focal Length and Instrument Power" |
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Mike Simmons, "New and Improved Designs for Astronomical Applications" |
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Stephen J. Edberg, "Halley's Comet and the Amateur Telescope Makers" |
Merit Awards
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Roger Sanders - 24" f/4.7 |
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Ken Mills - 17" f/4.5 |
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Tom Greska - 17" f/4.5 |
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Dennis Gallagher - 3" Solar telescope |
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Keith Lawson - 3.9" f/15 |
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Jim Ashley - 8" f/10 |
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Reindard Buckner - 12-1/2" f/10 |
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Pat Cully & Mike Stephans - 8" f/4 |
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Paul Livio - Electronic drive corrector |
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Bill Loumaster - 12-1/2" f/15 |
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David Retting - 8" f/4.5 |
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David Wile - 90mm f/5.6 |
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Stanley Gorodenski - Portable observatory |
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John Dobson |
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Robert Brennan - 6" f/4.5 |
