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A little while ago, during a meeting, our President made reference to an effort to in some way source some remote telescope time for members. My memory is vague but, as I recall it, he seemed to suggest that this would be a selling point in attracting new members.
It may be that I have this all wrong, in which case apologies to all.
But if not, I wonder how this effort is progressing, what rationale is being applied and when the members will be likely to hear more of the plans.
A little while ago, during a meeting, our President made reference to an effort to in some way source some remote telescope time for members. My memory is vague but, as I recall it, he seemed to suggest that this would be a selling point in attracting new members.
Hi Grant,
I dont know the details but I understand the project is stalled because the software being developed/configured for the BAA was being done in Ukraine.
Callum
Hi Callum,
Oh yes, now you mention it I think I recall seeing that once before. So, that would be used in some way for scheduling one imagines, but scheduling what?
Is the BAA thinking of buying telescope time from a commercial site, buying footprint at a managed facility and setting up their own scope or buying a BAA defined system to be run at the site in question. What sort of operating model are they thinking of?
Similarly, is this intended purely as a recruitment carrot to dangle or would it (if a BAA system) also be available for the sections so its output every year did not consist of entirely of another 2000 narrowband images of M42, M31 and M45.
Grant
Hi Grant,
My understanding is this was to be made possible via a generous allocation of time from a BAA Member who was setting up a commercial observatory. The BAA President gave a brief update recently, I think at the DSS Annual Meeting held as a webinar. The war in Ukraine put a hold on the project as the software developers are based in Ukraine.
I’m not sure it had got as far as working out how members would request observing time.
AndyHi Andy,
Yes, I can imagine everyone would think “Wow! Thats a great opportunity.”, but surely before engaging programmers there must have been some vague plan for how that time would be used?
Not meaning to be awkward, but I’m curious as to what the Council thinking was. 🙂 There is obviously quite a range of possibilities.
Grant
Hi Grant,
Here is my understanding, though someone with more knowledge of how far this got may jump in.
The important point is the BAA was not engaging the programmers. This was to be an allocation of time from a commercial operation being setup by a BAA member. In other words this would not have been exclusively for the BAA, and the responsibility of how the IT worked was not with the BAA. Though obviously the BAA would have agreed a way to grant member access for this to go ahead. I just don’t think it reached that stage.
Best wishes,
AndyYes, what Andy has said is correct.
The programming that is stalled because the programmers are in Ukraine is the overall programming for the system as used by all users, commercial and non-commercial. The idea was that when the basics of the system were working, a few of us would test it, then develop some instructions and make a web tutorial for members. The allocation of time to BAA members was (in part) a transaction in return for our advertising the company, and crediting it in any papers that used results from the telescope. The level of interest would determine whether we needed to devise a system of prioritising certain users. We might have just decided to pay for more time so as to avoid needing to prioritise anyone. If it proved really popular, buying footprint at the facility for a BAA-only telescope on the same system would have been considered as a later stage.
I hope to be able to impart some more news soon.
David
Good to have this update on that particular aspect of remote telescope time.
Another possibility that Grant is well aware of (he has used this for variable nebulae studies) is the Europlanet Telescope Network.
Early last month I had an online meeting with several interested parties closely involved in the ETN, and I am planning on progressing the BAA’s further involvement after several weeks delay on my part – That will be an offline discussion once I’ve submitted a report to Council on the subject.Richard Miles
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