Managing the Society's telescopes

This page wil be updated with more accurate information shortly.

At a special committee meeting on 21st January 2004, we discussed how we should manage the telescopes owned by the Society. These currently comprise 5 instruments:

* A rather old 10” Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain reflector on a fork mounting;
* A 7” Maksutov reflector and equatorial mount recently donated to the Society;
* A Meade ETX-90;
* Two 6” Newtonian reflectors with Dobsonian mounts made by Steve Harris.

Looking after the telescopes

Our conclusion was that the committee should appoint a suitably competent person to act as the custodian for each instrument, The custodian will be responsible for creating and monitoring an inventory for the instrument (including eyepieces, etc) and for ensuring that the instrument is kept in good working order, is properly housed and is brought to meetings as required (see below). As the custodian may not personally have space to house the instrument, each instrument may also have a keeper who is responsible to the custodian for storing the instrument when it is not is use. In some cases the custodian may also be the keeper. A custodian should know where their instrument is at all times. Provided they have taken reasonable care of the Society's equipment in their possession as they would their own possessions, the custodian and keeper will not be personally responsible for its loss through fire or theft.

The current custodians of the telescopes are as follows:

* 10” Meade reflector – Steve Jenkins;
* 7” Maksutov reflector – Donald Ferguson;
* Meade ETX-90 – Paul Thompson;
* 6” Newtonian reflectors - Steve Harris.

Our asset curator, Jon Barker, will ensure that the telescopes and their current custodians are included in the Society's asset records. In future, we intend to report on use of the telescopes at Annual General Meetings.

Using the telescopes

We will endeavour to make the 7” Maksutov available at speaker meetings for members to use if it is clear. The Meade ETX, the 6” Newtonians and, if possible, the 7” Maksutov, will be made available for use at Beginners meetings. The 7” Maksutov and the Meade ETX will be brought to Society observing evenings and may also be taken to other events in which the Society is involved. The 10” Meade SCT is less convenient to use and will normally only be brought to major events where we need several instruments.

Borrowing Society telescopes

The 6” Newtonian telescopes will be available for loan at the Beginners meetings to members of the Society or to other attendees at these meetings. The borrower will be expected to sign for the telescope and will be responsible for returning it complete and in the same condition to the next Beginners meeting. Normally the other telescopes will not be available for borrowing because of their high value although consideration will be given to requests by Society members of at least one year's standing to borrow the 10” Meade for use in specific observing projects. Requests to borrow the 10” Meade should be made to its custodian.