http://news.sciencemag.org/space/2015/07/video-powerful-telescope-you-can-build-home?rss=1 (http://news.sciencemag.org/space/2015/07/video-powerful-telescope-you-can-build-home?rss=1)
I'd love to put the funds together and get the cadets to build their own telescope.
It would give them exposure to 3D printing, which has great potential as a technology, Computer-Aided Design, engineering/math topics, etc.
Recently, I acquired some books on astrophotography and I think that would be a great interactive AE activity. It produces a tangible result of photos of planets, the moon, stars, and the like - all of which they can keep and share with their friends. Framed photos of Jupiter, Saturn, or the moon, taken by the cadets, would be great to have.
That sounds awesome! Expensive, but really cool.
Getting the printer isn't the end of the world, but the price to restock the filaments would get old fairly quickly. It would be a neat squadron idea, perhaps as a chip-in type thing.
I, personally, don't know a whole lot about 3D Printing, not enough to really be ready to invest in it under any circumstance unless there was someone who knew a lot more about it than myself. But it's definitely something to keep in the back of your mind as a down-the-road idea to save up for.
The cost is less than some large AE projects like space projects.
I was thinking we could partner with a university or hackerspace/makerspace which has a 3D printer available...
I'd like to partner with a hackerspace anyway.
Quote from: JC004 on August 13, 2015, 08:41:07 PM
The cost is less than some large AE projects like space projects.
I was thinking we could partner with a university or hackerspace/makerspace which has a 3D printer available...
I'd like to partner with a hackerspace anyway.
Depending on the size, it may be possible someone locally even has one. The printers have hid the sub-2K range.
What's the source for the optics?
Quote from: SarDragon on August 13, 2015, 09:50:55 PM
What's the source for the optics?
The highest quality concave mirror you can find that is within your budget.
http://astroguyz.com/2007/12/27/making-a-newtonian-reflecting-telescope-for-less-than-50usd/ (http://astroguyz.com/2007/12/27/making-a-newtonian-reflecting-telescope-for-less-than-50usd/)
$50 or less
Quote from: SarDragon on August 13, 2015, 09:50:55 PM
What's the source for the optics?
This is just to build the telescope structure, not the actual tools used to operate it as a telescope. You still need lenses, and any computerized device you may want to link to it.
http://www.scopemaking.net/mirror/mirror.htm (http://www.scopemaking.net/mirror/mirror.htm)
I did a mirror as a yute. Once was enough. If I ever build another telescope, I'll buy the optics.
I was considering whether the self-made mirror option would be good or not. I'm not all up on the pros and cons of it.
I like the Open Space Agency one because of the advantages of having cadets work with 3D printing.
I was also looking at some other options. There's no reason they couldn't build a couple (and it would be better to have more than 1 for astronomy trips). There's a lot of nice homemade scopes here:
http://infinigeek.com/40-epic-homemade-telescopes-how-to-make-guides/ (http://infinigeek.com/40-epic-homemade-telescopes-how-to-make-guides/)
It is a lot of tedious monotonous work......but it can be rewarding.
And if you got a bunch of people doing it at the same time...the cost per unit drops dramatically.
If you enjoy walking around a 55 gal drum for hours and hours, doing a variation of "wax-on, wax-off", it's not so bad.
Quote from: SarDragon on August 15, 2015, 08:27:49 PM
If you enjoy walking around a 55 gal drum for hours and hours, doing a variation of "wax-on, wax-off", it's not so bad.
Made me chuckle a bit ;D :clap:
Quote from: lordmonar on August 15, 2015, 04:00:10 PM
if you got a bunch of people doing it at the same time...the cost per unit drops dramatically.
I think that's the key to any project in a squadron, getting as many people to help pay for a bulk item. Unless each individual cadet feels like making their own :P
I wonder, has a 3D printer ever been constructed by.......another 3D printer? Something to think about when you have absolutely, and I mean absolutely, nothing to do!
Sorry about the tangent. The idea is there. Another creative opportunity for the cadets and seniors. Is it feasible? Maybe. If Groups could get behind the idea squadrons could get together to reduce the cost further. ;)
The mechanicals might not be too hard, with the right object descriptive files. The electronics are harder.
Quote from: C/Maj Kiss on August 18, 2015, 03:51:07 AM
I wonder, has a 3D printer ever been constructed by.......another 3D printer? Something to think about when you have absolutely, and I mean absolutely, nothing to do!
Sorry about the tangent. The idea is there. Another creative opportunity for the cadets and seniors. Is it feasible? Maybe. If Groups could get behind the idea squadrons could get together to reduce the cost further. ;)
There's a whole open source concept that does this. As mentioned, the electronics would be an issue, but there's a community of modders who are designing and improving a printer that can print a new printer to the most complete extent possible.
Quote from: Capt Hatkevich on August 18, 2015, 04:40:20 PM
Quote from: C/Maj Kiss on August 18, 2015, 03:51:07 AM
I wonder, has a 3D printer ever been constructed by.......another 3D printer? Something to think about when you have absolutely, and I mean absolutely, nothing to do!
Sorry about the tangent. The idea is there. Another creative opportunity for the cadets and seniors. Is it feasible? Maybe. If Groups could get behind the idea squadrons could get together to reduce the cost further. ;)
There's a whole open source concept that does this. As mentioned, the electronics would be an issue, but there's a community of modders who are designing and improving a printer that can print a new printer to the most complete extent possible.
Thanks to conductive inks, 3D printers can now lay down circuit traces as they go.
Quote from: SarDragon on August 15, 2015, 05:18:33 AM
I did a mirror as a yute. Once was enough. If I ever build another telescope, I'll buy the optics.
(http://img823.imageshack.us/img823/3017/yutes2.jpg)
I did, I did.
Quote from: JeffDG on August 18, 2015, 06:20:28 PM
Quote from: Capt Hatkevich on August 18, 2015, 04:40:20 PM
Quote from: C/Maj Kiss on August 18, 2015, 03:51:07 AM
I wonder, has a 3D printer ever been constructed by.......another 3D printer? Something to think about when you have absolutely, and I mean absolutely, nothing to do!
Sorry about the tangent. The idea is there. Another creative opportunity for the cadets and seniors. Is it feasible? Maybe. If Groups could get behind the idea squadrons could get together to reduce the cost further. ;)
There's a whole open source concept that does this. As mentioned, the electronics would be an issue, but there's a community of modders who are designing and improving a printer that can print a new printer to the most complete extent possible.
Thanks to conductive inks, 3D printers can now lay down circuit traces as they go.
That's the least troublesome aspect. There are also motors and integrated circuits. Oh, fine pitch gears, too. The 3-D printing I've seen doesn't have fine enough granularity to make smooth enough surfaces that small.
The electronics for the one in the article are done with an Arduino board. That platform has a lot of possibilities, and it's another thing I've been exploring for cadets. It's dirt cheap to do projects with them too.
The organization behind this is also offering a board for sale, inexpensively.