The PrimaLuceLab Installation Team has successfully completed the installation of our first complete astronomical observatory in the United States – the DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station, located in San Bernardino County, California! This state-of-the-art observatory is a groundbreaking achievement for PrimaLuceLab and the local community. This astronomical observatory was accomplished for San Bernardino County on behalf of Tierra Luna Engineering, with the invaluable collaboration of its President and former NASA astronaut, Jose M. Hernandez. Together, we have brought advanced astronomical capabilities to this region, fostering education and exploration of the cosmos.

To ensure a quick and reliable Installation Service, we pre-assemble and test all our PLL Observatory Stations at our headquarters in Italy before shipping them to the required installation location. In this case, the observatory was shipped to the Lucerne Valley Public Library in San Bernardino County, California, USA. The entire DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station was shipped in four pallets, including the dome (divided into three parts) and the telescopes with mounts, cameras, and accessories.

The DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station is designed to be remotely controlled, eliminating the need for users to enter the dome. A properly dimensioned concrete base was prepared in front of the Library to securely install and fix the instruments, protected by a surrounding fence.

With the help of an operator and a lifting machine, we installed the shutters that form the upper section of the dome. During nighttime operation, these three shutters open to provide the necessary sky view for the telescopes inside the observatory. The dome is motorized and can be opened or closed by the telescope operator from within the Library. The first installation day concluded with the complete assembly of the dome.

On the next day, the PrimaLuceLab Installation Team began the telescope installation by connecting the C120 pier at the center of the concrete base, where properly threaded bars had been previously installed. The next step was to level the pier perfectly to provide an ideal alignment platform for the mount. This is crucial, given that the Observatory Station features an alt-azimuth mount.

Then we started the assembly of the telescope. The instruments included in this DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station are:

• a Celestron EdgeHD 9.25″ aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain with ESATTO 2″ focuser, GIOTTO285 flat field generator with ALTO-2 cover motor and QHY5III USB 3.0 color camera
• a SkyWatcher ESPRIT 100ED apochromatic refractor with ESATTO 3″ focuser, ARCO 3″ rotator, GIOTTO150 flat field generator with ALTO-1 cover motor and a QHY268C cooled camera
• A SkyWatcher AZ-EQ6 in alt-azi configuration, with supports for dual OTA.

The entire system is remotely controlled and powered by an EAGLE5XTM computer using PLAY software. This allows the DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station to provide two imaging systems: one with a narrow field of view optimized for planetary imaging, and the other with a wider field of view optimized for deep-sky object imaging. Using a special micrometric head designed for this configuration, the two telescopes are aligned to the same target. By the end of the second installation day, we had achieved “first light” with the telescopes and fine-tuned the focusing and alignment of both OTAs.

The third and final day of Installation Service was dedicated to Training Sessions. Our team introduced the key factors for using telescopes and astrophotography, and demonstrated how to remotely connect to the DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station from the Library’s computer. Special attention was given to the PLAY software, as our team explained all the important features that simplify remote control of the telescopes and acquisition of astrophotography images.

This new DUAL-COMPACT Observatory Station, our first installed in the USA, is now ready to enhance the educational resources available to the community and inspire curiosity and passion for space exploration among visitors of all ages. And, of course, we took the opportunity to have a great picture together with Jose M. Hernandez, former NASA astronaut and President of Tierra Luna Engineering!