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Chiricahua Sky Village and the Personal Remote Observatory (PRO)

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#1 csmythies

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Posted 09 January 2025 - 08:08 PM

Chiricahua Sky Village and the Personal Remote Observatory

 

“Nothing remotely like it!”

 

Chiricahua Sky Village (CSV) is a community that offers amateur astronomers a new approach to observing the universe. The Personal Remote Observatory (PRO) is an invention that makes remote imaging easier and much more affordable than ever before. When partnered together, CSV and the PRO have a powerful synergistic effect on each other and create a dark sky experience that cannot be matched anywhere else.
 
CSV

 

CSV is a 92-acre community of amateur astronomers in Cochise County, Arizona. Modeled after the highly successful Goldendale Sky Village in eastern Washington state, it offers a dark sky site from where people can visually observe and image the universe. The share price is $2,500, and a minimum purchase of 2 shares is required to become a member. In exchange for their capital contribution, a member is given the right to use 2,500 square feet of land per share for astronomical purposes. The village offers a special observing environment that looks and feels like a permanent star party.

 

The PRO

 

The PRO is a small, simple roll-off roof observatory constructed from readily available materials. It can accommodate OTA’s up to 40” long, runs on solar power, and is connected to the internet via StarLink. Rigorous testing in the harsh conditions of the Arizona desert has shown that it is highly reliable and requires minimal maintenance.

 

The CSV-PRO partnership

 

CSV gives PRO owners a safe and secure dark sky site from where they can image. With its Bortle 1 skies, an average of 286 sunny days per year, southern latitude, and long winter nights, conditions are practically perfect. The PRO gives CSV a reputation for excellence, which leads to growth. This is a unique partnership that makes dreams come true.

 

Easier and more affordable

 

Operating a PRO at CSV makes remote astro-imaging easier and more affordable than ever before. Here’s how:

1. A special class of shares has been created for those who primarily wish to locate a PRO at CSV and image from there. These so-called ‘PRO shares’ cost $1,250 each and only one is required for membership. In exchange for their capital contributions, new PRO members are given the right to use a 500-sf ‘PRO lot’ within the village’s PRO array. This lot is large enough to comfortably accommodate the PRO with its solar panels.
2. The PRO is built by Simple Systems of Phoenix, Arizona, and costs $10,311. A breakdown of this price: materials $3,160, labor + delivery $3,895, pier $185, and solar panels $3,071. PRO members with construction skills can build their own PRO at CSV for significant savings. Materials are readily available at the local hardware store or online.
3. Once the initial membership and construction costs are paid, future costs are minimal. This is in stark contrast to what remote imagers are obliged to pay every month when they lease a pier at a telescope hosting facility.
4. Aside from the advantages of owning their own remote observatory, PRO members also enjoy part ownership of the land on which it stands. This means they have a personal stake in the well-being of the village and incentive to ensure its continued success.
5. While only one PRO owner can own a PRO share and vote, there are no limits to what arrangements can be made privately regarding the use of his or her PRO. This means that PROs can be shared between observing buddies or even rented. All users are required to individually purchase the Voyager and Viking imaging software.
6. On- and off-site CSV members can provide technical assistance when it is needed. Most of the time, such assistance will be provided by fellow members who are being neighborly and are unlikely to charge for the service. There are times, however, when an hourly charge would be more appropriate. By standardizing the observing equipment and software (Voyager and Viking) inside the PRO, maintenance and servicing costs are kept to a minimum.
7. PRO members who, for whatever reason, don’t wish to image remotely at CSV any longer, can sell their shares and their PRO at whatever price the market will bear. Depending on demand, they have the potential to recoup their prior investment in its entirety, or even make a profit.

 

The final word

 

Our generation’s big bang in technology has led to a plethora of astronomical discoveries. With each new gravitational wave, bizarre exoplanet, or stunning James Webb image we are becoming ever more fascinated by the universe. The computers we use to guide telescopes and process data have more power than ever before, and they just keep improving. Images that once could only have been taken by large professional observatories are now routine for amateur astronomers operating affordable equipment in their own backyards. The next challenge is remote imaging, which liberates observers from cloudy, light polluted skies and enables them to gather data throughout the year. The biggest obstacle in the way is the high cost of leasing space in somebody else’s observatory. The CSV-PRO partnership promises to change everything and make remote imaging easier and more affordable than ever before.

 

Christopher Smythies

 

chiricahuaskyvillage dot com


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#2 fmendes

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Posted 09 January 2025 - 09:19 PM

I really liked the idea. One thing that may be useful is on-demand local support. In my specific case, while I feel like a cool adventure to drive to Arizona and build/assemble my own system, evetual support may be a good thing. It could be a charge per visit or something like that.



#3 csmythies

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Posted 15 January 2025 - 12:20 PM

Thank you for your positive response. We are indeed planning on-demand local support. A neighbor will be trained and is expected to charge per hour.

 

Christopher Smythies


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#4 fmendes

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Posted 15 January 2025 - 01:51 PM

Great stuff! Keep us posted.



#5 CraigR

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Posted 02 February 2025 - 05:37 PM

I was with you up to Voyager and Viking. They appear to be Windows apps. I'm not afraid of maintaining a remote telescope hosted in a solar-powered sweat lodge, but managing a remote Windows box sounds life-ending. :-) Best wishes on your endeavors.



#6 csmythies

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Posted 05 March 2025 - 06:30 PM

Seven weeks have passed since I traveled from my home in rainy Seattle to Chiricahua Sky Village (CSV) in Arizona to set up my Personal Remote Observatory (PRO). Since then my astro-imaging career has been transformed. There was a time when I was desperate for clear nights in order to gather data, especially during the winter months. Now I find myself looking forward to the cloudy nights when I can catch up with downloading my data and processing it. I’ve suddenly gone from famine to feast. For the past ten days I've been imaging every night.

 

Overall, operating a PRO has been pretty easy and I’m already harvesting  excellent data. The PRO’s inventor has been very supportive and is available whenever I get stuck or had questions. Now I simply choose a target, enter a sequence, and press the ‘run’ button. Everything else is automatic - opening the roof, plate-solving, guiding, focusing, taking shots, and shutting down.

 

The PRO is manufactured by Simple Systems in Phoenix, Arizona, a company co-owned by a member of CSV. The time it takes him to fill an order is about 4-6 weeks. When finished, he transports it down to CSV and sets it up in a growing array at the village. When I set up my own PRO, both inventor and the manufacturer were there to make sure everything was in order - polar alignment, cable management, clearances etc. Power is provided by solar panels on top of a nearby shipping container and the internet connect is, for now, via StarLink.

 

Tonight, the forecast is for clouds in Arizona. I never thought I’d see the day when I considered a cloudy night good news. Time for me to catch my breath.

 

Christopher Smythies


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#7 crgood2

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Posted 24 April 2025 - 09:59 PM

Hi Everyone, just wanted to bump this post as I was one of the first investors the PRO and have been extremely pleased with my unit.  Having had remote observatories around the world, as well as my own backyard observatory and working at Kitt Peak, I think what is offered at CSV is a great opportunity for the amatuer community that may be considering a remote telescope.

 

It took about 6 weeks from the "I'm interested" conversation to installing my own equipment on site in my own PRO.  Andrew, the vendor building this, was extremely communicative thorughout the process with status updates on my observatory, and the designer of the PROs met with me to go over the operations of the PRO prior to installation.  Both were available for commissioning while I was on site and I had first light the day of installation.  Attached are a few images of the building and the resulting images i've achieved.  I'm happy to answer any questions on the process either in this thread or via DM to anyone interested in the PROs at CSV.  

 

IMG_1373.jpg

 

IMG_1377.jpg

 

 

 

 


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#8 crgood2

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Posted 24 April 2025 - 10:01 PM

DZUI9790.JPG


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#9 crgood2

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Posted 24 April 2025 - 10:02 PM

JAFG3528.JPG


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#10 csmythies

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Posted 07 May 2025 - 02:19 PM

Chiricahua Sky Village now has 8 Personal Remote Observatories on site! In the past three months, I've collected 179 hours of data on 21 targets. It has been awesome!


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