RASC Niagara Observatory

Opened in the fall of 1997, the Niagara Centre observatory is located just a 40 minute drive from St. Catharines and is available for member use .

Made possible with the generous donations of building materials by Centre members Denis Maheu and John Nemy, the observatory features a roll-off roof design angled at a 45 degree slope towards the southern sky.

The roll-off section is a reinforced garage door which runs along tracks extending out from the west side of the building. This design allows for ease of operation and quick set-up and closing times. The observatory currently houses a Meade DS-16 Newtonian reflector.

In recent years the centre has added several new observing pads, and has built another roll-off roof observatory to house our 12" Meade LX200.

The Centre conducts monthly observing sessions for the membership, called Members' Nights, Saturday nights (Raindate: The next day [Sunday night]) at the observatory. The dates for Members' Nights are selected in advance by the Members' Observing Coordinator. The person who currently holds this position is Mark Roberts. To ensure dark viewing conditions, scheduled star nights are held at or near the time of a New Moon or when the Moon rises well past midnight. Observing begins at dusk and usually lasts late into the night. Members also can be found observing at the observatory on most clear nights.

A typical observing session consists of viewing currently visible planets and deep sky objects. Members also bring their own telescopes for a specific observing activity and to provide additional observing possibilities for members. Astrophotography is also a popular activity at the observatory.

Membership Use of the Observatory

As an added benefit of membership, Niagara Centre members are welcome to participate in all scheduled activities at the observatory. Members may also become keyholders to conduct their own observing projects at their convenience.

To become a keyholder, a member is required to attend a training session at the observatory and pay an initial fee of $25.00 ($20.00 maintenance fee + $5.00 key fee) and $10.00/year thereafter to help offset operating and maintenance costs.