Castelmartini Observatory (code 160) - Tuscany, Italy

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The CCD images have been taken by Enrico Prosperi, an italian electronics engineer, from his home-observatory at Larciano, a little town near Florence, in a suburban environment at 60m over the sea level.
the panorama by night ...
The balcony where the telescope is installed is located no more than 60m away from a pub and 150m from a soccer playing field whose lights are often on during the observing sessions.

the telescopeThe telescope is a Meade SSC-10 equipped with the Computer Drive System (CDS #1697), the german mounting version of the more known LX200.

the CCD camera

The CCD camera is the french Hi-SIS 22, developed by the team of Christian Buil, a pioneer in the utilization of this type of sensors in astronomy.

The key-room ...
I operate from inside by means of a computerized remote control. Two personal computers supersede all actions: one is linked to the telescope CDS while the other is connected to the CCD camera.




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Enrico Prosperi -- Email: e.prosperi_at_alice.it - home: via Bartolini, 1317 - 51036 Larciano (PT) - Italy.   Tel. +39-0573-84111
Teacher of Electronics and Telecommunications
Istituto Tecnico Industriale "Silvano Fedi" - via Panconi 39 - 51100 Pistoia - Italy - Tel. +39-0573-23185/6

 Enrico Prosperi graduated in Electronics Engineering . He was then concerned with infrared and microwave radiometry, applied to bio-medicine and remote sensing. On such topics he also collaborated, as an external consultant, with electronic industries and with research institutions, developing a good experience in the field of digital image processing. Since 1984, he is a professor of Electronics in the Technical High-Schools and currently teaches Telecommunications at the I.T.I.S. "Silvano Fedi" in Pistoia, Tuscany. Amateur Astronomer since he was still a boy, he resumed the ancient passion installing next to his residence the above described instrumentation, in the years 1993-94. Since 2004 the observatory was enriched with a LX-200 GPS 14" scope and ST-7EI, ST-9XE and ST-1001E SBIG cameras. In the years 1999-2004 he cured the deep sky column on the montly review 'l'Astronomia'.