how much would it cost to build a observatory with telescope?

Answer 1

Hello. This site will help you, I think.

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/diy/3305651.html

Answer 2

It depends on a lot of things. What kind of observatory do you want to build? Some people buy pre-fabricated observatories which are just little shed like enclosures with domes and some people construct larger, more concrete structures and put a dome on top. Some people have roll off roof type observatories where the whole roof rolls off. They typically build these themselves.

You can put just about any type of telescope in your observatory. Some people only have say a little 8" Schmidt Cassegrain and some people invest in larger ones, like a 16" Schmidt Cassegrain. Some even can afford larger telescopes like the 20" RCX400. Mounts can be permenant and super heavy duty to stock models.

The little pre-fabricated SkyShed Pod starts at $1595, but even a backyard shed can be modified to be an observatory.

For a good, large observatory telescope you'd expect to pay around $2,000 for a used 10" Meade LX200 and $3,000 or so for a new one but that's just an example.

Generally speaking I'd estimate you could get a really nice setup for under $10,000, and if you like projects and are creative, $3,000 might get you what you want.

Answer 3

This question is like the one "How long is a piece of string?" It could cost anything from a few hundred dollars to a few million dollars. Most amateur astronomers don't have an observatory, but observe from their back yards or from various dark sky sites. It's usually only worth building an observatory if you have an excellent site (no light pollution) and a telescope too large to transport easily. After 50 years as an amateur astronomer without an observatory, I'm currently building one, and it will end up costing me about $10,000 including the telescope, but not counting the cost of the land, which is another $100,000.

Answer 4

You can actually purchase a tent that operates as an observatory. Part of the roof opens while the other half covers a separate "room" for sleeping. Check the classified ads in the back of astronomy magazines.

If you want a permanent observatory, you can use a small storage shed modified to allow the roof to either come off completely or slide sideways to open the roof. Backyard sheds are relatively inexpensive.

The telescope you install will be the expensive purchase, depending on the model you choose.

Answer 5

You can put a $100 telescope in a $100 garden shed with the roof not permanently attached and have a $200 observatory. Or you could put a $25,000 telescope in a concrete building with a fiberglass dome and spend $100,000 or more. It all depends on how fancy you want your observatory to be. The source shows a $25,000 telescope in a $100 garden shed ("Old Observatory" in the source). He later built the $100,000 dome for it, as shown in the source as "Observatory".

Answer 6

How much do you want to spend? The lower limit for anything decent is going to be several thousand dollars. Assuming an 8-inch aperture would be the smallest practical size for which to go to such an effort, the telescope alone (with a decent motorized guide system) is going to cost you at least two thousand ($US).

Yeah, there are ways to cut costs...but if I were going to build one of my dreams, I'm thinking it would be well over $20,000...and perhaps much more than that.

Answer 7

Anywhere from a few thousand for a small backyard one to millions of dollars. Really. It all depends on how fancy you want it to be. If you really do enjoy the night sky, a few thousand will work darn near as well.
Enjoy!

Answer 8

A serious telescope is about $15,000 and then you need a motorized encloure at another $5,000+

Answer 9

That depends on the size of the telescope and its functions, locations etc.

Answer 10

don't listen to geoff .. he thinks he knows but .. nope.
He's jelous of people who know more than him. So he tries to out do them.

He doesn't have me fooled