The Omega Nebula Imaged on ATEO-3

Insight Observatory is excited to announce its first deep-sky image set acquired by ATEO-3 that is now available on its Starbase image set repository. M17, the Omega Nebula in the constellation Sagittarius, was the first target imaged from the Insight Observatory affiliate remote telescope. ATEO-3 is a 12.5" f/9 (2860mm focal length) Quasar Optics Ritchey-Chretien owned and operated by Franck Jobard. This telescope is located at an elevation of over 5990 ft at Deep Sky Chile, a remote telescope hosted in the dark skies of the Rio Hurtado Valley in Chile.

M17, The Omega Nebula in Sagittarius imaged and processed on ATEO-3 by Franck Jobard at Deep Sky Chile.

The Omega Nebula, also known as the Swan Nebula, Checkmark Nebula, and the Horseshoe Nebula (cataloged as Messier 17 or M17 or NGC 6618), is an H II region in the constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745. Charles Messier cataloged it in 1764. It is located in the rich starfields of the Sagittarius area of the Milky Way.

The Omega Nebula is between 5,000 and 6,000 light-years from Earth, and it spans some 15 light-years in diameter. The cloud of interstellar matter of which this nebula is a part is roughly 40 light-years in diameter and has a mass of 30,000 solar masses. The total mass of the Omega Nebula is an estimated 800 solar masses.

M17 is considered one of the brightest and most massive star-forming regions of our galaxy. Its local geometry is similar to the Orion Nebula except that it is viewed edge-on rather than face-on.

The open cluster NGC 6618 lies embedded in the nebulosity and causes the gases of the nebula to shine due to radiation from these hot, young stars. It is also one of the youngest clusters known, with an age of just 1 million years. The Swan portion of M17, the Omega Nebula in the Sagittarius nebulosity, is said to resemble a barber's pole.

Source: Wikipedia

12.5" f/9 Quasar Ritchey Chretien, ATEO-3, affiliate remote telescope (pictured right) housed in a roll-off observatory at Deep Sky Chile remote telescope hosting facility. Photo by Franck Jobard.

ATEO-3 is available as an option on Insight Observatory's Educational Image Request (EIR) form for educational research and classroom use. This remote online telescope is also an option on the Public Image Request (PIR) as well. To make an image set request for ATEO-3, please visit Insight Observatory's "Starbase Image Sets on-Demand" form.

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Announcing Remote Telescope ATEO-3

Insight Observatory is proud to announce the addition of ATEO-3 to its network of Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach. ATEO-3 is Insight's third affiliate telescope located in the dark skies of the Rio Hurtado Valley in Chile. Rio Hurtado is far away from large cities and offers the darkest skies and the best conditions found in Chile. This location shares the same sky as Cerro Tololo, Gemini South, and the brand-new LSST professional observatories. The ATEO-3 remote imaging system is owned and operated by Franck Jobard and is hosted at Deep Sky Chile. Deep Sky Chile is a remote telescope hosting facility constructed on a flat mountain top over 5590 feet.

Deep Sky Chile remote telescope hosting is located in the Rio Hurtado Valley, Chile where the 12.5" f/9 Quasar Ritchey Chretien (ATEO-3) affiliate remote telescope is housed.

This remote telescope configuration consists of a 12.5" f/9 (2860mm focal length) Quasar Ritchey Chretien with an SBIG STL11000 CCD camera with Luminance, Red, Green, Blue, H-Alpha (6nm) and Oxygen III (3nm) Astrodon filters and is mounted on a Losmandy Titan. An ATEO-3 imaging system is now an option on Insight Observatory's Educational and Public Image Request forms. Multiple hours of deep-sky data integration will also become available in Insight Observatory's Starbase image repository for subscribing. Image data requests can be made on our "Image Sets On-Demand" form to be added to the Starbase imaging queue.

12.5" f/9 Quasar Ritchey Chretien (ATEO-3) and image of NGC 6164 imaged and processed by Franck Jobard.

One of the most exciting aspects of receiving image data from this fine instrument is Insight Observatory now has the ability to capture deep-sky gems of the southern hemisphere to offer to educational programs and astronomical image processors. If you have any questions regarding the expansion of our remote telescope network by adding ATEO-3, please feel free to Contact Us. 

We would like to welcome Franck to the Insight Observatory team and thank him for sharing his remote imaging system, helping us fulfill our mission of educational outreach utilizing online remote telescopes.

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ATEO Portal Released with Instructional Videos

Insight Observatory is pleased to announce the official release of its Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Portal. This online gateway allows educators and the general public to access their network of remote robotic telescopes for astronomical imaging and research. Unlike Insight's Public Image Request Form (PIR), the portal allows users to create a user account, reserve telescope time, and enter specific image data requests. The image data is then uploaded to a secure cloud folder after the observing run is completed.

Screen Capture of the Astronomical Telescope for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Online Telescope Portal.

ATEO Portal Instructional Videos have been published on Insight Observatory's YouTube Channel that covers each module of the online telescope access portal, from creating a new user account to planning what objects are to be imaged during a scheduled reservation.

The Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Portal can be accessed at https://ateodev.insightobs.com.

ATEO Portal New User Registration

ATEO Portal New User Registration - Instructions on how to sign up for a user account on the Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Portal that accesses Insight Observatory's network of remote robotic imaging telescopes.

ATEO Portal User Profile

ATEO Portal User Profile - Instructions on how to use the Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Portal User Profile to edit user information, purchase imaging credits, and access image data.

ATEO Portal Scheduler

ATEO Portal Scheduler - Instructions on how to use the Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Portal Scheduler to reserve imaging time on Insight Observatory's remote robotic telescopes.

ATEO Portal Telescope Console

ATEO Portal Telescope Console - Instructions on how to use the Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO) Portal Telescope Console to plan what objects are to be imaged during a scheduled reservation.

If you are interested in creating an account on the ATEO Portal or have any specific questions, please contact support@insightobservatory.com.

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Collaboration with SkyPi Remote Observatory

Sublime Skies, LLC DBA Insight Observatory is pleased to announce a joint Education Outreach collaboration with SkyPi Online Observatory, LLC!  

SkyPi Remote Observatory was conceived as an installation of automated roll-off observatories with telescope piers with the purpose of hosting remote imaging telescopes by John and Jan Evelan of Mesa, Arizona back in 2012. "The facility is dedicated to providing a superb remote imaging environment for the discriminating astrophotographer" as stated by John Evelan. "The remote observatory site is located in Pie Town, New Mexico with a population of approximately 200. It is arguably among the darkest sky sites in the lower 48 states. There are many other advantages that come along with this site. As I began planning the observatory, I realized that sharing and hosting the site was a natural evolution for it. The goal is to make remote observing accessible and more affordable to the astronomy community."

Remote Robotic Telescopes are hosted in SkyPi Remote Observatory's Alpha Observatory. 
Image courtesy of SkyPi Remote Observatory.

The comments above are exactly why the founding members of Insight Observatory, Michael Petrasko, and Muir Evenden chose the location for hosting their 16" f/3.7 Dreamscope Astrograph imaging telescope that was installed in May 2017. After carefully searching for the ideal location to host their Astronomical Telescopes for Educational Outreach (ATEO-1), they chose SkyPi Remote Observatory. Not only did the physical location turn out to be phenomenal for imaging and research but the service provided by John and his talented technicians, Michael and Caleb went completely above and beyond what their expectations were during and after the installation of the telescope. Their response time to any technical issues and special requests is extremely prompt. Insight Observatory could not imagine hosting its remote robotic telescope anywhere else.

IC 405 - The Flaming Star Nebula imaged by Insight Observatory on 16" F/3.7 Remote Telescope 
hosted at SkyPi Remote Observatory.

As their business relationship flourished and Michael Petrasko was onsite this past May on a routine telescope maintenance visit, John and he were discussing the online ATEO Portal Muir had designed and developed for accessing the ATEO-1 remote telescope via the internet. John asked if "any" telescope could be accessed via the online portal and when Michael replied yes, John opened up one of SkyPi's roll-off observatories that houses a Williams Optics 5" f/7 with a one-shot CCD camera attached. John then continued, "Even this one?".  That's when SkyPi's 5" f/7 refractor became Insight Observatory's very first affiliate imaging telescope on its network and has been designated ATEO-2. Currently, the crew at SkyPi is in the midst of configuring an 11" f/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope that will be dedicated to planetary imaging. This imaging system will be known as ATEO-3.

M51 - The "Whirlpool Galaxy" imaged by Bob Birket on his Optics 12-inch RCOS Astrograph hosted at SkyPi Remote Observatory. Automated Roll-Off Roof Observatories Alpha, Bravo, and Gamma to the right.

John and Jan Evelan share the same passion for educational outreach the founding members of Insight Observatory do. After ATEO-2 was configured by the crew of SkyPi to be accessed by Insight Observatory, it became accessible on Insight Observatory's Educational Image Request (EIR) Form for classroom projects. ATEO-2 can also be accessed on their Public Image Request (PIR) Form as well. The telescope will be added to the online ATEO Portal within the next couple of months.

An Observatory housing n 18" Dobsonian Telescope was constructed so clients could enjoy observing in the dark skies at SkyPi. The telescope will also be used for Education Outreach events as well. 
Images courtesy of SkyPi Remote Observatory.

Both companies met on a video conference call this past Labor Day weekend to discuss possible joint ventures where both entities may accomplish their common goals for education outreach. Insight Observatory could not be more enthusiastic to partner up with SkyPi Remote Observatory on these!

If you are looking for the ideal spot to host your imaging system, we strongly recommend SkyPi. Other Astro-imagers have found SkyPi Remote Observatory to be the ultimate hosting solution other than Insight Observatory. You may read all of their positive feedback on their Testimonials page on their website. Also, check out the images taken by SkyPi's hosting clients on their image gallery.

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