Monster dome Tekapo-bound
A ‘‘unique’’ dome to house one of the world’s most famous Victorian-era telescopes is being built in Timaru.
The 10.9-metre fibreglass dome will house the restored Brashear Telescope that is being installed in Earth & Sky’s new astronomy centre in Tekapo.
‘‘It’s certainly unique,’’ said Simon Robb, the managing director of Industrial Fibreglass Solutions (IFS) who are building the dome at their Redruth site. ‘‘It’s been a very exciting and challenging project to be involved in.
‘‘Before this, the largest domes we had manufactured were 2.4 metres in diameter,’’ Robb said.
He said the dome weighs about seven tonnes and rotates 360 degrees.
The Brashear Telescope, which is being restored in South Canterbury after spending the past five decades in storage, was used in the late 1800s. It stands up to nine metres tall, has an 18-inch refracting lens, and is crafted of brass, iron, steel and wood.
It was gifted to the University of Canterbury in the 1960s by the University of Pennsylvania for installation at the Mt John Observatory that overlooks Tekapo, but there weren’t enough funds to build a dome suitable to house it, so it was consigned to storage.
Robb said the dome’s construction process was similar to how a large high-performance boat would be made.
Design work began early in 2017 with construction starting in mid2018.
The dome, which is being assembled at the Redruth site, will be split in two for transportation for Tekapo.
‘‘It will be a spectacular day when the dome is lifted onto the building,’’ Earth & Sky business manager Craig Jones said.
In 2016, the University of Canterbury gifted the Brashear Telescope to the Tomorrow’s Skies Charitable Trust (TSCT) to enable the restoration. Nga¯i Tahu Tourism announced in 2017 it would partner with the astro-tourism company in the multi million dollar facility.