Puckett Observatory

Puckett Observatory is a private astronomical observatory located in the state of Georgia. It is owned and operated by Tim Puckett.[1] Its primary observation goals are the study of comets and the discovery of supernovae. To facilitate the latter goal it sponsors the Puckett Observatory World Supernova Search whose astronomers have discovered 369 supernovae.[2][3]

Puckett Observatory
Named afterTim Puckett 
Observatory code 752 
LocationGeorgia
Coordinates34.732386°N 84.535300°W / 34.732386; -84.535300 -->
Websitewww.cometwatch.com
Telescopes
24" Ritchey-Chrétien
Celestron C-14 Schmidt-Cassegrain
Location of Puckett Observatory

Telescopes

The Puckett Observatory houses two telescopes. The 60 cm (24") Ritchey–Chrétien telescope was custom engineered and built by Puckett,[4] and took nine years to complete, going online full-time in 1997.[5] The telescope features a new type of hybrid disk/band worm drive designed by Puckett in 1993.[5] It is one of the largest telescopes in the state.[6][7]

The other observatory telescope includes a Celestron C-14 Schmidt–Cassegrain with a Software Bisque's Paramount ME Robotic Telescope System.

The Puckett Observatory World Supernova Search was formed in 1998, with its principal investigator being Tim Puckett. The search consists of a team of amateur astronomers located in the United States, Canada, India, Greece and Italy. Observatories participating in the search include the Puckett Observatory, and telescopes located in Portal, Arizona (Jack Newton), and Osoyoos, BC (Ajai Sehgal).

The observatory uses computers to control the robotic telescopes and sends the images to volunteers via the Internet. Each image is manually compared ("blinked") to archive images. At least 40 hours each week are required to run the search operation. Team members have contributed thousands of hours to analyzing the data.

Notable discoveries

Tim Puckett

Timothy David Puckett was born in 1962 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and is an amateur astronomer and astrophotographer with over 30 years experience. Experienced in the field of amateur CCD (digital) astro-imaging, Puckett has operated numerous CCD cameras since 1989. He has built several robotic telescopes and is currently operating an automated supernova search patrol and comet astrometry program which uses 60-cm and 35-cm telescopes.[1]

Puckett's photos of comets and deep-sky objects have been published in books and magazines in several countries, including Great Britain, Japan, Italy, Germany, Australia and South Africa. His work has also been featured on ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CNN, BBC, The Discovery and Learning Channels and Good Morning America. Puckett is a robotic-telescope consultant for professional observatories.

In recognition of Puckett's contributions to the field of astronomy, asteroid 32096 Puckett, discovered Orange County Astronomers (OAC) Michael Collins and Minor White at the OCA-Anza Observatory (643) in 2000, was named in his honor.[1] The official naming citation was submitted by Michael Peoples[11] and published by the Minor Planet Center on November 9, 2003 (M.P.C. 50252).[12]

Puckett was the recipient of the American Astronomical Society's 2011 Chambliss Amateur Achievement Award.[13] This award is presented for an achievement in astronomical research made by an amateur astronomer. The award citation reads: "To Tim Puckett for his Puckett Observatory World Supernova Search program that has discovered more than 200 supernovae".

See also

Bibliography

About Puckett and published images

By Puckett

Ratledge, David, ed. "The CometWatch Program." The Art and Science of CCD Astronomy. London: Springer-Verlag, 1997. pp. 61–71

References
  1. "(32096) Puckett". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  2. "List of Supernovae". www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu.
  3. Siegert, Ingrid. "Astronomy Online". www.astronomyatlanta.com.
  4. Dalton, Jr., Richard J. (May 22, 2005). "Some go online to peer into space". Arizona Republic. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
  5. Toner, Mike (July 12, 2002). "Starry eyed group makes super(nova) discoveries". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
  6. Toner, Mike (October 28, 1995). "The Sky's the Limit". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
  7. Klein, Michael (August 14, 1998). "Star-Struck". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
  8. Foley, Ryan J.; Challis, P. J.; Chornock, R.; Ganeshalingam, M.; Li, W.; Marion, G. H.; Morrell, N. I.; Pignata, G.; Stritzinger, M. D.; Silverman, J. M.; Wang, X.; Anderson, J. P.; Filippenko, A. V.; Freedman, W. L.; Hamuy, M.; Jha, S. W.; Kirshner, R. P.; McCully, C.; Persson, S. E.; Phillips, M. M.; Reichart, D. E.; Soderberg, A. M. (March 25, 2013). "Type Iax Supernovae: A New Class of Stellar Explosion". The Astrophysical Journal. 767 (1): 57. arXiv:1212.2209. Bibcode:2013ApJ...767...57F. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/767/1/57.
  9. Details of the discovery IAU circular 8605.
  10. "IAUC 8518: Var OBJECT IN Boo; 2005bt; C/2003 T4". www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu.
  11. "Naming Citation: PUCKETT = (32096) = 2000 KO38". MPC Observatory (643). Retrieved December 11, 2012.
  12. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  13. "Chambliss Amateur Achievement Award". American Astronomical Society. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
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