College
College of Engineering and Polymer Science
Date of Last Revision
2026-05-07 06:08:14
Major
Aerospace Systems Engineering
Honors Course
AESE 497
Number of Credits
2
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science
Date of Expected Graduation
Spring 2026
Abstract
When viewing the stars through a telescope, it is common that the object you are viewing drifts out of view. Many amateur astronomers seek to capture long exposure images of the stars, planets, and galaxies with commercially available sky tracking telescope mounts. The complication is that these telescope mounts are both incredibly expensive and have low weight limits. These issues limit accessibility to these products based on the telescope. For each person, telescope parameters determine the amount of light and magnification that can be viewed, which then determines exposures time for adequate photo results. The options on the market for amateur astronomers are extremely limited. We propose creating a telescope mount that is more affordable while being able to hold a larger telescope by optimizing the number of parts required and increasing the strength of the driving motors.
Research Sponsor
David Peters
First Reader
Nicholas Garafolo
Second Reader
Scott Sawyer
Honors Faculty Advisor
Scott Sawyer
Proprietary and/or Confidential Information
No
Community Engaged Scholarship
No
Recommended Citation
Landis, Payne M. and Gray, Anna J., "Large Telescope Mount for Long Exposure Photos" (2026). Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects. 2183.
https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/honors_research_projects/2183
Included in
Applied Mechanics Commons, Other Astrophysics and Astronomy Commons, Structures and Materials Commons, Systems Engineering and Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Commons