MDM Observatory 2.4m Telescope Observer's Report for 2003 Jun 04

Observer(s): An/Terndrup
Institution(s): OSU

Instrument: 8k

Worked for 9 hours (most of the night)
Conditions were Mixed most of the night.
No equipment or software problems were encountered.

Seeing and Weather:
   Clouds from 00:30 until 2:00.
   Beg: Seeing 1.1 arcsec, Clear, Winds Light & Variable
   Mid: Seeing N/A arcsec, Patchy Clouds, Winds Light & Variable
   End: Seeing 0.9 arcsec, Cirrus, Winds Light & Variable

Observing Summary:

From 00:30 to 2:00, middle altitude clouds flowed in,
so observation was suspended.
After this time, most of the clouds were dissipated
though some thin clouds remained in patches.

The primary mirror temperature had been increased
from the expected value (14 C) to about 22 C
since the late morning yesterday.
When the mirror was uncovered,
the temperature of the primary mirror
was only 1 C lower than that of the ambient atmosphere.
During most of the night,
the primary mirror temperature was 1 C HIGHER
than that of the ambient atmosphere.
Although the mirror was covered and cooled by A/C
between 00:30-2:00 (possible threat of precipitation),
the mirror temperature did not decrease - almost constant.

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Submitted on 2003 Jun 5 [4:55:09]