Waasa Debaabing (smaller observatory housing a 10" Telescope)

The 10" telescope and observatory

In 2010, to celebrate 25 consecutive years of astronomy education provided by Bruce Waters, it was decided to establish a permanent facility (observatory building and telescope system) that could meet the following requirements. To be available for:

1. year-round use
2. the Discovery staff to provide programing of their own (rather than solely relying upon astronomy educators)
3. self-use such that any person with interest could sign out the facility for themselves

A 10" Meade 2120 LX3 on a fork mount within a SkyShed POD system was opened to the public on July 17, 2010.^[1][2] At the time, the observatory was the first public use observatory in any provincial park.^[3] This setup provided excellent views but limited automation. In 2011, the telescope mount was upgraded to a Losmandy G11 Gemini 2 automated system, donated by Bill and the Gardner family. This upgrade significantly improved the usability of the telescope for staff and Park visitors alike. The observatory sits upon a deck with two ramps (to ease the movement of people) donated by the Friends of Killarney Park.

Kchi Waasa Debaabing (larger observatory housing 16" and 5" Telescopes)

KPPO Dome 2 with Dome Off-2

After eight years of use, it became apparent that there were ways to optimize the facility and, in 2017, an upgrade initiative kicked off to provide a second observatory dome and equipment that would meet six key requirements:

A decision matrix was established and vetted against real world feedback from existing users who were kind enough to donate their time and expertise, most notably:

Aerial view of the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex at the Stars over Killarney event (2018). Photo: Colin Durocher

Based on the requirements and usage data available, it was decided that a closed tube telescope of large aperture plus an apochromatic refractor mounted on a permanent equatorial pier would suit all the requirements listed above.

In 2018, the new Observatory was opened and houses a Meade LX600-ACF 16" f/8 (ideal for planets and deep sky astrophotography) with a Meade Series 6000 130mm ED APO refractor mounted on top for lower magnification / wide field use. The entire assembly sits on a cast steel Permanent Equatorial Pier to ensure overall stability and consistency of the equipment. This dome utilizes a SkyShed GPOD with a two-door observatory structure and features a "slide-off" roof assembly to provide more headroom. The observatory sits upon a deck with two ramps (to ease the movement of people) donated by the Friends of Killarney Park.

In 2023, Plate solving and autoguiding technology were added to provide extremely accurate positioning capability to the system as well as the ability to track objects with extreme accuracy for several hours at a time.

Dark-sky preserve

Observing the Stars over the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory

Killarney Provincial Park has been designated as a Wilderness Class Provincial Park within Ontario. As such, its development plan includes significant provisions to protect all of the pristine wilderness that it governs. In keeping with this special designation, significant attention has been spent to ensure that lighting controls fall within the best practices of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. On February 28, 2018, Killarney Provincial Park joined the list of prestigious locations designated as a Dark-Sky Preserve by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. In keeping with the requirements of the Dark-Sky Preserve designation, the Park provides education on proper lighting use and controls as part of its regular programming.^[4]

Self Use Sign-out

While the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Observatory is used for special large audience presentations (with upwards of 200 people) and by the Discovery Team interpreters, the Waasa Debaabing Observatory has been optimized for self-use. This program, currently available from July through September, allows anyone visiting the park free access to a research level observatory that only requires the most basic of training (provided in advance by the Park staff). In this regard, the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory was North America's first free, public, self-use facility in North America.^[5]

Astronomer in Residence program

Established in 2012, the Killarney Provincial Park "Astronomer in Residence" program sees experienced guest astronomers providing their services to the park on a daily basis. These resident astronomers provide a variety of educational services in support of the NHE programs. Such services include: daily observatory training, solar observing, night sky observing and other programs that encompass a wide variety of information that is related to both astronomy and its relationship to the Killarney Provincial Park experience.

In 2022, Killarney Provincial Park partnered with York University's Allan I. Carswell Observatory, the largest on-campus observatory in Canada, to further enhance and enrich the program. The new program will include all of the existing astronomer in residence activities plus will take advantage of the capabilities of both observatories to display astronomical objects and events. This will include live steams and multimedia presentations to not just the Killarney Provincial Park public but to a much wider audience.^[6]

Stars over Killarney

Stars over Killarney Provincial Park Observatory

Established in 2018 to commemorate the 125th year of Ontario Parks and the 150th year of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada and the establishment of Ontario Parks' first Dark Sky Preserve, a new Discovery program - Stars over Killarney - was created to connect the beauty of Killarney Provincial Park with an element of astronomical knowledge. The inaugural collaborative event with Science North and Killarney Provincial Park featured day programs such as comet making workshops, geology discovery walks, presentations on the solar system and planetarium shows followed by a special night program on the importance of Dark Sky Preserves. Finally, the audience was treated to views of the stars where they learned the Western and Indigenous constellations as well as obtained views through the Park's telescopes and those set up by the Sudbury Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Meteorite Display

In addition to the programs available in the Park, visitors can enjoy looking at a small meteorite collection available inside the Park office during regular visiting hours. Included are an iron meteorite fragment, an etched slice of meteorite displaying Widmanstätten patterns and a very rare Allende (pronounced Ah-Yen-Day) meteorite that contains pre-solar grains.

Galaxies

M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, Killarney Provincial Park Observatory	M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy as imaged in HaOiiiRGB from the 0.4 Metre telescope within the K'chi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory complex		NGC 4565, the Needle Galaxy as imaged from the 0.4 Metre telescope within the K'chi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory complex		NGCs 4038 and 4039, the Antennae Galaxies, as imaged in HaOiiiRGB from the 0.4 Metre telescope within the K'chi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory complex

Clusters

M13, the Hercules globular cluster through the 0.4 Metre telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex	M45, the Pleiades Cluster as taken through the 0.13 Metre telescope within the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex		M11, the Wild Duck Cluster as taken through the 10" (0.25 Metre) telescope in the Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex		M35, NGC 2158 and IC 2157 as taken through the 0.13 Metre telescope in the Kchi Waasa DeBaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory

Nebulae

The Veil Nebula (NGC 6960, NGC 6992 and NGC 6995) as imaged with a 61mm telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex	M20, the Trifid Nebula as taken by the 10" (0.25 Metre) telescope in the Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex		M8, the Lagoon Nebula and open cluster NGC 6530, imaged with the 130mm telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex		M57, the Ring Nebula imaged through the 0.4 Metre telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex
A single 10 second image of M27, the Dumbell Nebula, imaged through the 0.4 Metre telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex	The Rho Ophiuchi Nebula Complex taken from a 61mm refractor from the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory. Total integration time is 21 minutes		M42 as imaged with both the 0.13 Metre and 0.40 Metre telescopes in the Kchi Waasa DeBaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory

Double Stars

Albireo Killarney Provincial Park Observatory

Solar System

Half-Moon, through the 0.4 Metre telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory Complex	Mars imaged with the 0.4 metre telescope in the Kchi Waasa Debaabing Dome at the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory during the 2020 opposition		Jupiter with 10" in the Waasa DeBaabing Dome in Killarney Provincial Park		Saturn imaged with the 10" telescope in the Waasa DeBaabing Dome in Killarney Provincial Park

Observatory modifications

KPPO 2018 - From West 0 degrees

The Skyshed POD system is normally designed to house a Telescope of maximum 14" in size.^[7] However, with the careful placement of the permanent equatorial pier inside the southernmost storage POD bay, the 16" plus refractor were all shifted southwards allowing the height necessary to accommodate the entire system.

In addition, by using a Fork Mount and not a German equatorial mount with its heavy and extended counterweight, more space was provided within the observatory structure itself.

Concrete and cast steel pier alignment

Using a plumb bob to find true North

To support the weight of the telescope system (over 500 lbs) and to ensure that the system was set up for long term maintenance-free use, it was decided to set everything atop a rigid, fixed equatorial mount. The Meade Permanent Equatorial pier was chosen and custom cast to the latitude of Killarney Provincial Park. In addition, its height was reduced by 12" so that it could better fit within the observatory dome and eliminate the necessity of using a step ladder.