Home      Consulting      Products      Principals      Support      Observatory

Astronomy From SSC's Observatory SSC's observatory (IAU #676) is the mid-life crisis of John E. Hoot. Mr. Hoot is president and founder of Software Systems Consulting, an engineering design firm specializing in computerized robotics, instrumentation and signal processing hardware and software. He is a graduate electrical and computer engineer (University of Michigan '74) and has been a avid amateur astronomer for over 42 years. Among his accomplishments are the design and development of the Meade Autostar telescope controller firmware, design and development of several commercial CCD imagers and autoguiders. He is the designer and builder of the Hoot-Vega Radio Telescope in Benson Arizona. An active observer from his automated observatory, his interests include astro imaging, photometry, astrometry, spectroscopy, radio astronomy, automated data collection and analysis. A popular lecturer and JPL Solar System Ambassador since 2001, he has presented at RTMC, IAPPP, AstroImage, MWI CUREA, TIE Workshops and at astronomy clubs throughout the southwest. His affiliations include IEEE, ACM, ASP, OCA, SAS, OPTAS. JPL SS Ambassadors and MWOA. If you wish to schedule a presentation, please contact Mr. Hoot, . Instrumentation at the observatory currently includes: 12" Meade RCX400 telescope Meade 1616XTE CCD Camera Meade 416XTE CCD Camera Meade 216XT CCD Camera Meade DSI and DSI Pro Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT Wide Dispersion CCD Spectrograph Optec Filter Slider CFW10 Filter Wheel Meade 616 Filter Wheels Full Aperture Solar Filter Televue Pronto ETX 90 OTA ETX Astro 125 4" f10 SCT Guide Scope Johnson-Cousins BVRI photometric filters High Resolution Monochromatic NTSC Video Camera Realtime Video Capture GPS Recent Projects: Time Lapse Animation Of The 2007 Perseids Meteor Shower 3D Color Magnitude Diagrams of Globular and Open Clusters Ground Based Determination of Meteor Trajectories and Satellite Orbits Timelapse Animations of the November 8, 2006 Transit of Mercury Imaging With Meade's DSI Astroimager Genesis Spacecraft Optical Re-entry Tracking N-Body Problem Simulation Creating The SSC Observatory Messier Atlas Photometry of Short Period Eclipsing Binary Stars Animations of Comet Linear 2000WM1 Lunar Occultation of Saturn 9/10/2001 Topics of current research at the SSC observatory include: Short Period Variable Stars Photometric Determination of Asteroid Rotational Periods Variable Star Spectroscopy Development of Technology for Automated Astronomical Observation CCD Time Lapse Animation Technique Asteroid Astrometry and Geodesy Selective Image Reconstruction Techniques / CCD Color Imaging Techniques Radio Astronomy Astrometry of Bright Double and High Proper Motion Stars Additionally, Mr. Hoot is currently involved as the principal designer and builder of the Hoot-Vega Radio Telescope at the Skywatcher's Inn in Benson, Az. This instrument is a synthesis of Mr. Hoot's long standing interests in radio and astronomy.

	San Clemente Offices: Software Systems Consulting 615 S. El Camino Real San Clemente, CA 92682 Tel: (949) 498-5784 San Diego Offices: Software Systems Consulting 4993 Niagara Ave #204 San Diego CA 92107 Tel: (619) 226-4112 Fax: (619) 226-4146
	Home | Consulting | Products | Principals | Support | Observatory