Welcome to La Hita

La Hita is a private astronomical observatory complex located south of Madrid, Spain in the province of Toledo. The skies at la Hita are Class 4.5 in the Bortle rating scale, rural/suburban transition but tiping the scale to suburban. The site is a 75 minute drive from downtown Madrid.

There are a number of facilities that are shared, others are private.  The complex has three big domes housing reflectors of 30, 40 and 77 cm , two roll-off observatories, and open platforms for observing and imaging. Guests with their own observing/imaging equipment are welcome at the site.

E E Barnard Platform

This is my own facility within the observatory complex, it is called the E.E. Barnard Platform. The name is a personal tribute to Edward Emerson Barnard one of the leading astronomers of the late nineteenth century and, among many other achievements, author of  "A Photographic Atlas of Selected Regions of the Milky Way". The control room is inside the shed so I have some protection during the winter months. In the summer nights I enjoy staying outside all nigth.

Instruments

77 cm (30") Cassegrain-Newton mirror designed and constructed by Daniel Cardoen, France and  9" refractor lens designed by Thomas M. Back, Ohio, USA and  manufactured by LZOS in Moscow, Russia
Telescope Mechanical design, construction and final integration by Faustino Organero, La Hita, Toledo, Spain

Here you can see the 77 cm reflector with the 9" refractor and the 6" guiding refractor.
The computer that controles the scope is an FS-2 that can be seen in the left arm of the fork.
Guiding cameras are SBIG ST-5 and STV

30 cm Newton Reflector

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