Dome Repair

The new stairs are in place. At the moment they rest on wooden blocks, but these will go away when we finish making the extension straps that will support the stairs.

We have found that the new gear box is so efficient that it allows the shutter to move under its own weight even after the drive motor turns off. Here you see Will Popendorf installing bumpers that will hold the shutter in the proper position when it is closed. Similar bumpers are being installed on the “south” end to support the shutter when it is fully open.

The inside of the shutter cools down at night and condensation forms. We are going to install some insulation on the inside of the shutter to help prevent this. Once this is done, the scaffolding will come down and we can start on the floor replacement.