Work on the Astrolabe Generator is still in progress. Version 4 is coming along. Covid, job changes, life changes and laziness, combined with my tendency to hyper-focus on projects in rotation has meant that updates to this blog, and pushing out Version 4 will come slowly. I do respond to bug reports, and I am […]
A friend in Australia noticed that there was a problem with rendering the twilight lines when working in the southern hemisphere. I missed a couple of lines of code when I added support for southern latitudes. The problem is now fixed, and the download for the Astrolabe Generator is updated to the patched version.
Yesterday I added another project to my Thingiverse projects: The Advanced Astrolabe. This project shares the same design plan as the Basic astrolabe I posted earlier, but I added more advanced features to this one. Those of you who want something more substantial than paper to work with should check this out.
In researching the astrolabe and related tools, geometric construction comes up regularly. I find the process of using a straight edge and compass to create accurate designs to be fascinating in and of itself. One of my ongoing projects is drafting an astrolabe using just those tools. The other day I ran across a fascinating […]
Astrolabes were on display at Maker Faire Nova. The Maker Faire at George Mason University was this past Sunday. A good time was had by all. I had a prime site for my display and had a constant stream of visitors. On display were all my various paper versions of astrolabes and quadrants, along with […]
There are at least two articles about making and using astrolabes in the print media this month. The first, in the June issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine is a quick how-to piece on constructing an instrument using my Astrolabe Generator. The second article is in May/June issue of AramocoWorld and is more in-depth […]
Next Sunday I will be displaying my work at the 6th Annual Maker Faire Nova (https://nova.makerfaire.com/) at George Mason University. I will have a wide selection of astrolabes, quadrants and such, along with all my current handouts and will be doing demonstrations. Come find me in the MIX building.
With me getting to the point of making instruments out of more than paper, I’ve started to post the working files and instructions on the Thingiverse site. The first two projects have been added: A version of the Sine Quadrant (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3649670) and the Lunar Volvelle (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3650060). I hope to have the astrolabe files up there […]
Back when I started this project, I looked into local workshops and maker spaces to see if any would enable me to do the sort of work I wanted to do. At that point I didn’t have the time or resources to make it happen, so I stuck to paper. Starting last year, I found […]
So, I’ve been busy. There will be several posts over the next few days, catching things up. Most importantly to me personally: I now have access to the tools and space to start working in something other than paper. I’ll be posting about the Nova-labs Maker-space at length later. Next, related to that, I now […]