My telescope mount just failed during a meteor shower

I was out near Flagstaff last Thursday night trying to catch the Perseids when my Celestron mount just stopped tracking mid-shot. The motor made this grinding sound then went dead, so I had to switch to manual mode for the rest of the night. Has anyone else had a motor burn out like that on a cold desert night?

3 comments

3 Comments

annajenkins1mo ago

The Perseids peak in August, not June, so you might've been out there for a different shower or just got the month wrong. Still, a motor dying in cold weather is super frustrating.

barbara_grant41mo ago

My buddy Steve decided to go stargazing last June too, parked his old pickup out by the lake and settled in with a blanket. Around 2am the temperature dropped hard and his truck just would not turn over, dead battery from the cold he figured. He ended up hiking two miles to the nearest gas station wearing only a hoodie and flip flops, shivering the whole way. The guy working the night shift took pity on him and gave him a jump start with his own car, but Steve still talks about it like it was some kind of survival story.

xena_bailey181mo agoMost Upvoted

Can't believe you kept going with manual mode after the motor literally died on you