The Irvin Marvin Winer Memorial Mobile Observatory, Inc. (Winer Observatory) was incorporated in 1983 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity to perform basic research in astronomy, provide educational outreach programs, and provide site and maintenance services for small telescopes through cooperative agreements with other astronomical institutions.
The observatory is named after Irvin M. Winer, a physics professor whom our Director, Mark Trueblood, met in graduate school. Irv made such an impression on our Director that he named the observatory after Irv to keep alive the memory of his friend and mentor. It was Irv's and Mark's friend Andrew J. Tomer who suggested the name.
The "Mobile" in our official corporate name originates from our interest in observing asteroid occultations, which requires the observer to travel to a particular remote location to make the observation. For more information, visit the science section of this Web site.
The picture at the left of this page is of our facility near Sonoita, Arizona, approximately 50 miles southeast of Tucson, Arizona. It shows the roof rolled back to the left (north) over the shop part of the building (compare this photo with the aerial photo on the Site page). The observatory houses a 14.5-inch telescope owned by the University of Iowa used primarily for undergraduate student labs, a 20-inch telescope owned by the Washington University in St. Louis, the Kilodegree Extremely Little Telescope ( KELT) owned by The Ohio State University, and one 20-inch telescope operated jointly by Winer Observatory and the Rincon Ranch Observatory.
We have room for a total of six telescopes of approximately one meter in aperture on a 21-acre site. Our dark skies and dry weather make the site well-suited to astronomy. Nearby are several professional observatories, including Kitt Peak National Observatory and the MMT Observatory, which is only about 20 miles away. Several amateur astronomers have made Sonoita the home for their observatories as well, including James McGaha and Dr. Tim Hunter of Grasslands Observatory, Mike Shade of Sonoita Hills Observatory, John Gross, Jay LeBlanc, and several others.
Our goal is to maximize the science and educational return on your robotic telescope investment by providing a site in Southeastern Arizona renowned for clear skies and good weather, combined with a competent and knowledgeable staff able to keep your telescope maintained and operating at peak efficiency.
| Last modified: April 18, 2008. You are visitor number |
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