2.7m Cautions

Always, ALWAYS watch both ends of the telescope while it is moving. Safety of the telescope and instrument is the responsibility of the observer. Extreme caution must be used when moving the telescope close to the north and south piers, platforms, strong back on top of elevator, cages on top of the old control room, cherry picker and other objects on the platforms. Watch also for trailing cables or bundles of cables on the floor. (Use common sense, and don't hurry!)

If you leave the building (or the vicinity of the telescope) for more than a few minutes, either turn off the telescope tracking or be absolutely certain that the telescope cannot track into something while you are gone.

Wait for the dome to come to a complete stop if you're changing dome motion direction.

If the wind is so strong that it is moving the dome, cease observing at once and close the dome. Disable dome in TCS.

If taking the telescope over the axis, be sure the instrument's cables are not snagged or pulled too tight (some of them are a bit short for going over the axis).
If you should happen to bump the telescope into something, you must notify David Doss (675), Earl Green (657) or Don Wallace (671).

If in doubt about the weather conditions, please see our weather page at http://weather.as.utexas.edu, the current weather conditions at http://nexus.as.utexas.edu/cgi-bin/obs_sup/latest_5min.cgi, and the weather closure rules.