Devon Jarvis

Looking at the cosmos through a telescope

is a transformative experience. The rings of Saturn, the clouds of distant nebulae, and the familiar yet alien surface of our own moon all come to life. Build a simple smartphone mount and you can capture and share crisp images right from your backyard observatory—yes, smartphone cameras are that good now. Russ McAllister from Cabot, Ark., designed this rig for his iPhone and posted the plans on Instructables.com (search for "iPhone mount for telescopes"). We've made a few adjustments to simplify the process and to fit our oversize Google Nexus 4. The project can be done in an hour, for just a few dollars.

Materials

• Conduit hanger (should fit snugly on eyepiece)

• 6-in. bolt (make sure it fits hole in base of conduit hanger)

• 1-in. bolt

• L-shaped corner bracket

• Washers, nuts, wingnuts

• Two pieces of wood, cut from ½-in. stock: 4½ in. x 3 in. and ½ in. x 3 in. (We used plywood.)

• Rubber bands

Martin Laksman

Martin Laksman

Instructions

Step 1: Wooden Base Create shelf for phone by gluing small piece of wood (A) across large piece (B). Using drill and jigsaw, cut a horizontal, 2-in.-long slot (C) wide enough to fit 1-in. bolt, as shown. (Slot allows you to adjust positioning.) Cut a rabbet around the slot, on front, to recess bolt head. Next, attach L-bracket (D) to back of wooden base using the short bolt and wingnut.

Step 2: Assembly Insert 6-in. bolt into conduit hanger base (E); secure with washers and nut. Attach L-bracket to long bolt using washers and nuts, as shown.

Step 3: Mounting Attach conduit hanger to eyepiece. Use rubber bands to attach phone. Loosen wing- nuts to adjust lens position.

Devon Jarvis

Devon Jarvis

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