Tuesday night, I arrived at Rancho Hidalgo in Animas, New Mexico, to find developer Gene Turner setting up the 30-inch Starmaster reflecting telescope. As I pounded down the magnificent steak dinner Gene had prepared, my continual thought was, "Has the mirror cooled down yet?"
The night was cold, about 25° F. That's a temperature you might not associate with Arizona. The site, however, sits 4,600 feet above sea level, so it's not your standard Southwestern U.S. desert. Lucki...