A Newtonian telescope with a low, altazimuth mounting, typically using Teflon pads as bearings on a flat board, in which the telescope is supported by V-shaped cuts in the side of a wooden box. Named for the Californian “father of sidewalk astronomy” John Dobson (1915-), who advocated simplicity in equipment, the basic Dobsonian was designed so that amateur astronomers could easily create their own large-aperture reflecting telescope mounts in home workshops.
