PF1000 Prime Focus System by Observable Space - 2025 Coolest Thing Made in Michigan
This article will appear in the June 2026 issue of MiMfg Magazine. Find past issues online.
Imagine the stars, the planets, comets, meteors — all of outer space — seemingly within reach right where you stand. Many telescopes offer such capabilities but Adrian-based Observable Space took the technology to astronomical heights with its PF1000 Prime Focus System.
The PF1000 observatory-class telescope and direct-drive altazimuth mounting system is the world’s first tactically deployable, wide-field space observation platform. It is truly outstanding in the industry and, for that, Observable Space has been recognized with the 2025 Coolest Thing Made in Michigan award — a title that seems to have been written in the stars.
President and Co-Founder of Observable Space Rick Hedrick’s business was originally thousands of miles away in southern California — a location that’s still open today. When a beneficial opportunity arose for him to relocate his team and his business’s primary functions to Adrian, however, Michigan became home.
At that time, the business was named PlaneWave Instruments but changed after a 2024 merger with Los Angeles-based OurSky — combining PlaneWave’s industry-leading equipment with OurSky’s innovative software.
Together, they developed the PF1000 for the U.S. government within five months — a timeline that is unheard of in the industry, says Kevin Iott, Vice President of Engineering.
“Telescopes usually take multiple years to make and, within five months, we produced one of the most sophisticated telescopes we’ve ever made,” Hedrick says, adding that their contract with the U.S. government has grown as more units have been sold.
With high-resolution encoders and zero backlash or periodic error, the PF1000 produces wide-field images across a large-format sensor. Along with magnificent astrophotography capabilities, the system can be used for Space Situational Awareness and Space Domain Awareness, such as tracking satellites and meteors.
What makes this system particularly outstanding is not its durability, its fully weatherized enclosure or even its magnification level — although those elements are spectacular.
It’s the light. That’s what truly makes it shine. That’s the real star.
“Most people think that it’s about the magnification and how far away you can see,” Iott says. “Really, the purpose of a telescope is gathering light. The larger the telescope is, the more light it can gather, which means you will be able to see faint objects better. This is a very large telescope that can see very faint objects — whether they are close to Earth in situations like space debris and satellites, or you’re doing scientific research of stellar objects that are very far away or very close but very dim.”
The direct drive motor also makes the PF1000 stand out in the industry.
“That’s a core competency of our business that we have proliferated through all of our products,” Iott says, noting that they first incorporated these drives into their large systems but later integrated them into their smallest products as well. “It’s the best, highest performing device that you could use for this type of system, and we want everyone to be able to have access to that.”
Hedrick adds that most manufacturers assemble the telescopes but buy the optics from an optician, so the fact that Observable Space makes its own optics is a game changer. Customers often assume that production will take many months but that’s not the case at Observable Space, he says, recalling a conversation with one specific customer.
“He said, ‘We need 10 of these over the next three years,’ and we said, ‘Why not take them in a year? We’re competing with China. Do you really want to wait three years?’”
That amount of work doesn’t even affect their production, Hedrick says.
“No other companies doing what we do can scale because they’re not vertically integrated,” he explains.
Iott adds that the PF1000 is a culmination of the technology they have been building over the past 20 years.
“It’s the most sophisticated optical system that we’ve ever produced. It’s the most sophisticated gimbal that we’ve ever produced,” he says. “It has the weatherized enclosure around it and of course the fully integrated software platform, so really this is an entire world-class mobile platform observatory.”
It’s clear to see why Observable Space’s PF1000 Prime Focus System has been selected by popular vote of Michiganders as the Coolest Thing Made in Michigan. It’s truly out of this world and it’s making an impact around the world — not only for today’s consumers but also for the future of space exploration and admiration.
The Coolest Thing Made in Michigan award is part of the annual Manufacturing Excellence Awards which celebrates the leaders and products that are pushing the industry forward. Learn more about the awards program and gala.
The 2025 Coolest Thing Made in Michigan award was sponsored by the Rehmann. Visit online: rehmann.com.