01/26/2026
Gayle H. Riggsbee
It is with great sadness that we share the news that Gayle Riggsbee passed away on Thursday January 15, 2026 at his home. His passing appears to have been quick with no prolonged suffering. Per Gayle's wishes, there are no plans for a funeral or memorial service.
Born June 13, 1932, Gayle H. Riggsbee was a native of Charlotte and a retired machine design engineer. He was an avid amateur astronomer since joining the Charlotte Amateur Astronomers club in 1960. He served as both president and vice-president of the club and for many years was the club’s observatory director and telescope maker.
In 1986, Gayle founded the Southern Star Astronomical Convention, the popular annual astronomy lecture weekend at Wildacres Retreat in the North Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains. In 2025, Gayle was a speaker at Southern Star for only the second time… being greeted by a standing ovation.
He enjoyed lecturing on the history of astronomy and has built telescopes ranging up to 24 inches in diameter. Gayle’s telescopes have won national awards, including 1st place (Design Ingenuity) at the 1991 Stellafane Convention of amateur telescope makers.
The Charlotte club has honored Gayle with a lifetime membership and the observatory complex is named in his honor.
Gayle designed and built the mounts and OTAs for both the 16”, f10 classic Cassegrain telescope and the 24”, f5 Newtonian telescope both of which are member favorites at the CAAC observatory in Taxahaw, SC named after him.
In 1997, Gayle (along with two other amateurs) “rescued” a 12-inch Alvan Clark telescope from Rutherford Observatory, Columbia University in New York who no longer wanted the instrument. Its new home was to be the South Carolina State Museum – which didn’t have a structure to house it in at that time. Gayle and his two colleagues focused their efforts on removal, preservation and transportation of the optics. Professionals were used for the tube, drive and pedestal (it was housed atop a 14-story building).
Gayle performed some of the initial restoration work on the telescope after its arrival in South Carolina. The museum constructed a special facility for this telescope which opened in 2012. Gayle’s efforts were a direct enabler to the South Carolina State Museum’s making this telescope available for general public outreach through the many programs they sponsor.
In 2025, Gayle’s contribution to amateur astronomy was recognized with the naming of asteroid (17610) Riggsbee. The asteroid was discovered by Dennis DiCicco in 1995 and named for Gayle in February 2025. See the link below for the official citation. This monumental achievement was recognized at Southern Star in April 2025.
https://www.wgsbn-iau.org/files/Bulletins/V005/WGSBNBull_V005_003.pdf
Gayle’s enthusiasm, knowledge, and willingness to share that knowledge has been an energizing force not only in the development of the Charlotte Amateur Astronomers Club (CAAC) but for other clubs and the general public in the region as well.
He will be sorely missed.
