Environmental factors affecting solar seeing

We investigate a number of ideas about the effect of various topographical and climtatological factors on daytime seeing. Using the results of the CalTech site survey in southern California, we confirm that the presence of lakes and wind channels are beneficial for solar observing conditions. We do not find that proximity to the ocean is of benefit but is instead detrimental to seeing in the CalTech sample possibly due to the influence of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. We also study the effect of tree removal on the seeing at Sacramento Peak Observatory, and find that removing trees improved the average seeing by 25%. The effects of these and other factors will be further investigated with the ATST site survey.