Where is the Best Astro Site in OZ?

[glenc (Glen)]

For clear skies in Feb in eastern Oz try:
Mildura (best), Condobolin, Tibooburra, Albury, Boort,
Edi Upper, Orange, Broken Hill, Wilcannia & Wentworth (10th).
That is based on the ratio clear days to cloudy days.

[JohnH]

Well it is NOT Sydney...

Forecast for Saturday
Showers, possibly moderate to heavy at times. Chance of thunder. Cloudy. Light winds tending east to northeast in the afternoon.
Precis: Showers.

City: Min: 20 Max: 24 Parramatta: Min: 19 Max: 25Terrey Hills: Min: 19 Max: 23 Penrith: Min: 19 Max: 26Liverpool: Min: 19 Max: 26 Richmond: Min: 19 Max: 26
UV Index: 9 [Very High] UV Alert from 9:20 to 16:50

Sunday Showers. Chance thunderstorms.
City: Min: 21 Max: 25West: Min: 19 Max: 27

Monday Showers. Chance thunderstorms.
City: Min: 21 Max: 26West: Min: 18 Max: 29

Tuesday Showers. Chance thunderstorms.
City: Min: 21 Max: 26West: Min: 19 Max: 28

Wednesday A few showers. Chance thunderstorms.
City: Min: 21 Max: 26West: Min: 19 Max: 28

Thursday Showers. Chance thunderstorms.
City: Min: 21 Max: 25West: Min: 19 Max: 26

Friday A few showers.
City: Min: 18 Max: 23West: Min: 16 Max: 25

[§AB]

^^ Melbourne's forecast is pretty much identical

[glenc (Glen)]

Elevated land is usually better for astronomical observing.
Here is a map showing elevated land in Australia
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/wallpaper/ar...-1600x1200.jpg
and NZ
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA06662
Some other places
http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm/dataprod.htm

[abellhunter]

Hi Glenn,

think itz my computer but the 1st link/image only loads 10%........ then stops?

NZ loads....... Very useful thanx again!

The 3rd link is nice to surf...... went to: http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm/bolivia.html
...........and learned about; "An 8-kilometer (5-mile) wide crater of possible impact origin is shown in this anaglyph view of an isolated part of the Bolivian Amazon ......possibly the Earth's most recent "big" impact event recording collision with a meteor or comet that might have occurred between 11,000 and 30,000 years ago."

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BTW Glenn, do you know anything about "Yerecoin, Western Australia?"

While surfing i found Mr. Akira Fujii’s Chiro Observatory at Kent Wallace's site......
[click photo link (Photo #2) to see Ob./House]...

http://www.ccastronomy.org/members_w..._australia.htm

Ever since when, i remember seeing this guys amazing photos in the magazines! i guess somewhere down the line he built himself this observatory down under so he could finish his photo atlas!

http://www.davidmalin.com/fujii/fujii_index.html
___________________________________ ___________________________

i am always looking at where the SMART PEOPLE build! hehehehehehe
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Aloha, Lance aka "abellhunter"

http://www.anzaobservatory.com
...is Moving to the Southern Hemisphere any comments?

[glenc (Glen)]

"think itz my computer but the 1st link/image only loads 10%........ then stops?" Try:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/wallpaper/earth.cfm
or for a 3.5Mb image:
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg/PIA06665.jpg

[tbentley]

Lance,
If you're considering Yerecoin you could also look at New Norcia, Mogumber and Wongan Hills as areas to explore. They're all in the northern wheat belt around 150km NE of Perth. I've never been to Yerecoin exactly but have been around the area and I can assure you that light pollution will not be a problem for many years to come. Most of the farmers would tell you that clouds shouldn't be a problem either based on the last couple of years, poor buggers.
Hope this helps a little.
Travis

[Kokatha man]

Hi Lance - wasn't going to add anything to this thread 'cos of all the fellas giving you plenty of two-bob's (20cents) worth; but if only to let you know about places that seem to have missed the radar, South Australia has many fine sites to list.

One of the benefits of SA is that it is the most sparesly populated places (after WA and NT) but doesn't quite suffer from the vast isolation in many of the places in the other 2 areas: great you may say but I'd imagine logistics would have to be a consideration somewhere along the equation.

Here in SA there are many places that have loads of sunshine but more importantly clear black night skies where the stars literally "reach down to touch your face": from real outback environments to areas closer to facilities, but without the population build-ups nearby, as in particularly the Eastern States.

SA (the driest state in the driest continent as they say) has loads of low/negligible populated areas that aren't too remote: the upper Murray region including the Murray Mallee, the Mid and Upper North, Flinders Ranges areas and of course SA's west coast. I speak first-hand from long association with "country" in these places.

Enough from me, nukkan ya, Kokatha man.

[glenc (Glen)]

If you want to live in Eastern Australia the ideal is to have two houses one in NW Victoria/Western NSW and one in North Queensland. The first (Mildura or Condobolin or Tibooburra ) will give clear skies from December to March and the second (Croydon or Julia Creek or Georgetown) from April to November. If you want altitude too try the Gregory Ranges in N Qld, the only problem is the dirt road.

[glenc (Glen)]

This relief map is handy for finding elevated observing sites.
http://www.maps-for-free.com/?val=-1...389,7,landmark