Queensland Astrofest 2023 Aug 11 to 20

[QLD_Astrofest]

Hi everyone,

It has been a slow start for us in getting the Astrofest ball rolling, but we HAVE started it.

This year's Queensland Astrofest in the 30th anniversary year of the first one held in 1993. Ideally this should occur with a lot more fanfare, but you can't have everything.

Queensland Astrofest opens from 10:00 am on the morning of Friday 11 August and closes on the morning of Sunday 20 August.

Registration will be open in the next few weeks, but if you intend to attend you might want to plan and apply your leave now.

Pricing for accommodation is to remain the same as last year, with the exception that there will be no Early-Bird pricing. We are working with management of Lions Camp Duckadang on the menu, but we have been informed that their pricing structure has increased and there is a minimum seating of 15 persons per meal.

We have been lucky to have renowned astrophysist Tamara Davis accept our invitation to be our Guest Speaker on Saturday 19th August.

I want to apologize for the delay in opening the event, but I hope that the astronomy community will continue to support the Queensland Astrofest in its 30th year.

2023 Queensland Astrofest Committee

[QLD_Astrofest]

2023 Queensland Astrofest Guest Speaker Professor Tamara Davis.

Cosmology as a probe of fundamental physics
The last few decades have been a golden age for observational astrophysics and cosmology, with the power of modern telescopes revealing surprising features of our Universe in ever more detail. From explaining the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy, to measuring the mass of the neutrino, or understanding nuclear physics through gravitational waves, modern astrophysics has established itself as a leading avenue to reveal fundamental physics. In this talk Tamara Davis will give a lightning tour of the latest techniques by which astrophysicists are pushing the boundaries of known physics, and discuss the cracks (“tensions”) that are emerging between different cosmological probes.

Professor Tamara Davis is an astrophysicist and ARC Laureate Fellow at the University of Queensland with over two decades experience studying supernovae, black holes, and dark energy. She led the Dark Theme in the Australian Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics, is currently leading the Australian Dark Energy Survey (OzDES), and was recently announced as the Deputy Director of the upcoming Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery. Her accolades include the Astronomical Society of Australia’s Ellery Lectureship for career achievement, the Australian Academy of Science’s Millis medal for female scientific leadership, and a Member the Order of Australia.”

She is an avid communicator of science and occasional guest host of ABC TV’s “Catalyst”, including the episode “Black Hole Hunters” which won the American Institute of Physics Science Communication Award. In addition, her scientific writing includes Nature News and Views, and a cover story for Scientific American; she’s made innumerable school visits, performed teacher training, presented shows at two music festivals (Woodford and Splendour), and given many radio interviews; her TV and movie credits include Q&A, the ABC Morning Show, Stargazing Live, the award-winning documentary ‘Carbon’, and playing the voice of an artificial intelligence on ‘Living Universe’.

When not doing science she loves playing sport — she’s competed at a representative level in seven sports, from surf life saving to gymnastics, and has captained Australia in the (albeit obscure) sport of Ultimate Frisbee.

[FrancoRodriguez]

It's going to be a blast! I'll be there almost certainly

[QLD_Astrofest]

Thanks Franco. Hoping to see you there.

[QLD_Astrofest]

We would like to amend this announcement and confirm that SkyWatcher Australia (https://skywatcheraustralia.com.au/) is Gold Sponsor alongside Astro Anarchy (http://astroanarchy.com.au/), well-known Brisbane astronomy retailer.

Thank you very much Will and Peter.

[QLD_Astrofest]

SkyWatcher Australia (https://skywatcheraustralia.com.au/) has donated to the Queensland Astrofest (https://qldastrofest.org.au) raffle three Star Adventurer kits (https://skywatcheraustralia.com.au/product/star-adventurer-astro-2i-package/), each to the value of $749.

Tickets for the raffle will be available from the website (once registration opens), from the organising club representatives, and available at the Astrofest itself.

[QLD_Astrofest]

ZeroTech (https://zerotechoutdoors.com.au/) has donated a pair of Thrive HD 8×42 binoculars (https://zerotechoutdoors.com.au/product/10x42-thrive-hd-binoculars/) valued at $749.00 RRP to the Queensland Astrofest (http://qldastrofest.org.au) raffle.

Tickets for the raffle will be available from the website (once registration opens), from one of the organising club representatives, or at the Queensland Astrofest itself.

[QLD_Astrofest]

Hi everyone,

It has been an epic saga to get this Astrofest up and running this year, but we have just been able to confirm the menu with Lions Camp Duckadang.

As we have mentioned before, the prices for the meals have markedly increased. We have been assured that the meals will be prepared by a qualified chef this year. Katie was previously the chef at the Linville Hotel and has promised that the quality and quantity will be improved over last year. Unfortunately there will be a strict minimum of 15 patrons.

Lunches are $25, Dinners are $30, AstroFeast Luncheon is $30, and there will be a simple sausage sizzle on the Saturday evening is $15.

Meals will be cancelled if the minimum cannot be confirmed by July 27th, two weeks prior to Astrofest. Anyone who had registered for cancelled meals will be notified and any payments reimbursed. We hope to have a "live" tally of booked meals on the front page of the website.

Alternatives include self-catering in the Rotunda, the Linville Hotel (full pub meals $18-$42), the Linville Store 7am - 5:30pm most days (Subs $10, Toasties $6.50, pies $7), or a cafe in Moore (one of the cafes has closed).

The Queensland Astrofest has a dedicated cold-room for food and reink storage as in previous years events.

We hope to have the Registration page up and running by Monday 3rd July.

Sincerely
Queensland Astrofest Committee

[Drac0]

Great to hear things are progressing well! Looking forward to this.

Cheers,
Mark

[h0ughy]

Well it's off and racing

All astrofesters start your engines, here is the link to book and pay, registrations are open (https://www.qldastrofest.org.au/registration2023/)

[Drac0]

WOO HOO!!!

Had to shorten my stay by a couple of days (damn you normal life) but booking made! Looking forward to it.

Cheers,
Mark

[pmrid]

I'm looking forward to this. It's been too many years since I last ventured to Duckadang - mostly because I lived under reasonably dark skies on a farm and had a big ROR observatory. But now I'm back in suburban 'bliss' and am getting sick of struggling against neighbors, urban lights and seaside air. So a return to Duckadang for a few days is definitely on my agenda.

I tried a recent escape to Ballandean but found I was not equipped for sub-zero conditions. A timely reminder. So now, older and wiser, I am booking in for Duckadang.

I can't do the whole thing but will try 4 nights at the end. Now the big issue is which scope, which mount, how many batteries etc. Oh, the pain of indecision!

[QLD_Astrofest]

Hi everyone,

If anyone wanted to enter the Erwin van der Velden Astro-photo Competition, listed below are the conditions of entry and rules. Substitute (at) with @ in the email addresses.

TWO CATEGORIES

THROUGH A TELESCOPE ASTRO-PHOTOGRAPHY CATEGORY
Photos must be taken though a telescope (400mm focal length or greater)

Photos may be deep field, wide angle, planetary, lunar or special interest involving an astronomical object or theme.

NON-TELESCOPE ASTRO-PHOTOGRAPHY CATEGORY
Photos must not be taken though a telescope or using a 400 mm focal length lens or greater;

Photos may be deep field, wide angle, planetary, lunar or special interest involving an astronomical object or theme.

CONDITIONS OF ENTRY
The competition is open to all Queensland Astrofest registrants.
All entries will be electronic and must be emailed to the Registrar (registrar(at)qldastrofest.org.au). Emailed entries MUST be received no later than the Friday 4th August. *Please keep in mind that there is no internet access at the venue. Images NOT be accepted at the camp after Friday 11th August.
Each entrant may submit a maximum of three (3) images for each category.
Photos submitted must be taken at or since the preceding Queensland Astrofest.
A digital copy must be additionally sent to the webmaster (web(at)qldastrofest.org.au) to facilitate any online use.
Entrants must state the subject matter/description, the telescope/lens used, the camera used, the number of images stacked if applicable as well as the exposure time/s of each photo. This information will be used when the photo is displayed on the web site, but not before.
All photos will be displayed in the Dining Room for the duration of Astrofest.
The prize-winner for each category will receive the perpetual trophy on which their name will be engraved as well as a smaller trophy that they will be able to keep. It is hoped that the winner(s) will present the perpetual trophy to the winner(s) of the following year.
JUDGING
The photos will be voted upon by the Astrofest registrants.
When registering, everyone will receive a voting form for each category.
The photos on display will be numbered and no names will be shown.

[QLD_Astrofest]

Hi everyone,
We’ve finally been sent images of the “Amazing catered meals” offered by Duckadang.

Have a look and see if you wish to put in an order.

With current booking numbers and the inflexible minimum number of 15 required by Duckadang we will not be catering any Lunches except the “AstroFeast.”

We have yet to decide about cancelling all Dinners but will likely only organise catering for the last weekend meals Friday 18th and possibly Saturday 19th night.

We are investigating hiring a freezer as the one up there is very small (think hotel room size).

Self catering will be able to done in the rotunda where we have a microwave, two gas stoves and a large BBQ. Two other microwaves are in the kitchen.

More information will be shared as we get closer to the meal booking cut off date 26th July.

Sincerely
Registrar

[h0ughy]

Remember astrofesters, the cut off date is fast approaching, if you're thinking about going the book now. Remember you will need to self cater for the majority of the camp, but do book your astrofeast.

There will be a refrigerated cold room to keep your predone meals. And microwaves available

[QLD_Astrofest]

30 Years of the Queensland Astrofest

To help celebrate 30 years of the Queensland Astrofest the Committee would love to hear your stories and see your photos from Astrofest.
The intention is to use these stories and photos to form the basis of some posters that will be displayed at this year's and future camps.

We are looking for pictures of people, equipment, and general views of the camp to show how equipment and the camp has changed.
The Committee would also like to hear from anyone who would like to claim to have taken the last film based astrophoto from the camp and see the photo.

If you wish to submit something for consideration please email your stories and photos to registrar@qldastrofest.org.au with subject line of "30 Years".
It would help if you can label images in the following format YYYY_Your_Name_Description
where YYYY is the year the photo was taken, Your_Name is your name and Description is brief description of the photo.
eg 2015_John_Smith_Counter_weight_toss

Do not post your stories / photos here unless you want to share, but to keep track of everything we need the email.

Thanks Queensland Astrofest Committee

[QLD_Astrofest]

Duckadang Catered Meals

With heavy hearts we have to announce that due to low requests and Duckadang requiring minimums of 15 we cannot order any Catered Meals except for Dinner Friday 18th August, Astrofeast and the Sausage sizzle on the 19th August.

All payments already recieved for cancelled meals will be refunded. This will be done via cheque asap.

The cold room will have plenty of space and we recommend planning meals accordingly. There is a small freezer (bar fridge) onsite but please leave this available for those staying longer than 5 days.

Please contact registration if you have extenuating circumstances and need freezer access.


Self Catering - We are not paying the daily fee to access the Kitchen as all equipment requires training to use.
Registrants will have access to

2 microwaves in the Dining room
1 microwave in the rotunda
3 gas canister stoves in the rotunda
1 large BBQ in the rotunda
Toaster and kettle in rotunda
Zip boil in the Dining room.

BYO pots and pans and cooking implements

QLD Astrofest Committee

[QLD_Astrofest]

Hi everyone,
Just a reminder to send your entries for the Erwin van der Velden Astrophoto Competition this week to registrar@qldastrofest.org.au. We need time to put them in the rolling display at camp, and entries cannot be accepted after the Astrofest begins.

[QLD_Astrofest]

BinTel (https://www.bintel.com.au/) is continuing their proud support of the Queensland Astrofest (https://www.qldastrofest.org.au/) which has spanned 30 years. Not only donating prizes to the raffle, but also but providing resources to maintain and improve the experience of the Queensland Astrofest attendees. As Supporter in 2023, BinTel had donated a Dwarf II Deluxe Smart Scope (https://www.bintel.com.au/product/dwarf-ii-deluxe-smart-telescope/) and is assisting the Committee to upgrade the light-shielding of the buildings at Lions Camp Duckadang.

[QLD_Astrofest]

Testar (https://www.testar.com.au/) has once again been confirmed as Gold Sponsor to the Queensland Astrofest by donating a Skywatcher Evostar 80ED (https://www.testar.com.au/products/skywatcher-evostar-80ed-pro-kit) Pro Kit to the raffle. We offer a thank-you once again for their support.

[glenc]

Queensland Astrofest 2023

Lat -26.75, Long 152.24, Alt 143m
160 km NW of Brisbane via Kilcoy

Fri Aug 11 to Sun Aug 20

Dark Fri 11/8, 18:47 (end twilight) to 3:20 (moon rise on Sat)
Dark Sat 19/8, 19:55 (moon set) to 4:58 (twilight starts)
Mercury, Mars and the Moon will be together in the west on 19/8.

On 11/8
The Sun transits at 11:56 (due north) and the 1% phase Venus sets 20 mins after the Sun.
Mercury sets at 19:32 and Mars sets at 19:49
Saturn rises at 18:37 and Jupiter rises at 23:41

The Perseids Meteor Shower peaks on Aug 14

Attached is a list of 261 clusters, nebulae and galaxies south of declination +50.
Objects that transit between noon and 2pm are close to the Sun, only the far southern ones are visible.

There are 89 galaxies (Gxy), 50 globular clusters (GC), 45 nebulae (neb), 39 planetary nebulae (PN) and 38 open clusters (OC) in the list which starts with the evening objects.

The columns are; Catalogue number, Messier number, Type, Constellation,
Visual magnitude, Length in arcmins, Width in arcmins, Right Ascension, declination,
Discoverer, Year, Discoverer’s aperture in inches, Transit time

The data is from Dr. Wolfgang Steinicke
http://www.klima-luft.de/steinicke/ngcic/ngcic_e.htm

[QLD_Astrofest]

Quick Reminders:

Read your registration booklet! It’s on the website now. It has the information on how to get there. Look out for the roadwork around Fernvale.

The main kitchen is off limits to self-catering.

Telstra has part coverage at camp.

Photo competition cutoff is extended to Sunday 6th!!! Send it now!

Cash only accepted on site. No Eftpos.

Catered food bookings are now closed.

Raffle tickets available online till Wednesday 9th and till Sat 19th at the Feast- $5 ea

[QLD_Astrofest]

The committee would like to announce that the previous land-line at Lions Camp Duckadang is no longer connected to the network. Currently there is better connection via the Telstra mobile network. It is unclear how long this connectivity will continue as the 3G network will be switched off in 2024.

We have set-up a temporary mobile phone this year, for use to both call to and from the camp, as a benefit to all our attendees.

The phone number of this service is 0427065517.

This phone can be used by your families or friends to call into the camp, for you to call out, and to use as a hot-spot for internet banking.

[QLD_Astrofest]

Well the Queensland Astrofest is over for another year. While this year is the 30th year - 1993 to 2023 - next year will be the 30th Queensland Astrofest.

Right now we are confirming the dates, but please keep in mind that this is coming up, and hopefully we can open registration a bit earlier, but for now I want to thank our amazing team - Please note there is no particular order to this list:

First and foremost, Anne-Louise Surma-Hawes, Representative from BAS, who was awesome as co-Registrar and social media guru. Even after pulling every all-night possible, she managed to muster the energy to lend her assistance to anyone who sought her help, and keep the outside world up-to-date with activities happening onsite.

Agatha Gambino, Representative from BAS, who was equally impressive as general work-horse and inspiration. Always able to keep us on task, and to worked tirelessly to make the Astrofest run smoothly by stepping seamlessly into any role eg registration and orientation of new arrivals.

Richard Hilton , Representative from BAS, whose help cannot be downplayed tirelessly helping in camp set-up and tear-down, and being available for any jobs in between. Richard's help is another reason the camp ran so smoothly.

John Hughes, Representative from AAQ, whose return to the committee with his help, insight, and experience cannot have a high enough value placed upon it. We missed him earlier in the week, but he more than makes up for it in his work behind the scenes and unrelenting pace in the pack-up phase.

Pat Pearl, Representative from AAQ, another former Committee member who leapt aboard for this event. Pat was unable to attend the event itself but worked hard behind the scenes to negotiate with the sponsors and to keep us on-track in meetings and in so many other ways.

David Hough, Representative from AAQ, who joined the committee with the gusto which only he could generate. He worked with the catering team of Lions Camp Duckadang to achieve the best outcomes, slaved hard in the set-up of camp but unfortunately had to leave early. He should be satisfied with his efforts, and David - I hope that you are able to share a few stories and a glass or two of Cloudy Nights with Alan (who incidentally was greatly missed).

David O'Driscoll, web-slave and all-round IT guru also from AAQ . David says he's not a "Committee member" - but honestly, where would we be without him?

Brendan Downs, from BAS and AAQ, and also refuses to be an official "Committee member". He presents more than his share of input at meetings (which he is apparently not a member of), played the Devils Advocate to help us walk the path of righteousness, organised and published the Registration Booklet, and worked like an indentured slave at camp - set-up, tear-down and all points in between.

And myself, Tony Surma-Hawes, Representative from BAS. My job is to stand in the shadow of these giants and offer whatever assistance I could.

No-one could ask for a better team - but having said that we would always appreciate new team members. We focus on enjoying our time together at meetings and trying to keep them time effective. So if anyone is interested in joining the team for the 30th camp, ask your club (or join one of the 4 main supporting clubs) to endorse you as their representative this is essential due to insurance conditions.

Finally I want to thank our Supporters and Sponsors.

BinTel (https://www.bintel.com.au/) have supported and provided sponsorship to the Queensland Astrofest since 1993. Not only providing a prize for the raffle this year, they also contributed to the updating of Astrofest infrastructure by this year providing new black-out material for Jamison House.

Astro-Anarchy (http://astroanarchy.com.au) made a major donation to the raffle once again, and was designated as a Gold Sponsor. Thank-you once again from the Queensland Astrofest.

Testar Australia (http://www.testar.com.au) was also a Gold Sponsor to assist the Queensland Astrofest and their contribution is greatly appreciated.

SkyWatcher (http://skywatcheraustralia.com.au) Australia was another of our Gold sponsors and has provided welcome support for many years.

Our Silver Sponsor was ZeroTech (http://ZeroTech Australia), and Bronze Sponsors were Astrovisuals (http://www.astrovisuals.com.au) and Australian Sky and Telescope (https://www.skyandtelescope.com.au/).

[Camelopardalis]

Congrats and much thanks to all of the above :cool:

[AstroViking]

Well done to the Astrofest team!

[glenc]

When is the Qld Astrofest in 2024?

[glend]

I will see if I can find the notice sent out regarding its future.

[alan meehan]

hi glen i heard a rumour that it might not go ahead this year due to lack of volunteers to set it up just a rumour

[thunderchildobs]

I spoke with Tony (Astrofest Registrar) last night.
There will be an announcement on the status of the 2024 Astrofest coming shortly.

Brendan

[alan meehan]

Thats great news i hope

[thunderchildobs]

The Queensland Astrofest 2024 has been cancelled.

I was authorised by the Registrar (Tony) to make this announcement.
Tony will send an update out within the week.

Further Astrofest discussions will now occur in the "Queensland Astrofest 2024 has been cancelled" thread.

This thread is now closed