((( Ozsome! )))

[abellhunter]

Hey Astro Heads!:hi:

we made it down under last Monday only to be greated by the Loudest THUNDERSTORMS :scared: in Sydney... so we hopped a train after feeding some Roo'z and made it up north to Coona' home of the BIG telee:eyepop:

Had cursed the sky so much it made up itz mind to clear:thumbsup: for some GREAT SKIES;)....

Started out with 47 Tuc using a 25 inch dob:D then hit a buch of stuff in the SMC before heading over to the fuzzy spider in the LMC:eyepop:.... went thru the Milky Way showpieces from Eta-Car to the Horsehead in Orion!

Annnnnnnnnnnnnyway met up with Petra and found out she's a Lassie:P... man am i stupid:help:..... Well everyone has been real nice and it looks like the storm has passed:thumbsup:

ill check back when i can, untill then clear skies,

Lance aka "abellhunter":hi:

[Ric]

Hi Lance, glad to see you got here safely and met some of the locals :lol:.

I'm glad you enjoyed the sight of our southern skies as well.

Cheers

[Zuts]

Good luck m8,

Hope you have a great stay :)

Paul

[abellhunter]

G'Day, Ric & Paul!:hi:

Another great night of seeing here in Coona'! i have to give a BIG thank you to John B. aka "ausastronomer" for invitining me down for what is turning out to be one of the best observation runs in my life! Also to Andrew aka "Hector" and Argo Navis' Gary K. for their sky tours. These guys and the other Aussie host have gone beyond the call of duty, again Thank you!:thumbsup:

As many of you at this forum know allready, i am here in OZ scouting for a new observatory site. After 30 years of pushing 3-30 inch telescopes around the Northern Hemisphere i'm ready for a new project. The feel of Coonabarabran is just fine. A small town with everything just a short drive away is ideal for setting up a Down Under retreat/observatory. i can't believe all the domes on the way out of town toward Siding Springs! This truly is an Astro community!:D

be well, Lance aka "abellhunter"

http://www.anzaobservatory.com

is moving to the southern hemisphere, any comments or ideas?

humphreys@greencafe.com

[gary]

Hi Lance,

Really great to meet you and your wife and the last few days observing have
been an absolute blast. Looking forward to sharing lots more observing sessions
with you in the future. I am back in Sydney now but I hope the rest of the
week continues to deliver the views.

Best Regards

Gary

[spacezebra]

Hi Lance

I arrived home - safe and sound after an amazing 6 day stay in and around the Coona region. It was great to meet you both and your friends from the US.

What a great long weekend!!! What! wasn't my name a giveaway!

Anywhoooooooo I hope that you settle here soon and that we catch up again.

Cheers
Petra

[iceman]

Fantastic Lance, great to hear you're having a great time in Oz!

Glad the weather cooperated for you.

[Outbackmanyep]

Don't forget to try our range of brews at the local !!!!

:thumbsup:

[ausastronomer]

I might throw a cold stubby in his hand later this arvo :D

We have been too busy observing to worry about drinking beer. Absolutely superb conditions.

Cheers,
John B

[Rodstar]

Glad to hear Coona has lived up to expectations. Sounds like the weather has been more co-operative this time, John?

[gary]

Hi Rod,

When I was there we had four excellent nights in a row and I understood the
fifth night was the same and hopefully last night was as well. At night,
there was absolutely no cloud in the sky.

Centaurus A was visible naked eye, the transparency excellent and the seeing
generally good to excellent.

Dew fogging up eyepieces was the only negative, owing to all the rain over the
past few months. This was despite the use of dew heater straps. However, each night
the dew became less and less, which was to be expected as the days were sunny
and warm.

Daytime temperatures were in the mid to high twenties and unlike when were there
in October, the annoying flies had gone. Night time temperatures were around 10C.

As some of the Americans pointed out, there was minimal attenuation of blue sky
as one reached the horizon. All the rain this year has meant there was a minimum
of bush fires and we certainly do not suffer air pollution in this part of the world
anywhere near as badly as many parts of the northern hemisphere.

Best Regards

Gary

[Rodstar]

Glad to hear the conditions have been so conducive, Gary. When I get one good night after another in succession fatigue can really play havoc with me....I can imagine you slept well on return.

I will have to invite myself up next year!!

[spacezebra]

Hi Gary

Thank you for the invitation - it was a great long weekend. I enjoyed every second.

Highlights for me personally were: observing with such a warm and friendly group (a huge thankyou to Ann for making us so welcome and part of the group), accommodation - excellent, food - brilliant, four hour tour of Sidings Springs on Friday by Rob McNaught was "fantastic" for me, tour of Parkes, and the BBQ on the Saturday.

Looking forward to next year.

Cheers Petra

[gary]

Hi Rod,

I am still playing catch-up with the sleep so you can imagine how the others
will go after a whole week of perfect nights. :) Plus there were daytime
activities such as the obligatory hike up the Grand High Tops at the Warrumbungles
to ensure maximum fatigue. :)

Best Regards

Gary

[ausastronomer]

The last 3 Observers standing were Lance, his wife Leslie and myself. We pulled the plug about 1am on Sunday morning. Everyone else had already succumbed to "photon fever" and serious lack of sleep.

I returned to Sydney late yesterday afternoon. We had as good a patch of weather as you could possibly hope for. Essentially 9 perfect nights in a row. The only exception was 3 hours lost from 9pm to 12am on Friday night, due to some localised high cloud. The cloud cleared at midnight and left us again with pristine observing conditions. That 3 hours lost was a blessing for me as I had almost observed myself to dropping point.

As good as it gets.

Cheers,
John B

[theodog]

You people all sound suprised at Coona's observing conditions.:shrug:
No, we don't have the opera (often), beaches, nite-clubs and beautiful night lights.:lol:
We just have our night sky and natural surrounds.:thumbsup:
It seems to rain just enough and no more.;)
Coona welcomes any who wish to come.:welcome:
Forget the Sea-change, try a Sky-change.:P:P:P

[Rodstar]

I'd love to visit Coona some time soon for a spot of camping and observing with the Mary Rose. Are there any suitable camping grounds?

[abellhunter]

*********************************** ***

Aloha John,

i'll have to give you the mantle of "abellhunter"!
i sat on my ass for 9 nights:P as YOU showed us EVERYTHING!:eyepop:


Tell ya the truth mate, i was STUNNED by that Dark naked-eye
image of the Milky Way!:thumbsup:

i can truly say, thats one hell of a site for the elevation!:D

Aloha, Lance & Leslie:hi:

http://www.anzaobservatory.com

p.s. Herez a shot of John B. and his trusty 18 inch Dob
saying; "I've seen THREE! objects off the AINTNO 100 list
with this scope!":rofl:

http://astronomy-mall.com/Adventures.In.Deep.Space/aintno.htm

[abellhunter]

Aloha Gary,:hi:

We are still reeling from one of the best observing runs in our life!:D

Look forward to returning!:thumbsup:

be well, Lance & Leslie

P.S. Herez some shots taken at the Faqken big telescope
at Sidding Springs Obervatory!:rofl:

[abellhunter]

Aloha Petra,

Glad to hear ya'll made it home safe and sound, on such little sleep:P!

Never seen such a dedicated lot!:thumbsup:

See ya again, Lance

P.S. Herez a shot of the lady with her travel scope;)

[abellhunter]

------------------------------------------------------------------

Aloha Jeff,

Thanx for showing us around! We were amazed so much by
Coona' and the Warrumbungles!:D

Not only was the sky to die for..... the town, it's people and
the awesome wildlife in the area are like no where else on EARTH!:eyepop:

be well, Lance

[theodog]

Yes Rod we have several.:)
Also some locals may be willing to put you and the Mary Rose up on their place for some observing.

Let me know when.:thumbsup:

[gary]

Hi Rod,

The Warrumbungles National Park has several camping grounds including
amenities blocks at some. You need to register and pay for your camping fees
at the office within the Park. There are many areas suitable for observing
and I have observed from there over the years.

The Park was relatively empty of tourists on this most recent trip, however this
is a popular destination. On a day hike to the Grand High Tops, we had it to
ourselves and it is probably 15 years since I saw as few people on the trails.

Wildlife is in abundance and can be observed even around the camping areas
where children are always delighted to see kangaroos, koalas, emus, goannas
and a large number of bird species. As usual, avoid feeding them and you definitely
need to secure your food and do not leave any unwashed pots out as animals will
get to both.

The Park has a large variety of walks to suit all individuals from the frighteningly
energetic to the meandering sloth.

Lightning storms are not uncommon so mend those holes in the tent's fly and
floor before leaving home.

Coona is only a short distance away and is serviced by a new Coles
Supermarket and a large variety of other shops. There are also several motels
in town if one needs a break from the camping.

Best Regards

Gary

[spacezebra]

Hi Jeff

You very lucky man! You live on a little piece of heaven called Coona!

Cheers Petra