Astronomers Nightmare Weather

[ballaratdragons]

I did the usual investigatory snoop outside to check out the seeing for tonight and to my surprise it was crystal clear and NO FOG!!!

The Milky Way looks like a neon sign (Here I am! Here I am!).

I raced inside and got the Knockies to have a quick scan and beleive it or not a strong wind has blown up in the 30 seconds I was inside! :confused:

On having a look around with the knockies every star is twinkling madly and Joop is a horrible moving shape-shifting orb.

I checked the weather report and I have been informed of:

South Western Victoria
Strong winds developing
Rain, hail, thunderstorms with a possibility of snow down to 700m

Somehow I don't think I will be setting up tonight - AGAIN!!!! :tasdevil:

How is your sky tonight? :confuse3:

[cahullian]

crystal clear and no wind

[robin]

Hey Ken...my sky was crystal clear earlier.Got about 2hrs observing & drift alignment practise then wham-bam....clouds & wind.

[ballaratdragons]

Robin,

We usually get your weather as it blows up here except we get the snow added to it.

Must be the same wind storm.

Gazza, enjoy it while you've got it :thumbsup:

[asimov]

Happens to me all the time Ken! I've spent an hour setting up my newt, go inside, have a quick coffee or something, come back out, & it's either clouded over or started blowing! Yell & scream for a bit, resign to the fact of packing it away again, after packing it up...go back outside....no clouds, no wind....gggGGGRRR! I trick the weather gods now by setting it up when it IS blowing or cloudy, & just WAIT with an evil grin on my face....They get the message after awhile & give in saying...' Well *sigh* this guys not gonna give in, may as well let him have his way'

[asimov]

oh!....conditions here are clear no wind....but would you believe it? as I was reading this thread, a strong wind has just sprung up!?? would you?? huh??:lol:

Doesn't suprise me in the least, *sigh* :doh: Murphy lives in our spare room.:scared2:

[elusiver]

windy here 2 BD. discovered tonight that the mrs olympus C-725 digital camera fits perfectly in the focuser(2") :D so thought i'd get it out.. but the wind was right up.

el :)

[cometcatcher]

What sky? Lol. Overcast, rain, wind etc.

What planet are we on again? This is Venus right? :cloudy:

[ballaratdragons]

Ellex,

Same wind that went through Warrnambool for Robin, then through here, and now you've got it!

We like to share LOL!

[ballaratdragons]

Starting to wonder about that myself!

[BC]

I wheeled the dob out of the shed at ~ 5.30pm. A quick look at Jupiter while it was still light, no cool down (from shed admittedly), no collimation check; and Jupiter was the sharpest I've ever seen it since getting the scope. I still can't see anything more than 2 bands and a round ball, but it was quite sharp just the same. This was great. I looked forward to some good viewing later but by the time the kids were in bed, it was just mush, no cloud or wind, but I could barely see anything. Do these nights of good seeing ever really happen for the f/5 crew?

[asimov]

Hi BC. Exactly the same scenerio as I had the night before. Perfect viewing 8-9/10 at sundown, then it was all down hill from there. Down to at least 2-3/10 seeing by midnight. The jetstream was present, but they tell me this doesn't come into the equation until you use very high magnification. Not totally convinced about that. My eyes tell a different story.

[ving]

warm and cozy thanks.... cause i am inside! :P

[Nightshift]

Mine is perfect!!!! . . . . . . ........ above 35000 feet, otherwise cloudy.

[dhumpie]

Was really cloudy in the daytime then it clear up at about 8pm. Only problem was that seeing was crap and the transparency was not the best either. But hopefully after the rains (going to have some tomorrow and Friday) it will clear up nicely for my Astrofest weekend at Duckadang :)

Darren

[ballaratdragons]

Well it's 4:10 pm and the thunder hasn't let up. It is like the end of the Earth here. Lightening and thunder all around and a massive wind. It is almost as dark as night-time.

[ballaratdragons]

Presently the wind has calmed down a bit but it still Thundering!

This afternoon about 5pm the Sun broke through for about 5 minutes and I got this great shot of the Rainbow. I love Rainbows! Right after I took this pic we had a massive hailstorm. The pics of it aren't all that good.

Anyway, here's the Rainbow. (p.s. notice the streetlight I painted Black!) :D

[MiG]

I actually had a bit of luck with the weather.
While I was getting ready to photograph the shuttle pass at 18:48, there was only a small patch of clearish sky that the shuttle would go through. Then it started raining. I was so annoyed. But then about 3 minutes before the pass the rain stopped and the dense cloud moved out of the way! Now I have two photos with a small streak going across them.

[Daring Dave]

Its not any better during the day either..Rain predictedfor most of today.. :mad2:

The radar image looks pretty ordinary too...

[ballaratdragons]

That weather map is weird. It shows clear weather for here. But it has been raining, hailing, sleeting and thundering ALL DAY! And still is!!!!!!

[MiG]

Looks like the heavy weather around the radar (centre of image) is blocking the signal from further away.

"Notes

* Melbourne Weather Watch Radar
o Location: RAAF Base Laverton
o Type: WSR 74C C Band
o Typical availability: 24 hours
o Interpretation notes: The radar at Laverton is the primary weather radar for the Melbourne area. It is situated about 60km south of the Great Dividing Range. The highest relevant peak in the Range is at Mt Macedon, 55km to the NNW. Apart from the influence of the Otway ranges to the south, the radar has a good view of echoes to the west and east. Thunderstorm events to the north of the Great Dividing Range are underestimated as the radar beam usually won't see the whole cloud. Rain bands do not normally have the same problem as the echoes are more uniform and the base of the cloud mass is higher in the atmosphere (above the height of the ranges). As with all radar the Melbourne radar has a greater ability to resolve thunderstorms in the summer months when the echoes are generally larger. However being a C Band radar it is limited in its ability to detect thunderstorms located behind closer thunderstorms. On the other hand the C Band radar is better at detecting small drops so performs better in light rain situations. False echoes are sometimes observed very close to the radar especially in stable conditions. Echoes within five or so kilometres of the radar and overhead are poorly resolved as the scanning elevation is too low. (courtesy Bureau of Meteorology)
* Weather radar detects precipitation by using its ability to reflect microwaves back to a receiver. "

[ballaratdragons]

Bit like 'You can't see the forest for the trees'.

In this case 'It can't see the Thunderstorms coz there's a Thunderstorm in the way!'

Thanks Mig. Makes sense.

[jjjnettie]

Great shot of the rainbows!

[ballaratdragons]

Thanks. I've always liked Rainbows. But this one was very spectacular so I couldn't resist taking the pic.