Snowing in Bundaberg

[manny]

yep that time of year again when our cane farmers decide to burn their cane and the result is a lot of black soot floating around looking for a place to land usually on your primary mirror and plus all the smoke that goes with the burning makes a great night out. anybody else in sugar towns experiencing the same.

best wishes
Manny

[Kevnool]

Clouds , Smog , Atmosphere , Dew , Dust , Daylight , now add soot to the list ......yep it,s just another thing thats against us....cheers Kev.

[Alchemy]

too cold for sugar cane down here but in Autumn the Backburning creates hopeless skies, summer before last the bushfires were so bad visibility was about 300 metres.... for weeks!

[manny]

May be astronomy should be classed as a sport and not a scientific adventure then we probably have dark skies no light pollution excellent facilities to use and money thrown at us to excel in our field.
That seems to be norm. play sport get rewarded take up a scientific pursuit get penalised axing starstuff what next no repeats star trek :scared:

cheers
Manny

[Glenhuon]

Nooooooo! We don't want it to be a sport.
Can you just imagine the AAL (Australian Astronomy League) dictating what size scope you use, what focal length and whose (expensive) eyepieces are allowed. Not to mention the international body the FIA (Federation Internationale Astronomique) testing you for Alchohol/Drugs while in competition observing/imaging. Also freezer suits and boots for cold weather would have to be stamped with the logo of approval. ;)

Nah!!! keep the so called "sport" I'll stick to something that requires intelligence.

( Star Trek repeats are no problem, have the lot on DVD, just play 'em as the fancy takes me :) )

Bill

[acropolite]

In Tasmania we have a similar process, Forestry operators obliterate our native forests, then burn what's left.

This goes on for 9 months of the year until it's simply too hot and dry to burn.

Once they have burned the forest residue with incendiaries (the same formula as Napalm is used) they replace the once diverse forest with monoculture plantations attracting insect swarms.

Then the spraying starts; as often as fortnightly. One chemical commonly used is Atrazine, banned in Europe where it's manufactured and severely restricted in the US. In the US where Atrazine use is allowed, several buffer zones of vegetation must be planted to filter ground water and runoff before it gets to streams, here there are no such requirements. It's becoming increasingly more difficult to keep ahead of the insects as they become resistant to the chemical sprays. The residue of chemicals washes in to our watercourses, Australian standards allow 400 times the levels allowed in the US. In parts of Europe, Atrazine still contaminates ground water despite being banned from use for 15 years.

They are destroying our biodiversity and poisoning our air and water. I suspect a lot of what you see in Victoria isn't hazard reduction burning, but more likely regeneration burns, hazard reduction burns are usually done at the end of spring before the summer heat.

You should take action, for if you don't it will only get worse, don't put up with it. :tasdevil:

[erick]

Yep, always had to get the washing in before the canefires started each evening. And we used to have so much fun as kids - running around with tennis rackets swatting the biggest pieces as they fell. They come down as burnt pieces of sugar cane leaf. On still nights, it is amazing how big the pieces are or how far they have travelled in the air - kilometres! Or later searching for the biggest "black snowflakes" and trying to pick them up without them breaking! Obviously I wasn't into astronomy then! I bet Alloway keep their dome closed until later in the evening? I remember when we extended the kitchen/dining room and had to open up the roof space. There was something like a 3" layer of black to be removed!

They burn a lot less now - crush a lot of cane "green". But there are still enough fires to be an amazing sight from the "Hummock".

But I love crushing season. I grew up to the sweet smell of raw sugar in the air and the sound of cane trains rattling along their narrow tracks all night. I remember flying back in during the 90s after some time away. Arriving on a hot Oct/Nov evening and the smell when the plane door opened! Heaven! I was home.

Eric (Bundaberg 1955-1973) :)

[Ric]

:scared::scared::mad2: That is nothing short of criminal Phil, I suppose it's the usual political line as well, do nothing until it's too late.

[Bobj]

Here, in the Mackay district, the cockies don't torch their cane so much, now. They get a small return for the dead leaves (I believe), as the leaves help fire the furnaces and to use as bagasse. Also, from what I heard, the cockies used to light the cane to eradicate the rat/mouse infestations.:shrug:

[snas]

I used to live on the Sunshine Coast, and I recall sitting out the back in the surf early in the morning at Peregian with cane ash floating down on us from last night's cane fires. Aparently there is a direct correlation between living in sugar towns and lung cancer due to the silicon (I believe) contant of the cane ash. But still a spectacular site in the early evenings at this time of year.
Stuart