Observation Night at the Central Coast - Pony Club Aug 2nd

[Rick Petrie]

With the new moon on 1st August, it is getting close again for another night of laughter, frivolity and also maybe some good viewing.:eyepop:
Are all starters happy for Saturday 2nd August?
If it is anything like last month it will be exceptional. weather permitting of course.
So pull on the woollies and freezer suits and be there.:thumbsup:

[iceman]

2nd Aug sounds good to me - i'll be in melbourne on wed/thu/fri nights the week after so Kate wouldn't like me going out on that sat night :)

[gmbfilter]

Terrific I'll bring my all my warmies + Wild Turkey++

[Inmykombi]

2nd sounds good.
I'll be there and the Coffee will be there too.

I just hope for conditions like last time........that I missed out on.:(

[Deeno]

Seems like an age since the last one



I better stay close in case you have trouble plucking those feathers......

[gmbfilter]

Plucking won't be a problem.....and we probably wont need an esky for the ice

[jakob]

I'm looking forward to give my LB16/Skyscout good test.:)

[GTB_an_Owl]

i'm actually looking for A/ANY reason to go up to the QLD astrofest for the weekend (but i need a driver/assistant - seeing as how i technically only have one wing)

i was looking "UP" last nite and thinking we should've been up there last nite

geoff

[iceman]

Weather forecast is looking good!

[gmbfilter]

Whose set for Saturday? You going GTB? who who will let us in?

[GTB_an_Owl]

"who who" ever gets there first and picks up the key

i will be scopeless - can't lift anything heavier than a can of beer at the moment - and can't lift it any higher than my mouth - so the doctor say's

aren't i lucky

i am predicting - no rain - no clouds - cold - maybe a little wind (to keep the dew away)

be there or be square - so they say

geoff

[gmbfilter]

Just bring your comfy chair and enjoy the night...might be cold, -4 here last night froze the dew to my finder!

[gb_astro]

I hope to be there.
Have my first deep sky filters to try out.

Greg.

[wavelandscott]

It is unlikely that I will get a pass from the warden to attend...:(

Hope you get clear skies!!!

[iceman]

I'm still planning to be there at this stage. Was supopsed to be clear today - what happened?

Hope tomorrow night improves. The jetstream is horrendous atm.

[GTB_an_Owl]

i think it is about time we talked to this warden of yours Scott :mad2: :whistle:

geoff

[GTB_an_Owl]

mention to her that if you miss more than 4 meetings that you will have to pay your (substantial) membership fee again :lol:

geoff

[Rick Petrie]

Don't worry too much about that owl Scott-he's pretty armless I hear at the moment and he's travelling on A wing and a prayer about Saturday night's weather.:lol: Only trouble is I think he's right about the weather being good on Saturday.:P Shame you can't make it. You'll just have to notch up more brownie points during the lead-up.:( See ya next one maybe. Cheers

[gmbfilter]

Who who hoo hoo cares about the weather, it'll be OK later on in the night.

[GTB_an_Owl]

NEED I SAY IT ?

geoff

[wavelandscott]

My friend, I will have to pay a substantial fee either way...but, only one would be court sanctioned...

[GTB_an_Owl]

I know a good solicitor that is sympathetic to our cause Scott :lol: :lol:

geoff

[Rodstar]

I'll bring some business card just in case.

See you there, fellas!:thumbsup:

[Inmykombi]

Looks great for tonight. No clouds my way this morning.:)
I will have to get grinding the coffee again soon i guess.

May have to bring a bundy or two to keep me warm though as well as the coffee.

Deeno, dont forget those chicken wings;)

Dont know if I can get the key. I have a service call job on the way up there this afternoon, and I dont know what I am in store for.
If I am first there, I can get it, but I can't let anyone know on the web-site.
I could ring Mr Owl to let him know....that'd do I guess.

See ya there.

[RB]

I'm up to my eyebrows in work atm but I'll try and make it tonight.
Won't be a very late one for the though. :sadeyes:

[GTB_an_Owl]

yeh.........yeh we know..........we know


got to be home before the roosters crow


RUBBISH........... you better bring plenty of stoggies to stay with Deeno

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

geoff

[Rick Petrie]

It's lookin' good so far. Fingers crossed for another crystal night of viewing at the PC.(And that's not in front of the computer).:thumbsup:
See yawl up there.:stargaze:

[Rodstar]

Bad news on two fronts....

1. Our Nonna (Nina's g'mother) is in a critical stage in hospital and unlikely to make it through the night; and
2. I am needed at home tonight to support Nina and some relatives flying up from Melbourne this afternoon.

Hope you all have a great night. I am VERY disappointed I cannot be with ye. :sadeyes:

[RB]

I'm so sorry to hear that Rod, our thoughts and prayers for Nonna and to all your family.
We'll miss your company but family comes first.

[iceman]

Something has come up at home too and I'm not gonna be able to make it out there :(

Weather looks great. Have a nice time guys.

[wavelandscott]

Sorry to hear this bit of news...Your family will be in our thoughts and prayers!

[Rodstar]

Thanks for your kind thoughts.

Nonna passed away at about 1am. She had been suffering a steady decline since Bumpa's passing a few years ago. At 88, she finally decided it was time to shuffle off to the next great adventure. She was waiting (although unconscious) for her brother Vince, who she had not seen for over 30+ years. Within an hour of his visit to her bedside (he flew up from Melbourne), she gave up her battle.

I managed to point the Mary Rose skywards at one point during the evening from my backyard. What a beautiful sky. I thought it very fitting that my favourite constellation Sagittarius glistened from the zenith around the time of her passing. What better "hurrah" than that?

[GTB_an_Owl]

not good news at all Rod - but may Nonna now rest in peace
my condolences to yourself and family

geoff

[GrahamL]

Sincere condolances Rod .. she still lives within all your hearts and time passing won't ever let her fade away .

[GTB_an_Owl]

looks like i will be the first to report on last nites visit to the pony club

you lot still all in bed are you ?
did you make cricket practice this morning Deeno ?

what looked like a good nite in the making disapointed somewhat
seeing never got past good and in fact was pretty ordinary all nite

we all enjoyed it though i think

we welcomed Lee and Stuart Wallace for the first time, as they popped in to check us out
hope they will be back in the future

good to see Sue return (with a lovely apple cake)

Greg hid down in the corner most of the nite but we enticed him up and made him a bit warmer (private joke here)
i think it was the noises he was hearing in the bushes that bought him up to see what we were doing actually
we did get a visit from Geoff's (inmykombie) favourite two dogs later in the evening

i think i looked through all but one scope on the nite - even got to get a single image through Joe and Geoff's binoviewers - amazing
Joe ! - Andrew was a little disapointed that you wouldn't set your scope up again so he could have a look through your new bino eyepieces

my crook wing played up a bit last nite and was a bit sore this morning - maybe i should follow the doc's instructions a bit better

think it was about 10 past 4 when we locked up
better let some of the others fill in a bit more

thanks for taking the key back Deeno
again - enjoyed all your company on a good nite out out under the stars

geoff

[gb_astro]

Yes the seeing was ordinary but it was a good night anyway; no clouds ,no wind, not a hint of dew all night.

Temperature got to about 2 degrees but wearing one of Geoff's freezer suits it felt more like a barmy 20 to me.

Great to compare views and setups.

Tried out my OIII/UHC filters on some planetaries/nebula.
Some disappeared, others looked a lot better, the Tarantula Nebula was impressively evil with the O111.

Long term "to get" list:
Binoviewers,
filter wheel/switch.

Thanks all,
Greg.

[Rick Petrie]

Sorry to hear of the passing of your beloved Nonna Rod.
My sympathy to you and all your family. I know how it is for you all at this time having lost my father-in-law the week before.
Yes last night didn't really reach any great heights after having being spoilt by the previous PC night, however some great views of deep space objects made up for the lack of detail on Jupiter and some fuzzies.
Good company as usual and looking forward to those time exposures you did Deeno. Hope your arm feels better soon Geoff.
Sorry I couldn't do any better with your LB Jakob on the night. The collimation seemed close and with the star tests, however I think maybe consistent active cooling of your primary mirror may help. Seeing conditions were quite ordinary as well on the night -must have been disappointing for you. Cheers all until the next one.

[GTB_an_Owl]

Rick.......... i think i know what was wrong with Jakob's scope !

it must be that little person in the bottom of it that was talking to me when we were looking at objects, telling us what they were :whistle: :rofl:

geoff

[iceman]

Sorry to hear about Nonna, Rod. Please pass our condolences.

Sounds like I missed another fun night unfortunately. I could see the seeing wasn't great when I set the scope up at home to image Jupiter.

[Deeno]

Yup. Another top night at the Pony club.
Even though the seeing wasn't flash, it was clear without dew and managed to exhaust every battery I had including one of Geoff’s, thanks for that.

Nope, still sleeping.....

Great to see everyone as always and am very impressed with Geoff’s (Geoff 2 or 3??) new rig. Looking forward to seeing some images from it.

Here are this months Star Trails
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=34553

Looking forward to next month

deeno

[gmbfilter]

Another great night thanks everyone for their help trying to work out new mount (and I hope) scope I, always amassed by how I keep learning. Looking forward to next night

[jakob]

I enjoyed the night!

Thanks for the good company, Coffee, Cake and organising the Key. :thumbsup:

I should have taken more care with the basics (cooling the mirror) instead of fiddling with gadgets! :doh: I think the mounting of the Skyscout is good but I need to add some fine tuning to the aligning.

I'll do better next time.

I loved the view through the Bino viewers, thanks. :eyepop:

Very nice star trails too!

Looking forward to next month. :)

[bones]

Another top night. Rick and Geoff, thanks for the collimation - top job and it brought my scope to life. I know you guys said the seeing last month was better, but for me it's the best I've had to date. Sorry to hear I was no good as a 'sacrificial lamb' when I left at 12:30am. Condolences to Rod on the passing away of Nonna. Hope to see you all at the next one.

[RB]

A very enjoyable night indeed.
Couldn't believe how many meteors we saw.

Sorry I had to make an early exit since I was tired and had work the next day. :P

(My condolences to you and your family Rod.)

[Inmykombi]

Rod, I am very very sorry to hear about the passing of your Nonna.
Pass on my condolences on to the whole family please.

___________________________________ _________________________

Thanks everyone for a good night.
Even though the seeing wasnt too flash.
I managed to check out oooodles of Globs and doubles all over the place.
The faint stuff was OK to see and wasnt affected by the "shimmer" too much. But it was Jupiter that suffered due to the poor seeing conditions.

My Thermometer registered 2.7 degrees about 2.30 in the morning, so I was glad I hade bought one of Geoff ( Mr. Owls ) freezer suits that night.

I have never seen anyone so excited about there new eyepices as Joe was.
I had a look at the two new ones in his Bino and felt like I could fall into the eyepieces. WOW :eyepop:.

I want some.....( added to my wish list )

Thanks to Sue for the Cake.mmmmmmmmmmmmm.
And Deeno for the Tim Tams.

Cheers to all who shared a great night

[RB]

.... and for your wonderful fresh ground coffee Geoff !!

:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[Inmykombi]

Thx RB I'm glad you enjoy it.

[Rodstar]

Thanks everyone for being so darn caring!

Sounds like you had a great night. Yes, the seeing was crap from my backyard too, and so globs and galaxies in the Ara region in the mag 11-12 range were on my shortened menu.

We spent Sunday with all the Maltese and Greek relatives at Brighton Le Sands. Quite a cultural experience for a Skippy like me!

I am heading up North on the weekend for three weeks, won't be back in time for the next New Moon weekend. I guess I will next see everyone in late September...