What is the Coldest Temperature you have been outside in?

[Matty P]

I'm interested to know what is the coldest temperature you have braved just to be under the Stars. The weather this winter has not favoured astronomers but when the clouds had cleared there had been a few clear nights where the temperature dropped way below 0.

What is the coldest temperature you have braved just to be outside? :cold:

:thumbsup:

[Matty P]

I remember one night being close to -4 degrees. I practically froze and then defrosted when I returned back inside. Although the best thing about that night was the sky was pristine.

:)

[Terry B]

About -3 at midnight-- but I'm well rugged up.:thumbsup:

[Kevnool]

About 7c sorry i,m a whooos but on the other hand ive observed up to 28c one night singlet and mossies.....cheers Kev.

[leon]

Matty it would have to be about minus 3 to 4, I remember the grass under my feet getting very crisp.

The camera and scope were well protected against the frost though, and the stars were just like diamonds in the sky, I just love the frosty nights, but my dear wife thinks I'm an idiot, :P she may be right. :lol:

Leon :thumbsup:

[Glenhuon]

-14, but that was 40 years ago when I was young and fit. Nowadays if it hits 0 I'm outa there.
You know its cold when you pour a beer and the froth on the outside of the glass freezes before it slides to the bottom LOL

[Matty P]

-14! :eyepop:

And I thought I was tough being outside when it was -3.

If you remember, how many layers of clothing were you wearing?

[IanL]

-14 to -18 in Scotland doing astronomy.
It was so cold that the due froze up on my telescope and I had to take it inside the car to defrost it to get the scope from my mount.

It was not uncommon to be out under -0 as you usually have stable sky’s around that temp.
This winter in Brissie i have been doing astronomy out the back door in shorts and t-shirt.
:lol:
Ian

[OneOfOne]

I wasn't actually doing astronomy, but I went to Saskatoon in Canada around December several years ago, actually working for Telstra, and it was -28C. The locals said it was a good thing I didn't come last week as it was cold...-40C. I would hate to be outside at night....that was the daytime temperature! I think even the photons would freeze and drop to the ground!

I am a bit of a wimp, anything below about +5C and the electric blanket is too tempting....

[AstralTraveller]

I've certainly had frost on the scope a few times. I started to become more of a wuss so I' bought a freezer suit recently and I've been nice and warm since.

I have it on good authority that a mate was stopped from doing photography one night because the photons froze in the camera and he had to bring it inside and warm it up to get an image.

[Jen]

:cold::cold::cold::cold: TOO BLOODY COLD :cold::cold::cold::cold:

:whistle::whistle:

[CoombellKid]

-25c in Waterloo, Quebec, Canada

regards,CS

[sheeny]

mmm I think it was about -10°C with a wind chill of about -15°C, though I was in a quarry so had a little bit of shelter from the wind. My breath on the back of the scope formed icicles. I was about as rugged up as I could get and it was good until I had to pack up (about a 5-6 hours session)... I had to take my gloves off to dismantle the scope and everything was sooooo cold! And once I started moving around I got too hot inside the freezer suit, so ditched that... but by the time I was packed up and in the car heading home my hands were in pain.:rolleyes:

But that wasn't this year.;) I must confess to being a bit slack this year. I haven't been out very often since moving... between work, weather and other things.:rolleyes: I guess I haven't pushed myself to take the few opportunities I've had...

I'm so looking forward to getting my POD!:D Not having the set up and pack up... out of the wind... it's gonna be so good:thumbsup:...:whistle:

Al.

[Karls48]

-41 in 1955 I think. River Elbe froze so thick that 10 tonne tracks were driving across it. We went skating on the river and as I took my boots off to put on skates my feet lost all feeling. We run back to my granny’s place and she made me to put my feet to the bucket with cold water. And the water felt very hot.
Later on when I was working as electrician, we often worked in –20 to –28. At those temperatures the plastic sheathing on electrical cables become brittle like glass. If you hit it or try to bend it, it shatters like glass.
I don’t think I would survive those temperatures today after living in Australia for 40 years.

[RB]

LOL Jen !

I agree, if you're cold, you're cold !!!

:lol:

[seeker372011]

15 below zero (farenheit) when I was living in Watertown, New York, many many years ago.

Didnt do any astronomy-just being outside long enough to getthe mail from the letter box was enough.

They used to joke that they have two seasons at Watertown: Winter and the 4 of July

I also- on one memorable occasion-walked around Red Square in Moscow to watch the guard changing at Lenin's tomb-oh at near midnight I think. Lots of vodke cushioned the blow, but it was January. In Moscow. And very very very cold.

I doubt I'd do anything like that today-but its often close to zero or a couple degrees above at Linden where our club observes.The hardest bit? when you have to take of your gloves to dismantle your gear when packing up and you have touch all that cold metal with your bare hands and carry it back the car. Brrrrrrrrr

[erick]

About -6 deg C around 3-4am in Snake Valley one winter's day last year.

[Matty P]

This thread is starting to make me feel quite cold... :rolleyes:

I think anything below -5 degrees is too cold to be outside. I'm really looking forward to the warmer summer nights.

:)

[CometGuy]

In the USA I've observed in conditions near 0 F (-18 C) on a 2 or 3 occassions. Remember being at 9000 ft in Idaho doing a series of hand guided 10-15 minute exposures of Comet Hale-Bopp. I had the car heater running so every couple of minutes I could leave the guiding eyepiece and warm my hands. I had trouble operating with gloves, so removed them. It was almost unbearable and after about 2 hours of that my hands were burning from the cold!

Terry

[Alchemy]

definately below 0 , but im not that enthusiastic any more.... i wont be doing much before it warms up, so no images being posted by me for a while.

[garyp]

the coldest night for me so far was about minus 3. Not as cold as some of the daytime temps though. I remember minus 17 one morning on the home farm a few years ago.

[PCH]

A couple of winters before coming out here in '87, it was -29 in Manchester where I lived, and a staggering -36 in Glasgow. That did it for me and warmer clim'es were on the cards from that moment on :eyepop:

Cheers,

[garyp]

When ever I start complaning about the cold I watch "Deadliest Catch" on discovery and that makes me feel a whole lot warmer.;)

You have it in Australia I think.

[Matty P]

Yes exactly. The guys on that show are crazy. That is what I would call braving the cold.

:cold:

[GrahamL]

I don't know about temps but outdoors and a pair of socks with your thongs up in the north Is what I call cold :D

[Jen]

:thumbsup::thumbsup: yep thats right :lol:

[TrevorW]

I remember not that many years ago going surfing at 6 in the morning middle of winter when it's been -2 piddling in me wetsuit to keep warm.

Stayed up one night viewing when it was about -4 but a few Ports helped that night.

These days though gets too cold I'm inside the old bones can't hack it anymore.

:cold::thumbsup:

[Glenhuon]

My cold one was in Scotland too Ian, up in the wilds of Blair Atholl on a Territorial Army exercise. Was OK when we got into the tent though, slept with the battledress on and my mate had drawn the allocation of 7 blankets, but so had I.
We slept with 7 on top and 7 underneath, was as warm as toast. :) A sort of "Soldier Sandwich"

Bill

[GTB_an_Owl]

:screwy::screwy:

i really don't understand why some people have a problem with observing in the cold
:whistle: :hi:

Be Wise, Be Told, Never Be Cold.

geoff

[Phil]

When i was living at Blackwater 2hour west of Rocky 2 degrees was the coldest it got out there. Its funny because the days can be so hot then night the temp drops. This is only in winter.
Phil

[Omaroo]

Canada again - -44C in Sudbury, Ontario at Christmas time. During the day we were actually walking around in t-shirts and jeans. It may be damn cold, but there is zero moisture in the air - which is what gets ya!

[StephenM]

Coldest for me was -5 at Ballandean on Queensland's Granite Belt back in June this year. But the skies were so dark and amazing that I hardly noticed the cold!

[Merlin66]

It was -38 degrees just north of Barrie, Ontario. I was trying to take a 20min exposure in crystal clear skies. About two foot of snow; at that low temperture there's no humidity so its like powder!
After about 8 mins the grease in the mouning froze and my eyelid also froze to the guide eyepice... didn't realise until I got inside and the blood defrosted and started to drip down my face..
A great place but - never again!!

[peter brown]

Went to -31.6 at Davis Station, Antarctica 1990, and camera battery kept dying tryng to take long exposures of auroriae. The put camera in plastic bag to go inside to prevent condensation...then repeat procedoure adnauseum.:screwy:

[White Rabbit]

Not out looking at the starts but I spent a winter in Munich Germany once and the temp was -35 with a wind chill of -54 Brrrrrr. That was cold. I've done a few in Glasgow as well that were well into the double digits.

[Ric]

A minus 9 for me, I lasted about 2 hours before it got too much and pulled the pin on that session.

I had ice forming on my moustache from my breath.

:cold:

[erick]

Yes it's a tangent, but when I'm out in sub-zero, all rugged up with hot coffee, I do think of those who don't have the choice of going back to a warm home, but spend night after night in that cold!

[Matty P]

I have found that there are some nights where you hardly feel the cold and some where it feels like you are in a freezer.

I'm just greatful that the temperature here in winter doesn't drop that far below 0 degrees. I don't know how I would survive in temperatures colder than what we have here though.

:cold:

[Lee]

-18 deg C - in a commercial poultry freezer!
Outside - -8 deg C, whilst skiing a few years ago....

I was thinking a few days ago of how many layers I'd need - just sitting still in those temps you would need more than a few I think...

[Outbackmanyep]

Only recently (10th August) i had been up in Armidale at the Kirby Observatory, outside with my 8" SCT imaging comets, it was -8 that morning!
I had 2 pairs of fleecy pants on and one pair of jungle trousers, 2 x t-shirts , one jumper and one fleece lined Drizabone..........wearing work boots with 2 pairs of socks and i still couldn't feel my toes!
No gloves, and my hands were that cold i could hardly grip the knobs to release my SCT from the eq wedge. When my hands thawed they swelled up and went bright pink......i doubt i would have wanted it to be much colder!!!!

[erick]

And we all love it, don't we! :screwy:

[Outbackmanyep]

Bugger that! LOL....i bet you wished you had a full manual camera......or at least a remote battery pack!

[g__day]

Minus 35 with a 30 below wind chill so minus 65, Winter of '84, February in Chicago!

[bert]

On wednesday around 3 weeks ago on it hit -5 here in bathurst. The frost was dropping at around 8pm. I've been Skiing in -8 with -12 windchill in a blizzard. The observing felt colder, I guess because you dont move around as much.

Last satuday night was almost as cold.

I gotta move to the tropics......

[spearo]

minus 8 Celcius near Braidwood a couple years ago doing astronomy...it was very very painful! Otherwise, non astronomy around minus 30 in Quebec Canada (includes windshill factor).

I love the cold of winter only for the fact that it keeps my DSLR nice and cool!
frank

[Kevnool]

Johns reply in this currently running thread tells all its the pic of his frozen scope.....cheers Kev.

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=35191

[Matty P]

:eyepop:

The temperature was only -4! Imagine what would happen if it was three times as cold?

:cold:

[Kevnool]

Hard to imagine Matt.....cheers Kev.

[berg meister]

I can recall -11° driving through Cooma about 6am during august in winter 2002.....car heater not working either. Then I accidentally hit the windscreen washers...so I had to get out and scrape the ice off that instantly formed. Living out on Captains Flat Road east of Canberra near the Molonglo Radio Telescope (visible from Kitchen window), regularly would be around -8° on winter mornings being approx 800m alt, some 250m higher than Canberra. No car heater meant hot water bottle as I drove along observing frost covered cattle.

Just a few weeks back whilst skiing at Perisher Blue, the temperature was -3° but the wind chill was taking it back to about -20°.

Thredbo in 1987 I experienced wind chill of -23° going up the chair lift in heavy snow.

[BalderAsir]

-30 i think it got to, wearing a pressue demand mask, watching some ninja boys doing a halo jump from the back of a c130, was damn cold, even in the gear we we're wearing