My new night sky view ....

[ZeroID (Brent)]

The soon to open new motorway has a new light to show off their shiny new bridge. A great bloody humungous light panel of about a gazillion watts shining up into the night sky in my south western sky, my previously best dark sky direction. It is now the biggest single point light source in Auckland completely .#$*&#%&$ the sky. And it stays on all night....
Just lovely ain't it ?

[blink138 (Pat)]

bugger!..............

[Octane (Humayun)]

Ugh!

Time to move?

H

[glend (Glen)]

Time to move to narrowband, or move out beyond the glow. Do they have a light pollution policy or are there standards for outdoor illumination? The Coonabarabran light pollution policy, endorsed by NSW Planning, is a great step forward in protecting our darkness, if you live there.

[el_draco (Rom)]

Got a 22?

[sil (Steve)]

slingshot, bag of sinkers

[ZeroID (Brent)]

Cheers guys for the support, bit of a bummer for sure.
Moving is not an option for a number of reasons at present at least. We'd have to get right out of Auckland and that is not possible with the current working situation.
I'm contemplating a portable setup and my recent West Coast beach find, ( I did some Outreach and wide field with the local Camera Club of which I am also a member) as an option. EQ5 and ??? but it's more money which I don't really have to spare with retirement looming.
Narrow band might be a path but again requires some serious expenditure for filters and a mono camera etc.
Glen has offered some more detailed advice from past experience ( Thanks) and I will be following that up with some research and contacts with some influence hopefully but not holding my breath for a good outcome.
Even if they turned it off after 11 or 12 it could be managed better but ...

[strongmanmike (Michael)]

You need to put some feelers out, canvas some rural property owners just outside the metro area, explain who you are and what you do and see if they can accommodate you visiting 2 or 3 nights a month, setting up in a paddock, unobtrusively no skin off their nose....

I did this when I moved to Newcastle in 2007-8 (crap, bright, light polluted coastal skies) and found a lovely couple in Kurri Kurri, 40min west of Newcastle, on 140 odd acres, who were quite ok with the whole idea of a (big friendly) amatuer astronomer coming out a few nights here and there to do photography ..in fact I found two and had to choose Fortunately, the guys I went with were actually elderly professional photographers who ran their own photography workshops as a business

Admittedly it was a task to get out there with all my gear at first, but I ended up leaving the pedestal pier and NJP mount on site setup on three pavers set into the ground in a paddock...worked wonderfully for me for 2 years and I even managed to take several major award winning images from there in to the bargain, helping to make all the effort worthwhile

Good luck with what ever you decide to do Brent

Mike

[Dealy (Kev)]

I really feel for you Brent. Terrible thing to happen.

We've been told with all the development that's happening in Newcastle there will be 3,000 more houses going up near us. There goes most of the bushland to our south and east. Only a matter of time before they start carving up the bush to the west.

We're biting the bullet and moving 50min further away. Hopefully far enough away to avoid development until I'm old and blind.

Mike ..... Amanda says hello

[AussieTrooper (Ben)]

From previous experience, the consistent theme is that freeway builders do not give a crap about locals.

[ZeroID (Brent)]

As I said, I belong to the Auckland Astronomical Society. They have a observatory about 45 mins north west of me in a still reasonably dark rural area on it's own section I believe. Haven't been there to look as yet but Google Maps has found it for me and I don't there would be a problem going there if really necessary.
My biggest issue is that as it has been I can just walk out and start up at a moments notice, no travel. If clouds appear I shut down or wait. I am handy to home and comforts ( coffee and the top shelf options ). Power, toilet, kitchen and bed all handy.
I'll persist for a while and see if I can mitigate with filters or using another part of the limited sky I have. I will also follow it up with Transit authorities to see if they are going to curtail it's all night on when the motorway is finally opened in a month or two.
I may bite the bullet for mono and NB for ease of continuing operations but I don't know what this new light puts out in bandwidth so filters may not be effective. Maybe back to the IR modded 450D to see if it works better.

[glend (Glen)]

Brent is it possible that they are just lighting it to facilitate around the clock work to finish it? Big panel lights are often used on construction sites where there are night shifts operation. Road works use them, often on poles. Could it be they are just finishing the road way laying?

[strongmanmike (Michael)]

Originally Posted by ZeroID

As I said, I belong to the Auckland Astronomical Society.

..you did? I missed that bit..? You mentioned a Camera Club...?

They have a observatory about 45 mins north west of me in a still reasonably dark rural area on it's own section I believe.

Ah well, there's ya answer then! ...forget the messy light pollution filter solution, they don't work that well for imaging.

Good luck

Mike

[ZeroID (Brent)]

Originally Posted by glend

Brent is it possible that they are just lighting it to facilitate around the clock work to finish it? Big panel lights are often used on construction sites where there are night shifts operation. Road works use them, often on poles. Could it be they are just finishing the road way laying?

No Glen, bridge is completed, waiting for the 'Grand Opening" now. This is a feature lighting setup, all incorporated into the structure . I'll try and get some pix at the weekend.
The construction lighting used previously was a much more civilised setup, the contractors themselves have been very considerate for the locals actually. One of the best multi-company operations I have seen done. New Parks, playgrounds, sorted out the messy creek for wildlife and water runoff management, new bike\walk trails, sports fields etc. Been looking forward to getting the bike out on them as it joins up with a lot of the other bike friendly trails in the area.

[N1 (Mirko)]

What does the RASNZ Dark Skies Group have to say on this? Are they going to ignore the biggest single-source sky polluter in Auckland? That looks like a broad band mess. Will be interesting to see what filters can do there.

Working with Council down here on making such stuff-ups impossible. Hard, slow work but at least they are listening, for now.

http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/your-coun...anel-appointed

https://www.facebook.com/dunedindarkskies/

www.nightskycity.nz

[alan meehan (Alan)]

sorry to hear of your light problems Brent I know the feelin quite well ,I retired only to have a neighbour light up my whole backyard and observatory