viewing Geminids 2012 outside Brisbane

[waterrat (Greg)]

Hi all,

First post, pls if this is the wrong place, can a mod move it to the correct one?

Looking forward to Friday night/Sat morning and hopefully a lot of Geminids in the skies, being I haven't really done a great deal of dark(er) sky hunting since moving up here - I'm hoping a nice fellow Brisbanite can advise what are a couple of good locations probably no more than an hour out of the city. I was thinking out Wivenhoe way - but all the rec areas are closed after 6pm.

Don't want deeeeeeeep sky viewing darkness, but being able to enjoy a sky full of stars and give the scope a bit of a workout would make a great night.

Thanks in advance!

Clear skies. WR

[Shark Bait (Stu)]

Originally Posted by waterrat

I was thinking out Wivenhoe way - but all the rec areas are closed after 6pm.

Welcome to IIS,

The rec areas are closed after 6pm but my understanding is that only applies to vehicles. You can still park your car outside and take your gear into the areas.

I use McGavin's View which overlooks North Pine Dam (near Warner). The inner access gate is shut around 6:30pm but the small carpark is left open. The security guard who sweeps through the area has always left me alone.

There is a tree line which blocks the lower portion of the Northern horizon but it should still be ok to view the Geminids.

Stu.

[waterrat (Greg)]

Thanks for that! Looks like McGavin's or Wivenhoe is the place!

[Shark Bait (Stu)]

Originally Posted by waterrat

Thanks for that! Looks like McGavin's or Wivenhoe is the place!

Wivenhoe will be darker and allow the fainter meteors to be seen but it is further to travel.

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

It all depends on the weather where I'll be viewing them from.
Got the camper van all set ready to head for clear skies, where ever they may be.

[waterrat (Greg)]

I hope they havent died off too much between 03:00 or so tomorrow (Friday) morning and 03:00 or so Saturday I hear they drop off quickly. I can see Gemini rises pretty early and transits about 01:00, is it worth heading out anytime I wonder?

WR

[naskies (Dave)]

Originally Posted by waterrat

I hope they havent died off too much between 03:00 or so tomorrow (Friday) morning and 03:00 or so Saturday I hear they drop off quickly. I can see Gemini rises pretty early and transits about 01:00, is it worth heading out anytime I wonder?

According to NASA's Meteor Shower Flux Estimator, the peak for us tonight is about 37 meteors/hour. Tomorrow night, it'll drop off to about 14 meteors/hour. If the weather behaves, it'll still be well worth a look!

[mithrandir (Andrew)]

Originally Posted by waterrat

I hope they havent died off too much between 03:00 or so tomorrow (Friday) morning and 03:00 or so Saturday I hear they drop off quickly. I can see Gemini rises pretty early and transits about 01:00, is it worth heading out anytime I wonder?

Maximum is predicted around 02:30 Qld time or 03:30 for NSW/Vic/Tas. Observing an hour either side of that would be a good idea.

[Suzy]

Hi Greg,
I know from experience at Sommerset Dam Park, they close the gates and want everyone out. Shelley just recently found out the same thing when she got given her orders too.

How about Lake Mogerah. A friend of mine regularly does his dark sky group tours there.
http://www.moogerah.com/

All the best on finding a good location, for me it'll be just viewing from home and yaaaaay skies are looking good at the moment!

[waterrat (Greg)]

Made a trip to Harrison's Pocket this morning about 01:30 - lots of intermittent cloud cover, but did catch a few and a couple of good flashes.

Did anyone else get any good views? I might venture further out tonight - take out the scope and have a good gander at Jupiter etc.

Hope it's a reasonable show for everyone!

[Suzy]

Hi Greg,
There's a thread currently running in the Celestial Events forum on the Geminids, lots of good reports there.