Tonight the Northern Sydney Astronomical Society held an Astronomy night for the kids at Roseville Primary School...as a member of the society and as a parent of two kids at RPS it was a sure bet that I'd attend.
Although the viewing area was not particularly dark it was still a fun night...my kids and I at least had a nice time. I am sure that the other kids and parents did too.
There was a variety of scopes and a number of able bodied NSAS members...
I took my trusty 12.5 inch Discovery Dob (with Argo Navis) and spent most of the night working with my 24 Pan...I did a little looking with my 10 XW after most of the kids had left...nice eyepeices they both are.
As most people in attendance were not too familiar with telescopes I spent some time describing the reflector and how it worked...people were also intrigued with the Telrad (bullseye in the sky) and the Argo Navis...
Because of the site and the kids...I mostly stayed with "brighter" objects...
Seeing was not great but it was a big improvement over recent clouds so I'll take it.
Had a good look at (or as much looking as you can get done in a couple hours with quite a few people):
Jupiter
Jewell Box Cluster
Omega Cent.
Butterfly Cluster
47 Tuc
Uranus
also showed Alpha Cent. and Antares
By that time all of the kids were getting a bit tired and I remembered that I had not had dinner yet so it was time to pack up and head for home (luckily this was just a few blocks away)...
All in all a good night...
I'd like to offer a big Thank You to NSAS Members for coming out and supporting the school.
Also a thanks to the folks from school who stayed behind to make it all possible...
Clear Skies!
