Only One Picture!

So what did we manage to cover last night? We saw the Moon briefly using binoculars and the Cooke refractor, and we managed to get a glimpse of Arcturus through a gap in the cloud. We also spotted a star in Virgo that I am pretty sure was, well maybe, Vindemiatrix. We also did a nice little experiment to prove that your eyes respond to darkness and sudden lights. I think we covered the laser reflectors left behind on the Moon by the Apollo missions, and we also tried to spot the ISS, but saw some Chinese lanterns instead. And then there was quite a lot of surveillance on Radio York, Dave the Security Man and York Minister.

Oh well, better luck next time!

At least we all got to meet up again- what a pity the cloud wouldn't let us see much. Still, it was really fun meeting up with the team and their parents, so keep checking in here for a repeat evening in october some time. I'll try to keep posting things to this blog in the meantime...

The final decision...

Well, I'm prepared to turn up if you are. It's not looking clear yet, but it still isn't terrible. I'll open the Portland Street gates (off Gillygate) at 9.50pm, and I'm looking forward to seeing you all then!

Still looking good!

I am still seeing a report for clear skies in York tonight, so I am going to go ahead as planned for now. If possible, check this blog again at 9pm for a final, final decision!

Looking Good for Saturday Evening.

Weather

The weather forecast from the BBC is giving clear skies over York in the evening, so everything looks set for a nice event at the observatory tomorrow. Twilight will end at about 10:28pm, so don't feel you have to rush to get here early!

International Space Station

If the weather stays clear, there will be a low pass of the International Space Station at 11:23 so that may be worth staying for, but it will be low in the sky and will only last for about fifty seconds.

Saturn

The moon Titan will be well off to one side of Saturn on Saturday, so it should be possible to see both clearly through the telescope.

The Moon

Moonset will be at 10:50pm, so the Moon will be our first observing target.

ISSP Saturday 11th June

When you come for this event, please use the entrance on Portland Street to get into the school campus. You can park up on the playground, and then make your way to the entrance of the labs where I ran the ISSP sessions in March. I'll meet you all there. It will still be quite light at 10pm, but we can run the session until it gets dark enough to see something useful.

Please assume that it will be cold, and bring something warm to wear - you'll be out in the open!