[sac-forum] Re: Observing tonight

Peter, 
 
Andrew, Wes Edens & I are heading to Cherry II. Dual Purpose trip. Gonna
head up early and geocache a bit before the star party.
 
Clear Skies

Rick Tejera
President
Editor SACnews
Saguaro Astronomy Club
Phoenix, Arizona
saguaroastro@xxxxxxx
www.saguaroastro.org



 

  _____  

From: sac-forum-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:sac-forum-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of Peter Argenziano
Sent: Saturday, September 16, 2006 9:35 AM
To: SAC Forum
Subject: [sac-forum] Observing tonight


It appears that we will have a decent night for observing tonight... so,
where are folks heading? Let's get the discussion started.
 
Sunset is at 6:33 pm and astronomical twilight ends at 7:57 pm. That leaves
about 5½ hours of darkness until the Moon rises at 1:38 am Sunday. And, you
may extend your observing longer, depending on how long you're willing (or
able) to ignore a waning crescent Moon with 27% disk illumination.
 
Given my personal preference for spending more time observing than the
roundtrip travel time, tonight's dark observing window really allows use of
any of the sites at our disposal.
 
Officially, tonight's event is at the Cherry Road II site. I'm a little
concerned about the possibility for some light clouds at higher elevations.
And it will certainly be much cooler up north. In fact, the frost warning is
down to 6500' tonight. To the east side, the Griffith Ranch site is roughly
the same elevation as Cherry Road (~4500'), so I would expect similar
conditions.
 
I think tonight's moderate temperatures make using one of the desert floor
sites a viable option. 
Picketpost, Vekol Road, Flatiron, Sentinel, Hovatter Road?
 
I was impressed with a recent visit to the Hovatter Road site. Good
horizons; large, flat, dust-free observing field; dark skies; easy to get to
(almost all freeway); far enough north to be out of the popular 'trade'
routes. It's downside is that it's a bit of a long drive (exit #53 off
I-10). But, I'd be willing to go if others are interested in making the
trip.
 
So... what are your plans?
 
Peter

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