Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Hurricane Earl Tuesday Update
No good news to report, if anything the projected track has moved westward a touch. The storm should make a northern turn tomorrow, then a northeastward turn later in the week. Timing is everything.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Hurrican Earl Update: Monday 10 PM
Looks like Hurricane Earl MIGHT affect Arunah Hill Days. Current Projection has it passing somewhere east of Arunah Hill in the early hours of Saturday Morning. Still a lot of uncertainty in the forecast... but Arunah Hill Days WILL go on as scheduled!
If we end up taking a direct hit, we have the option of juggling some events to Sunday.
Updates will be posted here every night between 9 PM and 11 PM through Thursday night, check back for the latest info!
-Ed
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Ready for Arunah Hill Days!
After a weekend of mowing and cleanup, we're ready for Arunah Hill Days!
Thanks to Dan Carnevale, Ray Burk, Jonathan Klinkowski, Tom Walker and Kevin Collins for big efforts on Saturday, and to Joe Zuraw and Steve Pielock for their efforts on the tractor on Sunday. The hill looks great!
Now we just have to get hurricane Earl to turn out to sea!
-Ed
Thanks to Dan Carnevale, Ray Burk, Jonathan Klinkowski, Tom Walker and Kevin Collins for big efforts on Saturday, and to Joe Zuraw and Steve Pielock for their efforts on the tractor on Sunday. The hill looks great!
Now we just have to get hurricane Earl to turn out to sea!
-Ed
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Arunah Hill Days 2010 Sunset Table
Date.............Sunset..End Twilight ..MoonRise
Wedneday 9/1 _7:29 PM___9:12 PM __ 11:22 PM
Thursday 9/2 _7:28 PM ___ 9:10 PM __ 12:21 AM
Friday 9/3 __ 7:26 PM ___ 9:08 PM __ 1:29 AM
Saturday 9/4 _ 7:24 PM ___ 9:06 PM __ 2:44 AM
Sunday 9/5 __ 7:23 PM ___ 9:05 PM __ 4:02 AM
Wedneday 9/1 _7:29 PM___9:12 PM __ 11:22 PM
Thursday 9/2 _7:28 PM ___ 9:10 PM __ 12:21 AM
Friday 9/3 __ 7:26 PM ___ 9:08 PM __ 1:29 AM
Saturday 9/4 _ 7:24 PM ___ 9:06 PM __ 2:44 AM
Sunday 9/5 __ 7:23 PM ___ 9:05 PM __ 4:02 AM
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Busy Weekend for the Arunah Hill NSC
Friday night wasn't as dark or transparent as it gets, but it was good enough to create some wow's for the three visitors from East Hampton who found there way up to Arunah Hill through a geocaching contact.
I was up on the hill with my son Tyler and his buddy James. We arrived on the hill around 10 PM to find the zenith clear and dark, but the southeastern window slopped up with a large light dome. Perseus was just clearing the trees in the northeast, so we were not sure how many past peak Persied meteors we would see.
We were soon rewarded with a half dozen zooming fireballs within 20 minutes. Most were faint, but one qualified as a dazzler. I was struck by how quick the Persieds move!
The highlight though was a sparatic out of the northwest that exploded into a bolide well below Polaris. The ground lite up like someone had set off a flashbulb.
Around 10:30 we saw a car pull in to the clearing, but it stopped short of the warming hut. A half hour later, a trio of folks warned up the hill and asked "where the telescope" was. Of course I can't resist showing off the Gaertner to some newbies. Soon Tyler and I had the Gaertner trained on all of the summer highlights... the Hercules Cluster, the Lagoon, the Wild Duck, Alberio, and the rising Andromeda galaxy and it's companions.
I was up on the hill with my son Tyler and his buddy James. We arrived on the hill around 10 PM to find the zenith clear and dark, but the southeastern window slopped up with a large light dome. Perseus was just clearing the trees in the northeast, so we were not sure how many past peak Persied meteors we would see.
We were soon rewarded with a half dozen zooming fireballs within 20 minutes. Most were faint, but one qualified as a dazzler. I was struck by how quick the Persieds move!
The highlight though was a sparatic out of the northwest that exploded into a bolide well below Polaris. The ground lite up like someone had set off a flashbulb.
Around 10:30 we saw a car pull in to the clearing, but it stopped short of the warming hut. A half hour later, a trio of folks warned up the hill and asked "where the telescope" was. Of course I can't resist showing off the Gaertner to some newbies. Soon Tyler and I had the Gaertner trained on all of the summer highlights... the Hercules Cluster, the Lagoon, the Wild Duck, Alberio, and the rising Andromeda galaxy and it's companions.
Well past midnight I turned the Gaertner on to Jupiter for a terrific show. Maybe transparency wasn't great, but the seeing was very steady. We all got GREAT views of Jupiter while still catching some quick persied meteors when not glued to the eyepiece. Our visitors left the hill, I suspect a bit overwhelmed by their tour of the universe, vowing to come back for Arunah Hill Days.
Just before we packed up, we caught Io emerge from behind Jupiter. First just a little bulge on the edge of the giant planet, but soon enough we could see some blackness between the moon and its planet. Just a few minutes later it was a huge gap.
By 1:30 the frequency of the meteors settled down, and we packed up for the drive home. I turned the wheel over to my son, who is much better qualified to drive at that hour than I. Nice night.
On Saturday night, my wife and I joined Kevin Collins and folks from the 5As up on Mount Greylock for a huge public star party. Greylock is a great location and Kevin did a terrific job on publicity, highlighted by an ebay worthy poster. When I pulled in to the parking lot it was already almost full with excited families headed for the tower.
I set up on the west edge of the tower and was soon showing off the thin crescent moon hugging the horizon. My little Astroscan seems to attract kids, and I soon had a steady line of folks who were treating to some interesting views of a orange moon with some great clould formations drifitng past.
Kevin's big dob, and Tom Walker with the Arunah 18" had lines all night. The clouds eventually won out, but I think everyone got to see some wonderful sites.
Exploring the tower at night, and getting to watch an Adams High School fireworks display, added to the evening's enjoyment. Thanks to Kevin and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation for organizing a great program.
Friday, August 13, 2010
And Not So Wow...
You'll be pleased to know that I went up to AH last evening (Wednesday 8/11) to see the spectacular Perseid meteor shower!
Naturally, I was all alone, just me and my little red lantern. And one far off Barred Owl. What a hoot!
The sky was spectacularly stunning; bright stars, many clouds and about 40% clear, exactly where the radiant was. I did see the Cygnus nebulae through my binoculars.
From 9:30 until 1:30, I counted about 60 meteors - 4 Perseids, 2 accidentals, and 54 very slow movers, with red and green blinking lights on the tips. Boeings and Airbuses, likely.
Weather was good, about 60 degrees, and quite dry. Around 1:30, the sky started to get somewhat foggy, and so did I.
-RDB
Naturally, I was all alone, just me and my little red lantern. And one far off Barred Owl. What a hoot!
The sky was spectacularly stunning; bright stars, many clouds and about 40% clear, exactly where the radiant was. I did see the Cygnus nebulae through my binoculars.
From 9:30 until 1:30, I counted about 60 meteors - 4 Perseids, 2 accidentals, and 54 very slow movers, with red and green blinking lights on the tips. Boeings and Airbuses, likely.
Weather was good, about 60 degrees, and quite dry. Around 1:30, the sky started to get somewhat foggy, and so did I.
-RDB
Sunday, August 8, 2010
A Wow!
The August workday and a Notchview Public night turned out to be a terrific and productive one for Arunah Hill. The workday consisted of lots of mowing and a lubrication of the Gaertner telescope. We then used the historic scope to observer a couple of big sunspots, which we proudly showed off to a couple of pairs of geocachers who wandered onto the hill.
Thanks to Ray Burk, Matt Paine, Jonathan Klinkowski , Barry Herveux, Steve Pielock, and Tom Walker for all their hard work. One good mowing and we should be in pretty good shape for AH Days.
We did see some signs of mouse penetration into the telescope shed, but I think Tom had a good idea of what we need to do to deal with it. Fortunately, we found no damage to any of the scopes in the shed.
After some rest and lively discussion up at the pavilion (OK, I'll admit being the target of some of the humor... one flag indeed!), we moved on to nearby Notchview for the public observing. Dan Carnevale was already set up. We all even got to do some birdwatching and got to watch an American Kestral. The staff at Notchview treated us to a wonderful dinner highlighted by chicken and faccachia bread that was terrific, and zucchini chocolate cake.
I screwed the Hydrogen Alpha filter into the Genesis and slowed the scope onto the sun. As the sun popped in to focus, I was BLOWN AWAY by two large prominences dancing on one limb of the sun, while another 5 smaller flares could be seen around the sun. It was the most solar activity I had seen in many years! I got to share this view with several people as the public arrived for the Notchview Star Party... and the reaction ranged from a grumpy "ho-hum" to several "wow... that's amazing!". I was definitely in the latter camp!
As sunset fell, Venus popped out, brilliant, followed by Saturn then Mars. We turned the telescopes on planets, and our public star party was rolling. Tom and Jonathan keep the Arunah Hill 18" busy, Dan C had his wonderful refractor on the computer drive, and Steve Hershberg had his SCT slewing on objects as they emerged from the deepening twilight. We soon had a happy crowd.
I did a green laser sky tour as the milky way became dazzling after twilight. M-13 was naked eye and was a breathtaking object in the scopes. Cruising along the milky way yielded numerous Messier objects, all dazzling to the public. A few stray meteors and quite a few satellites added to the wonder of the evening.
Notchview is a wonderful spot for a public star party, with great horizons, dark skies, and creature comforts... real bathrooms and a warm house. Thanks to all who helped make this event such a big success.
-Ed
Thanks to Ray Burk, Matt Paine, Jonathan Klinkowski , Barry Herveux, Steve Pielock, and Tom Walker for all their hard work. One good mowing and we should be in pretty good shape for AH Days.
We did see some signs of mouse penetration into the telescope shed, but I think Tom had a good idea of what we need to do to deal with it. Fortunately, we found no damage to any of the scopes in the shed.
After some rest and lively discussion up at the pavilion (OK, I'll admit being the target of some of the humor... one flag indeed!), we moved on to nearby Notchview for the public observing. Dan Carnevale was already set up. We all even got to do some birdwatching and got to watch an American Kestral. The staff at Notchview treated us to a wonderful dinner highlighted by chicken and faccachia bread that was terrific, and zucchini chocolate cake.
I screwed the Hydrogen Alpha filter into the Genesis and slowed the scope onto the sun. As the sun popped in to focus, I was BLOWN AWAY by two large prominences dancing on one limb of the sun, while another 5 smaller flares could be seen around the sun. It was the most solar activity I had seen in many years! I got to share this view with several people as the public arrived for the Notchview Star Party... and the reaction ranged from a grumpy "ho-hum" to several "wow... that's amazing!". I was definitely in the latter camp!
As sunset fell, Venus popped out, brilliant, followed by Saturn then Mars. We turned the telescopes on planets, and our public star party was rolling. Tom and Jonathan keep the Arunah Hill 18" busy, Dan C had his wonderful refractor on the computer drive, and Steve Hershberg had his SCT slewing on objects as they emerged from the deepening twilight. We soon had a happy crowd.
I did a green laser sky tour as the milky way became dazzling after twilight. M-13 was naked eye and was a breathtaking object in the scopes. Cruising along the milky way yielded numerous Messier objects, all dazzling to the public. A few stray meteors and quite a few satellites added to the wonder of the evening.
Notchview is a wonderful spot for a public star party, with great horizons, dark skies, and creature comforts... real bathrooms and a warm house. Thanks to all who helped make this event such a big success.
-Ed
Sunday, August 1, 2010
A Dark and Still Night on Arunah is Neither
For the first time in weeks, a promise of clear dark skies made the call to the hill too much for me to resist. I left my house at sunset, and by the time I turned onto Trouble Street night was started to overtake twilight. A small red fox darted out in front of me and safely made it into the woods with me as I drove up the empty hill, turned off the car, and emerged into the silence of nature. As the sky continued to darken to a velvet black, the silence of the hill turned out to not be so quiet after all.
Once away from the din of cars and trucks and the roar of suburban lawn mowers, the sounds of the night emerge… the cacophony of crickets, tree frogs, and night birds emerge from the silence. Off in the distance an owl announces its presence with authority. In the woods behind the clearing, the scurry of small animals can be heard. I’m sure that owl has heard them to…
Low in the west, Venus is blazing, but with two escorts on this evening. Saturn and Mars are nearby, and offer some stark contrasts in brightness and color to Venus’ glory.
The puffy clouds of the midsummer afternoon gave way, and the beautiful glowing “cloud” of the summer Milky Way emerges. This is what I’d come to see. I scanned the Milky Way, from the brilliant clusters off the stinger of Scorpio, caught the lagoon and Trifid and host of nebula and clusters in Sagittarius, then lingered on the rich star fields in Scutum.
I took a minute to just let the splendor of the summer Milky Way soak in… the rift was sharp in the cooling dry air. I picked up the binoculars again, and grin as I’m surprised by Collinder 399. To me, in binoculars, this cluster is a cosmic joke… it just too perfectly looks like a coat hanger, made up on identical 7th magnitude stars.
I completed my tour of the summer Milky Way, concluding with a game but failed try to pick out the North American Nebula. The whole area seems glowing to me, I can’t positively identify the object. The only time I’ve glimpsed this elusive object is under dark skies of Texas, and even then I needed on O3 filter.
After straining to see dim objects, I’m amazed at how bright the clearing looked. I could easily followthe road past the warming hut, and noticed the tall stack of firewood we’ve got aside it. The lesson is a dark night isn’t dark if you let the amazing human eye-brain adjust to it, and the night isn’t quiet, once you remove the sounds of civilization you hear the richness of nature.
Too soon a rising 3rd quarter moon put an end to my dark sky fun, though it put on its own moonrise dance show as it climbed through distant trees.
For a few quick hours on the hill, just me and the sky with my trusty old binoculars, the year could have been 2010 or just as easily been 1710 or hopefully 2110. A nice way to connect with nature and the wondrous universe we live in.
Once away from the din of cars and trucks and the roar of suburban lawn mowers, the sounds of the night emerge… the cacophony of crickets, tree frogs, and night birds emerge from the silence. Off in the distance an owl announces its presence with authority. In the woods behind the clearing, the scurry of small animals can be heard. I’m sure that owl has heard them to…
Low in the west, Venus is blazing, but with two escorts on this evening. Saturn and Mars are nearby, and offer some stark contrasts in brightness and color to Venus’ glory.
The puffy clouds of the midsummer afternoon gave way, and the beautiful glowing “cloud” of the summer Milky Way emerges. This is what I’d come to see. I scanned the Milky Way, from the brilliant clusters off the stinger of Scorpio, caught the lagoon and Trifid and host of nebula and clusters in Sagittarius, then lingered on the rich star fields in Scutum.
I took a minute to just let the splendor of the summer Milky Way soak in… the rift was sharp in the cooling dry air. I picked up the binoculars again, and grin as I’m surprised by Collinder 399. To me, in binoculars, this cluster is a cosmic joke… it just too perfectly looks like a coat hanger, made up on identical 7th magnitude stars.
I completed my tour of the summer Milky Way, concluding with a game but failed try to pick out the North American Nebula. The whole area seems glowing to me, I can’t positively identify the object. The only time I’ve glimpsed this elusive object is under dark skies of Texas, and even then I needed on O3 filter.
After straining to see dim objects, I’m amazed at how bright the clearing looked. I could easily followthe road past the warming hut, and noticed the tall stack of firewood we’ve got aside it. The lesson is a dark night isn’t dark if you let the amazing human eye-brain adjust to it, and the night isn’t quiet, once you remove the sounds of civilization you hear the richness of nature.
Too soon a rising 3rd quarter moon put an end to my dark sky fun, though it put on its own moonrise dance show as it climbed through distant trees.
For a few quick hours on the hill, just me and the sky with my trusty old binoculars, the year could have been 2010 or just as easily been 1710 or hopefully 2110. A nice way to connect with nature and the wondrous universe we live in.
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