Report from Kelling Heath

[MarkS]

Great night skies - great company - great weather during day.

Friday night was exceptionally cear and still.  Very, very dewy and it all froze.  Viewed Saturn at 350x mag throught the C11 - rock steady  and probably the best I've ever seen it.  Robert, Mark and Carole all successfully imaging.  The Tak Epsilon's primary mirror dewed up at 1:30am so I stopped imaging.

Saturday was warm sunshine all day - Solarscope got lots of use (but no imaging).  

Saturday night sky was not as exceptional as Sunday.  Those of us still around at 4am (Mark, Robert, Julian) saw the ISS and Space Station(?) pass over - about a fingerlength apart in the sky - stunning - wish I'd known - I'd have set up the C11 for the event.   I was up 'till 5:15am.   Successful imaging from Mark and Robert but Carole had lots of problems (in complete contrast to Friday).

Sunday again was sunny.  Robert and I came home today - the rest are still up enjoying a sunny day (I guess).

Already booked for next year (pitches were booking out fast).

Images to come ...

Mark

[Fay]

Mark, i heard that it was going to be cloudy tonight, Moon too high, & possibly rain tomorrow, & made decision to pack & come home.

May have made the wrong decision, but the thought of wet tent etc & me driving home in rain, made me pack. Left at 2.15 & got in at 5.30.

Bet they have a great sky now!!!!!!

[MarkS]

You must have packed quickly - I left at 12:30 and there was no hint that you might leave!

Mark

[Fay]

I am like a little whippet when I get going!!!!!! I was reading my paper & having a drink & suddenly went into pack mode!!!!!!!!

[MarkS]

A few pictures ...

Fay's stuff:




Mark's stuff:




Tak and C11 ready for a night's action:

[Fay]

MY pictures taken with Nikon of Moon & Venus, did not come out, camera shake, they would have been good if had been on tripod!

[Fay]

Took 3 1/4 hours to get there. Very nice, lots of camerarderie, trade stands, lots of visitors come to see what you have & chat & we did the same. Lots of telescopes. Dark at night, no lights at all.

Wish I could stay up til early hours like Mark & Julian, but was in bed by around 1,30 am.

Had very good company with Mark next door. He is the equivalent of the Goldilocks zone, not too quiet, not too noisy, just right, helpful & knowledgable. 

[Fay]

My pitch


Mine & Marks pitches. Mark & Robert


Part of the group in the other part of the field



Julians pitch

[Fay]

Forgot to say. One morning Julian & friends were up around 4am next morning & saw the ISS go over followed by the shuttle........................ really bright. Surprised Mark missed it!!!!!!

[MarkS]

I saw it - look at the first post in this thread!

But I didn't realise in advance that Discovery was passing over as well - if so, I would have set up the C11 for an image.

Nice pics Fay.  Ironic that I had the smallest tent but the biggest plot size!

[Fay]

Oh thought you did not see it Mark

[Tony G]

Ironic that I had the smallest tent but the biggest plot size!

That's unlike you to be that lucky Mark...................................NOT

Tony G

[Carole]

I'm still up in Norfolk staying with a distant relative (only found each other last year).  It's sunny again today so hopefully I will try and do some more imaging this evening as they are interested to see the kit and how it all works as they have a background in photography.

As Mark said, Friday for me was very straight forward and I got my first image if M13 but Saturday night nothing went right and I gave up.  For fear of "high jacking this thread" will talk about that when I post my image when I get home.

You guys don't know what you're missing not coming up here, fabulous dark skies, a fab site, fab facilities and great company, from members and Astronomers from all over the country.  We've all booked again for next year, so if you want to come, we can let you have our numbers, but better decide quick if you want to be next to us.

carole

[RobertM]

Forgot to say. One morning Julian & friends were up around 4am next morning & saw the ISS go over followed by the shuttle........................ really bright.

Well, I believe it was just Julian, Mark and myself by then.  You missed a wonderful sight - the pair of them disappearing into the faint early morning twilight.

[Ian]

would someone mind standing up and doing a brief report on Kelling for the meeting on Thursday? I'm sure the rest of the membership would like to know how you got on...

[Carole]

Sorry, can't come to the meeting, Doug and Rose are still there until Saturday.

Carole

[Mike]

How does that stop you from coming to the meeting?

[Carole]

How does that stop you from coming to the meeting?

To make it clearer.
Sorry, I can't come to the meeting something has cropped up, and neither can Doug and Rose who are still at Kelling Heath until Saturday, so none of us would be able to present a report on kellign Heath.

[MarkS]

I'm happy to give a report tonight.

Mark

[Ian]

Thanks mark, that'd be great. Its up to you if you want to do any slides. If you do, stick them on a thumbdrive and I can add them to mine...

[MarkS]

I won't get time to prepare slides (I have to leave for tonight straight after I get back from work) but if someone wants to harvest some pics from the Kelling Heath thread then go ahead.

Mark

[Carole]

If any-one is preparing slides for tonight, this is the Kelling Heath group.  Mark had already left before the photo was taken, so I've had to splice him in from the 2009 photo



Julian was also there but he was with the party from Crayford.

Carole

[MarkS]

Nice bit of splicing!

[mickw]

Hmmm

Looks like one of Carbonis Diffraction Marks to me

Rick, Rick, where's Rick when you need him 

[Mike]

He looks like a cardboard cutout.

[MarkS]

What about Sue?  Should you splice in a "cardboard cutout" of her as well?

[Ian]

someone please animate that so Mark's head nods...

[Carole]

What about Sue?  Should you splice in a "cardboard cutout" of her as well?

Oh B............

I also took a photo of Sue and Roy (who had gone off somewhere when we took the photo) and intended to copy them in as well, but in my hurry to go to the Isle of Wight on Thursday, completely forgot. 

Sorry Sue and Roy

Will do some more splicing.

Carole

[doug]

     Carole ...... my ROG t-shirt hasn`t got a red bar across it !!!!!! 

     Must be a bit of the 2009 photo ......

     Doug. 

[Carole]

Kelling Heath group with Sue and Roy and Mark spliced in.  Doug's red stripe removed.
Bit of a mission, but must get it right.

[Mike]

Now there are 3 cardboard cut-outs.

[Mike]

Now all you need to do is sort out the colour balance issues on the 3 people you have pasted in (as they are different to the main image) and the shadows on mark's face and under the table that go the opposite direction, and you might just fool people with it

[Carole]

Mike I've spent hours on this, it's good enough to show who was there.

Carole