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Kelling Heath Sept 2017 report thread

Started by Carole, Sep 25, 2017, 21:06:10

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Carole

Got back from Kelling today.

OAS Attendees:
Fay Thursday to Monday
Julian Thursday to monday
Sue and Roy = Monday - (still there!!!)
Carole  = Wednesday to Monday
Mark booked but did not come after all   :cry:

Weather:
On the whole it was very nice, a little bit of wind on Wednesday/Thursday morning, then after that there was no wind at all. 
Most days it was sunny enough to walk around with T shirts, and eat outdoors, and it only rained one night and morning.

Astronomy and the skies:
Not quite so lucky with clear skies, I think Sue and Roy got some nice skies before I arrived.  Wednesday - was clear enough to polar align and just about find your target.
Thursday - was crystal clear from about 1am and I personally stayed up until 6am.
Friday we had some clear skies with intermittent cloud and then it clouded up completely by about 2am.
Saturday - cloudy
Sunday -  clear patches until about midnight but was very misty.

Great camaraderie as usual.

Some photos
My kit and the Caravan (sharing with a friend this time), photo taken as it was starting to get dark.


A couple of shots of Julian with his home built dobsonian and seat.  Note the blue skies and T shirt.













Carole

#1
Liverpool Astronomical Society brought an Astronaut



Every-one was admiring this colourful toadstool on the path going to the wash rooms:


Then a few days later (unfortunately some wildlife had taken a couple of bites out of it (wonder if they lived to tell the tale?)


Oh, and while we are talking about wildlife, Ian and I went for a walk to the "viewpoint" and saw a Muntjac deer. 

Carole

#2
Astronomers are nothing if not resourceful.
or
where there is a will there is a way.

My chum Ian is not experienced in going to astro camps and did not bring a box for his laptop.  After a couple of hours we could not see a thing for condensation, so I lent him my blue imaging box which was available that evening due to me finally transferring over to my W7 laptop and this doesn't fit the blue box due to needing differing holes.   

I also had to lend Ian my old Vista laptop as he was having some sort of conflict with Artemis and PHD on the same computer, so the plan was for him to guide on my old now discarded vista laptop.  I decided on the 2nd imaging night I wanted to use the dual rig and therefore did not have a 2nd box in which to put my 2nd laptop a W7 notepad.  Reluctant to deprive Ian of my blue box I improvised this:

1:  Vegetable rack from my van.


2. Top shelf turned upside down and fixed together with a bungee - Hey presto it is now an imaging box, with slots for the various cables, and covered in a bin liner whilst imaging (as shown in the photo of my kit and Caravan).



Carole

Few more photos taken by David Liaromatis (the American guy).





Me doing my talk.  The deaf people came to watch so there was a deaf signer on stage too.

MarkS

Great report and lovely pictures.

Shame I didn't go but the only pitch I managed to book was under a few trees at the far end of the field.

It's also a shame that the dynamics of Kelling Heath Star Party have changed.  Kelling Heath is only for retired folk nowadays i.e. those who book a whole week in order to get on site early enough to book a whole week next time round.  Certainly it makes good business sense for KH to be full of people who book the whole week but it does mean the only pickings left for the rest of us are the occasional cancellations.  I doubt I'll ever get the chance to go again.  Until I'm retired of course!  :lol:

Mark

Carole

Thanks Mark, such a shame that is how the booking system works now. 

The trouble was, before,  it was down to the luck of the draw who happened to hear that the bookings were open.  Also people used to block book and hog bookings preventing people from getting anything.  It's just become too popular and in some ways a victim of its own success. 

Well it might be worth a phone call to see what is left Mark, you never know.
Certainly we have all booked for next year (except Julian who is also fed up with the situation). 

Carole