Category: Astro knowledge
Chasing suckerholes
I saw an Iridium flare tonight. I checked Heavens-above, and it turns out that Iridium 10 flared over Hilltop at 7:40pm in the SE, which is right where I saw the bright […]
Astro knowledge / ATM / Gear / General / Maintenance / Telescope
Trixie gets the laser test
My astro-Jedi friend Art came over to kick Trixie’s tires a little. He brought a laser, did a rough collimation, and then hung some weight off the focuser (in the form of […]
A historic grab
The International Space Station reached out and grabbed the Dragon capsule today, one of the final steps in making the Dragon the first commercial spacecraft to dock with the station. The things […]
Astro knowledge / General / Observing Reports / Solar System Photography
Transient orbital effects
I have to say that, as a rule, I’m generally not into transient astronomical phenomena. The fact that I can observe and photograph the same, unchanging objects year after year is very […]
Astro knowledge / General / Observing Reports
Seattle weather
After a couple weeks of fairly clear weather (that is, without any measurable precipitation), it rained on Monday afternoon, and was cloudy all night. It was clear again by Tuesday night, and […]
First Spirit, now Atlantis
The Space Shuttle Atlantis took off this morning on the final flight of the shuttle program. With nothing to replace it, the shuttle program’s demise ends America’s manned spaceflight program, at least […]
Astro knowledge / General / Observing Reports
Saturn and Porrima
While in California for the weekend, I had a chance to glance skyward and see the stars in their oh-so-familiar positions. I quickly identified Leo and The Dipper, then Arcturus. I was […]
Asteroid discovery, 1980-2010
This is a very cool data visualization of the recent advances in astronomy technology. Note that the number of discoveries doubles every 2 years between 1997 and 2003; in 6 years, the […]
Astro knowledge / General / Observing Reports
Quelling nonbelievers
It has been preternaturally clear in Northern California this winter. It was cloudy when we returned from Christmas (rained for most of the drive). It stayed cloudy until the Saturday morning when […]
Astro knowledge / General / Observing Reports
Planetary re-discovery
I was up very very early, walking the dogs. Champ asked to go out around 4:30. It was a very cold (around 20°) but crisp and clear night. The crescent new-minus-3-days moon […]
RECENT UPDATE
Polar Alignment Calculations
Here’s a page that derives Polar Alignment Calculations. (update 5/2020: the original site is gone, so I found the text on Wayback and am inserting it below. This is by the original […]
Gear / Observatory / Telescope
Special Guest Star takes the mount at Hilltop O
The Astro Jedi needed somewhere to store his light sab—- I mean, bucket, and I was only too happy to accommodate him. I have decided that I need to come to a […]
General / Maintenance / Observatory
Dome shutter is motorized again!
I finally decided to bite the bullet and fix the shutter motor. Things went sideways last winter, and I’ve been opening the shutter manually (and tying it shut with rope, so we […]
Trixie 2017 – tube mods
I finally got around to cutting the MTA-UTA tubes to length; the only eyepiece that would come to focus with the focuser spacer in place is the Televue 55mm Plossl. If I […]
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Observatory
Observatory 2.0 – Time has come today!
General / Maintenance
First Light, a deeper look
Mount / Observatory / Telescope
Observatory 2.0 – Result!
Observatory
Observatory 2.0 – The Pier goes in
Gear / General / Maintenance
Martin Farmer Wormblock installation notes
Deep Sky / Long Exposure Photography
NGC2244, The Rosette Nebula
Deep Sky / Long Exposure Photography
Another beautiful night.