Observing season finale at Dalby Forest

Friday 1st March was the 2012/13 observing season finale at Dalby Forest, as the dark winter nights give way for the lighter nights of British Summer Time (BST) later in the month.  Despite a promising forecast earlier in the day, the forest was under complete cloud cover.  With no chance of observing, society secretary Andy Exton FRAS gave the 50+ crowd a tour of the Solar System and Beyond in the comfort of the Forestry Commission Visitor Centre.

The younger visitors were well prepared for Andy with numerous questions about space and astronomy, such as the expansion of the Universe, the Big Bang, the formation of the Solar System, and that all important question “is the Moon made of cheese?”

Our 2012/13 programme of public stargazing evenings has been very busy and hugely successful, with more than 300 people attending our 6 events in the forest since October, a film crew visiting us, and the awarding of Dark Sky Discovery status.  We thank each and every one of you for your support and hope that we have helped to further your interest in astronomy.

We take a break from evening events now until October, as the nights draw out with the changing of the clocks for BST.  The lighter nights mean that it does not get dark enough to properly observe deep space until very late at night, with twilight conditions at the more sociable hours.  However, the society does not rest completely over this period.  Our programme of talks continues until July.  We hold our monthly talks at Ayton Village Hall on the 3rd Friday of each month.  The next talk is by Dr Pete Edwards of Durham University, who will be “Bringing the Universe Down to Earth” with a talk about the research at CERN and the LHC with astronomical interest.  This talk is on Friday 15th March, doors open 7pm for a 7.30pm start.  Non members are welcome with an entry charge of just £2.  We look forward to welcoming you.

We are also heading away from the forest on Saturday March 23rd for a night of stargazing with RSPB Bempton, to raise funds for the society and the RSPB.  For further details and to book your place, please contact the RSPB direct on 01262 851179.

In addition, we will also be holding some Solar Observing sessions in Dalby Forest through the summer months to give the public an opportunity to see our nearest star through specially manufactured safe solar viewing equipment.  Observing the Sun can be extremely dangerous and done without proper equipment can result in permanent eye damage.  Equipment such as Coronado PSTs and SolarMax telescopes which show the Sun in Hydrogen Alpha, and high quality professionally manufactured white light filters are some of the safe ways you can observe the Sun, and see details such as sunspots, prominences, and surface detail.  If you are interested in details of these events, please keep checking our events calendar for dates, or follow us on Twitter (@scarbastro) and Facebook.

For those of you interested in immersing yourself in the hobby on a more serious level, don’t forget our annual Starfest Star Camp 9th – 11th August, Adderstone Field, Dalby Forest.  Please book early to avoid disappointment as this event is very popular with astronomers from around the UK.

Our first Dalby Forest stargazing night of the 2013/14 season will be Friday 4th October.  Until then, we wish you clear skies.