Leigh with Bruce, Cheryl, Jesse and Cody as guests.
Arrived: 8:30 pm
Temp: 5 C, Clear
As usual, I am slow at getting my log posted. I have to get in the habit of writing my log the very next day. … paved with good intentions comes to mind.
Friday, Feb 3 turned out to be one of those nights when everything you planned fell apart and yet the night turned out better than I could of hoped for. Friday was improving all day long so I made up my mind while at work to post an email to the AOMO mail group to let them know that I wanted to go to the AOMO that night. I got two responses so I planned to have an early supper and get into the forest by 7:30.
After eating I received an email from one of my earlier respondents that he couldn’t make it. I thanked him and finished getting ready to go. Although my main objective of the night was to load the software and get the guide camera operational, I grabbed a couple of my eyepieces so that I could do some observing as well.
I arrived at the forestry gate at 7:35 retrieved the observatory key and walked around eyeballing the night sky from the staff parking area awaiting my fellow observers. Timing is everything and this time it had conspired against me. I found out after I got home that my other companion to be had also sent me an email informing me he could not make it. I did not know that I was waiting for someone who was not going to show up.
By 8:00 I was just about ready to give up and give Mark a call. He had told me he would be imaging from in front of his home and had invited me over as a back up plan if things didn’t work out for the AOMO that night. Just before I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket a car pulled through the forest gate. I approached the car thinking it might be my evening companion only to find it was a lady with two of her children with her. She asked me if I was waiting for someone so I explained what I was there for and how I was just about ready to give up.
When she heard me tell her I was with RASC and that I was hoping to go to the AOMO that night she got quite excited. She introduced herself and her children. Her name is Cheryl and her daughter is Jesse and her son is Cody. As it turns out her daughter is attending Thomas Haney Secondary School in grade 9 and is very interested in astronomy. Jesse was very excited about the observatory so I invited the family to join me for some observing. Cheryl told me she would go home and get her husband and they would all get warmer clothes on and then come join me. Her son Cody informed us that he knew excactly where the observatory is located as he rides his bicycle through the forest regularly. It is his back yard after all.
I proceeded to the observatory. I opened up the dome, started up and loaded the new software into the computer and was just about to start up the telescope when my guests arrived.
Cheryl introduced me to her husband, Bruce and then we spent close to an hour in the office with me telling them the history of the AOMO and talking astronomy with Jesse. I explained what RASC is all about and invited them to future meetings and talks. Jesse and Cheryl both kindly offered to introduce RASC to the school astronomy club so that we can help the school in the future with our astronomy outreach program. If Jesse is any example, I look forward to working with such an enthusiastic and well taught group of young people. She displayed an incredible grasp of astronomy. As a matter of fact the whole family was knowledgable and enthusiastic when they got a chance to look through the telescopes.
By the time I took them upstairs the sky had deteriated somewhat. There were bands of clouds starting to drift across our view. I put an eyepiece in both the 80mm guide scope as well as the LX200. It was interesting to my guests to see the different views the scopes offered. We viewed M42 as well as the Moon. We had also looked at a couple of stars while I aligned the scope. Betelguise brought out the most conversation as it is such a colourful star.
By around 10:00 young Cody was starting to have a hard time keeping his eyes open. Like most young lads he had had a much more active day than myself. If I could only have that much energy! The family said their goodbyes and thank yous and made their way out of the observatory. They requested I add them to my mail group so that they may visit again. I look forward to their company in the future. I have to admit their visit rescued my night for me. I never got the camera to work and would have probably not gone up past the gate at all had they not happened by. I extend a big thank you to Bruce, Cheryl, Jesse and Cody for making my night!
I then made some notes and a short shopping list. I re-tarped the scope locked up and travelled back down through a Moon lighted forest.
Depart: 11:30pm.
Temp: 5 C