Monday, December 13, 2010

Geminids

Tonight was my first bona fide meteor shower. I don't know that I'd call it a shower as much as a trickle since I only saw about 13 spread out longer than 3 or 4 minutes each. I have a feeling the light pollution near my house was the main culprit, so I'm not overly downtrodden. I'd have liked to see fireballs streaking through the sky, but I saw 13 of them and that's worth mentioning. It doesn't help that it's midnight on a school night and 36° F outside. Sitting on a fold out sunbathing chair trying to stay warm isn't what I would call fun, but it was nice listening to the rustle of leaves and watching Orion climb in the night sky. It's enjoyable to revisit constellations I first learned a year ago and see how different they look now that I've been paying closer attention.

Friday, December 3, 2010

First Star Party

Tonight Harrison and I are heading to Lindale to participate in our first star party. It's only a couple of hours and we're only taking his scope (70mm refractor), but I'm looking forward to seeing how the Astro Society of East Texas conducts themselves. So far they seem like a great bunch of folks and I'm mostly just hoping to listen and learn. Once I get more comfortable w/ them I'll bring out the big scope, but it's too much of a hassle on top of me not really knowing what to expect out there.