Apollo 11 UFO? Happy Halloween

Do you believe this??? Leave your comments.

Eldorado Star Party - Video

Another Video from Rick. This time from the Eldorado Star Party!

Thanks Rick, I'll be looking forward to more videos from your iphone.

Roof Top Astronomy Video

Rick posted this video to YouTube.

Sketching

One of the most important things that I believe each amateur astronomer should at least try is sketching. Sketching helps you train your eye. You have to sit and observe for a while. Often time we seem to get in a hurry just star hopping our way around only looking at an object for only a few moments. When was the last time you looked intently at an object for 10 minutes or more?? I'm guessing that most astronomers will honestly say that have never spend 10 whole minutes observing a single object.

Sketching forces you to spend time one objects. Once you begin to do it you will begin to notice more details, ones that you haven't seen before. It really is like adding inches of aperture to your telescope.

Astronomers long ago, before the age of cameras, used to study a single object all night and maybe many nights. Image what you could do if you did the same. Image how much greater our telescopes are compared to those used by the early astronomers.

I challenge you to go out and be an old school astronomer in today's world. Even when I'm not sketching I try to make it a point to always take a second look at what I'm observing.

Roof Top Astronomy

This past Friday evening the weather was prefect a few members of the San Antonio Astronomical Assoc. set up at a local high rise apartment building for their open house. It was really neat doing astronomy 22 stories above the city. Here are some photos:

Solar Activity

Eldorado Star Memories

I spent Wednesday-Saturday last week at the 2009 Eldorado Star Party. This was event fun. I have blogged about it for already so I will not go into too many details. I slept in my Honda Element each night and observed with my 16" Lightbridge. On Saturday morning I packed up and met up with my San Antonio group at Garner State Park for an outreach star party. I spent 4 nights observing 3 at ESP with Rick A. and other members of ESP and one night with my San Antonio Astronomical Association friends and camped one night at Garner State park.

Here are some photos from ESP 2009: