We’re eating at Swadleys in El Reno now, and then headed over.
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Illa be out running late
Is this your Magnetic Fast Charger for a Galaxy Watch? It was found tonight at CRO following All Member’s Night. (It has been left on the table at CRO.)
No Sir. Not mine. But I’m sure someone’s going to miss it shortly.
CRO is closed down.
It was a wonderful night at CRO last night! Possibly the last night that will be (relatively) warm, clear and mostly calm for the rest of the year.
In addition, we had a lot of folks come out for the great viewing. I counted at least 32 members and guests, and I think I missed a few. I haven’t seen that many people at CRO since pre-shut down. Fantastic!
Thanks to Tom Graham and Marv Halsey for opening and operating the 14" and 30" for folks! And thanks again to Tom for cutting the grass for the winter! The CRO committee met and discussed ways to mitigate the sticker problem next year, so hopefully we won’t get stuck so much in the future. They’re also going to work on the gopher problem, to reduce the chance of turning an ankle in a gopher hole in the dark. Thank you, CRO committee!
And thanks to Dave Huntz for sticking around and shutting down CRO!
It’s really nice when the sun sets so early under Standard Time! I actually got home before midnight, whereas in the summer, with the same amount of viewing, I’d get home at 0300-0400. Personally I’d love it if we scrapped the DST experiment and went back to Standard Time all year!
Thanks to everyone who helped make last night such a success!
The next All Members Night at CRO will be on Saturday, 22 November.
Sunset is at 1723 (5:23pm for those of you still using the 12 hour clock…
). I will commit to ensuring the observatory is open by 1600 so members can set up in the daylight. The Moon will set at 1858, and will only be at 5.6% illumination when up, so we should have some dark, clear skies!
The long range weather forecast is for clear skies all night, light winds, and much cooler temperatures. It will be getting down into the 40s, so dress for mid-20s! The building will be open to warm up your fingers, toes and cheeks, plus there’s plenty of coffee, tea, hot chocolate and apple cider in the kitchen cabinets that you can make to warm up the insides.
If you can open and operate either the 14” or 30” please post on here that you will do so!
A reminder that All Members Night at CRO is for ALL members, prospective members, and guests! If you haven’t been to CRO yet, this should be a great night to come out and experience it! You don’t need a telescope to enjoy viewing the universe. Just wander around, and I’ve found the folks with telescopes are always happy to let you look through their scopes. And the astrophotographers are always happy to show off their images! Plus, if you know how to use a scope, but don’t have one, we have a lot of scopes in the building available for use. And just looking at the night sky with your eyeballs and/or binoculars is always a wonderful experience. I’ll have binoculars there you can borrow if you’d like. Even though I almost always have at least one or two scopes set up, I always take time when I’m out just to look up and enjoy looking at the vastness of the universe!
If you do plan to come out, please post on here that you’re planning on coming. If you’ve never been there before, you can enter “Cheddar Ranch Observatory” in either Apple Maps or Google Maps and they will guide you there. If you would like a guide, post on here that you’d like to have one and you can arrange to meet someone else going out to have them guide you. Good places to meet are Swadley’s BBQ in El Reno (I often eat dinner there on the way out), Cherokee Trading Post where you turn north off of I-40, or the City Hall parking lot in Geary.
Be aware that Geary is a speed trap, so strictly obey the speed limits there. Especially when coming back. And watch for critters on the road! I’ve seen deer, hogs, cows, and multiple smaller animals on the roads, even the fast 4 lane road, both coming and going.
So com’on out and enjoy the universe next Saturday!
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What Mitche said!
I will not be able to attend this one due to out of state family arriving for pre-thanksgiving.
Enjoy this fine facility and group!!
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Weather is not looking promising for this one.
What forecast are you looking at James? All of my weather apps are indicating clear, mild winds and temps in the low 50s, dipping down into the 40s as the night goes on.
For late November, that is an excellent forecast.
Of course, this is Oklahoma. That can all change in 5 minutes. At least according to Will Rogers.
Hi Mitche,
I saw Rain on Friday and ASSumed it would still be around on Saturday! I hope the Saturday forecast is correct! Wishing you clear skies!
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Its mine. Must have fallen out of my bag
The forecast for tomorrow got worse midweek. However, it’s gotten better again. Clear or mostly clear.
I’m going to open CRO regardless of the clouds. If it unexpectedly rains tomorrow, I’ll cancel.
I put a new camera in my Celestron Origin, so I’m going to bring it tomorrow to try to get some images from CRO. If you want to see one in action, com’on out! I rarely travel with it since it’s so much bigger and heavier than my other smart scopes.
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Hi new member and was looking at coming out there and try to learn more about astrophotography as ive been trying but i have a small scope that i am still trying to understand the lenses. I found it on Google maps looking at dark skies near me
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Welcome Shannon! It’s looking pretty good for tomorrow evening. Much better than tonight, but probably colder. Be sure to dress warmly.
Are you planning on Swadley’s BBQ beforehand?
No. I’d have to stop by there about 1400. I just finished breakfast, so I wouldn’t be hungry. Taking some food to nuke at CRO.
The forecasts haven’t changed! I should be clearing there about now, and should be clear and calm all night!
Dress for cold if you come out!
Shorts and sandals it is then😊
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