Sunset is at 5:21pm and the moon rises at 5:11am. Jupiter Red Spot will be visible at Sunset until 7:30pm.
If you’re planning to come out, please post on here that you are coming.
If you want to be guided to CRO, please post here and check back to see if a CRO member can meet and guide you. CRO members, please post what time you can meet any members needing guides. Please make arrangements to meet directly with whoever will be guiding you.
Remember to dress for temperatures 20 degrees colder than the temperature in the city. We also have a place to warm up and hot drinks if you do get cold.
As an alternative to asking for a guide, directions to CRO can be had by searching for “Cheddar Ranch Observatory, Watonga, OK” in either Apple Maps or Google Maps.
Right now the forecasts are for mostly clear, but slightly windy conditions Saturday evening.
I will ensure the observatory is open for non-members that evening. I’ll post Saturday when I’ll have it open by, but probably will be about an hour before sunset, i.e. by 4:30 or so. Might be sooner if another member gets there before me.
Yes OKCAC Member Nights are for Club members and their guests. We also welcome visitors to come out. I’m planning on coming out and Ida was planning on coming with me. I will get the Club C14 opened up. Will not be opening up the dome for the 30" it needs a part replaced and some work done on the shutter motor.
We had 9 folks at Member Night. 3 non-club members, and several CRO first timers.
Despite the wind, Cody and Jonah set up their Dob and had some great viewing! Ben was viewing things with binoculars, always a good choice when windy. Dave got the 14" up and running and everyone enjoyed looking through it.
So depsite the wind and farily cold temps, I think it was a very successful night!
It was a very good night. We had a very dim Starlink pass under the Little Dipper. The C14 was running great using the iPad to control it. Ben wanted to verify some Messier objects he looked at with Binoculars. So we started out by looking at M32. Well we learned something new. I always go to M31 and have thought I was also seeing M110. Turns out it was M32. So went to M110 to see what it looks like. Have never visually looked at M110 before found out it is very dim in the eyepiece. So I can now say that I have looked at M31, M32 and M110.
I say that any day (or night) that you learn something is a great day. And when we are willing to correct an erroneous belief? Even better. Congratulations and good for you!