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This was one FUN, FUN, FUN time! As usual for the area, the weather was cooperative and despite a bit of upper atmosphere haze, the skies were clear from horizon to horizon. The daytime skies were populated by puffy cumulus clouds that occasionally obscured the daystar Sol. Otherwise the Starguides showed up around noon to set up the numerous solar observation tools. The Starguides included the director Richard Brown, several from Texas Astronomical Society, Ft. Worth Astronomical Society, and South Plains Astronomy Club. Fred Koch was kind enough to attend and let us use the equipment he has acquired for the events. The SUNFUN equipment included a couple of Televue refractors (TV-101 and TV-102), on a Gibraltar and Losmandy GM-8 base. The filters were Baader white-light and a Coronado H-Alpha. A Sunspotter and several members telescopes were also presented. The Sun revealed a couple of very active regions at the western and eastern limbs. The large sunspot group 50 was moving off the western limb and is now gone. Many prominences were visible including a huge extra-solar emission extending above the eastern horizon. Several darker prominences at the face of the disk were seeable, and a very dark spot was observed in H-Alpha at the southwest region about where group 50 was placed. The edges of the disk were covered in a peach-fuzz layer of lower activity flares. After a couple of hours of observing, the starguides dismantled the equipment and took a break before the next program.
Setup of the STARWALK program began at 5:00 at Big Pond area. This high plateau has become the prime observation point for the park and is maintained by the fine staff of the park for our use. A few windbreaks at the southern edge kept the hot southern wind from being a nuisance, and the recently cut grass kept the insects at bay. The flat, circular area is surrounded by a drive and bounded on the northeast by 50 or so chairs set up for the attendees. After the setup, Larry Smith and Richard Brown cooked up a great meal of hamburgers and we all ate and chatted about the nights' event. Each starguide participated in the setup of the various Obsession telescopes that ranged in size from 15" to 25". Giant Fujinon 25x150 binoculars were mounted to a parallelogram tripod and a Star Window was set up for easy observation with Fujinon 16x70mm binoculars. Another pair of 16x70 Fujinons were mounted to the Starchair. This was a very popular observing tool for the public and the guides as well. Everyone waited to take their turn scanning the heavens on this carnival ride attraction. A starguide pointed a green laser at a target for each to observe and the operator would find the laser and see the target object. Great fun!
The 60-70 attendees were first introduced to the night sky by Jeri Turner. She started with a great dissertation on the differences between the types of twilight phases and went through the topic of finding your way through the night sky. Very informative and complete for beginners as well as veteran observers. After the talk, the public was released to wander among the instruments and gaze upon the night sky. Each starguide had a special object picked out on suggestion by Ewell Schirmer. The observing program lasted for over an hour with a very enthusiastic crowd asking many questions and politely taking their turns at each instrument. Afterwards the guides were allowed free rein over the equipment and many favorite object were seen in great fashion. The incredible dark skies and calm winds made a perfect environment for observing. Several highlights for me included finding comet C/2002 O4 (Hoenig), the Veil Nebulae with an OIII through a 31mm Nagler in the 25" f/4.5 Obsession, and Stevens Quintet. The Helix Nebulae (NGC 7293) was another great view in the 25" Dob as well as the central star of M57. Several spectacular meteors kept everyone looking up, and many satellites were spotted by both the guides and the attendees.
The Moon welcomed us at 2:32 AM with a beautiful crescent display over the eastern ridge of the lower valley. The Pleiades showed their reflected nebulosity just prior to the brightening moonrise, and the double cluster of Perseus was glowing with stellar detail, naked-eye. At 3:45 AM, I laid down in my tent with the King Cepheus and his Queen Cassiopeia riding high overhead, the moonbeams glowing through the tent netting and many happily slumbering starguides encamped all around thinking about the breakfast the next morning at Dutch's Restaurant.
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