March 22 Seagrave Observatory Night
by Robert Janus, Francine Jackson, Matt White & Jim Hendrickson
The cloudy skies briefly cleared, allowing the observatory to hold its first (but shortened) Public Night in 2025. Conditions at 8pm were essentially cloud free and remained good for approximately 45 minutes. The sky then rapidly closed up with a few open patches remaining.
We made good use of the viewing time that was available. Matt White was able to show visitors several deep sky objects through the 12 inch Meade and simultaneously the images displayed on a tablet connected to his SeeStar 30. Jupiter and all of its four prominent moons were viewed with the Alvan Clark refractor. (The planet kept drifting out of the field of view. Perhaps the clock drive needs adjustment.)
We had approximately 11 visitors consisting of family groups. Katie Silva, Matt White, Jim Henrickson, Francine Jackson and I were on site to show them the night sky. Because of the clouds we were finished by 9:45.
Katie, Matt, Jim and Francine please add any thoughts regarding last night.
-- Bob Janus
One of the reasons Bob closed up a bit early was we started to have a bit of drizzle. Other than that, what he said, with Matt's report, was great.
-- Francine Jackson
We concurrently showed M42, M44, M45, M1, M101, Betelgeuse, Sirius, and NCG 2903. People were very impressed with the Seestar, especially when I discussed the price point, and ease of operation, as compared to using a big Meade with a DSO camera. People really liked the idea that for a few hundred dollars, they could produce breathtaking pictures of the night sky, with little or no specialized knowledge.
Seeing the difference between seeing a DSO with their own eyes as compared to what can be captured with a camera, as well as understanding why, helped set expectations for doing visual astronomy.
This is a good idea, doing comparison with either the 12" or 16" along with a smart telescope.
-- Matt White
This was our first Seagrave Observatory Night of 2025.
The weather was quite variable. It started clear and mild, but just after dark, bands of low clouds started coming in from the north. It stayed mostly clear, then some high haze moved in. After another brief clearing, a blustery wind picked up about an hour in. Still mostly clear overhead, Francine, Katie and I standing in the front yard started experiencing sporadic rain drops for a period of about 1 minute. Some kind of front moved through, after which it became almost 100% overcast.
About a dozen spring peepers and wood frogs were active in the pond throughout the evening, and a pair of barred owls could be heard in the distance to the north.
A predicted heightening of auroral activity that was observed by some in the area Friday night did not materialize on Saturday night.
-- Jim Hendrickson
