At this year’s Fall picnic we were treated to great food, marvelous company and some extremely comfortable temperatures along with beautiful views in the afternoon. As the sun approached the horizon, clouds rolled in as they are apt to do and prevented astronomical viewing in the evening. Most of our guests and astronomers had left by 10:00 PM or so since the night was not looking particularly good for observing.
There was a forecast (according to the Clear Sky Clock) that there would be a period of clearing around midnight. Sure enough – the clouds parted some time after 11:00 PM and we had a beautiful sky that gradually became clear from horizon to horizon. By about 1:30 AM or so, clouds rolled back in, but for a couple of hours it was a beautiful sight. Below is a single (unstacked) image that I captured of the Dumbbell Nebula (Messier 27). Many, many thanks to all of our members, friends and guests who attended and brought the delicious food and drink (and grilling equipment provided kindly by Demetrius Venable and John Barnett). Particular thanks to David Medici for coordinating and cooking and to our friends with the FrancisEmma organization at Belmead who hosted the event.
Time lapse of telescope setup and skies over Belmead October 19, 2014
Regards,
Jim Browder
Richmond Astronomical Society