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I keep brief notes and find them useful to refer back to. Sometimes I will make sketches or mark positions of comets/asteroids. I record variable star observations to submit to the BAA and AAVSO.

Not buying a PST when they were only £400. The price seemed to suddenly shoot up.

Impressive haul in a 2 hour session!

Blimey, doesn't seem so bad now, having to get power from the greenhouse to the shed.

Thanks. What would be the cause, cold temperature, change in temperature, damp? I have power going to a green house at the top of the garden so it wouldn't be too much problem to put power into the shed.

That’s Doug’s shed - but I think I have some old carpet I could put down. Might as well make it homely

Thanks Doug, that’s great. Your set up is just what I had in mind.

Hello all My scope currently sits in an unheated veranda by the patio. Quick and easy with not much cool down time. My wife now wants the space so it looks like I will be putting a new shed up the top of the garden. There are some surrounding trees and bushes to cut back and a patio burried in garden waste (looks like a skip is needed). Does anybody else keep their scope in a shed? I have a cover for it. Are there any modifications I should do? A roll off roof is probably beyond my DIY skills! cheers

Great capture. Can’t beat an eclipse.

Nice and clear here tonight - nice bright moon too unless I stop up until 2am.

I've only made it there once, I think it was 2008. Such a great day, Ha solar viewing outside and great speakers that included Patrick Moore and David Levy. I'll put myself a diary reminder to try and go next year.

M31 can be seen naked eye from a dark site but I have always found it a bit of a let down in scopes. A very dark sky and good pair of bins is my preference.

Great post Dave. I was just going to check my list of what to look for tonight as it is actually going to be clear. Living in a light polluted area means galaxy or nebula hunting is very limited. There's only so many times you can look at M13 etc! Tracking the brightness of variable stars gets me outside to look at something that changes between sessions. Submitting to AAVSO and BAA feels like I am contributing too. I'm a basic visual only.

Well done. I wouldn’t be without my bins. They get used more than my scope and I always take a pair on holiday if I am going to be away from cities.

I used to make sketches as a youngster. I regret that they went missing years ago. I started keeping a written log and making sketches about 12 years ago. I've started up various spreadsheets and lists as an offshoot but think I probably spend too much time on it now. My writing is so scruffy that I feel the need to type it all up. I do refer back to notes and sketches on occasion which justifies the time in my mind.