Not cut out for astronomy?

[P_Monty]

Don't get me wrong, I love looking at the skies and the first time I saw saturn's rings i was quite moved...

But, this time of year no matter how many layers of clothing /hats etc I put on, I end up loosing interest due to the cold after about half an hour, which is barely time to set everything up and align the scope properly. Then just to compound things, I suffer quite badly if i don't get enough sleep and so in summer months I'm usually in bed before it goes dark.

Can anyone offer any encouragement?

Thanks

Paul

[allcart]

try Video astronomy, or adapt your kit so that you can view remotely fron the warmth of your house. In the summer, try solar observing.

[Earl]

A solution maybe to become an early morning observer and go to bed earlier to compensate for getting up at say 3 am

[tekkydave]

Needlepoint? It's much cheaper aswell. Only joking.

[jambouk]

Get your thyroid levels checked

On a serious note, maybe it isn't for you.

Are you wearing suitable clothing. I think it's key to use layers in cold weather, and they don't all need to be thick.

My layers include:

An all in one thermal outfit on top of your pants:

http://images.esellerpro.com/2762/I/330/3/AIOFlapMP2-CF.jpg

This helps to keep the middle bit warm, and stops any breaks in clothing continuity around the middle.

Skinny socks.

T-[removed word] / long sleave t-shirt

+/- long johns

Second pair of skinny socks

Long sleaved shirt

Tracky bottoms

Football socks (up knees)

Monkey onsie (another outfit to seal in the middle, and with hood so no neck draft)

Jean / thicker trousers

Fleece

Thick skiing jacket

Shoes with a thick sole to keep feet off the floor

Skinny gloves

Hat which does up under the chin

Thicker gloves on top if not needing to doing intricate things with hands.

Access to hot tea / coffee / hot chocolate, and a 15 minute warm up out of the cold every so often but staying in the dark to keep dark adaptation.

I hope you turn the corner.

James

[Paul M]

What I like to do if the forecast looks promising is set up roughly in daylight or at dusk when it's probably not so cold.

Just leaves scope alignment to do when it gets dark.

Doing that gives me chance to go back indoors and get a good warm through.

When I'm done I don't get too hung up over packing away. Everything just gets lugged into the kitchen and left until morning.

I also wear something like this. Not the exact same one but looks similar. I got it as work wear originally but it's just too good! Even in bitterly cold weather I can't do any real work while wearing it without overheating. It is, however, perfect for standing round in freezing weather!

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Mechanics-Motorsport-Race-Rally-Snow-Mobile-Wet-Weather-Rain-Snow-Suit-Overalls-/360740065561?pt=UK_Other_Clothing_Protection&var=&hash=item53fdc89119

[NGC 1502]

All good stuff above.   For me, getting out there under the stars is what it's all about.

But it doesn't have to be that way. Lots of members of my local astronomy club are "armchair astronomers".   Although they sometimes take a bit of stick, there's absolutely nothing at all wrong with it.   When new people turn up at my club, I like to have a chat, if no one else is doing it.   After letting them know a bit about the club, I mention the various ways our members do astronomy - visual, imaging, armchair, casual, obsessed, or bit of each, and as we won't be paying them to do it, their choice 

Hope you manage to find a way forward, Ed.

[Beulah]

A nice hot cup of coffee just before you get going can keep you warm for a long time. 

[ronin]

Not knowing the full situation one aspect is set up the scope/mount during the afternoon.

Will say that an EQ and a Mak is not the quickest setup combination. The EQ mount takes a little time and care and the Mak is a narrow field of view. Get a 32mm or 40mm Plossl to help the set up with a Mak.

Next don't worry about it, just because it is clear doesn't mean you have to gallop outside, setup and view..

Keeping warm. That really needs the right stuff. I have stood out when everyone else was shivering and I was warm (too damn warm).

Start with good footware. I bought a set of snow boots but also a set of "field boots" from Aldi. I added a couple of extra layers to the field boots in the form of 2 layers of foam (fab foam from Hobby craft) and a felt layer to the inner soles. They were poor. Get the boots one size bigger then your feet.

For the upper half, get 2 reasonable fleece tops, try 2 Regatta fleece tops, their half zip things, one a bit smaller then normal and one to fit over that and a padded jacket - nothing too tight, air is what keeps you warm.

Head, try a normal fleece hat.

Is there a club near you that you could join and go observing with?

Best if they have an observing night that is a Friday or Saturday.

The "problem" with observing is that clothing is designed/intended for you to wear while moving round, walking at least. When you observe you do not move round much so you generate no heat from that aspect.

[AlexB67]

Making sure you a warm to begin with before going out helps, and plenty clothing to stay warm once out.  I am much less inclined out go out the last couple of nights since I am getting my boiler replaced, so no general heating in the house right now, just electric to keep it modest,  but not exactly feeling warm with that behind a PC right now, so the thought of going out into even colder air is less tempting and a beer to warm up is more attractive .  I have never had an issue though so far, carrying out a 10 inch scope helps a bit to just to circulation going a little bit too.

Last week and a bit before the moon got in the way it was quite cold, probably the fist time and the coldest night I observed so far, in spite of not having many layers of fat on me I was surprised I did not nearly get as cold as I thought I would, I was too engrossed in the views once I got going to think about it   Not sure about tonight though, moon will be up soon anyway and already had  a fair dosage of moon recently.

[chrisbk]

I do sympathise - I'm trying to get back into observing after a long break and agree in winter it's cold and summer gets dark too late. I probably don't have the dedication any more. 

I agree it's a good idea to set up as much as possible before it gets completly dark if it looks like it could be a clear night.  My mount has been out since 4pm yesterday - clouded over last night and looks cloudy again now. 

Too late now if it clears - the  few glasses of Pinot Grigio I've drunk doesn't help with the observing!

[scarp15]

A nice hot cup of coffee just before you get going can keep you warm for a long time. 

Thats it, lots of hot drinks and snacks and arrange to meet up with some companions or join a local club, then you can collectively enjoy the deep cold, dark skies together. 

[Kropster]

From reading some of the posts, it looks like the time some observers spend getting dressed probably exceeds the amount of time I spend outside.

Maybe I should also wear more layers!

When I used to do a 60 mile each way commute by motorbike all year round, I found that 5 layers just about beat any cold weather...except for fingers and toes.

[Helite]

Loose layers, good boots and endless cups of coffee work wonders!

[Charic]

P_Monty.........Hi, Too many layers of clothing can cause problems. Essentially you need a decent base layer (@£20) to wick away any sweat (we all sweat), as it gets colder, your body tries to warm eventually resulting in sweating,  and if not removed, chills  you then cold sets in! You`ll need an outer layer that is both wind & water proof (almost any coat), and a cosy layer? (a fleece or jumper) It helps if the cosy layer wicks too, to assist the base layers. That and a hat solves the upper body. Warm socks,  boots and  just thicker trousers. Pretty simple to keep warm. You could even sit at your observing station in a sleeping bag?

My main concern is the loss of your astronomy interest? (due to the cold!) The clothing and hot drinks/soups will last a few hours, but what about a change in equipment. Have you any binoculars? With Christmas upon us, is there a chance of a present. This will be the fastest method of "looking at the Skies" as you so dearly love. The telescope will still be there for the better nights, although it will always be colder on clear nights. The clouds keep the warm in (like a blanket). I'm already in the freezer this far North, and Winters about 6 Months here?? 

[Rickstar]

Have a look at Tony French's article on clothing for astronomy in the Dec. issue of Sky and Telescope.

[Luke]

I'm no night owl either and I have really enjoyed getting into solar imaging and observing this year, and a bit of lunar as well. It was so enjoyable observing the sun in summer. Out in the sunshine, a cold drink, suntan lotion on.
 

I can also do some solar during lunch time.

[Dave_D]

I'm currently sat outside, 4 hours now. Must be 4 or 5 degrees at most but hey, thats the way it goes. Helps being a tough as nails northerner though

[neodude]

Hi,

I stayed one night from 23:00 to around 6:30 in the morning.. there were about -2 degrees, couldn't feel my toes.

Scratch what James said about the hot coffee, tea; for me it worked with vodka, but only after PA lol )

Also it would help to take short breaks and step inside once in a while..if needed..

GL,

Andrew

[Okeydokey]

Spending too long setting up is a pain.  I find now that popping out with a silly furry hat, my parka with a pair of binos is great.  Every man to his own, I do though think that the hardcore astronomers are a different breed, I find the sky at night delightful in increasingly smaller doses, once you start knowing what you are looking for, you spend less time looking for it I guess?

[spaceboy]

Don't get me wrong, I love looking at the skies and the first time I saw saturn's rings i was quite moved...

But, this time of year no matter how many layers of clothing /hats etc I put on, I end up loosing interest due to the cold after about half an hour, which is barely time to set everything up and align the scope properly. Then just to compound things, I suffer quite badly if i don't get enough sleep and so in summer months I'm usually in bed before it goes dark.

Can anyone offer any encouragement?

Thanks

Paul

I still feel like you do and I have been stargazing on and off for over 7 years now.

I try my hardest to think of astronomy as a hobby and one that I can enjoy when I want to enjoy it. I know hobby sounds obvious but I think in the UK with the clear nights so far and few between it can often feel as if I HAVE TO GO OUT if it's clear as I am missing out on the scope time that has been lost over the past month due to poor weather or other commitments. 

If you really can't stand the cold or the late nights but do enjoy stargazing my best advice would be to consider getting yourself a grab and go set up. One that can be up and running in seconds, easily stored away so it's not in the way and can be took a suitcase if your ever planning to go on your hols to a dark site or south of the border.

By far my most used scope over the past couple years is a little 60mm refractor on a camera tripod and 8-24 zoom ep. I can be out with minimal set up and cool down and back in just as easily when I've had enough. I use it during the day for solar observing with Baader solar film (bird watching during cloud) and the total cost was around £130. I think the lack of use from equipment you have put a considerable investment in to can also put some pressure on you to either put up with being miserable in the cold or sell up and loose out on the treasures the night sky has to offer.

There is no denying astronomy is a demanding hobby and this is why there is a second hand market filled with "as new only used a couple times" equipment. But then on the flip side there are those who are naturally drawn to the mysteries the universe has to offer and just can't help but keep on coming back for more.

[glappkaeft]

I'm late to this thread but there is a Swedish saying I just have to share:

"There is no such thing as bad weather only bad clothes."

I'm a bit of a outdoors guy (former boy scout etc.) but also a person that spends most of my time indoors (computer geek). I still think this saying is true and I have spent and seen other spend hours in -25C or colder weather doing visual/photographic astronomy and other things. The key is good enough clothes, especially shoes and headgear plus knowledge how to handle the cold. Hot food, beverages and a place to warm up helps but the key is always "good enough clothes".

[scarp15]

To an extent it may also depend on the nature of your previous hobbies / interests. If they are largly asociated with being in-doors, then an activity such as astronomy - in the UK at most times of the year, can feel perhaps a bit severe.

All of my own hobbies / interests since I was aged 14, have outdoor association, so in a perverse sort of way, I relish the open spaces and consequently the cold sensation

[todd8137]

Might seem a bit strong headed but the cold as never bothered me once I start looking at the ep the cold seems to go away ,after 30 mins or so I just stick the kettle on in the obsy ,on really cold nights I will take a sleeping bag out there and a that sits in side a vortex bivvy bag I can stand or sit

But some night am beat by frost but I also find have in a group or just another person ( usually the cat or both Jack Russell's with me ). It tends to take the mind away from the cold ,am the opposite I hate summers for viewing all those late nights but in the winter from 18:00 till around 23:45 am out side every clear night . ( unless am imaging then am sat in the house remotely doing it )but as said above just because it's clear ,there's no need to rush out side .

Also binoculars are a great tool to have no set up and the challenge of finding stuff is great. Am sorry to hear the cold is getting in the way but the winter can be a great reading time, and research time do not give up yet , there is so many things to see so many things to explore up there ,I thinks if every one in the world just took a week to see what's really up in the sky it would humble every one and make them see that humans are so small on a tiny planet and there's more important things in life ,than the every day hustle and bussel ,astronomy makes me feel humble and takes my cares and stress away stick at it

Pat

[Fish]

Get a good mountain type, down  coat ,wear long johns under your trousers if needed , get a good outdoor hat and get a good pair of gloves. Set up then return to warm house / car while gear cools. Get yourself a medical eye patch from your local chemist and wear it on your observing eye and start wearing it 20 minuets before you go out to observe.  Use a thick old towel over your head when observing to help preserve night vision in your covered eye, only remove patch when under towel ready to go to eyepiece and the towel will help to keep your face warm (sometimes this can cause your eyepiece to dew up if you exclude all air flow so its a learning curve to maintain enough airflow without allowing stray light in ). As soon as you feel cold return to your house / car for a warm, remove your coat and wait until you are fully warmed up before going out again . Because you maintain your night vision you can spend as little time outside as feels comfortable .

As you can probably tell I don't like the cold   hope some of this helps .