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Where to holiday for southern skies ??

spaceboy

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Mark at Beaufort

Mark at Beaufort

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You should be able to see Omega Centauri from the Canary Islands which is about 29 degrees latitude. However, to see the LMC or SMC you need to go further south. I understand that NGC 2070 Tarantula Neb is in the LMC at about -69 Dec and 47 Tucanae nearby to the SMC is further down at -72 Dec. I doubt you would see either LMC or SMC from Cape Verde at 15 degrees latitude.

I was once told that to work out the southern Caldwell objects you add 85 degrees -  so the SMC needs a latitude of -72 +85 = 13 degrees latitude. Holiday in Barbados??

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dick_dangerous

dick_dangerous

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This is something that is bugging me. I've been to the Southern Hemisphere three times and the skies are ASTONISHING. It's not hyperbole either - they have the LMC, SMC, Omega Centauri, Crux Australis, the Coal Sack, 47 Tucanae, the Galactic Centre... And what have we got to compete? The Plough*. Great. The best view I have ever had of the sky was either in the depths of Colca Canyon in Peru, or in the Atacama desert in Chile. Mind-blowing is the oft-used phrase that comes to mind.

Your problem is, of course, getting there. I desperately want to get back down there for the astronomy, the wildlife and the adventure, but it's an expensive game. Here's a few options I'm considering:

  1. Argentina - Buenos Aires costs roughly £600 to fly to. From there you'd need to take a stonking bus trip to get into the wastes - it's something like 18 hours to the north-west of the country which has great skies. I'd recommend Patagonia if you went out there though, but you either have to fly or sit on a bus for 48 hours. Chile, Peru and Ecuador are more expensive to get to because they're on the Pacific seaboard. I've heard flights to Brazil are a bit cheaper, but haven't visited myself.
  2. Southern Africa - Flights to Nairobi are in the region of £500. Kenya is on the equator, Tanzania a little bit south, so not the best for the most southerly skies, but you'll get them. Kenya has become sketchy in recent months though. The wildlife is also good there, but I would rather visit Namibia and Botswana for the Namib desert and Okovanga Delta - these two countries are especially pricey - flights are £800 plus. Johannesburg is probably less expensive.
  3. Australia and New Zealand - flying to Perth is around £700, Sydney and Auckland a lot more. But the skies are phenomenal!

So the closest would be Kenya or Tanzania. Given the choice I'd go back to South America, probably via Buenos Aires. Good luck getting down there!

DD

* Although it's far easier to access the aurora from the north. You'd have to go to Antarctica to see the Aurora Australis.

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baggywrinkle

baggywrinkle

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Perth region and Southern WA is good, you can easily get away from the city lights by heading north and up into the Perth Hill up at Gin Gin. Or do the southern wine trail through Margaret River set up on the coast by the Indian Ocean.

The downside is that Aus is very expensive these days, hotels are not cheap, car hire is OK and fuel is about £1/L (when I left in Sept), eating out is more expensive in WA than other states of Aus too.

But the skies are stunning.

S Cross & Coal Sack 3

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spaceboy

spaceboy

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Thanks for the advice guys.

Looks like I will have to settle for just seeing Omega centauri and head for some where around the canary islands. I will be taking my young lads with me and they don't sit still for long so long haul flights are out of the question.

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ronin

ronin

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I think that to do it you are looking at a flight to Australia, simply you get to see them all. Agreed Australia is now expensive to visit however you have the internet and there is no need to pick a city centre 5* hotel. For your purpose you actually don't want that.

One time I was in NZ I stayed at a very nice place outside of Wellington, a short 10-15 minute stroll and I was at the station and on a train into Wellington. I was paying $50-80 NZ less a night and $8 to get in and out of Wellington, and no parking costs.

Will say the UK-NZ flight was the worst I ever took, just too damn long.

Is there just you or a family to take into account?

If family then you need to do some homework.

Perth would in a way (if family) be good, you could not easily visit other places so it would be a single location vacation, this equals shorter. What happens with Australia is people got to Sydney, then Brisbane and Cairns for the Barrier Reef, then comes Ayres Rock. That all gets costly.

As said Australia gets the job done, and with reasonable forethought and possibly not picking city centre locations it could be not too bad, still not cheap however.

Sounds like 26N is not enough or else get a package to Miami.

Perth have this lot: http://aswa.info/index.html

Possibly more general: http://www.clubsofaustralia.com.au/Astronomy/Clubs-in-Western-Australia.html

Second one lists clubs in all the main areas.

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spaceboy

spaceboy

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What's the thoughts on Tunisia??? I have always wanted to go there to see the Star Wars filming locations and this is reasonably south and not too far away?? I'm also guessing you can easily get away from built up areas but how safe would it be there out in the middle of no where looking up at the sky like a true tourist??

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Joves

Joves

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This is something that is bugging me. I've been to the Southern Hemisphere three times and the skies are ASTONISHING. It's not hyperbole either - they have the LMC, SMC, Omega Centauri, Crux Australis, the Coal Sack, 47 Tucanae, the Galactic Centre... And what have we got to compete? The Plough*.

Not to gloat, but I've viewed each of these objects almost every night his week :)

Oh, and I have also seen the Aurora Australis, without ever having been to Antarctica. I've seen them from Melbourne! We truly are lucky to be blessed with the skies we do down here.

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cantab

cantab

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This is something that is bugging me. I've been to the Southern Hemisphere three times and the skies are ASTONISHING. It's not hyperbole either - they have the LMC, SMC, Omega Centauri, Crux Australis, the Coal Sack, 47 Tucanae, the Galactic Centre... And what have we got to compete? The Plough*. Great.

We've got the Double Cluster, M31 and M33, Albireo, and best of all, a proper pole star.

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dick_dangerous

dick_dangerous

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This is something that is bugging me. I've been to the Southern Hemisphere three times and the skies are ASTONISHING. It's not hyperbole either - they have the LMC, SMC, Omega Centauri, Crux Australis, the Coal Sack, 47 Tucanae, the Galactic Centre... And what have we got to compete? The Plough*.

Not to gloat, but I've viewed each of these objects almost every night his week :)

Oh, and I have also seen the Aurora Australis, without ever having been to Antarctica. I've seen them from Melbourne! We truly are lucky to be blessed with the skies we do down here.

Feel free to gloat away! I'm impressed that the Aurora comes that far north - I should imagine Southern Tasmania, the south of the South Island and Tierra del Fuego get aurora. Not that I saw any when I've been in these places - my travels to the antipodes coincided with the solar minimum. Didn't think that one through!

We've got the Double Cluster, M31 and M33, Albireo, and best of all, a proper pole star.

Sigma Octantis is just about naked eye magnitude... I'll stick my neck out here, much as I love seeing M31 and M33, they don't quite match up alongside the Magellanic Clouds. But this isn't a Who's got the best galaxy competition...

DD

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Joves

Joves

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I think the "proper pole star" is about the only one we don't have, isn't it? :)

I know we certainly have M31, M33 and Albireo. Admittedly, I've wondered about the Double Cluster. Must check to see if it comes over our horizon. Never seen it but hear it is a beauty!

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Joves

Joves

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More than happy to have to drift align if it allows me to regularly view Omega Centauri and 47 Tucanae (which just so happen to be the best globulars in the Milky Way), the Tarantula Nebula and Eta Carina (which just so happen to be the best nebulas in the Milk Way outside of M42), Crux and it's unbelievable surrounding star fields, the Coal Sack, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, so on and so forth.

Ok, yes... Yes, I'm definitely gloating now ;)

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Joves

Joves

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The most beautiful night sky that I have ever observed is in the Namib.

I want to head down there again, once the kids are a bit older and appreciate it.

Namibia sounds like a brilliant place to go for stargazing. Olly's link looks pretty enticing. Bit hard to drag the family there, though, when I'm the only one interested in looking through a telescope :)
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Christopher Davenport

Christopher Davenport

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Namibia sounds like a brilliant place to go for stargazing. Olly's link looks pretty enticing. Bit hard to drag the family there, though, when I'm the only one interested in looking through a telescope :)

I am trying to convince the wife on a holiday to a location with good skies. I would struggle to take my wife and kids to a Astro specific place.

Anyway they would drive me mad during the day while I am trying to sleep :)

I was thinking of the Canary Islands as a option, gives the family plenty to do and I can escape up the volcano at night!

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vvsloan

vvsloan

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More than happy to have to drift align if it allows me to regularly view Omega Centauri and 47 Tucanae (which just so happen to be the best globulars in the Milky Way), the Tarantula Nebula and Eta Carina (which just so happen to be the best nebulas in the Milk Way outside of M42), Crux and it's unbelievable surrounding star fields, the Coal Sack, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, so on and so forth.

Ok, yes... Yes, I'm definitely gloating now ;)

I reckon you're making people drool now : )

I am having to go to Zambia at the end of Feb for 5 weeks. I know, woe is me, but my childrens father lives there so, alas, we must go ;)

I am really, really new to stargazing but have just bought a pair of 15x70 bins especially for trip. Can I ask you people more knowledgeable than me, what are the best things to be looking out for, and the best things to see with such a pair of bins?

(My kids dad has assured me that his is the tallest building for at least 5 miles around (we can sit on the roof) and there is virtually no light pollution.

(who's gloating now eh? ;)

Many thanks,

Vic.

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