Richmond and kew astronomical society

[aurora sky]

Hi does anyone know what happened to this group or if its still running?

Apparently it closed down, if there are any x members are people in the area who are interested in meeting up would you please let me know.

Thankyou

Lulu

[swamp thing]

Hi Lulu

I believe there are a couple of guys on here that meet in the deer park Nr Hampton court if that's not too far for you.

Hopefully they'll see this thread. Here's a thread on it.

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/221595-richmond-and-kew-astronomical-society/?hl=%2Brichmond+%2Band+%2Bkew

Or further afield there is the SGL Surrey observers we meet on Ranmore common Nr Dorking. You are more than welcome to come on down and join in.

http://stargazerslounge.com/forum/112-sgl-surrey-observers/

[aurora sky]

Thank you I might be able to occasionally make Hampton

[dick_dangerous]

Hi Lulu,

I go out into Bushy Park to observe although it's been a bit tricky lately with the moon, work and that age old problem of clouds... I can see them out of my window right now! I'm planning to alert other members next time I go out, but it's usually rather a last minute thing - Sunday looks hopeful but I'm at a barbeque in the afternoon with a notorious wine fiend, so have to be careful not to be Drunk in Charge of a Telescope...

Am I right in thinking you're at Secondary School? This makes things a bit more difficult because I'm just some guy on a website with a telescope, not an official society. While I welcome anyone who stumbles across me in the park to have a peek at whatever I'm pointed at it would be irresponsible of me to actively encourage you to join someone you don't know in a dark park. I should point out that I'm an educator by profession, so have to know about all this stuff. I also know that it's really annoying when you're under 16 and can't do stuff because of child-protection laws, so sorry if this reply feels a bit like a Stranger Danger TV advert but I have to say it because I am, allegedly, a responsible adult and have a certificate to prove it.

If you have a garden, that would be the best place to start observing, just with the binos and a star map / stellarium. You can pick out a lot, even in quite light polluted skies - from Barnes I've managed to spot several star clusters and nebulae with a pair of 10 x 50 binoculars, and the sky is wrap-around orange! If you ever get out of London then be sure to find a chance to do some star-gazing - the darker the skies, the more you'll see. If you want ideas, advice and tips then this forum is an endless source of knowledge. There are many of us stuck under the light pollution who can offer suggestions for things to look at in the urban environment. Observing in the park is great, but can be intimidating - Bushy and Richmond Park have the added excitement of the deer, but they're usually pretty passive. Marauding humans are my only worry: best advice when going to an isolated dark site is to take someone with you. I don't mind being in the park on my own but my wife always knows where I am and when I'm due home, if she's not out there with me...

If you want to meet other astronomers and get to see some telescopes then trying to find a group is definitely a good move. It's annoying that the Richmond and Kew lot are now defunct because they'd be perfect for us SW Londoners. While they're a non-starter, here are some other groups you could try:

• Baker Street Irregular Astronomers - meet monthly in Regent's Park. Bit of a pain to get to if you're in SW London. I'm hoping to make their next event on August 20th though!
• Walton and Hersham Astronomy Group - A bit easier to get to from this end of town - they meet in Esher.
• Ewell Astronomical Society - Meet at Non-Such High School for Girls in Cheam. Depending on where in SW London you are, could be a good one to try.

There are several other groups dotted around London and also into Surrey itself. If you go you'll have to take a responsible adult (An irresponsible one may suffice) - they may well be willing to accompany you to Bushy Park for one of my impromptu observing sessions, but they'd be better persuaded to go to a well-organised event rather than spend a couple of hours watching me with my telescope fumbling around trying to find some random fuzzy thing in space. I want to organise a stargazing evening where I work, at a well known nature reserve in Barnes, but I need to work out the logistics etc. before I can get the go-ahead. Unfortunately it wouldn't be free either (we can teach you, but we'll have to charge), but I'm keen to get it off the ground.

Hope that's some help to you and doesn't seem like a load of patronising, discouraging waffle. I'd love to say it gets better but I'm in my 30s and am still patronised by most people I meet.

So it goes.

DD

[PeterW]

RKAS did observing in a surbiton garden, though I never made it there. No reason not to collect together like minded sorts and think about arranging something, always better in a group, especially with the deer making noises again!

PeterE

[Guy Wells]

Pop along and meet the Baker Street Irregulars!