whats been your best unaided eye sight of the heavens ?

[astroeddie]

Guys,

Just been sat pondering whilst answering another thread here and wondered........

Since you've started observing, whats been your most memorible sight in the skies ?

Not counting Aurora or comets, not that they do not count mind you !!!!

Mine has to be the region in the same view of the Southern Cross.

You have the Coal Sack, a patch of Dark Nebula, just to the left of Crux. To the right is Eta Carina and the Southern Pleiedes. looking south towards the S/Cross on your left you have those amazing naked eye objects, the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds with Toucana 47 along side the LMC.

When at home it has to be the dark lane that passes through Cygnus, blocking out part of the Milky way. Always amazes me.

Just thought this would make a nice topic to read.

ATB ..... Eddie H

[Sam]

I agree with you my favourite unaided (with my glasses on of course) view is the region of the Southern Cross. There's so much there and it was the first constellation I learned (mind you it's easy to remember when it sits on the national flag).

Sam

[Ant]

Location. Davis Mountains - Prude Ranch, Tx. TSP May 1989

For me the Milky Way rising over the mountains. It was as bright as real cloud and we (those of us from the UK) all thought that it was a bank of cloud coming in. It took some time and a lot of sniggering from the locals before we realised what it actually was!

Fantastic! What I would give to go back!

[jgs001]

Just the sheer number of stars visible on the clear night we had camping down in the very southwest a couple of miles from Saint Ives, before I really got into all this. This would have been August a couple of years ago.

[Casus belli]

I'd imagine that its the same area as Eddie. I was in the Falklands in 1984 and I do remember some fantastic skies but I couldnt tell you exactly what I was looking at.

However (and I know this is against thread rules) returning from the Falklands on the "Uganda" we anchored off Ascention island. I wandered to aft end of the ship and was rewarded with a distant but violent thunderstorm with accomping meteor shower, whilst in the sea dolphins were chasing flying fish attracted by deck lights. And finally a large turtle serenely swam past (The only one I ever saw in the wild)

Magical night.

[dave1978]

When i was about 12 years old me and the family stayed in Fort William, one evening we were treated to a stunning view of a spiral galaxy. Only later in life did i find out it was Andromeda.

Also in 2003 on mount Siani in Egypt, they take you up in a coach then you lie back on a mat and just watch the sky. The sheer number of shooting stars we saw was astounding. This wasnt a special event its like it every night aparently, we must have seen 30 or more in a 10 minute period.

[James]

Two views stick out in my memory. Back in summer 1995 I was in Wyoming about 100 miles from anything bigger than a hamlet and the view was incredible, even Kate was impressed when I dragged her out of the tent. My eyesight then was about as close to perfect as the optician could determine and the sky was full of loads of stars and a gorgeous Milky Way. :shock:

A second fantastic view was in New Zealand in 2001 in winter similarly far away from lights and the view was fantastic, made all the more stranger by the fact that I only knew some of the constellations.

These views stick in my head because with the gradual decline of my eyesight I'll probably never see views like that again.

James

[SteelRat]

Late october 1988 - biggest hoogest brightest fireball I've ever seen 8)

Also sat out watching last years lunar elipse. That was such a great night 8)

Cheers

Matthew(SR)

[Vega]

Unfortunately, I haven't been abroad since my interest in astronomy exploded in to the obsession that it is now. But my most amazing view in the UK still blew me sideways.

Location: Slapton, South Devon

Month: August

Moon: About 5 days old and already set

Limiting Magnitude Approx 5.5

Hardly any light pollution, the nearest reasonably populated place is probably Torbay about 15 miles North, Engllish Channel to the South and East . I remember looking up and seeing the sky split in two by what looked like a giant cloud belt. Cygnus overhead all the way through to Saggitarius took on a milky glow clearly visible sinking dowin in to the sea. Was on a camp so was able to share it with loads of people making it an unforgettable moment. Ended up with most of us just lying down looking upwards in awe.

Matt

[Tiny]

The first that came to mind....

Standing on the back deck of my boat staring at all the stars of the Milky Way at midnight on a 6+ night in summer. I sort of looked out from our bedroom, thought wow and wandered on deck - all alone in the middle of nowhere (Coole Pilate UK). It was about a half hour later I remembered I was naked - but the stars didn't seem to mind.

[dogfish]

Good idea for a topic.

I've had some memorable views of the milky way from reasonably dark places, but that's just left me wanting even darker skies.

Last March's lunar eclipse was nice.

Seen lots of meteors, but the best was when out the first time with the Scottish Astronomers and saw a green fireball - Craig (Blinky on here) also saw it so I know I wasn't imagining it

Cheers, Martin

[Talitha]

To answer the question in the thread title:

My "best unaided eye sight of the heavens" happened a few years ago when the transparency was nearly perfect. There were more stars visible than I've ever seen before, and I swear I could have reached out and plucked the Double Cluster right out of the sky...

To answer the question in the opening post:

My "most memorible sight in the skies" was the Moon right after Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface. I've had a lot of very memorable sky sights, but nothing will ever top that one.

[Astroman]

Most memorable unaided sight would have to be the night Rosie and I were headed back from Las Vegas along the north side of Grand Canyon, somewhere out on the Navajo reservation. I was driving, and noticed I couldn't see any city lights. I pulled over and we got out. Sure enough, not a light dome or terrestrial light source of any kind, in any direction for as far as the eye could see. The winter milky way was just rising in the east, and seemed very bright indeed, compared to the dim constellations ahead of Orion. Spectacular!

Second I think was when I finally got to actually observe on Kitt Peak. Dark sky, (but not as dark as the reservation), very steady seeing. It was hard to decide what to point the telescope at, so I took some time and just looked up. Glorious.

[timetraveller]

for me it has to be the two magnificent tails blasting out across the heavens from comet hale bop viewed here in swindon and after that the aurora whilst i was in goose bay Canada and both brought exactly the same responce a huge wow followed by teary eyes and a feeling of being very small in the grand scheme of things

[barkis]

Sorry, I have just reported a view that was telescopic, and therefore did not qualify. So I have deleted it.

Ron.

[coliea]

May 2007 at Gary and Claire Dorgan's Valley of the Gods B&B near Mexican Hat, Utah. The nearest town of Bluff is miles away (Mexican Hat is more hitching post than town).

Remote, quiet, off the tourist track, and DARRRRRK skies. Forget hyperbole... this place is awesome http://www.zippitydodah.com/vog/

[Jamie]

Well my best and most memorable unaided view of the night sky has to be

a few years ago when me and Astroscot2 were out to view an aurora.

It happened to be a Coronal Aurora which was incredibly awe inspiring.

Honest it was like something out of The Ghost Busters movie.

There was this kind of blank hole in the night sky with all these colours emanating and flowing

from the highly visible Coronal hole in the sky.

A fantastic sight but creepy as hell....

[Astroscot2]

Wel , not including Aurorae or comets I would say the total eclipse from France in 1999. what an experience

[Naz]

On a fishing trip in mid September about 15 years ago, away from any lights, just looking up and seeing the sky full of stars, and seeing several random meteors streak across the sky. Promised my self to get a scope again.

Had never seen the Aurora until on night shortly after we had moved to Scotland, I was closing up about midnight, when I looked out side, the sky was full of colour that was changing as I looked. Called up stairs for Anne come down and have a look. She appeared in a hurry and asked if the house was on fire, I said no but the sky was, she had a look for about 5 mins and went back to bed, I stood there for about an hour, cursing the fact that I didn't have any film for the camera. Then clouds rolled in and that was the end.

Two days later, when I went to get some film, I returned with a cheapy 80mm f5 from Jessops.

naz

[saturn5]

The night of the Leonid fireballs,the year when the shower appeared a night early(1998?)i think.

Everyone left trails in the sky for up to 15 mins,some exploded as they came through the atmosphere,unforgettable.

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

Three years ago in France near Le Mans, the place is so much darker than Huddersfield that you can see hundreds of thousands of stars, not just dozens. Cost me a fortune since though.

Kaptain Klevtsov

[part timer]

I've spent a good deal of my adult life trudging around very dark patches of the world but oddly enough the best sky I have ever seen was in the breacon beacons in 1996. Late November freezing cold and I was laying down in the mud for 6 hours (just don't ask!) when i rolled over and saw the entire vista ablaze with stars. More than I've ever seen from Africa or Canada.

Second was probably in Canada watching the northern lights. this would be best but I was a bit to far south to get the best view.

And of course just a few weeks ago I had had just about enough of battling to see anything through my aw full sky's with my scope, when i looked up to see the brightest,fiercest meteor I've ever seen shoot across the sky in front of me leaving a massive lingering tail behind which lasted a second or two before disappearing.

So i went inside happy after all!

Luke

[thing]

Morton Island off the coast of Brisbane last year. Laid on the sand after the best fillet steak I've ever had, bottle of wine and a glass, driftwood fire died out and just gazing up at the sky in utter awe at the clearest, most perfect sky I've ever seen. Made doubly so by the fact that I didn't know what the hell I was looking at. The family just left me there and I stayed 'till sun up. It was warm too. One of life's defining moments. I thought at my age they had all gone. And I'll be there again in August...... This time with the DSLR, zoom lens and tripod..........oh yes......

I would agree with Talitha on the Armstrong pics. I was 13, science mad and me and my mum, dad and sister just watching with breath held and mouths open. It was the early hours of the morning here in UK as I remember, still gives me goosebumps to think about it. I feel very privileged to have seen that live.

Crikey this is a great hobby isn't it.

[Astronut]

The best ever for me was in the late '70's when I was a marine engineer with BP Tankers and I don't think I'll ever top it.

Location: middle of the Indian Ocean going from the Persian Gulf to Australia. I came up on deck after my midnight-4am stint in the engineroom. The sea was almost a mill pond and there were no lights on deck apart from the red and green navigation lights of the ship and a few lights from the accomodation but I was fully shielded from them on the poop deck.

The sky was ablaze with stars and I had a little difficulty identifying the constellations because there were so many stars especially after my eyes had become fully dark apapted. This was compounded by being in unfamiliar latitudes and familiar constellations were upside-down. I'll never forget the sight of Scorpius and the Milky Way almost directly overhead. I've never seen the Milky Way so bright. I first had trouble seeing where I was walking on deck but once my eyes were dark apapted I was OK and I suddenly realised that the only light I had to light my way was the stars. They stretched from horizon to horizon with not a cloud in the sky and I could even see the reflections in the sea. Absolutely mind-blowing. To cap it all there was a ghostly green glow from the wake of the ship which was bio-luminescence.

More recently I was in British Columbia last year and the skies in the interior are something to behold. Not quite as good as the Indian Ocean scene but it came close.

Even more recently (last night actually), I was parked up for the night in a quiet layby shielded from the road on the A17 just west of Sleaford, Lincolnshire. Clear night and no local light pollution. There was a glow on the west horizon from Newark and a lesser glow to the east from Sleaford but for the first time in years (since I was a young lad) I easily saw the loose cluster of stars in Coma Berenices (east of Leo), a constellation I'd forgotten about since then. I live in the same neighbourhood now as when I was that young lad with a cheap 'scope from Dixons and it made me realise how much more light pollution there is these days and how poor my backyard is. I remember alot more clear nights from back then too. I think the UK's getting cloudier and wetter

[thing]

Astronut, me and the money pit were on a cruise in the Med about four years ago. I took the binos specifically to do a spot of star gazing at night. They had those blumming silly 'lights on a string' that run all the way from bow to stern permanently on all night..........