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What happened to stargazing live during Stargazing Live?

kerrylewis

By kerrylewis
in The Astro Lounge

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Paul M

Paul M

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Posted

We're all stargazers. We can do it for real, weather permitting! We've surely got limited time to celebrate a real explorer.

Many of us here are "children of Apollo" so to speak. I wasn't even 5 when Armstrong and Aldrin did their bit. I remember my father getting excited but not the event. The later stuff I do remember.

All my school books were covered with doodles of big rockets and spaceships and planets...Sadly that's all they contained right up to age 16 when I was signed off as fit for work :D

 I've watched buzz a quite a few times even the clips where he stick one on the chin of some punk investigative journalist. He's the real deal, not some LEO tourist!

I'm watching him right now on TV. So he's not at his best but then neither am I!

Apollo It's a dying memory already. Let's hope he gets the youngsters looking him up on Wikipedia.  

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Hertford Stargazer

Hertford Stargazer

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Really enjoying this years programs, thanks to all those who have made it possible and I'm sure there are many appreciative viewers out there young and old. For me, people like Buzz, Neil and Mike are giants in the world of space and astronomy, to think that they've been to a place we can only gaze at through a scope is mind boggling. Long may their achievements live and inspire  :icon_salut:

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Macavity

Macavity

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It can be a bit confusing with two people (the hosts!) trying to speak at the same time.

But, thanks to BUZZ, I learned something new: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsiolkovskiy_(crater)

Further too, Harrison (Jack) Schmitt lobbied for landing on the far side of the Moon... :cool:

My schoolboy triumvirate got "busted", attempting to walk out of school to see a later

landing on mate's colour TV! Bittersweet to be reminded of "50th anniversaries" tho? :o

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DaveS

DaveS

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More actual stargazing tonight. Interesting to hear Buzz talk about his cycling orbits (I think I've got that right (?). He co-wrote with John Barnes a SF story "Encounter with Tiber in which the cycling orbits played a part.

Will have to catch "Back to Earth" on iPlayer as I'f having an early night while I fight this cold.

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Physopto

Physopto

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I'm afraid that what Lucy called a clear sky was pretty poor. Better than nothing, but would be useless for imaging! Hope they have better luck tomorrow.

Very interesting listening to Buzz. I watched the first landing when serving beer in a pub all those years ago. Found it fascinating then and still do. They were very brave men. Glad to see he is still around and doing so well.

Hope he is correct about the future of space exploration, as it gives us mere mortals some thing other than politicians talking rubbish and lining their pockets, whilst the rest of us face  monetary  cuts to all our services in  the future.

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Bathurst

Bathurst

Posted
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It's been OK, whilst listenting to Buzzes stories which are cool he does like to waffle on a bit...old age I guess! Got a thing for Liz too, can't quite pinpoint it but she just "does it" for me :D

Overall I'm enjoying it, it is what it is and I don't expect the best show ever, it's better than nothing.

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spike95609

spike95609

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Posted

Not sure what everyone's moaning about. Despite the title of the programme I don't think the idea is to get people using telescopes, it's to generate an interest in astronomy in people who know nothing at all about it. And they are doing this because they have a primetime slot built around a major event like an eclipse which anyone can see, schools are involved, and there's these mass participation projects like finding an unknown galaxy or a supernova. It's easy, free, and a nice first step for people who may want to go on to complicate their lives by getting into telescopes!

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Grotemobile

Grotemobile

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It's been OK, whilst listenting to Buzzes stories which are cool he does like to waffle on a bit...old age I guess! Got a thing for Liz too, can't quite pinpoint it but she just "does it" for me :D

 

Overall I'm enjoying it, it is what it is and I don't expect the best show ever, it's better than nothing.

 

Last night was not bad at all.

Better than Wednesday.See what

happens today. Another Liz fan.

Steve

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DaveS

DaveS

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Liz *sigh* :grin:

TBH, I think there will be moaners no matter what they did. I thought las night was better overall, but just having a program of blokes (Mostly blokes) looking through 'scopes in a dark field isn't going to get people interested, it *has* to be varies to have something of interest for a wide viewing audience, not just the hardcore on this forum.

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ronin

ronin

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Not sure what everyone's moaning about. Despite the title of the programme I don't think the idea is to get people using telescopes, it's to generate an interest in astronomy in people who know nothing at all about it. And they are doing this because they have a primetime slot built around a major event like an eclipse which anyone can see, schools are involved, and there's these mass participation projects like finding an unknown galaxy or a supernova. It's easy, free, and a nice first step for people who may want to go on to complicate their lives by getting into telescopes!

From previous years it seems to have been to looking through ahd using telescopes that have created the intrerest. That is where people start, that is where kids start.

Once you have a scope you may develop an interest in the technical or academic aspect of astronomy.

The first year of Stargazing Live the retailers just about sold out of scopes, SGL then got floods of "Which end do I look through?" questions. The second year followed similar but not as intense. The next year very little and that was when the program sort of went inside where screens and production technology appeared to dominate. Actual telescopes and actual observing was minimal. To an extent Stargazing Live became another Science progam on the BBC.

I think that if they had a small production team out with an astromony club in a field looking at the sky and talking about what you can actually do and see with real people they would get a much greater interest.

There is huge difference between being told about Jupiter, seeing detailed images of Jupiter, watching an excellent CGI of Jupiter and the sheer simplicity of looking through a small scope or even binoculars and actually seeing it yourself. It is the difference between "I saw Jupiter" and "I watched a program on Jupiter".

Having a 4 year old hang on to your scope because they can SEE Jupiter and they flatly do not give a damn about the queue of 20 that are waiting to have a look gives you one option - you tell the 20 they are going to have to wait. :grin: :grin: :grin: :grin: :grin:

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Grant

Grant

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Credit where it's due - the Eclipse show has been awesome! I think they got it absolutely bang on - showing people actively observing, some stock footage where appropriate and lots of enthusiasm and excitement.

The footage from the plane was sublime - totally agree with the above, shivers down the spine!

Good work Stargazing Live team! :)

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kirkster501

kirkster501

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We are all entitled to our own opinion but, respectfully, I think you guys are giving the show a hard time.  It's Stargazing LIVE remember with LIVE being the operative word.  A very difficult hobby with very faint objects for a "live" show and many contingencies required in case of bad weather.  IMO anything that stimulates and enthuses the public's attention onto this subject is a great idea and maybe many people are now turned into fresh astronomers with a love of what us guys do!  Also recall that we are relative experts compared to Joe public and this program is not meant for hardcore astronomers but for popularising science.

I concede though that this series has been a bit "spaceflight" orientated.  Brave hero that he is, I fail to see the need for Buzz Aldrin to be on this program.

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Beulah

Beulah

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Stargazing Live stopped me from being totally despondent...I have been very, very much looking forward to the Eclipse but had an important appointment I could not cancel!

Fortunately, the TV was on, and the coverage of the Eclipse, especially the plane footage form the Faroe Islands, was totally epic. Seeing that diamond ring blaze at totality was a tear-jerking experience.

I only had a tiny lozenge field-of-view to the outside from the room I was in and could see the light blue sky turning darker.

Well done BBC. :)

Please remember, the show caters for young and old, and the mass populace don't know much about the Universe - they are too busy with their noses to the grindstone. :(  I was at a outreach event last year and there were some learned people who didn't even know the planets in our Solar System!

As for Buzz being on the program, I know some kids who absolutely loved seeing him on the show - and old, storied man who has been in space! They were very much enthused about his work with the Mars project. Which proves the point about the program's target audience.

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Droogie 2001

Droogie 2001

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:shocked:

Stargazing Live stopped me from being totally despondent...I have been very, very much looking forward to the Eclipse but had an important appointment I could not cancel!

Fortunately, the TV was on, and the coverage of the Eclipse, especially the plane footage form the Faroe Islands, was totally epic. Seeing that diamond ring blaze at totality was a tear-jerking experience.

I only had a tiny lozenge field-of-view to the outside from the room I was in and could see the light blue sky turning darker.

Well done BBC. :)

Please remember, the show caters for young and old, and the mass populace don't know much about the Universe - they are too busy with their noses to the grindstone. :(  I was at a outreach event last year and there were some learned people who didn't even know the planets in our Solar System!

As for Buzz being on the program, I know some kids who absolutely loved seeing him on the show - and old, storied man who has been in space! They were very much enthused about his work with the Mars project. Which proves the point about the program's target audience.

The point in which the 'Diamond ring' appears was stunning. I was viewing it from my desktop computer at work (it was authorised :grin: )  and I did not expect such an amazing view

In fact when the sun began to appear again on the right hand side there is a moment where you can see a 'rippled' effect on the sunlight. At this moment Brian confirms what I was thinking in that the sun light is being directed through some of the moons mountains ranges, stunning! 

Have to admit it put a lump in my throat!

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