Welcome to January's New Members!!

[daz]

Well a busy month indeed!

January saw a record number of new members sign up to Stargazers Lounge - a whopping 54! This puts our total membership at well over 200.

The Admin and Mod team work hard to ensure this forum is one of the best and liveliest places to discuss all things astro-related, so if you have a question, an idea, some feedback then don't hesitate to contact one of us - we really want to hear from you

Orion continues his march across the heavens with his two dogs in tow - Canis Major and Canis Minor. The Orion Nebula is an unmistakable object in a clear sky, and worthy of a view in any instrument let alone a telescope. There are plenty of Deep Sky Objects abound at this time of year - check out the discussion in the Constellation of the Month Board and tell us what you want to aim for this month!!

Of the planets, Saturn is riding high and clear in the skies at the moment. In close proximity to the Beehive Cluster, it makes a fantastic wide-field shot, or a close up for the bands and the rings!! Take a look at the ringed planet and see how many of its moons you can see.

The full moon is on the 13th this month at 04:44 UT, and new moon is on the 28th at 0:31. For all you 'Lunar'tics, there is a new programme called Moonwatch - details of which can be found on the Moonwatch website - your chance to take part in a real scientific study!!

Whatever you preference in the night sky, let us know how you get on, or post an image / sketch / observation report - we always want to hear your experiences.

Clear Skies