Sky is clear but I'm inside and fed up :(

[Mr Spock]

First clear night in ages. I have a clear view around now the massive leylandii have gone. But...

The neighbours opposite have been here about six months. It looks as though they have their main upstairs bedroom as a playroom. The kid is screaming and, more importantly, they have the curtains open and a 150 megawatt bulb on. I can't see a thing.

Between trying to hide from that and the streetlight across the road I give up.

[Floater]

Aw, that's harsh, Michael. It's a great hobby - but other people keep spoiling it!

I'm about to set up in my back garden and battle with neighbour's lights, street glow, a massive infirmary to the north, and all the light pollution that a city produces. But, as all stargazers should, I'm keeping my expectations low.

But I'll have fun.

[John]

My back garden has similar issues. I either have to wait until everbody around is asleep or carefully pick my targets (as I am at the moment) so that the surrounding conifers etc mask the surrounding lights a bit.

At least you might be able to glimpse a horse head Michael - although it's likely to be connected to the rest of the rocking horse !

 

[laudropb]

Many of us suffer from these problems. A new neighbour of mine installed a security lamp in his back garden which is on all night long. I politely asked if it could be turned of if I was out with my scope and was told to get lost. I have managed to block out the worst effects but not completely.

[Uranium235]

Well, I've got the gear out but Im not sure im having fun either.

Had a bit of a sore throat all day and now its turned into earache and one side of my neck is starting to swell a bit (lymph node) - which probably means Im getting another round of tonsilitis. Its not the usual sore throat feeling.... more a sort of "ouch" pain. I've gone over 40 years without getting this, and now its come around twice in just over six months!

Good job ive still got some penecillin from the last time (just popped a couple), but if it gets any worse im going to have it looked at tomorrow.

[Mr Spock]

The sad part is I started constructing a pier in the south of the garden to get round the leylandii. Now they are cut down my original observing site in the north is clear and shaded from the led streetlight and the new site is bathed in light.

The thoughts of having to redo the patio again is too much

[chiltonstar]

The best thing to do when neighbours are lighting up the night sky is to develop an interest in doubles! No LP problems there! I've just spent an hour cruising round Orion and Gemini with my 180 Mak despite two security lights and the local poachers out lamping 200 yards from my house.......

Chris

[tich]

I have the same here as regards security lights but still going ahead with an obsy build, if it continues to cause problems then the fence will be built so its high enough to block the worst one.
I haven't been out in the garden in ages mainly because its always a mud bath & I only seem to get set up at the darksite (when its clear!!) or at star parties these days. Occasionally I'll take the ED80 out & take a photo or 2 of the Moon but that's pretty much my lot.

[Tim]

I feel for you Michael. My neighbour has installed a super bright floodlight which he keeps on all night. Ironically, his giant Leylandii actually block as much of that light as they do my sky view...

I saw him the other day and said, " Oh, Dave, your new light...."

He said with pride, "Yes it's a bright one isn't it, do you like it?"

Grrrrrrr. I got him to angle it down a bit but it still lights up my garden and blinds me when I walk up to my obsy. Directly opposite the airport has started leaving an equally bright light on, on top of one of the hangars.

Thank goodness for Ha filters

Tim

[andyboy1970]

Ignoring the neighbourhood lights and am imaging right now, 30 minutes of 3 minute subs so far with the Canon & 150p.

M45 is the target and its nice to be using the DSLR again, I seem to enjoy it much more than the CCD.

[Mr Spock]

I think I need to bite the bullet and put the patio back where it was. There are still parts of it left - it has a garden bench on it. Put one more flagstone in for the front leg of the EQ6, move the bench, and I should be good to go. That will sort things temporarily until I can decide what to do.

[scarp15]

Hope you manage to resolve this problem to something at least acceptable. My own solution to these issues has been to establish my local allotment as an alternative sometimes to my fairly restrictive yard (growing things is a bit of a decoy). Not exactly free of all issues and the high walls in my yard do actually help in blocking some stray light,  but at least there are no neighbours illuminating their landing light, thermals from heating systems, smoke, walls and roofs concealing views etc. Extra bit of effort is required and having applicable kit has become a factor to conveniently walk with and I wouldn't leave anything in my shed overnight. 

[Mr Spock]

The light is on again. When I put back the old patio I'll be shaded from the lights. The neighbours either side of me don't have their lights on so I'll be good to go.

It's a shame I put all that work into the base for my pier - and lucky I didn't get any further!

[triton1]

Mmmmmm I,ve been thinking about a allotment aswell certainly won't be growing any veg though.

[happy-kat]

My council kick out those who don't actually do any growing to give out to someone who will use it.

[philhas]

Sitting outside with the bins, M41 looks glorious... Regards from Spain

[scarp15]

58 minutes ago, triton1 said:

Mmmmmm I,ve been thinking about a allotment aswell certainly won't be growing any veg though.

 

34 minutes ago, happy-kat said:

My council kick out those who don't actually do any growing to give out to someone who will use it.

 

Plant lots of fruit trees, besides the harvest, has the combined function of sucking up some of the moisture when like mine the soil has turned to mud.   

Our immediate neighbour keep their landing light (no curtain) on all night, they have two young kids, dont know how any of them sleep.

[nytecam]

Reading all these LP issues is very sad and I feel for my fellow amateurs.  My solution decades ago with to build a dome with narrow viewing slot to block local LP.  Also planting shrubs along my garden boundary with evergreen climbers. Trying to reason with neighbours is largely useless unfortunately.

Now into my 2nd but smaller dome [linked below + my gallery] with goto 12" SCT + Lodestar sensitive camera for my DSO shots 'viewed' in essentially realtime and mag 17 and fainter in a few seconds exp.  Discovered supernova SN2011az so doing.  Ditched the EPs for DSOs decades ago before the Ethos was invented !

Nytecam [get it!]

[nightfisher]

Michael, i am in the same boat regards the muppets next door, i have a garden with a superb view to north, west and south, but next door has a bunch of little horrors that leave light on and curtain open, i have called it a day on any deep sky objects and just stick to solar system only now, though i did manage a look at M42 the other week, i really miss going up to digly res when i lived in hudds 

[Physopto]

It depends upon how tall you are but I have up to eleven street lights around my house. I walk out of my back door and am blinded by one 20 yards away directly opposite. I can clearly see the bulb filament. I turn to walk into the garden and am assaulted by another directly at the bottom of the garden, it is within 3 yards of my fence pointing at me. Filament again! (The council in their wisdom decided some years ago to light all our back lanes). If I move into the middle of the garden from where I can actually see some of the Southern skies, and look in that direction I am them blinded by several more in the adjacent streets. I live on a corner of cross roads with a back lane so have to contend with three sides with lights. Then the local college (100 yards away to the North)  have their building lights on all night as the cleaners go about their duties, it's a tall building.  On the other side my neighbour leaves his landing light on all night, with out any curtains, a man my age apparently scared of the dark! To cap it all several times a week the local school has recently built a really nice sports field and obviously feel the need to have very large and bright lighting, mostly pointing horizontally across the grounds. So I get a beautiful blue /white glow dome all over the sky to help out the normal orange glow from the town lights. The northeast is a diabolical area to live in as an astronomer.

We decided to move at the first opportunity available. Hopefully by next year!

i just gave up.

Derek

[nightfisher]

2 minutes ago, Physopto said:

It depends upon how tall you are but I have up to eleven street lights around my house. I walk out of my back door and am blinded by one 20 yards away directly opposite. I can clearly see the bulb filament. I turn to walk into the garden and am assaulted by another directly at the bottom of the garden, it is within 3 yards of my fence pointing at me. Filament again! (The council in their wisdom decided some years ago to light all our back lanes). If I move into the middle of the garden from where I can actually see some of the Southern skies, and look in that direction I am them blinded by several more in the adjacent streets. I live on a corner of cross roads with a back lane so have to contend with three sides with lights. Then the local college (100 yards away to the North)  have their building lights on all night as the cleaners go about their duties, it's a tall building.  On the other side my neighbour leaves his landing light on all night, with out any curtains, a man my age apparently scared of the dark! To cap it all several times a week the local school has recently built a really nice sports field and obviously feel the need to have very large and bright lighting, mostly pointing horizontally across the grounds. So I get a beautiful blue /white glow dome all over the sky to help out the normal orange glow from the town lights. The northeast is a diabolical area to live in as an astronomer.

We decided to move at the first opportunity available. Hopefully by next year!

i just gave up.

Derek

Yep sounds like moving is a good idea, or go to a dark site, good luck, if you find yourself looking at a new house, go check it out at night

[Physopto]

I only get any imaging done at Star Parties. Kielder and Galloway. For me as an CCD imager last Galloway was not too good with too many intermittent and frequent  clouds?  Of  course as luck would have it I am missing Galloway this time as my nice decided to get engaged, after ten, yes TEN years (and I am sure it was planned) just to coincide, in fact it is today. So I was told I I had to go. 

It has been a really bad time for us all over this last year, bad weather and all.

So that is another opportunity missed, sometimes I wonder if it is worth getting out of bed? Anyone got a gun? 

Derek