I never expected astronomy to be dangerous.......

[JOC]

...........but a quick perusal of recent SGL threads suggests that it more dangerous than I ever realised.

So I've already dropped a heavy finder-scope on my foot (both lived to recount the tale!). 

It seems you can burn down your observatory with the electronics if you aren't careful

You can set fire to yourself (or blind yourself, or destroy your equipment) when doing solar astronomy

You can do your back in lifting the kit and bending over the EP - I am very careful as I have to nurse mine

You can mince your power-cables if the mount moves and squashes them - I imagine misplaced fingers are as equally liable to damage! 

Any if you are very unlucky you can crash a jumbo jet with a misplaced laser pointer!

There was me thinking that nothing could be calmer than sitting in the back garden with a telescope have a quick look at the sky.  I wonder if this hobby needs a risk assessment doing!!

[Paul73]

Don't forget the ever present risk of hypothermia, frostbite and tipping over your beer bottle in the dark!!!

At least the wildlife inthe UK is relatively benign.

Paul

[chiltonstar]

...added to which, you can have a German Shepherd launch itself onto you while observing (twice), a police armed response unit dropping in on you (only once so far!) armed to the teeth and probably worst of all, treading on an 8" slug bearfoot.

Chris

[John]

It can be risky in other ways as well. I've sprained my wallet several times over the years and regularly risk physical injury from my wife when long and expensive looking packages arrive unannounced

The things we do for science !

 

[Paul73]

2 minutes ago, John said:

It can be risky in other ways as well. I've sprained my wallet several times over the years and regularly risk physical injury from my wife when long and expensive looking packages arrive unannounced

The things we do for science !

 

Whilst crimes against the wallet do cause a certain amount of marital excitement, it is the warming of frozen, post observing feet on the unfortunate sleeping Mrs 73 that risks real violence.?

[bluenotetim]

My ears were injured after telling my wife how much my new mount cost.

[Knighty2112]

Yikes! Maybe I need to up my personal insurance a little! Hehe!

i guess the worst thing though is dying of boredom waiting for clouds to disappear! Sheesh!  

[JohnSadlerAstro]

Ugh! The slugs! I've fallen over on one larger than my telescope. (perhaps a slight exaggeration! ) My personal injury was walking with a stepladder (which I was using to block out lights) into our opened Garage door. I almost broke my neck.

John

[DirkSteele]

I have a good story in this regard.  A few years ago there was a nice conjunction of Mars and Saturn where you could get both in a low power field. I organised an impromptu meeting of some of the London Baker Street Irregular Astronomers but on Wimbledon Common (near the windmill if you know it).  We stayed for a while just for regular stargazing after the planets set when we found ourselves approached by a police officer.  He asked if we were going to be long as he, in Mr Burns style, wanted to release the dogs!  We quickly called it a night and packed up!  Could have been hazardous for our health.

 

I also sprained my wrist once picking up my APM LZOS 180 triplet. 

[paul mc c]

Yep...dangerous all right,coming out of the garage carrying with two hands, my case of eyepieces,camera and other goodies..with out the lid closed i have a routine that i can litterally do with my eyes closed,to reach my observing spot at the back of the garden which was the case one night, only i did'nt count on the wife leaving a round plant pot...ON ITS SIDE.. exactly where i step up onto a raised garden......literally spun 360 degrees and landed on my back,winded gasping for air,with contents landing on my face,all at 2.00 am on a Feb night.

Must check what the other half has me insured for..

[Droogie 2001]

Great thread

I have walked straight into my patio doors, luckily no damage to me or the door. I suspect it wont be the last time...

 

[JOC]

1 hour ago, Paul73 said:

At least the wildlife inthe UK is relatively benign.

Except for the slugs it seems:

1 hour ago, chiltonstar said:

and probably worst of all, treading on an 8" slug bearfoot.

Though if hairy feet are an issue can I suggest an electronic personal shaver!

47 minutes ago, JohnSadlerAstro said:

Ugh! The slugs! I've fallen over on one larger than my telescope. (perhaps a slight exaggeration! )

Obviously Slugs are one of the more dangerous animals that we live with!

[xtreemchaos]

I don't feel like ive had a good year if I havnt set light or melted something, if you don't have accidents you ant trying hard enough  clear skys, charl.

[DaveS]

I can confirm that astrophotography is extremely hazardous to the bank balance .

[oobydooby]

You idiots just don't get it do you!

It's simple.  Just turn all your lights on plus a searchlight if you have one, then you can see what you're doing.

[LukeSkywatcher]

Ive never had an accident doing astronomy. You must all be doing it wrong. How you are all still alive baffles me.

*edit*

Sorry, ive just remembered that i once wheeled right off of a roadside curb while looking up at the stars. Ive also went straight into a lamp post,tree etc.

 

 

[Ant]

I've fallen off of a wall (dwarf wall) while trying to spot Mercury low down in the West.... 

Didn't physically hurt myself, but did feel a little stupid when the neighbour asked if I had a good time the following day (didn't realise anyone was watching lol).

Ant

[Mr Spock]

Astronomy makes you realise how exposed knees and elbows are

[Star101]

I've not had any major accidents doing astronomy. However, I did try taking the dustbin out to the front of the house barefoot one night around 2am after putting my scope away, only to walk backwards as I drag the bin and step on a Hedgehog (OUCH!!) What the! Yep, that hurt. lol

[Helen]

I walked into a lamppost while trying to stargaze and walk.  Walked into a closed patio door - it was open when I left, but Mike had closed it later - that saw me seeing stars, and my glasses never recovered!  Got my finger trapped between a C11 and a dovetail bar one afternoon and knowing Mike wasn't going to be home for 4 hours had to take the pain and remove it   Picked something up off the floor of the obs and forgot about the counterweight bar (if you've seen the size and weight of Mesu counterweight bars and weights you know there was only going to be one winner!) - sat still for quite a while after that one until I felt steady enough to get up.  Got scared witless by a hedgehog... etc etc  Yep dangerous!

And more seriously, at one point a few years ago being an astronomer was officially the most dangerous occupation.  A few freak accidents, someone getting caught in a big telescope mechanism, a couple driving off a mountain in bad weather after a night observing, and the small number of astronomers as a base meant the percentage was very high.  Care needed!

Helen

[LukeSkywatcher]

4 minutes ago, Star101 said:

I've not had any major accidents doing astronomy. However, I did try taking the dustbin out to the front of the house barefoot one night around 2am after putting my scope away, only to walk backwards as I drag the bin and step on a Hedgehog (OUCH!!) What the! Yep, that hurt. lol

Not as much as it hurt the hedgehog,i bet.

[Paul73]

I suspect that a few of us may risk being chased by the fashion police if spotted in our winter observing attire!

Helen's counterweight bar story did make me wince. I did once misjudge the distance that big eyepieces stick out from the tube and catch myself a crack on the side of the head with a Parracor / E21 combination. Fortunately my head came off worse.....

Paul

[Ant]

26 minutes ago, Helen said:

Got scared witless by a hedgehog... etc etc  Yep dangerous!

Helen

They sound really quite odd at night - really noisy and not what you expect for the second best animal on earth. 

 

I remember observing once (yeah I did Observe once upon a  time), and turning round to see a fox standing a few feet behind me - never jumped quite so high in fright. The fox made NO NOISE whatsoever - either coming into the garden or leaving it. The garden was surrounded by a 6' fence. 

Ant

[Nyctimene]

Counterweight accident no. 3:

Walked into the steel counterweight of a 18" Newt on a heavy German Equatorial mount (in the dark observatory dome) and had to seek surgical treatment at 3.30 am to stop the bleeding. A scar in my left eyebrow reminds me of that night. Might have been the reason why I switched to the Dob mob many years ago!

Neck contortion lying on the floor of a professional observatory dome (Heidelberg, Königstuhl) to observe some objects near the zenith with a 12" refractor guidescope. There was no 90° prism/mirror available (perhaps regarded as a non professional item). Neck and head ache for several days.

Picture of the Heidelberg Bruce Telescope (40 cm double astrograph) below.

Stephan

[Helen]

We need an 'ouch' button instead of the like button for this thread