Power outage - Thank you!

[Canada123]

Hello, haven't been on the site for quite a while. But last night got me looking up after many months of the binoculars sitting in their case.

My kids are up for the long weekend here, and my eldest brought her boyfriend who is a medical student who has always lived in the city. The power was out most of the day and came back on at dinner time. But it went off again around 9PM and the skies cleared just enough for a good show. Got my 15x70 Resolux and the tripod and dragged the boy away from his laptop and out into the fresh air. Could just make out Orion under the clouds, but the rest of the sky was mostly clear for about an hour and my small town was dark and the street lights were out, so the view was excellent.

After a few quick views through the binoculars on the tripod, I took them off, handed them over, and told him the lie down on the grass and just look up. (It was a warm night for October in these parts) The kid, who seldom sees a nice sky in the city, went absolutely silent and laid there looking up for a surprisingly long time. He knows all about medicine and the insides, but now he was seeing "the outsides" and he really was amazed. it was a great moment to share with my future son in law.

It was the perfect power failure.

 

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Great report. A good pair of bins under a dark sky have frequently served me well in keeping kids of various ages occupied for a long time. People from larger cities often have no idea of what can be seen even with modest bins. A pair of Resolux 15x70s are a real treat even to a more experienced observer

 

[PESKYWAABBIT]

Loved this story. There is nothing like watching someone who is not fully aware of the night sky to finally realise how small we are when it clicks in their head about how amazing the night sky can be.

 

Amazing.