This is a stupid hobby (P46/Wirtanen)

[coatesg]

Title says it all. Froze my extremities off observing a few objects through my scope (struggling with moon and haze).

Setup widefield kit (163M+200mm 2.8L) in readiness for the moon to set.  Polar aligned, setup guider, focused.

Managed **1 single** 60s LUM frame before the clouds came rolling in again. ?

 

Kinda getting a little fed up of it now - just can't seem to get any usable clear, dark nights. Is this part of the world that bad for clear skies? I'm sure I remember some in the past... how much for remote hosting and any takers for shared kit...?

 

[kbrown]

I feel ya... Living in London without a garden and working fulltime doesn't help either. Some statistics say that at any given moment 75% of the planet earth is covered in clouds... Booo!

[Sunshine]

I haven’t seen the night sky in so long I think I’ll cry when I do. Try observing between November and April here in Ontario, yes the skies are crystalline but so will your nose be when the -30 wind sheer hits it lol.

And what’s wrong with that super neat comet image? I’d give up my winter for your weather right now.

[Seanelly]

16 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

I haven’t seen the night sky in so long I think I’ll cry when I do. Try observing between November and April here in Ontario, yes the skies are crystalline but so will your nose be when the -30 wind sheer hits it lol.

And what’s wrong with that super neat comet image? I’d give up my winter for your weather right now.

November this year was brutal for rain and snow here in Ottawa, and December has not been much better clear-sky wise. Cold I can take. It's all this damn waiting around to justify my recent expenditure on this kit to my wife, who already had her doubts about my sanity concerning the 20 years of dob reflector use.

I told her that this new bit of business would allow me to get back in the house relatively quickly after initial set-up-and the images! Up to this disappointing point, she hasn't changed her mind about my mental health. And if I drop into bed like an icicle falling from a roof one more time at one o'clock in the morning, it's my physical health I'll have to worry about!

[Sunshine]

11 minutes ago, Seanelly said:

November this year was brutal for rain and snow here in Ottawa, and December has not been much better clear-sky wise. Cold I can take. It's all this damn waiting around to justify my recent expenditure on this kit to my wife, who already had her doubts about my sanity concerning the 20 years of dob reflector use.

I told her that this new bit of business would allow me to get back in the house relatively quickly after initial set-up-and the images! Up to this disappointing point, she hasn't changed her mind about my mental health. And if I drop into bed like an icicle falling from a roof one more time at one o'clock in the morning, it's my physical health I'll have to worry about!

You and me both pal, I haven’t been able to take my Starmaster out once yet, not once, imagine buying a Ferrari and not getting the key for months!.

[Lorstin]

Well at least you've seen it! It's summer down here and I haven't had a clear night for weeks! Pretty soon Wirtanen will be lost to the southern parts of Australia.

[SIDO]

Nice Image, Not bad considering the challenges...cloud has been hitting hard here in Wisconsin this fall too. Better last year by a long shot...

[The Admiral]

9 hours ago, coatesg said:

Title says it all. Froze my extremities off observing a few objects through my scope (struggling with moon and haze).

Setup widefield kit (163M+200mm 2.8L) in readiness for the moon to set.  Polar aligned, setup guider, focused.

Managed **1 single** 60s LUM frame before the clouds came rolling in again. ?

Kinda getting a little fed up of it now - just can't seem to get any usable clear, dark nights. Is this part of the world that bad for clear skies? I'm sure I remember some in the past... how much for remote hosting and any takers for shared kit...?

Congrats for getting one decent image! I'm with you on that one! I've more or less given up astrophotography as I find the frustrations too great. It wouldn't be so bad if one could rely on forecasts.

As it was a 'special event' I thought I'd see if I could get a snap of the comet, so having lugged all the equipment downstairs and set up in the garden, fighting a heavy cold, I managed to align on the first star and then the clouds rolled in. Probably the same ones as you were seeing! An hour later I called it a night and got the gear inside, I wasn't up to waiting longer. I think that might just be my last astrophotography venture, unless there's something really special going on.

Interestingly, though, it seems that Oxfordshire is in a hole in the middle of the country, weather-wise, clouds from the West don't quite penetrate this far. But sometimes they do! And I guess that's the difficult bit to predict. Same as last night, if the Met Office's cloud chart was anything to go by. Not to mention the vapour trails from the Green 1 air corridor to the South going in to,and over, Heathrow!

Ian

[PeterCPC]

What you are describing is the normal state of affairs here - very occassionally we get a clear night but it's the exception.

Peter