Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 3/10/2026
There were five(!) Seestar S50 smart scopes running (as I could see on my wifi menu as I connected to mine). I took a picture of the Crab Nebula from 8:25 PM to 10:25 PM which netted The night was pretty nice with wonderful weather and nice temperatures. We had a few clouds rolling for […]
Past Meeting: March 12, 2026 – Observing Exoplanet Host Stars with NASA Exoplanet Watch
Exoplanets: Observing the Host Stars
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 3/09/2026
We had a really nice impromptu last night! It was not cold and the sky was entirely clear and nicely transparent. We had about 20 HAL members show up even though it was the Monday night after the time change. Victor and Jose gave our observatory a check-out run after the winter hiatus and everything […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 3/01/2026
Sunday night’s impromptu was attended by just one HAL member (me). The moon was very bright, but skies were clear until after 10:00 and there was no wind. Temperature was down to 33 degrees at 10:30. I observed 11 double stars across Pisces, Andromeda, Aries, Triangulum, Perseus and Orion with my 8″ Celestron Starsense Explorer […]
The Sky At Night – March 2026
Upcoming Night Sky Maps & Events
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 2/20/2026
Friday’s impromptu star party was announced on a cloudy afternoon following a rainy morning, but the forecast for clear evening skies was accurate. Seven HAL members attended on a night that presented some challenges from fog and wind. Conditions were much better once the 3-day-old moon set just after 9:30, with the fog having cleared […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 2/13/2026
There was a good turnout of 14 HAL members for the impromptu star party at Alpha Ridge Park on February 13th. Skies were clear except for a wide band of clouds that moved through around 8:00 PM. The temperature started in the low 30s, decreasing to around 25 at 11:00 PM, and winds were calm. […]
Past Meeting: February 12, 2026 – All Things HAL – a series of mini-presentations
All Things HAL
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 1/20/2026
In what was possibly the coldest star party ever run by HAL — thetemperature started the night at about 23 degrees Fahrenheit (-5C) andended at about 5 degrees (-15C); see the attached plot of temperature(red line) from a data logging device I use — seven intrepid HALmembers came to Alpha Ridge Park for last […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 1/07/2026
First of the Year Six HAL members attended the first impromptu star party of 2026 on the balmy (for January) evening of January 7th. The temperature was in the low 50s at sunset and down to 40 by 9:30 PM. Winds were calm and the sky was clear except for a large band of clouds […]