Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 4/30/2026
We had a nice night this past Thursday. There were only 4 members at the star party but the sky was pretty clear and we all took advantage of the bright moon to either troubleshoot things in our telescopes or do some lunar observations. I closed the park by 11:40 pm. Jose Urias
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 4/27/2026
Sky conditions were not great for last night’s impromptu star party, with a persistent layer of thin clouds and bright moonlight. It was a nice night for double star observing and troubleshooting equipment, though. Ian stopped by to pick up the camera that he won in the HAL auction a few months ago. He stayed […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 4/20/2026
After the iffy conditions during the day, the night turned out to be nearly perfect! The daytime clouds disappeared by sunset, and the afternoon winds died completely by the time it was dark. The transparency was much better than average, and the seeing was average or a little better. The temperature hit freezing at about […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 4/19/2026
Four HAL members attended the impromptu star party of April 19th at Alpha Ridge Park. The weather forecast was pretty accurate, as skies were clear until midnight and the temperature was 39 degrees by that point. Transparency was very good (19.29 on the SQM-L, the best reading since 19.40 on August 30th of last year). José was […]
Members-Only Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 04/18/2026
Although sparsely attended, Saturday’s Members Only Star Party saw plenty of action. A final forecast that predicted partly cloudy weather proved to be inaccurate as skies were cloudy throughout the evening. I was joined by a new member who wished to see our facilities and another who planned to meet someone to exchange a book. […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 4/11/2026
Twenty members joined us Saturday evening for an outstanding impromptu star party. I counted sixteen telescopes around Alpha Ridge with one member actually pointing three scopes skyward. Although seeing was lackluster, transparency remained above average throughout the night.  In working through my imagery, I was able to tease out a magnitude 18.9 galaxy with a five-inch […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 4/07/2026
Seven HAL members enjoyed a crisp, clear evening of observing and imaging at Alpha Ridge Park last night. It was chilly and a little breezy at times, but the transparency was better than average (SQM-L reading 19.18 mpas) and seeing also seemed to be pretty good. James was working through some issues with his recently-acquired […]
Public Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 3/28/2026
Clear Skies!
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 3/19/2026
Last night I opened Alpha Ridge for an impromptu star party. I arrived around 7:45 pm and had 5 guests in total. Unfortunately, the sky did not stay as clear as we were hoping. I was still able to image M42 and NGC 869/864 between breaks in the clouds. We packed things up and locked […]
Members-Only Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 03/14/2026
The forecast wasn’t very promising for Saturday night’s star party, so I was pleasantly surprised at the turnout of 12 HAL members. The party got off to a bad start, as it was almost completely overcast around dusk. Jupiter was frequently visible through gaps in the clouds high overhead, but that was about it. After […]