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 […]
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. […]
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 […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 12/20/2025
A Singular Event I was the only attendee for an impromptu star party at Alpha Ridge on December 20. Temperatures were in the mid 30s, winds were calm and the sky was mostly clear, although some clouds moved through in the 7:00 hour. I set up my Vespera EAA scope to image the Flaming Star […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 12/12/2025
Three HAL members turned out on a chilly winter night for an impromptu star party at Alpha Ridge Park last night. The temperature was 26 degrees when I took my sky quality meter readings at 8:35 PM, but there wasn’t any wind to speak of, so it was pretty tolerable. Skies were clear for the […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 11/23/2025 – 11/24/2025
One night leads to the next day. The night was nice and a little cold but the moon set early and 5 members attended the party. 4 of us were imaging and Earnie was doing some visual astronomy and also imaging with his Vespera. For what I could see, one person was doing the helix […]
Public Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 11/01/2025
Clear Skies!
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 10/27/2025
Four HAL members took a gamble that Alpha Ridge Park would stay just out of the range of the massive cloud band to the south, but that bet didn’t pay off. There were thin, high clouds covering most of the sky right from the start, and they gradually got thicker, especially in the southern sky. […]