July BSIG Recap

[Sureshks]

Hi all,

63 people came out last night for the first BSIG event of 2023 on a beautiful mainly clear evening at Metcalf Field. Of these, 31 were not MAS members!

We counted at least 30 telescopes set up across the observing field, of all shapes and sizes. There were some nice refractors, reflectors and SCTs, as well as several Dobonians, including 4 that were 16-20" in aperture. This might have been the most combined aperture we've had at a BSIG in recent years!

I wanted to thank our MAS volunteers for helping out - Phil Ramsay, Clayton Lindsey, Ian Behar, Vidur Parkash, Trena Johnson, Kris Setnes, Alan Touchberry, Valts Treibergs, Dan Meyer, Steve Emert, Ed Lo and Aaron Dossett. Together, we helped several people learn how to set up, use and trouble-shoot their own telescopes... and also helped some fledgling imagers get their rigs going.

With the Moon out of the way till around 1am, we were also able to give them a good show on a surprisingly clear and transparent night. We viewed globular clusters (such as M4, M13 and M3), emission nebulae (such as the Lagoon & Trifid), planetary nebulae (such as the Ring and Dumbbell) and a supernova remnant (Veil Nebula) as the summer Milky Way climbed higher in the eastern sky. We were able to see the Cygnus Milky Way naked eye, despite the light pollution inherent at Metcalf Field. Finally, as Saturn climbed above the treetops around 1am or so, we marveled at the rings as they creep ever closer to the next edge-on in 2025.

After 4 years due to COVID, the goodie table made a return to the BSIG. Attendees brought a lot of treats to share, which added to the festive evening.

Here is a link to pictures taken last night: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/676r3jkpdoqi ... AECAa?dl=0

Thanks to those who shared pics with me!

The next BSIG is scheduled for Saturday August 5th, back at Metcalf Field, starting at 7:30pm.

We hope to see you there!!

Suresh

[SEmert]

Kudos for coordinating the event, as always, Suresh. I think a great time was had by all. Thank goodness we had reasonably clear skies for most of it. I know I had fun, and even had a chance to help out a few people.

Steve

[TrenaJ]

I couldn't agree more Steve, it was a fun night of helping people get to know their scopes under a wonderful night. I met some great new people. Thank you Suresh for putting this together along with all the volunteers who came out.