Joe, My views were somewhat tainted. (Both figuritively and literally). The proximity of our war-god neighbor was amazing. It was an incredible experience that I know only my Great-Great-Great-Great-grandchildren may be able to rivel. The beauty of that glowing disk in the sky was amazing. I felt I could nearly see its full shape with the naked eye. But what was truely astonishing, was that for once, the average person got the impression that Mars was a planet that it was so close to us, and not that it was just another bright spot in the sky. I wish that I would have been able to make it out of the valley. Work unfortunately had me bogged down, otherwise I would have been cowering in the Moab desert, 25 miles from the nearest light source. Cheeers! James Helsby Quoting Richard Tenney <retenney@yahoo.com>:
Joe,
There's nothing like being at 9,000 feet (Wolf Creek Summit) with pristine seeing; at 1:30 Saturday night the view of Mars in my 16-inch at 350x was unsurpassed -- the best I've seen so far anyway (and perhaps likely in my lifetime). Others nearby had essentially equally good views in most of the scopes up there. It was also particularly good in Don Colton's SCT with the binocular viewer.
Special thanks to Jo Grahn and her husband for hauling up the 24 inch; it gave them a lot of trouble, but it gave all of us some stunning deep-sky vistas, and a very clear, unmistakable view of the central star in the ring nebula. That alone would have made the 90 minute drive up there worthwhile, but the seeing was some of the best I've ever experienced, and combined with a great Mars showing it all made for a very memorable evening (didn't get home until 5 a.m. Sunday, and then only because I had a lesson to teach at church a few hours later!).
For those of you who haven't made the "pilgrimage" to Wolf Creek, you should try it sometime; it's truly a religious experience for me. You stand under a milky way that, looking up, truly takes your breath away...
-Rich
--- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
Dear friends, would anyone on the news list like to give me comments about viewing Mars for a roundup article I am about to prepare? thank you, Joe
Joe Bauman science & military reporter Deseret News bau@desnews.com (801) 237-2169
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