Pembrokeshire Astronomer

Thanks to the mild weather of July and most of August, Helen and I have spent most of our evenings observing the stars from the comfort of our garden shed. The only astronomical equipment I have used these past six weeks, apart from a few quick peeks with Tal2, has been my sleeping bag. Simply lying in the shed with my head stuck out the door entrance has been a welcome change.  It must be about six years since we were last able to sleep outside for extended periods. At the start of July it was interesting to note that Vega around midnight was somewhat East of the zenith, whilst now around midnight some five weeks later, it has noticeably passed the zenith and is making its way Westward. As a child, at this time of year I would spend many an evening on my parent's farm, lying in a field and watching the stars pass by. Alternatively I would be found in my grandmother's garden lying on the garden bench, stargazing till the early hours.. often I would fall asleep!

From our house the month of July is the perfect time to observe the Sun as it rises out of the  Preseli Hills .. This past week or so, I have been fortunate enough to witness several of these wonderful events.. From my astro log: July 17th 2013 My vantage point was our North facing kitchen window...   a perfect spot to wait for the Sun, and also importantly I was very close to the kettle... ! Any excuse for a cup of tea... ! I waited patiently for that first glint... It wasn't long before Sol was racing skywards.......   The Sun walks the Preselis. From day to day it's surprising how fast the Sun moves along the horizon. The varying contours of the distant Preseli Hills clearly mark the daily renewal of sunrise positions. From observations I took on the 17th, 18th and 21st of this month you can clearly trace the speeding path of Sol... I'm not sure how long it will be before the Sun disappears behind the neighbouring rooftop

Tal2 had no chance of spying the Moon tonight.. once again hidden by my neighbour's trees. Though from our back door I had a clear view of the Moon, albeit a brief one. Due to the high trees and the low Moon I had maybe 20 minutes of possible observing time. I decided to set up my tiny 40mm refractor. Considering it only has an objective glass of 40mm aperture, it does show a fair bit of lunar detail. From tonight's lunar log book I note.. along the terminator, and close by: Flammarion, Herschel, Halley, Hind, Ptolemaeus, Alphonsus, Arzachel, Purbach, Walter. Flammarion wasn't that distinct , but Herschel was an inky black pit with it's west wall lit up like a thin waning crescent moon. I then flew over to have a quick look at Hercules and Atlas..  Hercules exhibited a bright central region, but the 40mm aperture did not reveal much else, Atlas was outlined well. On the southwestern border of Mare Serenitatis (Montes Haemus) I spotted Menelaus plus

After a few days of looking and waiting,  I've finally spotted the July crescent Moon. Due to the location of this evening's Moon, I couldn't use Tal2 for observing. I decided to give the 40mm refractor a chance at capturing some lunar light...  The little scope performed admirably, and delivered some lovely views. The weather in Pembrokeshire is still beautiful, so to take full advantage of it, Helen and I have been  sleeping outside under the stars. These past three nights we've had the studio shed doors open, and we are both inside on the floor in sleeping bags. Our heads are sticking out of the doorway, which affords us a spectacular view of the night sky.. Last night, at about 1p.m. we were disturbed by something lurking in the hedgerow, it turned out to be a hedgehog.. a very noisy hedgehog!   Maybe he will be back again tonight to disturb our peace.. I do hope so.