Anyone who uses an old typewriter this way gets my vote.
Even more so if their write up is astronomy related.
The above image was found on a sheet of paper hidden in an old astronomy book I picked up a few years ago.
Before I took up blogging, (18 years ago!!), I would often type up my astro observings on whatever typewriter I had handy.
Robin red breast in a nearby tree, the sleepy village church bell tolling ten times, the Sun shining bright and Spring like.
This spell of much awaited blue sky has been the backdrop for several recent wonderful astro events.
They included that much talked of planetary parade, (still didn't spot Saturn!), some amazing sea setting sunsets, a crescent Moon and a Venus & Mercury dance.
In the early evening last night as the frost began to grip the land, several old friends reappeared over towards the East.
Arcturus, Vega, Epsilon Lyrae, to name a few.
Those early evening stars like the ground bound daffodils and snowdrops, hint at the release of the Winter months.
Spring is definitely springing at the moment.
The Partial month of March:
There is a partial lunar eclipse in the early morning of Friday the 14th, plus a partial solar eclipse near midday on Saturday the 29th.
The camera will be ready, notebooks will be open, tea will be drunk, and cake will be eaten.
It's going to be a great month for sky watching.
There's some windy stormy weather heading towards Pembrokeshire over the next few days.
Looks as if I might not have a clear night for a while.
This gives me time to try out a few drawing and typewriter astro projects.
Here's another typewriter astro log book entry, from a few years back.
I notice no mention of the year on the above log entry, I think it was 2020.
Last night whilst digging through my astro images, I found this picture.
I haven't done one of these typewriter posts for ages!
Must make some new ones, it's long overdue.
The above observation was made with a simple 40mm refractor.
If memory serves, the refractor cost me all of £3.50 from a local charity shop, back in a time when it was possible to pick up such bargains.
Goes to show that astronomy needn't be an expensive hobby.
Last night the Moon and several planets shone their light down onto Newgale beach.
A beautiful shiny Orion took pride of place above "Martha" our trusty motorhome.
The above picture was taken with my simple tripod and phone setup.
At the moment I just stick the ISO to 3200 with two second exposure and the above image is formed.
Simple enough for now, but I would like to upgrade a little to have more of a choice, maybe a simple dslr will do the job.
We used to own a Nikon D50 dslr, it was great for night shots.
Although the D50 was only rated at 1600 ISO it was perfect for various conjunctions, transits and lunar work.
Time to get back in the astrophotography chair me thinks.
Welcome to 2025, and what better welcome than a crystal clear January 1st winter evening sky.
Such a beautiful night, stars shining and bright.
A shooting star from Auriga to Ursa Minor (Kochab). A long slow trail, slightly broken in places. Almost bright enough to be put in the bollide category.
Binocular views through my Russian 8x30s revealed M36, M37, M38, M41, M42, M44, M45 and the Hyades.
Mars was shining bright just above the Beehive Cluster M44.
21.30 UT - Leo rising near Roch Castle, a cold evening, no wind.
So silent, so welcome, it's been ages since I witnessed a night like this.
Slowly and with no fuss a few sounds meandered their way.
Firstly the distant crash of the waves on Newgale's pebbled beach, then a nearby owl hooting, plus an aeroplane high up heading out across the cold Atlantic ocean.
With fire lit and embers, wood smoke smell from chimney the stars truly became more brilliant.
There had been an aurora earlier in the evening, nothing that the eye could detect, but the phone camera captured a whisper of that familiar red.
Aurora Glow - Apologies for the wobbly wobbly stars
It was light until about 16:50 UT tonight.
Spring is definitely getting closer, the nights are starting to noticeably draw out.
Here's to many more 2025 clear skies.
I didn't manage to sketch the recent Full Moon, but I had a go at the gibbous Moon, as seen with my opera glasses.
Having just come back from France, I thought why not post some of my camera phone astro images.
Simple pictures with an astronomy theme was pretty much my limit.
I will leave the long exposures and star tracking for another time.
It was great to see the various constellations that much higher in the sky (at one point we were 44 degrees north).
Scorpio was an amazing sight.
Being able to see the entire constellation from the south of France was a sight not to be forgotten.
Next time we head off to France I will pack a digital SLR camera.
Our old Nikon D50 took some excellent shots of the night sky.
* Must remember to post my "opera glasses" Moon sketch in the next post.
Clear Skies
Mark.
No idea where I found this cartoon, but the artist is spot on, and well observed..😆
***
Will post some sketches and findings as I go along.
Fingers crossed for some clear skies.
*** Found the above Moon image in my 1945 astronomy book :
A Guide to the Sky - A Practical Handbook for Beginners
by Ernest Agar Beet.
A lovely little book, has just 92 pages, very informative.
Will post more about this book in future blogs.
This morning's partial solar eclipse was predicted to be a disaster, with a rain, cloud and misery forecast to be spread over much of Pe...
