Webmaster’s Focus
November 2024 Click to read
South Western Threat
The light pollution which affects our astronomy activities here on the outskirts of Sydney is increasing relentlessly. It’s the result of poor lighting design and lack of regulation. Our activities at Stargard and Wooglemai will continue for the foreseeable future but we will eventually be forced to look elsewhere.
Fortunately we have been able to secure a return to The Forest cabin at Belanglo, well away from major light pollution. The first weekend will be the nights of Friday 29th and Saturday 30th November. The skies at The Forest are so much better than we get at Stargard or Wooglemai.
Unfortunately, the threat to astronomy is far more than just poor lighting design. The second Sydney International Airport will commence operations in 2026 and both Stargard and Wooglemai will be adversely affected by aircraft landing and taking off, according to recently released amendments to the flight paths. Stargard in particular will have aircraft flying along the North, West and South perimeters.
Another threat which amateur astronomers are enduring is the tens of thousands of satellites being sent up by Starlink and other organisations for their own profit. At the moment amateur astronomy software has the capability to remove some of the satellite trails from images but as well as affecting amateurs, serious professional astronomical research is threatened by this onslaught.
Then there are the drones. If and when they are placed in service by the likes of Amazon, the probability is that drones will be buzzing around up there delivering parcels day and night. How much that will affect astronomy is anyone’s guess!
Worst of all, the Near Earth Asteroid research could be affected. This crucial activity depends on astronomers worldwide detecting new asteroids with a potential trajectory towards Earth. They do this by searching the skies on a continuous basis, looking for objects which are moving relative to the stars. Guess what? With over a hundred thousand satellites also moving relative to the stars, that vital research will be considerably endangered. We ignore this at our peril.
Roger Powell
Webmaster
www.macastro.org.au
Peter Scott
Dear Friends,
It is with great sadness that I inform you of the passing of MAS member & friend Peter Scott, on Saturday 9 November.
Peter had a long career in veterinary science. His family described him as a supportive husband, a generous and loving dad and grandfather; and a man of immense curiosity and integrity who had a scientific interest in the world around him.
He became a member of MAS in 2011, a regular at our Forums and he travelled with MAS Tours on several occasions, including the 2016 visit to Chile and Peru. Peter will be greatly missed by us all at MAS.
John.
Members Event Diary
| DATE | EVENT | DETAILS | PUBLIC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 23rd Nov | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 7.44 pm | No |
| Fri 29th Nov | The Forest At Belanglo | New Moon Weekend – Night 1 Sunset 7.50 pm | No |
| Sat 30th Nov | The Forest At Belanglo | New Moon Weekend – Night 2 Sunset 7.50 pm | No |
| Sat 30th Nov | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 7.50 pm | No |
| Mon 2nd Dec | Macarthur Astronomy Forum at WSU. Map. | Guest Speaker: Prof Geraint Lewis (USYD) 7.15 pm for a 7.30 pm start | YES |
| Sat 21st Dec | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 8.06 pm | No |
| Fri 28th Dec | The Forest At Belanglo | New Moon Weekend – Night 1 Sunset 8.09 pm | No |
| Sat 28th Dec | The Forest At Belanglo | New Moon Weekend – Night 2 Sunset 8.09 pm | No |
| Sat 28th Dec | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 8.09 pm | No |
| Sat 4th Jan | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 8.12 pm | No |
| Mon 20th Jan | Macarthur Astronomy Forum at WSU. Map. | Guest Speaker: 7.15 pm for a 7.30 pm start | YES |
| Sat 25th Jan | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 8.07 pm | No |
| Fri 31st Jan | The Forest At Belanglo | New Moon Weekend – Night 1 Sunset 8.03 pm | No |
| Sat 1st Feb | The Forest At Belanglo | New Moon Weekend – Night 2 Sunset 8.02 pm | No |
| Sat 1st Feb | Stargard At The Oaks | Members Observing Evening Sunset 8.02 pm | No |
Macarthur Astronomy Forum
Guest speaker: Prof Geraint Lewis
Monday 2nd December
Topic: to be confirmed
Macarthur Astronomy Forum is not just open to MAS members.
We want to share our passion with WSU staff & students and the general public.
There is no admission fee (maybe if you come more than a couple of times you might like to think about becoming an MAS member). Gold coin donations are appreciated.
The Forums are held in lecture theatre 30 in the School of Medicine (Building 30), Goldsmith Avenue, WSU Campbelltown Campus. You can find a location map and details by following this link.
We recommend attending in person, which gives you the opportunity to interact with other members (and the guest speaker) before and after the meeting. However, MAS members who are unable to get to WSU can still participate remotely using Zoom.
Our Observing Sites
Members Only
The Forest Cabin in Belanglo Forest has been an MAS dark sky weekender for a quarter of a century. We are now returning after a period of non-availability. See the Forest page for site details. The first weekend at The Forest will be held on Friday 29th and Saturday 30th November.
Wooglemai is a prime dark sky observing site, conveniently located near Oakdale. With clubhouse amenities, sleeping accommodation and unlimited overnight viewing hours, the experience is excellent value for money. See our Wooglemai page for site details.
Stargard is our main general purpose observing field at The Oaks. Whilst it cannot boast the facilities that the Forest Cabin and Wooglemai do, it provides convenient evening sessions much closer to home, free of charge to members. See our Stargard page for site details.
Coming? We need to know who is planning to attend our observing sessions. Members are requested to contact John Rombi at: president@macastro.org.au to reserve a place before travelling to an observing session. For essential information about our observing session protocols, please read our Field Night page.
🌦️ Weather Check
Article: Weather Forecasting for Amateur Astronomers
The Oaks Weather-cam: South facing
The Oaks Weather-cam: North facing
General Notices
Beginners
We understand the needs of beginners and are anxious to help you get started. We run workshops for beginners two or three times a year, depending on demand.
Sometimes we will dedicate a Macarthur Astronomy Forum to basic amateur astronomy topics. (We scheduled two of these in 2024).
Questions can be asked of other members through the MAS Facebook page, the MAS Private Messaging System or by e-mail to contact@macastro.org.au.
Beginners can attend our field nights and ask questions directly to other members.
YouTube is a very useful learning tool. Whichever part of astronomy you wish to learn, someone has made a YouTube video about it!
Committee Members 2024-25
President: John Rombi
Vice President: Noel Sharpe
Secretary: Roger Powell
Treasurer: Suzanne Adijans
Membership Officer: Frank Alvaro
Committee Member: Greg Bradford
Committee Member: Phil Kidd
Observing
Members intending to attend our observing nights must read our Field Night page and Stargard , Forest or Wooglemai pages.
Sessions are normally scheduled for Saturdays, because we recognise the needs of members who may have weekday jobs to go to. In the event of a doubtful weather forecast, members should check both here and our social media pages.
Laser Pointers
It is a legal requirement here in NSW to register laser pointer ownership with the Police Firearms Registry. However, as MAS members, you are exempted from this obligation if the laser pointer is only used for astronomy.
The Society keeps a register of members who are laser pointer owners and requires you to formally notify the Membership Officer if you have purchased a laser pointer.
MAS Private Messages
Due to privacy laws, MAS is prohibited from releasing members e-mail addresses. The intention of the PM system is to permit an individual member to contact another without initially knowing their e-mail address. You can find the PM System in the Users menu above, after you have logged on.
Membership
Please contact Frank Alvaro (Membership Officer) for all new membership enquiries: membership@macastro.org.au or go to our new membership page.
E-mail is our primary means of direct communication with all our members, so don’t forget to tell us if your e-mail address changes: membership@macastro.org.au.
Member’s Postal Address.
Membership cards are posted annually to the last postal address which you have provided to us, so please contact us with your new details at membership@macastro.org.au.
MAS Postal Address
We no longer maintain a PO Box address. After many years the cost and time did not justify a service that was so rarely used.
If you or a family member are showing any symptoms of covid, influenza or the common cold etc. please do not attend any of our events.
