Teaser_Ex Article - IceInSpace

IISAC2008 Wrap, Astronomy 2009 Yearbook and Calendar
Posted: Wednesday, 5th November 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

IISAC2008 is now over for another year.. Planning has already begun for IIASC2009! The dates for IISAC2009 are:

Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights - 15th to 18th October, 2009

Make sure you lock those dates in now! It falls in the NSW school holidays so bring the family!

Some threads of interest for the IISAC2008 wrap:

In other news, I still have copies of the Astronomy 2009 Yearbook available for sale. In addition, I now have the Astronomy Calendar 2009 available for sale.

The Astronomy 2009 Calendar by Astrovisuals features 12 great images and daily details about planetary positions, eclipses, lunar occultations, planetary conjunctions, meteor showers, etc. The calendar is A4 in size (opens to A3) and has been designed for use in Australia and NZ.

Prices

Astronomy 2009 Yearbook: $23 (includes postage within Australia) (RRP $24 excl postage)
Astronomy 2009 Calendar: $13 (includes postage within Australia) (RRP $14.95 excl postage)
Order them together and save! Buy both for $33 which includes postage to your door (within Australia)

The Astronomy 2009 Yearbook and Astronomy 2009 Calendar make a great christmas gift! Order yours before stock runs out!

Astronomy 2009 Yearbook and Calendar Order Page

Thanks for reading.

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IISAC2008 and Astronomy 2009 Yearbook
Posted: Wednesday, 22nd October 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

IISAC2008 is now only a week away! It starts on Thursday October 30, and goes for 3 nights. Even if you haven't registered yet, you're still welcome to make your booking now or even just turn up on any of the days. There's already over 130 registrations, and there's still plenty of space available. We'd love to see you there.

The online registration form is linked from the IISAC2008 Info page.

Make sure you keep an eye on IceInSpace for the reports, pictures and images as people stumble back in after a great weekend away.

In other news, the Astronomy 2009 Yearbook is now available to purchase. Astronomy 2009 by Quasar Astronomy is a must-have yearly almanac with tonnes of info about observing the night sky in Australia during 2009. It contains star charts and other ephemeris, dates and details of important astronomical events during the year and much more.

You can purchase your book through IceInSpace for only $23, which includes postage to you door. You'll also receive 3 free IceInSpace stickers!

Books are expected in-stock in early November. You can order yours using the online order form at the the Astronomy 2009 Order Page.

Lastly, I have created a new personal blog site and image gallery, to share my thoughts and images. It was launched in the last few days, and you can check out my new site at:

mikesalway.com.au - Astronomy and Photography by Mike Salway

Your feedback is most welcome!

Thanks for reading.

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Less than 3 weeks until IISAC2008!
Posted: Friday, 10th October 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

In less than 3 weeks time, I'll be enjoying the dark skies at IISAC2008! Where will you be? :)

The field maps have been uploaded, as well as the IISAC2008 Sky Lists.

If you're planning on registering, please do so ASAP so I can finalise catering, t-shirts and marquee size by mid-next-week (to give as accurate numbers as possible).

Remember to keep an eye on the forum thread for more discussion.

I hope to see you there.

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Only 1 Month Until IISAC2008!
Posted: Tuesday, 30th September 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

The countdown really begins in ernest now! Only 1 month to go until IISAC2008 kicks off for another year!

The Programme of Events has now been finalised, and we have some great guest speakers to entertain and educate you during the days, and some large 18" and 25" scopes to keep you entertained and amazed at night!

If you're still thinking of coming, then please, don't be shy! We'd love to see you there. There's no limit on the camping space available and everyone is welcome. There's still bunkbeds available if that's your preference, but they'll start to fill up over the next 2 weeks.

I'm starting to firm up the numbers for the catering and the t-shirt orders, so it'd be great if you could get your registrations in sooner rather than later so I don't order too many (or too few!).

My family and I went up to Lostock for some site reconnaissance last weekend, and the skies are beautiful and dark, just as I remembered them. The swimming hole was a treat for the kids to cool off in on the hot Saturday. I also did a bit of night-time photography to show the beautiful skies. Here's a few images to whet your apetite:

Remember to get your booking and payment in before the 14th October to get the $10 early-bird payment discount!

Things are starting to get exciting now! Time to start your weather dance or whatever it is you do to bring on nice weather and clear skies!

I look forward to seeing you there!

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IceInSpace turns 4 years old!
Posted: Sunday, 14th September 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

I'm really pleased to announce that IceInSpace celebrates its birthday today, turning 4 years old! It's yet another fantastic milestone reached by our great community, and continues to show the strength and loyalty of everyone who makes up IceInSpace.

That's not just me and Terry, or the moderators. It's every one of you that helps to play a part in making IceInSpace what it is today. Everyone who visits the site, reads the forums, posts questions and posts answers, posts your images and contributes content to the site. If it wasn't for all of you, IceInSpace wouldn't still be here 4 years on, as strong as we are today.

What started 4 years ago as a little home on the internet, has grown so much - has exceed all of the expectations we had back then about what we hoped to achieve with IceInSpace. Our goals and vision have grown since then and now we have a grander vision for what we want to achieve with this great site; what we want to offer in a website to the astronomical community around the world.

We have a great number of plans in motion and on the drawing board, and hope to bring some new features to you over the next 3-6 months.

At this time of year, we usually celebrate with a birthday quiz. Hopefully you already know that the birthday quiz has been moved back a few weeks to coincide with IISAC2008.

IISis4 will begin on the 10th October, and the prizes will be drawn at IISAC2008 on the 1st November.

Please check the official IISis4 thread for more.

Terry and I would like to extend our thanks to the moderators, who do such a great job and are such great friends. They keep things ticking along and running smoothly and you hardly ever notice they're there. Which is what a moderator should be.

Thanks again to the community for your contributions to IceInSpace, and together we will continue to grow and shape amateur astronomy in our region.

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2 months until IISAC2008!
Posted: Monday, 1st September 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

With only 2 months to go until IISAC2008, it's time to start planning! Put in those leave forms at work, start buttering up the partner, get the kids excited!

What a great opportunity to observe under dark skies, meet up with old and new friends from the IceInSpace community, and share this great hobby with like-minded people. If you've never been to a star party before, now is the perfect opportunity to get along to your first one. You'll never look back!

If you've ever wanted to see the spiral arm structure of other galaxies in our universe, or see the gaseous dusty nebulosity from far away regions where stars are being born, or see magnificent globular clusters containing a million stars bound by their combined gravity - then the IceInSpace AstroCamp 2008 is for you!

If you've never been out under dark skies, away from the city glow to see the brilliant Milky Way stretching overhead, then IISAC2008 is for you!

For more information, prices, and the registration page, head on over to the IISAC2008 page.

We also welcome two new sponsors for IISAC2008 and IISis4 - Australian Sky & Telescope, and The Imaging Source Astronomy Cameras. We thank you for your support.

Thanks for reading.

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IISAC2008 Registrations Open!
Posted: Wednesday, 13th August 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

It's with great pleasure I can announce that IISAC2008 Registrations are NOW OPEN!

The online registration form is linked from the IISAC2008 Info page.

With only 2.5 months to go, make your booking early, and make your payment early (before 14th October) to receive a $10 discount off the total price.

The IISAC2008 Info page has also been updated to include details of the catered dinner provided by the Gresford RFB (should you choose to include dinner in your booking), and also a look at the IISAC2008 T-Shirt design.

I look forward to seeing you there. Please contact me if you have any questions or problems with your registration or the online form.

Thanks!

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IISAC2008 and IISis4, new Articles and Reviews
Posted: Tuesday, 22nd July 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

Some new articles and reviews and other news updated on IceInSpace today:

IISAC2008 and IISis4

On the 13th September 2008, IceInSpace turns 4 years old - a fantastic and important milestone, made even more exciting by the running of our birthday quiz! It's our chance to give something back to our loyal community and celebrate our birthday with you.

Due to the close proximity of the IISis4 quiz and IISAC2008, we've decided to move the birthday quiz to coincide with IISAC2008 - so the birthday quiz will take place in the weeks leading up to IISAC2008, with the prize draw happening at IISAC2008! For more information, check the IISis4 page or the IISAC2008 page by clicking on the logos above.

Thanks to the generous sponsors who are supporting both IISis4 and IISAC2008 by donating prizes that you can win! Please support them, as they support these two great events.

New Articles and Reviews

Thanks to the contributions of some members of the IceInSpace community, some new articles and reviews have been added for your consumption today:

Review: 8" Lightbridge
Article: Basic Setup Procedure for a German Equatorial Mount (GEM) Telescope
Article: A Simple Polar Alignment Jig for a GEM Tripod
Article: Spectroscopes part 2 - New 200mm Littrow design
Article: SynScan Alignment Stars and Matching Finder Charts
Upcoming Event: RASNZAPS NZ Astrophotography Camp

Thanks again to the authors for submitting their work to be included on IceInSpace. If you'd like to contribute an article, review or other content to IceInSpace, please contact me.

Thanks for reading. Until next time..

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Upcoming Celestial Events
Posted: Wednesday, 9th July 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

There's a couple of upcoming celestial events to note in your diaries.

Saturn and Mars Conjunction : Thursday and Friday evening after Sunset

Following on from the straight-line conjunction of the Moon, Regulus, Mars and Saturn last Sunday night, on Thursday and Friday evening this week (10th and 11th July), Mars and Saturn will be in close conjunction - a mere 40' (arcminutes) apart (just over half a degree).

That's close enough to fit them both in the same field of view of most widefield eyepieces of moderately sized telescopes (depending on your focal length). They'll also easily fit in the same field of view of most astrophotography setups, such as DSLR hooked up to an ED80.

Make sure you head on out and take a look, and don't forget to post your reports in the Observational Astronomy forum, and your pictures in the Solar System forum. Look to the North West after sunset - Mars will look orange and Saturn will look yellow. Good luck for clear skies!

Partial Lunar Eclipse, 17th August 2008

The Total Lunar Eclipse of last August 28 was an amazing time for amateur astronomers everywhere. The upcoming Partial Lunar Eclipse on August 17th isn't likely to generate quite the same excitement or media interest, but they still happen infrequently enough that it's worth making an effort to get up early to check out the Moon as it heads into Earth's shadow.

For Australians and New Zealanders, it will occur as the Moon is setting in the West. In fact for most of us, the Moon will set before it reaches the greatest partial eclipse. West Australian's get the best view this time time around and will see almost the entire eclipse from start to finish.

For more information, including a viewing and imaging guide and where and when you can see it, please see the article:

Partial Lunar Eclipse, 17th August 2008 - Viewing / Imaging Guide

I reckon it's worth getting out of bed for on a Sunday morning.. how about you? Discuss the Partial Lunar Eclipse here on IceInSpace.

In other news, the Image of the Week Archives is now available on IceInSpace. See all of the past images that really showcase the talent of the astrophotographers in the IceInSpace Community. The page is available here and also under the Resources menu.

Thanks for reading.

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Update on New Laser Pointer Laws
Posted: Monday, 7th July 2008 by Mike Salway	Comments

Hi all

I received this information from John Sarkissian, who has been making representations to the NSW Government on behalf of the members of the Central West Astronomical Society and the general amateur and professional astronomical community. They received the following email from Les Tree, Director General of the Ministry for Police in NSW.

It is posted here for the information of IceInSpace members and guests.

Quote:

Dear Mr Sarkissian

I write to inform you of the arrangements regarding the new laws on the regulation of laser pointers.

There are three components to the new laws:

1. A new offence for possession of any kind of laser pointer in a public place without a reasonable excuse under the Summary Offences Act. The penalty may be up to 2 years imprisonment or a fine of up to $5,500.

Similar to the scheme that exists for knives, people will be required to provide a lawful excuse as to why they possess a laser pointer in a public place. A person who is an amateur astronomer would have a legitimate excuse for possessing a laser pointer in a public place as would a teacher or lecturer.

2. Laser pointers will be included as a dangerous implement under the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act. Police will therefore have the power to request a person in a public place to submit to a frisk search if the police officer suspects on reasonable grounds that the person has a laser pointer in his or her custody. A police officer also has the power to confiscate the item.

Unlike other dangerous implements, the frisk search power only applies in public places; it does not apply to schools. The bolstering of police powers was necessary because of the difficulties in catching an offender for this particular crime type.

3. The Weapons Prohibition Regulation 1999 will, as from the date of commencement, list all 1 milliwat and above battery operated, hand held laser pointers as prohibited weapons. The lawful possession and use of these laser pointers will require a specific exemption or approval from the Commissioner of Police. A maximum of 14 years imprisonment penalty will apply.

This will ensure that access to higher powered laser pointers is limited to only those who are exempted from the requirement to own or possess a laser pointer or who have been approved by the Commissioner by way of a prohibited weapons permit.

Such approvals are subject to criminal and probity checks and ongoing responsibilities, including ensuring the safe storage of the item throughout the duration of the permit. Prior to this system being introduced an amnesty will be granted to people so that they can either apply for an exemption or a permit or surrender their laser pointer to police.

The Exemptions:
Persons exempt from the above requirement for a permit for possession and use of a laser pointer will include:

· A member of an approved professional or amateur astronomical organisation. This class of person is exempt from the requirement under the Act for a permit to possess or use a prohibited weapon referred to in clause 2(24) of Schedule 1 of the Act, but only for the purpose of enabling the person to take part in activities associated with astronomy.

The definition of “approved professional or amateur astronomical organisation” is still to be determined but will include:
· All astronomical organisations which are listed with the Australian Astronomical Society or the NSW Astronomical Society;
· Any astronomical organisations linked to a recognised Observatory such as the Sydney Observatory or Parkes Observatory; and
· Any other astronomical organisations approved by the Commissioner of Police.

The Amnesty:
Any person who already possesses a laser pointer to which the new law applies, and is not the holder of a permit under the Act, will be exempt from the requirement to seek a permit for until the end of the amnesty period, which will be prescribed in the Regulation, or until such a time as the person obtains a permit, whichever occurs first.

Permits:
Any person wishing to find out further information on laser pointers and how to apply for a permit may visit the NSW Police website on www.police.nsw.gov.au or contact the Firearms Registry’s Customer Service Line on Ph: 1300 362 562.

Yours sincerely,

Les Tree
Director General

Ministry for Police

This seems like pretty fair news for amateur astronomers and astronomical organisations and societies. At least some clarity is coming, anyway.

If you'd like to have your say about it, head to the IceInSpace Forum and participate in the discussion.

Thanks for reading.

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