The air was ripe with anticipation as I prepared for my first "official" star party. I received a telescope as a gift the year before, but with work schedules, transfer to a new city, and other demands of my time, I had only used it briefly a few evenings to learn how to assemble the mount and handle the controller to look at obvious targets like Saturn and the moon. I had only one eyepiece, a 20mm Plössl that came with the scope, and an old "thermo blanket" to use as a scope cover during the day. I have heard many praises of the Celestron C10-NGT, now I was anxious to see what this thing could really do.
Mt. Bachelor Star Party was a regional event in central Oregon, where a local astronomy club procured the use of a ski lodge unused during the summer months. It is very popular, especially among "newbies" (of wich, dispite an exaggerated sense of pride in my abilities, I certainly qualify at this point), famous for its dark skies and accomodating ammenities. Slowly with care I picked my way down an extensive checklist of needed items: Telescope - check. Eyepieces - check. Battery - check. Battery fully charged - check. Charts. Tent. Air mattress. Sleeping bag. Water. Check, check, and check. Assured the most inconsequential item was not overlooked, I know from experience with years of Scouting that sometimes the smallest things can have a great impact on the enjoyment of an outing, and a believer in what my Dad used to say, "It's better to have something and not need it than to need it and not have it", I took everything except the kitchen sink, whether I needed it or not, a tendancy I still struggle with even to this day.
Finally when all was ready, I loaded the car, securing each bundle, case or OTA in its assigned location, and with dawn breaking to the east rode out into the sunrise on a new adventure. The drive out of Portland down highway 26 was uneventful, if you consider the breathtaking views of lush green valleys, rolling hills and occasional deer as I passed the south slopes of Mt. Hood as uneventful.
To pass the time I reviewed in my mind the points of Star Party Etiquette, those rules of behavior that ensure everyone has an equally enjoyable time, and increases your chance of being welcomed back next year. 1) No driving in or out during dark hours. If you must leave during night, use only minimal lights and disable all interior lights until well away from the viewing area. 2) Sound carries long distances at night time, so no loud noises or excessive talking. No cell phones, radios, ipods or other personal entertainment devices that have backlight displays. 3) No white or bright lights after dark. Period. No exceptions, except in emergency. 4) Respect other observer's areas in the dark, and avoid tripping over someone's polar aligned tripod.
Eventually I arrived at the Sunrise Ski Lodge, having made only two wrong turns and double-back once. I found it a pleasant enough area with large paved viewing field (aka parking lot) and several scopes already set up around the parimeter. After a quick recon I select a location away from the bilding but close enough to use the facilities if necessary, and near enough to fellow astronomers to interact and ask advice as the night wore on.
First on my agenda was set up camp and tent into which went the necessar equipment to be warm and comfortable when not actively observing.
Next the scope itself, and here my inexperience emerged for all to see! I understand the principles of equitorial mounts, but it's one thing to read about it in books and another to put theory into practice. I set up the tripod and attached the CG5 mount, as per instructions. Then on went the heavy optical tube assembly (OTA), but when the mount started slipping from the strain of being top-heavy and the whole thing treatened to come crashing down, the OTA was quickly removed. OK, take it a logical step at a time: tripod, mount, then the counterweight bar and weights (ensure the safety cap is reinstalled on the bar, your toes will thank you!), THEN  the OTA. Much better. I adjusted the RA and DEC balance, attached the finder, eyepiece adapter and eyepiece, DEC cable and hand controller, and when done I had it looking exactly like the photo on the cover of the user's manual. Plugging in the battery, I fired it up, bypassed the alignment procedure, and tested the RA and DEC motors.
It was here that I noticed a problem. In the position described it's possible to aim at an object in certain parts of the sky that resulted in the eyepiece being on the BOTTOM forcing you to look straight up to use,  not a comfortable position especially with my neck problems. The solution was simple: rotate the OTA in its rings so that the eyepiece will allways be left, right or above the tube, but rarely if ever on the bottom.
While waiting for dark, I explored the area, met with other participants to talk about telescopes and what they hoped to see that evening, and visited the TeleView booth, where I got to look at a prototype of a brand new as yet unnamed 100-degree eyepiece, what would later come to be called their "Ethos" line when released.
At long last the sun went down, the wind calmed, the clouds cleared to expose a beautifully clear moonless sky, puncutated with a brilliant Milky Way, an occassional meteor, and much too often a car coming down the road from a restaurant at the top of the mountain, although that ended at about 11:00PM leaving us in peace and dark. As soon as possible, I switched on the CG-5 and began the alignment process. Failure after failure, I could not get it to find it's target stars. So back to square one and start over, it hit me where I messed up. I didn't do a Polar Alignment, not even close. Finding Polaris, I now had to man-handle the tripod to an approximate north-south orientation (with the OTA and counterweights it was weighing in at near 100 lbs, or so it felt), then used the ALT and AZIMUTH tweeks on the mount to bring Polaris into view through the RA bore hole. I also checked the leveling and fixed a minor deviation there. Resetting to the index marks provided, this time the 2-star alignment process went without problem, considering I also neglected to collimate my finder to the main OTA.
All was ready. I reached for the hand controller, selected "M" and keyed in "031", ENTER. The mount came to life, motors whirring rather noisly (if you've ever used a CG-5 you know what I mean) and when all became quiet the scope was pointing up to the East, with the eyepiece way up on top where I can't reach it! Refering to my previous paragraph about bringing everything except the kitchen sink, I did have my wife's kitchen step-stool that gave me a little additional altitude, enough to reach the eyepiece. I looked, focusing on a few stars visible in the field, but saw little else. Eventually, though, as I held my eye to the lense, I began to see a faint fuzzy form emerge, and with a little practice the fuzzy spot became more visible to form the recognizable core of the Andromeda Galaxy. My first DSO, and what I consider First Light for the C10!
I was now on fire, and the rest of the night was punctuated with the whinning of slewing motors as I jumped from this object to another, eager to explore the entire known universe in a few short hours. M51. M3. A few NGC's, a couple of nebulae and clusters, with some doubles thrown in for good measure.
Until the mount died, the small battery I was using depleted, and a hint of sunrise coming up in the East; time to close up shop and get some sleep. Yea, right, like I could sleep after all that! I only planned to stay the one night, that I now consider a huge success, so after finally getting a few winks, started tearing down and repacking the car for the trip home, happy with the memories of what I had seen and the power of the tool in my hands.
Now to pick up some additional eyepieces and other accessories.
Public Star Parties are outreach programs in which the general public, who may not otherwise have an opportunity, are invited to observe the heavens through various telescopes and talk about astronomy to club members. Just prior to this event held at Rooster Rock State Park in the Columbia River Gorge near Portland, I purchased a new Celestron C4-R refractor scope. This night marked its "First Light" initiation!
Camp Hancock is a science education camp operated by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI). Several times a year OMSI and the Rose City Astronomers host a week-end star party. I attended in September 2007 for two incredible nights of viewing, sharing experiences, and learning about the sky.
Nestled between Interstate 84 that winds past towering waterfalls, and the majestic Columbia River twenty-five miles east of Portland, Oregon, Rooster Rock State Park hosts telescopes of every description and size. Refractors and reflectors, forks and GEMs, CATs and DOBs abound along the river bank welcoming future astronomers of all ages.
Many organized star parties include informal nature hikes or other activities to entertain and enlighten the observers and guests during daylight hours. This is also time for checking equipment to make repairs, recharging batteries, taking care of meals and other personal issues, and catching up on sleep missed the night before.
Mount Bachelor Star Party was held in August at the Sunrise Ski Lodge on Mt. Bachelor in central Oregon (now moved to Sun River, a nearby community with an active astronomy program open to the public). For a week the lights are turned off and the parking lot is turned into an observing field with some of the darkest skies around!
Larger more organized star parties take place on a field with low horizons providing the widest sky possible. Observers often park their cars and set up camps around the perimeter, and locate their telescopes in the center so they can converse, compare notes and share experiences during the night.
Star Party Etiquette: When arriving, park your car facing the direction you expect to exit. By doing this, should you have to leave in the night, you won't blind everyone with your reverse lights. Be sure NOT to turn on your headlights, use only your parking lights if any, and warn everyone first so they can look away or cover their eyes to preserve their night vision. Better yet, park your car away from and out of sight of the observing field -- it's a little longer to carry your equipment to set up, but everyone will appreciate the consideration.
"O Lord, I have turned my face unto Thy kingdom of oneness and am immersed in the sea of Thy mercy. O Lord, enlighten my sight by beholding Thy lights in this dark night, and make me happy by the wine of Thy love in this wonderful age. O Lord, make me hear Thy call, and open before my face the doors of Thy heaven, so that I may see the light of Thy glory and become attracted to Thy beauty.
     Verily, Thou art the Giver, the Generous, the Merciful, the Forgiving."
-- 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'í Prayer
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Star Party