I have a buddy that just moved here last fall and back in early May, he asked me when the winds would die down. I jokingly told him October but I think I jinxed it for all of us.
This past Saturday we had a rare break in the winds and clouds so I decided to head out to my favorite dark sky spot about 40 miles south of my home. I wasn't completely trusting the weather forecast so I brought my little StellarVue SV70T out in case the winds decided to pick up. The E.S. 152 is like a sail in the slightest breeze so I hoped to counter that issue with the smaller scope.
When I arrived on site the weather appeared to be ideal with only the slightest breeze.
Off to the E-SE you can see some clouds on the horizon. That was the only sign of clouds anywhere in the sky and the breeze was blowing in that direction so I hoped they would clear by nightfall.
My imaging target for this night was the North American and Pelican Nebulae which you can view here: viewtopic.php?t=25527
As the sun went down the breeze died off and the entire evening was dead calm except for about 20 minutes around 1 am when the wind kicked up to around 8-10mph. There were a few gusts that probably reached 15-20mph that destroyed a few exposures but otherwise, the evening was a success.
I usually try to sleep throughout the night while the imaging sequence is running so I can keep my body on schedule for "normal" waking hours. For some reason, I woke up around 2:30 am and looked out of my SUV to see a beautiful lightning show on the horizon. Luckily, by this time I was imaging in
It's not great, but it's the best I could do by resting the phone against my laptop and using the timer to take 10-second exposures.
If I had a
Overall, a very successful night out under the stars and one I hope to repeat many more times in the future.