Tom L
Reged: 01/07/04
Posts: 29882
Loc: Sunny Oregon
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Our 4th (and hopefully 2nd successful!) attempt at a Northwest CloudyNight'ers star party at Mt. St. Helens is scheduled for Saturday, June 9th, 2007. The location is the same as before, the "Castle Lake Viewpoint", near milepost 40 on Hwy 504, aka The Spirit Lake Memorial Highway. This is a non-sponsored event. There is no cost. Those who want to attend can just show up.
This thread was started as an informational thread for those looking for info about the time, place and details of the event. Please keep chatter as close to on-topic as possible about this particular event (use the old thread for our friendly NW chit-chat  ).
Where:
The location is the Castle Lake Viewpoint. The Castle Lake Viewpoint is located at mile post 40, just west of (before) the Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center, along State Route 504.
http://www.cleardarksky.com/c/MntStHlns1WAkey.html?1 (Clearskyclock)
http://www.cleardarksky.com/lp/MntStHlns1WAlp.html (Light pollution map)
The Castle Lake viewpoint is midway between Elk Rock and the Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center, see map.
Vincinity map
Castle Lake Viewpoint is directly above the word "Hummocks" in this detailed map.
Detailed map
Here's hoping for clear, dark skies!
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Tom 
Tele Vue 102mm f/8.6 on an EzTouch
Vixen 80mm f/5 A80SSWT on a grab-n-go mount
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Skylook123
Post Laureate
Reged: 04/30/05
Posts: 4095
Loc: Tucson, AZ
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Wow, MSHSP4, Buck-Eye On The Sky, and Grand Canyon Star Party concurrently! Sounds like we should schedule a UTC time on June 9 for a chorus of Kumbaya...or It's A Small Sky After All.
Unless the Ohio gang uses June 16...???
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Jim
A Bad Night With A Telescope
Beats A Good Night Doing Anything Else
Tectron 18" Truss Dob/Sky Commander DSCs, "Derrick"
Meade 10" LX-5 SCT/Atlas-G "Ol' Blue Eye"
Orion 90mm refractor,
Meade 10" Starfinder Newt/JMI NGCMax DSCs,
Celestron 10x50 Ultima Pro
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~Steph~
Texas Wildflower
Reged: 06/11/05
Posts: 21748
Loc: North Texas
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Ohio is June 16...  Man, how I'd love to do MSHSP on June 9 then go to Ohio after! 
But I like the "It's A Small Sky After All" suggestion anyway. 
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Steph
10" RCX400 ~~ 4" TV102 ~~ WO ZS80FD ~~ PST
Serenity Observatory 
HansenAstro | CN Member Websites
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buckaroo
Space Cowboy
Reged: 05/26/06
Posts: 1623
Loc: Underwood,Washington
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Huh, sounds good but by my feeble calculations isn't there an almost full moon that night?
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Steve
.742 meter f4.5 starmaster
12" f5.4 Teeter planet killer
10" f6 newt
sv102a f7.9
Atlas-g
Canon 1DmkIIn,40D,AE-1P,AE-1
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~Steph~
Texas Wildflower
Reged: 06/11/05
Posts: 21748
Loc: North Texas
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Your feeble calculations are more feeble than you think  -- 3rd quarter moon is the night before, June 8. 
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Steph
10" RCX400 ~~ 4" TV102 ~~ WO ZS80FD ~~ PST
Serenity Observatory
HansenAstro | CN Member Websites
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square_peg
Postmaster
Reged: 03/26/04
Posts: 24572
Loc: Maple Valley, WA
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Moonrise 1:51 a.m.
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Tom (Pegster)
DSH-8 (GSO Dob)
15x70 Oberwerks
SVP 100 f/6 achro
WO 66 Petzval
Sears Discoverer EQ 60/900
8x42 Regals
History is Philosophy teaching by examples.
Thucydides
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buckaroo
Space Cowboy
Reged: 05/26/06
Posts: 1623
Loc: Underwood,Washington
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Oops that was for 2006 
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Steve
.742 meter f4.5 starmaster
12" f5.4 Teeter planet killer
10" f6 newt
sv102a f7.9
Atlas-g
Canon 1DmkIIn,40D,AE-1P,AE-1
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square_peg
Postmaster
Reged: 03/26/04
Posts: 24572
Loc: Maple Valley, WA
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Funny coincedence. I was up at Aurora Astro today talking to Jim Bielaga about this. I was concerned that we might have stepped on his toes a little this September, scheduling MSHSP-III on the night he would use for his annual Orion Nebula star party at Table Mountain. Turns out his event was the next weekend.
I had suggested that we might schedule our next MSHSP for the Spring and was thinking about starting a new thread for a May event.
The 3rd quarter moon is a bit bothersome for the 9th and the very short night makes me leary of June 16th. But then, a May event seems more likely to get rained out again. 
Chance of rain.
I guess I'm game for whatever date works for most of us.
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Tom (Pegster)
DSH-8 (GSO Dob)
15x70 Oberwerks
SVP 100 f/6 achro
WO 66 Petzval
Sears Discoverer EQ 60/900
8x42 Regals
History is Philosophy teaching by examples.
Thucydides
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square_peg
Postmaster
Reged: 03/26/04
Posts: 24572
Loc: Maple Valley, WA
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Complete Sun and Moon Data for One Day. (Any day you choose.)
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/RS_OneDay.html
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Tom (Pegster)
DSH-8 (GSO Dob)
15x70 Oberwerks
SVP 100 f/6 achro
WO 66 Petzval
Sears Discoverer EQ 60/900
8x42 Regals
History is Philosophy teaching by examples.
Thucydides
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Sky Captain
Scope Builder
Reged: 11/07/04
Posts: 5785
Loc: Washington
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Quote:
I had suggested that we might schedule our next MSHSP for the Spring and was thinking about starting a new thread for a May event.
Yes, Yes, Yes...I like the idea of several events around that time. May & June would be great...the moon would be great to view too. Not that often you get a chance to do that at a star party!
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Equipment Overload!
Kerry.
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Downward Bound
Adrenaline Junkie
Reged: 03/29/06
Posts: 2238
Loc: Seattle
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What if we chose a different site for the May/June gathering - a location east of the Cascade crest that offers a greater chance of clear skies??  Then have the late-summer/early-fall party at St. Helens when the rainy season is less of a factor? Somewhere either north-central WA (not convenient for our OR group), eastern/central WA (about the same for all), or south central? Anyone know of a good alternate site on the dry side? Here's an LP map to help....
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Bill
'flector: R200SS, 22" f/3.6 (on order)
'fractors: AT-66, TV-85, FS-102, NP-127, PST
'bins: 15x63, 10x52, 22x85
Sphinx, Telepod, EZ Touch, G-11
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square_peg
Postmaster
Reged: 03/26/04
Posts: 24572
Loc: Maple Valley, WA
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I'd love to do a star party in Eastern Washington sometime but the point of MSHSP was enabling W's & O's to get together somewhere in between.
Maybe another event in E. Wa.? I'd like to have a look at Meadows Campground at Hart's Pass.
Info link.
Or somewhere out on the plateau. Lot's of dark skies just north or south of the I-90 corridor.
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Tom (Pegster)
DSH-8 (GSO Dob)
15x70 Oberwerks
SVP 100 f/6 achro
WO 66 Petzval
Sears Discoverer EQ 60/900
8x42 Regals
History is Philosophy teaching by examples.
Thucydides
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Tom L
Reged: 01/07/04
Posts: 29882
Loc: Sunny Oregon
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I'm certainly willing to travel a bit farther. South central WA on the east side of the Cascades does offer a higher probability of clear skies and affords anyone from Idaho or Montana to consider it as well...also moves us away from the Portland and Seattle light domes. I was really surprised that we could see both so clearly from MSH.
I put this stake in the ground to mainly get us to start discussing this, sans the chatter of the other thread. I chose this date as the highest probability with a late moon rise. I normally hit the sack by 1:30 and don't get to observe the moon during it's waning crescent phase and would like to...so I'd stay about for awhile studying the moon before hitting the hay.
What about the WA coast on the west side of the Olympics? I wonder what the skies would be like at someplace like Long Island, WA (or similar). We could go further north to Hurricane Ridge or camp out at Crescent Lake. Here's a wild thought... Sol Duc Hot Springs area.
I'm pretty open to anything from either state...the original intent of the MSHSP was and is to make it accessible to all Cloudy Nights NW'ers at a really dark site, not just WA folks or OR folks...there are "offical" star parties for those events that most of us will attend or at least try to attend this coming summer. Both Oregon SPs (OSP and MBSP) are back to back in August (9th and 16th I believe), TMSP is in July. I also want to try and go to Prineville Reservoir again...lovely place! It is in June this year.
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Tom
Tele Vue 102mm f/8.6 on an EzTouch
Vixen 80mm f/5 A80SSWT on a grab-n-go mount
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Downward Bound
Adrenaline Junkie
Reged: 03/29/06
Posts: 2238
Loc: Seattle
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One place that comes to mind is Palouse Falls State Park - about 15 minutes south of Washtucna (1 hour west of Pullman on #26). Every year we go camping at another site just 5 miles further on the Snake River (that camp ground is down in the river canyon so not as suitable). But the Palouse Falls CC sits high on the plateau so you'd have nice low horizons on all sides (I think  ). The only light pollution would be from neighboring wheat ranches scattered about every 5 miles or so. Here another link with details and photos - it's a nice area for families to explore. I'd be happy to take a motorscooter trip over some weekend to check out the SP practicalities - or better yet, grab a couple NW-CNers to take a weekend recon trip with tele-kits 
Just a thought - something good to noodle on for a rainy day....
Sorry if this is chatter, more appropriate for the other thread - it's indended as productive planning for our 07 SP schedule.
Tom - I'm no expert on WA coast but I think they get more rain than Mt. St. Helens
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Bill
'flector: R200SS, 22" f/3.6 (on order)
'fractors: AT-66, TV-85, FS-102, NP-127, PST
'bins: 15x63, 10x52, 22x85
Sphinx, Telepod, EZ Touch, G-11
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Tom L
Reged: 01/07/04
Posts: 29882
Loc: Sunny Oregon
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Wow, that place is out there! Not chatter! Far from it....we need to have some places to go and I was just trying keep us on topic until we have some places identified.
Here is another place that may be of interest: Goldendale Observatory
This map also shows several parks that may be of consideration: Parks in South-Central Washington
Any of those appear to be acceptable? Need to get the light pollution maps...here is Goldendale's map: Goldendale Light Pollution Map
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Tom
Tele Vue 102mm f/8.6 on an EzTouch
Vixen 80mm f/5 A80SSWT on a grab-n-go mount
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Sky Captain
Scope Builder
Reged: 11/07/04
Posts: 5785
Loc: Washington
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Quote:
Here is another place that may be of interest: Goldendale Observatory
As much as I like Goldendale (best view of Orion with 20x80's) you can't camp there and the parking lot lights are very bright. Yes they leave the big lights on during observing.
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Equipment Overload!
Kerry.
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square_peg
Postmaster
Reged: 03/26/04
Posts: 24572
Loc: Maple Valley, WA
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Quote:
- or better yet, grab a couple NW-CNers to take a weekend recon trip with tele-kits
Have scope. Will travel. 
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Tom (Pegster)
DSH-8 (GSO Dob)
15x70 Oberwerks
SVP 100 f/6 achro
WO 66 Petzval
Sears Discoverer EQ 60/900
8x42 Regals
History is Philosophy teaching by examples.
Thucydides
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Tom L
Reged: 01/07/04
Posts: 29882
Loc: Sunny Oregon
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Quote:
Quote:
Here is another place that may be of interest: Goldendale Observatory
As much as I like Goldendale (best view of Orion with 20x80's) you can't camp there and the parking lot lights are very bright. Yes they leave the big lights on during observing.
That's crazy!
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Tom
Tele Vue 102mm f/8.6 on an EzTouch
Vixen 80mm f/5 A80SSWT on a grab-n-go mount
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gripweed44
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 02/12/05
Posts: 908
Loc: PDX
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There is a new observing site in Goldendale that has pads and wifi. I will get the info and post.
John
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John
Omega Centauri is the finest Globular I have seen with my own eyes.
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Sky Captain
Scope Builder
Reged: 11/07/04
Posts: 5785
Loc: Washington
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Wow, thats great news John. In town or a ways out?
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Equipment Overload!
Kerry.
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