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Written by Charlie Hein
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Monday, 06 April 2009 09:55 |
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Weather permitting, we will be making a road trip out to the Kirby Storter Roadside Park on Friday, July 24, 2009. Kirby Storter is the furthest site we've traveled to on a group trek, but it is also the darkest site we've found to date.
Please note: Travelling out to and observing from dark sky sites involves a small but unavoidable level of inherent danger, and because of this we cannot sponsor guided trips to these sites for the general public. Anyone who goes to one of these places must understand that they do so completely at their own risk because it is simply impossible to completely negate those risks. Although all interested astronomers are certainly welcome to join us at this event, it is not a public event like our Saturday Public Viewing Nights at Fox Observatory.
Kirby Storter has some nice features besides the really dark sky that make it a worthwhile road trip. First, it is completely paved all the way there, so no travelling down any dirt roads in order to find a decent spot.
It has restroom facilities with chemical toilets in an actual building - which is a feature many of us can appreciate. Although the park is literally inside the Everglades, there's an "alligator barrier" wall surrounding the park that makes it very difficult for any curious reptiles to join us on our trek. And if you get to the site early enough, there is a very nice boardwalk you can use for wilderness sightseeing prior to sunset.
The only down side is the distance we'll have to travel to get there, which is between an hour and a quarter to an hour and a half, depending on conditions. Our route will be to take US27 south out to Krome Avenue, take a right on Krome and go to the Trail (there is a big hotel/casino complex on the corner), and then west on Tamiami Tral to Kirby Storter which is on the left hand (south) side of the road.
I will be leading the caravan out to Kirby Storter. My plan is to arrive at the site with enough daylight left to explore and to set up. In order to accomplish this, we will meet at Fox and head out as a caravan at 6:30pm. As usual, the sun just will not wait for any stragglers (we've tried to negotiate with him about this but he remains adamant), and so we must leave on time - please time your arrival at Fox for a 6:30pm departure!
Charlie |
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Written by SFAAA Staff
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Sunday, 30 November 2008 16:22 |
Bring your Telescope with its accessories and manuals to Fox Astronomical Observatory on Saturday evenings. We’ll teach you to set up and align your telescope and how to find things to look at in the night sky.
It’s a free service of the South Florida Amateur Astronomers Association (SFAAA), operators of Fox Astronomical Observatory at Broward County’s Markham Park.
The Observatory is open to the public Saturdays from Sunset until Midnight.
The park is located at 16001 W SR 84 at Weston Rd Sunrise FL 33326. Take I-75 North past the Western end of I-595, take the new Weston Road exit. Turn right at the Weston Road traffic signal. Once in the park at the four-way stop sign turn left, then make your first right, and go to the end of the road. Please dim your headlights.
The SFAAA is a non-profit organization, donations welcome, annual memberships. Members receive monthly e-mail newsletter containing color astronomical pictures taken in South Florida by SFAAA Members!! |
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Written by Charlie Hein
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Monday, 10 November 2008 00:00 |
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Hello Folks! 
As you've probably noticed, we've run a little short of fresh content for the club website lately. I'm writing today to make an official request for club members and other interested parties to submit articles for posting on the website. We are looking for product reviews, observing reports, how-to articles or any other type of content that can be posted on the site for our readers to enjoy. In particular, we would really be interested in seeing articles of a recurring nature, such as an recurring article on what is going to be in the sky for a particular month. If you've always wanted to be a columnist this could be your stepping stone! Seriously, we can really use your help. You don't have to be a great writer - we will function as your "editor" and make certain that your article is spell checked, factual and easy to read. You do not have to be a web guru at all - we can take your information in many forms (such as a Word document or email) and get it online with no trouble at all. While we would like for you to provide any pictures your article would need (and in the case of a "how-to" or product review it's pretty much essential that you provide some images), we can always use stock photos to dress up your article if you don't have any pictures to share. What we cannot do without is your input. If you would like to help out in this way, please contact us at info@sfaaa.com, and we'll get back to you to work out the details! thanks, Charlie |
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Written by Steve Cox
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Saturday, 27 September 2008 10:08 |
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Eva-Dry High Capacity Dehumidifier Systems.
by Steve Cox
The Weapon:
Welcome to South Florida, and the wonderful conditions of moisture that go along with it. The enemy comes to astronomers in the form of dew. Our equipment takes the punishment night after night. Now there is a new weapon to fight back, behold the Eva-Dry High Capacity Dehumidifier Systems. They come in all shapes and sizes and range in price from $14-$80 each. Their one mission is to remove moisture from our astronomy equipment. Inside these units are thousands of tiny crystals that remain active for 10 years and offer a limited 5 year manufacture warranty. 
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