2010 Public Open Nights

The Canterbury Astronomical Society (CAS) hosts open nights, during the winter months (April to September) when daylight savings has finished.

Members of the public are invited to join us and have a look through professional quality telescopes, each manned by a member of the society, who will operate the telescope and explain what you are seeing through it.

You are encouraged to ask as many questions as you like, and we will do our best to answer them all.

Organised groups of 15 or more are required to book their visit to the Observatory. Booking will allow the society to prepare for a larger group and arrange for more astronomers to be present. To book your group's visit, click the link for one of the Available Group Booking nights in the table below.

Individuals and small groups of fewer than 15 people are welcome to visit on any Public Night shown in the table below as Open. Booking is not required for groups of fewer than 15 people.

Open nights run from 7:30pm to 9:00pm and are held on Friday nights.

A school visit to the observatory, 11th June, 2008

MAP: How to get to the West Melton Observatory.

2010 Open Nights
Month	Date	Public Night	Group Booking	Moon Phase	Moon Viewable?
July	2nd July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	3rd July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	4th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	5th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	6th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	7th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	8th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	9th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	10th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	11th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	12th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	13th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	14th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		No
July	15th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		Yes
July	16th July	Open	Kidsfest 7:30pm to 9:30pm		Yes
July	23rd July	Open	Booked		Yes
July	30th July	Open	None		No
August	6th August	Booked	Booked		No
August	13th August	Open	Booked		Yes
August	20th August	Booked	Booked		Yes
August	27th August	Open	Booked		No
September	3rd September	Booked	Booked		No
September	10th September	Booked	Booked		Early
September	17th September	Booked	Booked		Yes
September	24th September	Open	Booked		Late

$6.00 per head, for ages 5 and above.

Group Bookings

Groups of 15 or more are required to book their visit by clicking an available booking night above and filling in the booking form.

Email	Bookings and Enquiries
Phone	027 445 8443

Phases of the moon and choosing when to visit.

The 2010 Open Nights table above shows the phase of the moon for each open night, and whether the moon will be visible in the sky during the open night hours (where the "Moon Viewable?" column says "No", the moon will still be below the horizon). The light reflected by the moon brightens the night sky, making some of the fainter deep-sky objects (e.g. galaxies and nebula) more difficult to see, but don't worry - there are still plenty of other astronomical objects to see, including the moon itself.

If you are particularly interested in observing the fainter objects in the night sky, we recommend you try to organize your visit to coincide as close as possible with a new moon. The best lunar phases for deep sky observing are between last quarter and first quarter (spanning the new moon phase). If you are interested in viewing the moon (lunar observing) then we recommend you try to organize your visit to be at least two days or more before or after the new moon, and for a night when the moon will be above the horizon.

Moon Phase Description
New Moon		The moon is not visible in the sky. Sky is darkest, excellent for all astronomical viewing (except lunar observing).
First Quarter		The moon may be visible in the sky. Sky is less dark than when at New Moon, but dark enough for deep-sky observing. Very good for lunar observing.
Full Moon		The moon may be visible in the sky. Sky is less dark than when at First Quarter or Last Quarter. Okay viewing for star clusters, planets and the moon. Viewing not so good for deep-sky observing of nebula and galaxies.
Last Quarter		Same as First Quarter. The moon may be visible in the sky. Sky is less dark than when at New Moon, but dark enough for deep-sky observing. Very good for lunar observing.

On the night of your visit

The home page of the CAS website will be updated no later than 6:30pm, advising whether the observatory is open or closed. The observatory may be closed due to adverse weather conditions so check the home page before visiting to avoid disappointment.

Please dip your headlights before arriving. Onsite parking is reserved for society members, please angle-park on the roadside outside the observatory. Please wait outside the gate until 7:30pm as it will be dark and astronomers will be moving about setting up equipment. Walk down the driveway towards the lodge, following the red lights.

Suggestions to improve your viewing experience

Dress Warm	We recommend that you dress warm, as the telescopes (and you) are exposed to the winter night air.

No torches	Becoming dark-adapted is essential for seeing the faint fuzzies that make up the deep sky. It takes 10-15 minutes for the pupil in your eye to expand to its maximum aperture. Over another 15 to 20 minutes, a chemical reaction in the eye kicks in that further boosts its sensitivity. A single shot of white light can ruin your night vision for up to 30 minutes.

Skymap	Free maps of the night sky available at SkyMaps.com each month - great for the kids. Make sure you get the southern hemisphere map!

Kidsfest

Kidsfest is an annual event organised by TV2. For 2010, the CAS observatory will be open every night of Kidsfest from 7:30pm to 9:30pm, weather permitting. Check the home page of the CAS website at 6:30pm each night of Kidsfest for confirmation. The standard $6.00 per head for ages 5 and above will apply. Visit http://www.kidsfest.co.nz for more information about Kidsfest.

Visitors from a Christchurch school taking turns to look through some of the telescopes on display, June 11th 2008. (Note that the sky was actually dark when this image was taken.)

Check out the calendar for upcoming events

Moon phase images courtesy of the Time Service Department, U.S. Naval Observatory.