It's two o'clock in the morning. I'm observing under clear skies and my throat is sore. But not because of the cold! No, I'm sitting at my desk at home in London, Ontario, with a mug of hot chocolate. The telescope I'm using is southeast of Tucson, Arizona, at the Jarnac Observatory. The reason my throat is sore is that I've just spent 133min on the phone with RASC member David H. Levy (Honorary President of both Montreal Centre and Kingston Centre; 1980 Chant Medal winner), learning about David's web-based interface for remote observing.

The 2012 General Assembly Organizing Committee is pleased to announce that the registration for the 2012 General Assembly is now open!

Pegasus – The Winged Horse

In mythology times, the winged horse Pegasus carried its master Perseus and rescued Andromeda to safety after Perseus saved her from the sea monster Cetus. This is a classic tale of heroism in the night sky. But for backyard astronomers and stargazers, The Great Square of Pegasus spells fall observing. This giant baseball diamond in the sky is quite easy to locate. With the splendid Milky Way perched straight up after sunset, the winged beast ascents in the east.

The Teapot’s Starry Steam

September nights are ideal for cruising the Milky Way. As the nights get progressively longer and cooler (less mosquitoes), we can now spend more quality time with the sky above. On moonless nights – the mighty planet Jupiter is the first to greet us in the south east within moments of sunset. Once you spot Jupiter, train your telescope on it. The contrasting blue sky allows viewing of subtle detail without eyestrain. Once darkness sets in and the planet brightens to magnitude -2.8, filters are required to soften the overpowering bright image.