Summer 1999 Spring Friends’ Night Glorious |
gathered to hear about the history of the 36-inch telescope from dedicated volunteer and tour docent Kim Cohan (gesturing at center) at the Spring "Friends Only" Night on May 15 at the Oliver Observing Station. |
| Over 75 Friends attended
the "Friends Only" Night at the Oliver Observing Station on May 15. The weather
was really remarkably good, especially when compared to the night before, which Dr. Frank
Melsheimer, Dr. Whitney Shane, and Dr. Arthur Babcock all agreed was perhaps the worst
night in their collective observing experience; and the week or so prior had yielded no
good observing weather at all. The brand-new telescope control system worked very smoothly
in the hands of Whitney Shane and Arthur Babcock, yielding striking images of M13 and the
Cat’s-Eye Nebula, among many others. The evening began with a brief tour from Kim Cohan. In addition to the main event, over a dozen amateur astronomers shared their telescopes, some from as far away as Orion Telescopes in Watsonville, and from Danville, and everyone contributed to a scrumptious dessert potluck. Our mountaintop resources were strained by the end of the evening, but the seeing was memorable, the stars bright and numberless, and the company of good Friends kept us warm. |
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