18th Annual Weekend Under the Stars

July 31, August 1, 2, 2008

The 18th annual Weekend Under the Stars is hosted by the

Cheyenne Astronomical Society

Laramie Astronomical Society and Space Observers

Weekend Under The Stars is held in cooperation with the
Front Range Astronomical Super Cluster (FRASC)

The Weekend Under The Stars

In 2008 we will be holding the 17th Annual "Weekend Under the Stars".

The 2007 17th Annual Weekend Under the Star was a smashing success! The skies were incredible 5 nights in a row and as always the skies at 9100 in one of the darkest areas in the nation performed as expected. Seeing the Milky Way so bright it casts shadows and having visible limiting magnitude dimmer than 7th magnitude always delights the experienced, inexperienced, repeat attendees and first time observers year after incredible year.
This year we had 158 registered guests and a total of 1257 inches of aperture. All of that glass spent many hours staring in to the skies gathering countless numbers of photons to delight our minds.
Friday afternoon a lucky 2 dozen attendees made the voyage up Jelm Mountain to receive a tour of the 92 inch infrared telescope run by the University of Wyoming. Seeing the giant scope is a popular event.
Saturday began with the young at heart favorite-walking off the solar system in 1000 yards. Our tour is provided each year by Mary Jo Schutz; along with the assistance of her husband Marv. Mary Jo spends hours preparing new booklets and solar system highlights for those enjoying a brief tour of the solar system.
Saturday afternoon guests gathered around the registration booth to listen to some great programs offered this year by some professors from the University of Wyoming.
Our first speaker was Mike Brotherton who gave a talk entitled "Science and Science Fiction".
Our second speaker was Chip Kobulnicky whose program was entitled "Tracing the Chemical Enrichment of the Universe".
We appreciate Mike and Chip giving us such informative and entertaining talks.
After the talks were finished we gathered for our annual group photo. We always borrow Gary Garzone's tall ladder to get everyone in the field of view.
After the group photo guests gathered around the tent again for our annual door prize presentations. This year we had several telescopes to give away, eyepieces, gift certificates and accessories. One of the coolest door prizes was another beautiful astronomy quilt made and donated by Teresa Wolford. Please see our list of door prizes on page 2 and make sure to mention how much we appreciate their support if you make any inquiries or purchases from them in the coming year.
Next year's weekend under the stars will be July 31st to August 2nd, 2008. We hope to see you there.

Marty Curran
President
Cheyenne Astronomical Society

Directions to the Star Party From Laramie Wyoming, take HWY230 West 28 miles to Woods Landing. Continue from Woods Landing up HWY. 230 12 miles to the turn off to Foxpark (Forest Road 512). The turn is well marked and there will also be a sign marked "Weekend Under The Stars" with an arrow pointing the correct way. Take the county road approximately 2 miles to the small town of FoxPark. The town is closed up with big gates so you turn left when you get there. There will be a "Weekend Under The Stars" sign near that turn. After turning, go about 1/2 mile (approximately) and you will come to stop sign that enters another road. Get on that road and you will find the turn off to the observing site is to the right after you get on the other road. Watch close for the "Weekend Under the Stars" signs.

Information About The Observing Site

The observing site is the winter sports parking area for the south side of the Snowy Range. The site sits a 9100 feet with typical 7th mag stars visible naked eye. Most Messier objects are naked eye as well. The days are hot and the nights can be cold. Bring shorts, t-shirts, sun block, long johns, parkas, gloves and sun glasses. The sun will cook you to a crisp in less than an hour and the night can freeze you in less. Of course if you sun-burn your legs they'll be warm all night ;-) . There are no facilities at the site. As a matter of fact, there are outhouses and nothing else so bring water, food and any supplies you will need to camp out. We do arrange to have some porta potties brought in to the site. There is food, gas and supplies at Woods Landing, so it's not too far to go if you forget something but their supplies are limited. There are two large camping areas and the ground is flat and level so you can camp right at the observing site or almost anywhere you like around Foxpark. There are specific campgrounds at Rob Roy Reservoir, Miller Lake, Lake Evans and Lake Owens. Laramie is about a 50 minute drive from the site.

Weather Link for Foxpark Area

Events and Registration

REGISTRATION There is no pre-registration for this Star Party. All registration will be taken care of at the time of arrival. Please sign in at our registration desk(at the big tent). Fees: ADULTS = $10.00 each CHILDREN (12 and under) = FREE We record the number of people and how much aperture they brought with them for a grand total Saturday evening.

EVENTS We offer the following activities for the weekend. Check the events list below. Saturday morning: 1000 yard walk off of the Solar System Guest Speaker: To Be Announced Group Photo: Immediately after guest speakers Door Prize Giveaway (Please have a look at our 2007 Donor List) Saturday Evening 6 p.m. after group photo

CONTACT US AT:

Marty Curran
President CAS
3539 Luther Place
Cheyenne, WY 82001 
(307)635-5944
curranm@bresnan.net