22nd Annual Weekend Under the Stars

August 16, 17, 18 2012

The 22nd 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 2012 we will be holding the 22nd Annual "Weekend Under the Stars". Previous WUTS have had over 200 attendees with over 1400 inches of aperture. Observers always enjoy the usual summer favorites from the Veil Nebula (always a great sight under such dark skies), Einstein's cross, the Blue Snowball, Saturn, Jupiter, the Trifid, The Lagoon, M 22, M 4, Stephen's Quintet, the Dumbbell Nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy and the list can go on and on. Of course one of the best views we have from the dark skies at 9100 is the incredible view of the Milky Way. The Milky Way is so bright it casts shadows. Just seeing the Milky Way so bright is worth the trip to Foxpark. Marty's new 20" telescope  always draws a crowd. Another popular scope at WUTS is Gary Garzone and his 30" telescope. Gary wants to make sure everyone gets a view of some marvelous deep sky object. 

On Friday we host a tour of Jelm Mountain Infrared Observatory. About 30 people made the voyage up the mountain to take a peak at this wonderful infrared telescope. The tour is always popular with WUTS attendees. Friday night we do an informal sky tour at 9:45 pm pointing out the brightest stars and constellations.   Saturday afternoon we have a guest speaker or two and draw door prizes.

Images from 2011 WUTS can be found here. 

Marty Curran
President
Cheyenne Astronomical Society

Directions to the Star Party (41.0839N 106.1594W0 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. 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. 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 closely for the "Weekend Under the Stars" sign by that turn, they are kind of small about 10 x 15 inches.  Google Map BING Map

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.

Clear Skies Forecast

Weather Link for Foxpark Area

Clear Sky Forecast

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 = $15.00 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. Friday evening: Sky Tour 9:45 by the registration booth Guest Speaker: TBA Group Photo: Immediately after guest speaker Door Prize Giveaway (Please have a look at our Donor List) Saturday Evening after group photo

CONTACT US AT:

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