Author Archives: james

Observation Report, 19/8/2011

Posted on September 12, 2011 by james

We’ve had the occasional clear night since May, but mostly when the moon was very close to full, leaving little to observe except the moon itself, but last night was the first time I’ve been able to spent a significant … Continue reading →

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Honey Harvest 2011

Posted on September 12, 2011 by james

This year I took on four hives belonging to a local farmer in addition to the hives in my home apiary. There have been beehives on his farm as long as anyone can remember and he was keen to keep … Continue reading →

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Solar PV Installation

Posted on September 12, 2011 by james

For a long time I’ve been tempted by a solar photovoltaic (PV) installation, but been unable to convince myself that it would be financially worthwhile. A couple of months ago however a friend was telling me about his new installation … Continue reading →

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Observation Report 13/3/2011

Posted on March 14, 2011 by james

This week is apparently the best week this year for observing Mercury. It’s never going to be that high above the horizon once the sun sets, but now is about as good as it gets. I’ve never seen Mercury before, … Continue reading →

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Observation Report 7/3/2011

Posted on March 9, 2011 by james

It’s the 7th March. I received my first telescope — the ST80, for Christmas 2010. And tonight is the first really pin-sharp night sky we’ve had. I still haven’t sorted out the mount for the 127 Mak, so the ST102 … Continue reading →

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Observation Report 6/3/2011

Posted on March 9, 2011 by james

Another clear night, but again with unexceptional transparency. The more I go out the better I am getting at judging the quality of the seeing. I’ll still go out pretty much any night there are stars to be seen nonetheless. … Continue reading →

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Observation Report 4/3/2011

Posted on March 9, 2011 by james

Another less-than-brilliant night, seeing-wise. Clear skies, but poor transparency. This was my first time out with the 127 Mak which I’d temporarily bodged onto an EQ1 mount though, so I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity even though I did … Continue reading →

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View of ISS and Discovery on its way home

Posted on March 8, 2011 by james

I was looking at some galaxy information in Stellarium last night with my son when I noticed the ISS pop up over the horizon. I’ve never seen it before, so we rushed outside to watch it pass overhead and were … Continue reading →

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Spawny Frogs

Posted on March 4, 2011 by james

Once upon a many years ago, a cart track ran from a nearby road and turned at our yard to run down to the local corn mill. The track has long since fallen out of use, but a dip in … Continue reading →

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Cider Press Construction (Part 1)

Posted on March 4, 2011 by james

For pressing my cider apples I decided I couldn’t justify the price of even the smaller commercially-produced presses and after a fair bit of research I felt I could build one myself that should do an acceptable job. As it … Continue reading →

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