Jeff Higgins

17 posts

Moon taken on 9/24/2021

Good event in Skaneateles despite clouds

Several SAS members joined me to volunteer with their scopes at Austin Park last night.  The sticky, humid air hung like steamy bows of Cypress trees hanging over a dusty dirt road in southern Alabama.    The view of the bottom of the Skaneateles nebula was uniform and monotonous and only allowed fleeting, obscured views of the moon and (probably) Vega.     A few families and individuals arrived and stayed for our ‘Plan B’ shows, as each of us did some tap-dancing on the soft, rain-soaked ground.  By 10:15, the “crowd” had swatted enough mosquitoes and their kids were rubbing […]

Skaneatelas star party. Picture of the field with participants.

Friday Night’s Star-Party in Skaneateles

Under cloudless skies, several members donated their Friday night to helping with the Special (paid) Event in Austin Park last night.  Mike Z., Bob O., Tony K., Adam D., Shane J., Mike B., and Paul W. joined me in promoting astronomy to about 50 residents and friends of Skaneateles.     Tony and I did our EAA shows to large audiences near the pavilion while the others set up their visual scopes on a small hill nearby.  Shane manned the welcome table and disseminated lots of information about our club to everyone.  The Bortle 5 sky was not much brighter than DHO […]

Hurrican Ian, September, 2002

Event for the town of Lysander

  “The show must go on!” was the underlying theme of last night’s outreach event in the Town of Lysander.  Hurricane Ian’s huge high-cloud shield eventually overtook all of CNY and bands of heavier clouds plagued our visability from the start.     Undaunted, and well prepared with trusty “Plan B”s (and some Vitamin O), the all-volunteer crew of hearty SAS members arrived in time to set up our equipment for the 8PM gala.  At the appointed time and with military precision, Mike Z. Tony K., John R., Kevin L., Mike F., and I  stiffened our upper lips as we stepped up […]

Public Viewing for the Town of Dewitt on September 2nd, 2022

At Cedar Bay in Dewitt, a whopping ten SAS members came together to volunteer their time and share their knowledge, experience, and equipment with members of our community, continuing to support our club’s mission to provide outreach and promote astronomy to the public. I believe we were successful in that endeavor last night. The Dewitt Parks and Recreation Department donated $300 to SAS as the sole sponsor for about 50 residents of Dewitt, a suburb of Syracuse. Attendees paid $10 each to the Town to offset the cost to taxpayers. A local bakery also donated some half-moon cookies to the […]