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(meteorobs) Observations of a maturing observer
Hello all,
Just a few things I noticed after a month off.....due to atrocious
rotten cloudy dreary depressing awful, digusting weather.
I think the break did some good in allowing things to settle in my
brain. Hopefully in the future I'll be able to accomplish this during the
full moon breaks instead of having to wait a month :-)
One big change I've noticed is how much better I am at perceiving and
timing trains. I had always noticed how few I recorded, even during the
Perseids. However when I observed the other night, lo and behold, not only
am I seeing them more clearly, I found a little clock counting off seconds
in my brain AUTOMATICALLY! I did not conciously do that, it was just there.
I'm always amazed at the wondrous things a human (or well mine anyway)
brain can do when you let it work in the background without guidance.
Now if I can just get the color perception going, I'll be much
happier. I don't know why, but I do not seem to note color very
often...perhaps I'm concentrating too hard on other things. I guess I'll
see what happens in October.
My plotting also seems faster....looks like the break shaved 20% off
my average plot time. Still need more improvement there. I did pretty good
the other night except for the one below Saturn...which of course means
it's in Souther Pisces and ERI. Not too many bright stars, and it's not an
area I know well yet....that took over 2 minutes, but I rated it as a NAMN
2 accuracy, since by the time I finished plotting it, I knew that area
fairly well and had a good handle on where it was....just took a long time.
Side comments....the observing partner front. Had numerous mammels
accomanying me this last night, although none visual. No skunks....I
understand they're all on vacation in Massachusetts:<) However, there was a
loud snort, which I took to be a deer not 10 feet behind my head. Hopefully
it was..dot since the only other large furry critters are Bears, and a wayward
Moose in rutting season. I understand that is not when you want to meet a
male moose...dot besides that he's probably really PO'd, since he's looking
for a female moose, and he's the only moose in NJ. Meece we got, no moose.
The final delightful experiece was a long and loud battle which was between
raccoons or feral cats. Lasted 20 minutes, with constant....well screaming.
I must remember to bring a regular flashlight instead of just the red
one's.
Hope you all don't mind my relating my experieces as I learn more. As
I said I'm fascinated by how the process of learning goes on, and perhaps
some newer observers than I will gain some benefit from an old salt like me
(HaHa).
Goodnight, all, enjoy the eclipse (where visible)
Wayne