SRAA in Laravale, Queensland, Australia | Sport & recreation

SRAA

Locality: Laravale, Queensland, Australia

Phone: +61 431 436 500

Address: 77 Christmas Creek Road 4285 Laravale, QLD, Australia

Website: http://sraa.org.au

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• Non-profit organisation
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25.01.2022 After a few month's worth of a forced hiatus, not necessarily by Coronavirus, but a combination of Bushfires (Smoke) and the Weather (Cloud) mainly, we have finally be able to finally get a good night's viewing in. Did I mention finally? Up to 10 months is a long time, not that we were counting or anything. It's almost like we did not even remember what the sky looked like, or where things were again. The seeing was incredible. Looking at Jupiter, the Great Red Spot was striking; Saturn, could clearly make out the Cassini Division as well as the distinction between the different colour cloud bands; Enjoy some of the photos taken from the night. Come next month, people will be able to visit us again, but at a strict 50 person limit. In the lead up to our next Social Viewing, we will provide any further updates, but you will have to RSVP.

25.01.2022 https://www.abc.net.au//jupiter-and-saturn-in-a-/12895088

24.01.2022 Tune in from 5:30pm on Saturday 26th of September as SRAA and Star Gayzers present an International Observe the Moon Night Live Stream. From 6pm, we will be doing hosted presentations and talks on the Moon, as well as observing the Moon. #ObserveTheMoon

24.01.2022 Finally, a great viewing night. Not too many spider webs on the scope. Plenty of members and guests.

24.01.2022 After putting on a show for our northern hemisphere friends, C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) is how positioned for us to view in the early evening. Currently it is unlikely to be visible to the naked eye. The current moonlight is also not helping, however I was able to see the comet with binoculars last night. It appeared as a recognisable fuzzy blob but I was unable to make out the tail. The tail appears in some photographs that I took, I will post these later in the comments.... So grab your Bino’s, camera and some warm clothes and head to a spot away from bright lights. To find the comet, look to the Northwest, locate the stars Arcturus and Denebola, then look about 20 degrees above the horizon, half way between those two stars for a cluster of stars. The comet is currently near that cluster. Refer the the chart posted here. You are welcome to share your experiences and images by posting to the comments here. More information can be found here: https://in-the-sky.org/news.php?id=20200723_19_100

23.01.2022 August highlights.... Note: The M31 Andromeda Galaxy transits (reaches its highest elevation in the sky) about 3am in August. To see it you will need to find a dark site on a day the moon is not above the horizon, after the 16th August.) Binoculars will make it easier). The further south you are, the lower it will be above the horizon. See chart in comments. https://www.forbes.com//two-galaxies-five-planets-and-60-/

22.01.2022 APOD: The Shifting Tails of Comet NEOWISE (2020 Aug 12) Image Credit & Copyright: Ignacio Llorens https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200812.html Explanation: Keep you...r eye on the ion tail of Comet NEOWISE. A tale of this tail is the trail of the Earth. As with all comets, the blue ion tail always points away from the Sun. But as Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) rounded our Sun, its ion tail pointed in slightly different directions. This is because between 2020 July 17 and July 25 when the featured images were taken, the Earth moved noticeably in its orbit around the Sun. But the Earth's motion made the Sun appear to shift in the sky. So even though you can't see the Sun directly in the featured image(s), the directions of the ion tails reveal this apparent solar shift. The Sun's apparent motion is in the ecliptic, the common plane where all planets orbit. The featured five image composite was meticulously composed to accurately place each comet image -- and the five extrapolated solar positions -- on a single foreground image of Turó de l'Home Mountain, north of Barcelona, Spain Comet NEOWISE is no longer the impressive naked-eye object it was last month, but it can still be found with a small telescope as it heads back to the outer Solar System. Starship Asterisk* APOD Discussion Page http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=200812 #APOD

22.01.2022 ISS visible This week there are four bright or very bright passes of the International Space Station over Brisbane and SE Queensland: tonight, Tuesday, Wedn...esday, and Thursday. See charts in this post for where to look, and when. Charts from heavens-above.com. They are oriented correctly when held overhead. Visit https://heavens-above.com/PassSummary.aspx and edit the location details to get charts for your location.

21.01.2022 Well, not sure what to say about this, so here goes. All of our Major Solar System bodies will be visible in the sky at once. When I say "All", I mean ALL!. Mercury, Venus, Earth ;), Our Moon, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and of course Pluto, will all be visible at around 5:43am Tomorrow Morning (Saturday 18th), with of course the Sun shortly after. I almost forgot to mention too, there will also be an ISS Pass in the North-East (just below the Moon) at the same time! What a great time it will be to wake up in the morning and literally see everything, then go about doing some other boring thing until the Sun sets.

21.01.2022 Wednesday 26th May 2021 there will be a Total Lunar Eclipse visible from Australia and NZ in the eastern sky. The next time this will happen is 8th November 202...2, and the last time it happened was in 28th July 2018. Lunar eclipses occur when the Moon passes through the Earth's shadow. Here are the times of the main stages of the eclipse, from the first little bite of the Earth's shadow on the edge of the Moon, through a creeping partial eclipse, into totality, and then out again. Video with times here: https://www.facebook.com/tom.harradine.12/posts/6227217933970637 Unlike Solar eclipses, Lunar eclipses are perfectly safe to view with the naked eye. They look even better through binoculars or even a telescope! The reddish colour is due to sunlight (in fact the light from all sunsets and sunrises) bending through Earth's atmosphere and shining on to the Moon's surface.

18.01.2022 Not sure what the weather is doing? Not sure if it is clear outside? Not sure what goes on after dark? Well, be certain with our newly commissioned AllSky Camera! Visit www.sraa.org.au/allsky/ any time of day to see whats up. The camera is also linked on CloudFreeNight.com, so you can get your forecasts all in one place. This image was from just a few moments ago. Each night, Timelapses, Star Trails & Keograms are produced in the morning for a summary of the night's viewing. Just note, over the next few weeks, we'll be ironing out some bugs. So don't worry if you have seen a UFO.

17.01.2022 On Friday morning, 5th March, the largest planet in our solar system will appear close to the smallest, with Jupiter and Mercury being less than the width of the moon apart. https://apple.news/Aa-Zje-BjQMmscw_RioGY7A

13.01.2022 Tonight 6th Magnitude Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) is going to be around 17’ (0.28 of a degree) from M64 the Black Eye Galaxy. Being this close means that both would fit nicely in a telescope field of view! The problem is there is a near full moon, and the possibility of cloud (SE Qld), that will make viewing this celestial event difficult. I am still going to try my luck getting an image. I think using a narrow band filter might help. Visually seeing both with binoculars will b...e difficult. To find them look 30 deg above the NW horizon. The stars Arcturus, Spica and the ‘Diamond’ asterism will act as signposts to help you. Imaging the triangle shown on the chart will help you. Good luck

12.01.2022 Make sure you are already tuned in this time tomorrow night as SRAA and Star Gayzers present an International Observe the Moon Night Live Stream. The Live Stream starts at 5:30pm and from 6pm, we will be doing hosted presentations and talks on the Moon for around 1hr, as well as observing the Moon. Reminder, this is an online event only. #ObserveTheMoon

09.01.2022 https://www.abc.net.au//september-sky-guide-sprin/12620894

08.01.2022 A big thank you to everyone from SRAA and Star Gayzers who were involved with our broadcast last night for International Observe the Moon Night. It didn't even matter if you were there just to have a look, drive a scope, or run a mic. Aside from a few technical hiccups, overall, it turned out pretty good. Hopefully those of you that were tuned in to watch enjoyed our presentation. A lot of work from a lot of people from both Clubs went into this and it could not have been done without them. If you missed it, you can still watch it on YouTube, see the blog post below.

08.01.2022 The Times, They Are a-Changin’. So we are going to give change a chance. This year, we have all be hampered by Coronavirus restrictions. Including us, we had to cancel our Star Party for the year. So we are doing something about it. On Saturday the 26th of September (6 weeks away), Scenic Rim Astronomy Association Inc. and Star Gayzers Inc. are teaming up to do a Live Stream for International Observe the Moon Night (IOTMN). Everyone seems to have embraced online activities, s...o why not try our hand at doing an online event? The Live Stream will start at 5pm showing the Moon (if visible), with about an hour long hosted component starting at 6pm. More details of the event will be announced closer to the date. Remember to register your interest and subscribe on YouTube so you know the moment we go Live. Every year, NASA co-ordinates the date for International Observe the Moon Night. Across the Globe, enthusiasts like ourselves get out there and try to show the Moon to passers by or to those curious enough to ask for more information about the Moon. #ObserveTheMoon

07.01.2022 On Thursday morning Jupiter and Saturn will not only be joined by Mercury, but also by a thin waning crescent Moon! In order to view this rare sight of these four beautiful celestial objects together, look towards the east around 5 am, about 45 minutes before sunrise at 5:46 a.m. (Brisbane) Mercury will rise a little before dawn, at 3:45 am, joining Saturn and Jupiter in the sky. The thin Moon will appear about five degrees to the lower right of Jupiter and will only be around nine percent illuminated. This rare sight is visible to the naked eye, but a handy pair of binoculars will help you get a closer look at the three planets and the accompanying Moon. The presence of the Moon may make it harder to see Mercury, depending on the amount of light pollution in your area

06.01.2022 https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7779

06.01.2022 A cool video of the scale of our Solar System and Planet 9

06.01.2022 In just over 24 Hours from now, we "may" witness a celestial event that hasn't been observed this close and at night time in nearly 800 years. The Great Conjunction of Jupiter & Saturn. I say "may", because the weather forecast is looking like it is going to be cloudy. If we are lucky enough to see it, look to the West after sunset. Jupiter & Saturn will then set after 8pm, giving just over an hour window to try and catch the spectacle. If the clouds do behave, we will also try and livestream the event.

05.01.2022 Looks like a good viewing night tonight

03.01.2022 Increasing Solar activity and possible G2 conditions by the 25th. Aurora watchers will be getting excited! https://youtu.be/chEFTzhi8Rk

02.01.2022 Tonight's the Night. The "Blood Moon". It is not a sign of the beginning of the end times, just an astronomical phenomenon where we are in the way of the Suns light shining on the Moon. While technically the eclipse starts at 6:47pm, it will begin to really be noticeable after 7:44pm as the Earth's Shadow passes over the Moon with Totality between 9:11pm and 9:25pm. This is an event where you can just sit back, relax and watch the Moon slowly go from White to Red.... If you happen to be around the city, members of SRAA and Star Gayzers will be at the Kangaroo Point Cliffs Park from 6pm. We will also do a Livestream here on Facebook and on YouTube from 6:30pm through to about 11pm. This Photo is from the October 2014 Total Lunar Eclipse, which is similar to how tonight's will look.