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Escarpment Magaz ine Spr ing 2012
I can see that the association of the two organizations has proved to be very productive and
I can also see that it is one that will last for a long time. The goal of the BAS is to provide both
students and the general public with the best astronomical information and observations. They
have achieved this goal with the new observatory. It is a very bright idea indeed.
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To find out more about the Bluewater Astronomical Society go to
On a very cold but clear December night, I again
joined John Hlynialuk to view the stars. Bundled
warmly in snowmobile boots, ski pants and an
extra warm layer under my parka, I met John,
Brett Tatton (President of BAS) and BAS member,
Lorraine Rogers. John rolled the roof back and in
no time called me over to the big 12” telescope
and asked what do you see? I gave out a, “Wow!
It’s Jupiter!” I could clearly see the giant planet.
The planet’s distinct bands and storms were visi-
ble and floating all around it were the Galilean
moons. Then Brett called me over to the telescope
he was working with to see twin galaxies.
No sooner had I put my eye to the viewfinder
when Lorraine called out, “Come on over here
and you’ll get a great view of Orion’s Belt.” Next
John showed me The Magellanic Clouds. This
went on for a couple of fascinating hours, though
it really didn’t seem that long even with the tem-
peratures dropping. Eventually we retreated to
the warm-up room, sipped hot coffee and contin-
ued our animated talk that centred on the stars.
As I drove home that evening, I was struck by how
these people really love what they do. It is more
then a passing hobby- it’s a life-long commitment.
The members of BAS come from a wide variety of
backgrounds — not only are they teachers, profes-
sors and educators, but many are supermarket
clerks, engineers, factory workers, linemen and
other professions not related to astronomy.
The group has recently been awarded a Trillium
Grant. The grant will cover the purchase of a
larger, more modern telescope at E.S. Fox and
will also cover computer equipment, shelving,
new instruments and lenses to help make the ob-
servatory more efficient. The new telescope will
be in the 25 to 30” range and will include a
Mallincam. This is a device that connects the tele-
scope to a computer system so everyone at the
observatory can view the image at the same time.
At some point they hope to connect to the “Night
Skies Network” where their observations will be
available on the internet.
FEATURE
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dark sky br ight idea
Image of Comet Hale-Bopp through the 10” telescope
The Aurora Borealis