Sky and Telescope - April 2016 - 37

price comparable to staying in a motel. The advantage is
that you'll be onsite, where the action is, not miles away.
You also won't have to worry about driving back to the
motel if you're ready to call it a night before dawn, potentially disturbing fellow observers and breaking the event's
"light rules" with your headlights.

any light pollution. Your telescope goes deeper.
So is a Southwestern star party set in a desert the
top choice? Yes, if you live in the West. But for those of
us who don't, those beautiful skies are far away. (I keep
saying I'm going to get back to the marvelous Texas Star
Party one of these days, but that drive of more than 1,000
miles has kept me away.) While I do think Easterners
should trek to a big way-out-west gathering at least once
in their amateur-astronomy careers, few of us have the
time or money to do so often. That's OK - you and I
both have star parties closer to home that can provide
good skies and a great experience.
Besides, today there are actually things that weigh at
least as heavily in my decision as sky quality. The older I
get, the more important an event's facilities become. When
I was in my 30s, I didn't mind tent camping next to my
telescope and using a Porta Potti. Now, I choose an event
with good amenities: a meal plan, decent cabins, real
bathrooms, and showers. I'm willing to sacriﬁce considerable sky darkness for these. If I can't attend a star party
comfortably, I'll opt for a motel room in the nearest town
- or not go. If you like roughing it, ﬁne. But if you're
bringing the family, think hard about what awaits you.
What if the gathering you've chosen doesn't have good
cabins or nearby motels? If you own a travel trailer or RV,
you're all set. Almost all sizable events provide hookups
(for a price). No RV? Then you can rent one, often for a

just dark; its sky can also be quite
dry. In that regard, this venue
often has more in common with
star parties in the West and
Southwest than it does with Midwestern events. The site, a state
park near Valentine, Nebraska,
oﬀers only primitive camping and

Great Expectations
What's the star-party scene like in the second decade of
the 21st century? I won't try to predict where star parties
are going, but I attend enough events year in and year
out to make some observations on what you can expect
right now. Although star parties can be as diﬀerent
as snowﬂakes or the collections of telescopes on their
ﬁelds, there are some common threads.
One given is "lots of people." The recent economic malaise seemed to diminish star-party attendance for a while,
but my usual annual events rebounded, and most observing ﬁelds are again tending toward "jam-packed." I'll

THE C LU B S C E N E
Virtually every medium-size city in the U.S. and Canada has an
astronomy club, which typically maintains a location where members
can observe under relatively dark skies. For a comprehensive list of
clubs, go to skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-clubs-organizations.

RV spaces, but motels are nearby.
nebraskastarparty.org
Southwestern U.S.
7 Are there any western skies
better than those of the famous
(and huge) Texas Star Party?
Maybe, but not much better, and

5
6
2
8

few events can top the facilities
of the TSP, which takes over the
Prude (dude) Ranch near Fort
Davis, Texas, home of McDonald
Observatory. texasstarparty.org
8 It's a good thing that (somewhat primitive) bunkhouses are
available at the Okie-Tex Star
Party, since there are no motels
nearby in tiny Kenton, Oklahoma.
The trade-oﬀ is that this growing
event boasts very dark southwestern skies. okie-tex.com
Western U.S.
9 Want a slightly diﬀerent
experience? Then try the Grand
Canyon Star Party, which takes
place in Arizona's iconic national
park. You'll have plenty of opportunities for traditional observing
in a beautiful setting, but the
main event at GCSP is showing
oﬀ night skies to park visitors.
www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/

grand-canyon-star-party.htm
10 If you are more interested in
a traditional star-party experience, the Table Mountain Star
Party could be just the thing.
While the event is held on a
guest ranch at a remote site near
Oroville, Washington, cabins
and other services are available. It oﬀers dark, dry skies at a
higher altitude than you usually
get at events in the eastern U.S.
tmspa.com
11 While I am not normally one
for roughing it at star parties, I
might have to make an exception
in the case of August's Oregon
Star Party. Held at a mountain
camp near Prineville, Oregon,
amenities are basic: tent camping and portable toilets (meal
service is oﬀered). The draw here
is observing at an incredibly dark
site at an elevation of 5,000 feet.
oregonstarparty.org

S&T: LEAH TISCIONE

Sk yandTelescope.com April 2016

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-clubs-organizations http://www.nebraskastarparty.org http://www.texasstarparty.org http://www.okie-tex.com http://www.tmspa.com http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/ http://www.oregonstarparty.org http://www.SkyandTelescope.com

Sky and Telescope - April 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky and Telescope - April 2016