The Adirondack Astronomy Retreat
The 2025 version of the Adirondack Astronomy Retreat, now in progress, may (or may not) be our last one. It is a chance for star gazers to gather, enjoy the fabulous night sky, and rediscover why we fell in love with the sky in the first place.
We have already had two fabulous nights. Tuesday night, July 22, was a bit hazy but David Cotterrell photographed some apparent haze in the north northeast that turned out to be a faint glow of the aurora borealis. Then visually, I detected a faint greenish glow for some time thereafter. This event reminded me of my first major auroral display. That one happened right here, on 8 July 1966. That was the night that twilight never ended. The twilight glow moved over towards the north, evolved into a bright auroral glow, a rayed arc, and lasted all night with a flaming beautiful light. As weak as Tuesday’s glow was, I did see several rays pop out. I did 3.6 hours of comet hunting that night.
As wonderful as Tuesday night was, it is difficult to compare it to Monday night. That might be the best sky, or surely one of the best, that I have ever seen anywhere! Not only did Messier 31, the Andromeda Galaxy, appear visible to the unaided eye, but also Messier 33 in Triangulum, became easier and easier to see as it arose out of the small microclimate cloud that was hovering over nearby Lake Champlain. Later, that cloud covered most of the sky. But when it dissipated later in the night, the Triangulum galaxy was clearly a naked eye object. I completed 3.1 hours of comet searching that night.
I began my search for comets long ago on the night of 17 December 1965. That brief 10-minute search between Pollux and Castor in Gemini did not last long, but it was the start of a lifetime search that continues to this day. I no longer expect to find another new comet, but I enjoy the search itself as much as I ever did.
My comet search, that culminated in the discovery of Periodic Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 by Gene and Carolyn Shoemaker and me, was clearly the highlight of my career. But it was only the second highlight of my life. Meeting and marrying Wendee was the first, and it will always be.
The week at our 2025 Adirondack Astronomy Retreat is one I shall never forget. The group of people here are by far the smartest bunch I have ever had the privilege of knowing. With the coming of darkness each night, I used Tranquilitatis, a lovely 20 cm. reflector that Mark Zdiarski brought with him. Particularly on Monday night, I used it to spot a cacophony of galaxies in and near the Big Dipper, galaxies I cannot see from my Vail, Arizona home because of the glow from Tucson to my northwest.
As attractive as all these galaxies are, their beauty pales before the truly magnificent appearance of Messier 51, the Whirlpool, and perhaps even more so with the advent of Messier 81, that attractive spiral in Ursa Major, and its enigmatic neighbor Messier 82. With these three galaxies, and later the Moon and Venus gently rising over nearby Ferguson Mountain, my night comes to an unforgettable conclusion.
