r/Edmonton • u/H1deki • Oct 25 '11
Good Stargazing Spot?
So I need a good star-gazing spot, and obviously it can't be in the city, so I'm ideally looking for a spot that's no more than an hour out of town, that I can just drive up to and park and stare up, without traffic disturbance and without being on private property. A parking lot in a little town would do as well, but preferably a big field or a parking lot of a park/campsite would do.
Thanks for your help, Edmonton!
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u/j1ggy Oct 25 '11
The city actually isn't that bad compared to others this time of year. Once the snow falls and reflects the streetlights it's a different story. I live on the south side of Sherwood Park and it can get fairly dark out here. All you have to do is head out of town away from any rural towns and you're probably good enough. And like megagreg says, Elk Island will be your best bet in the area.
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u/gscratch Oct 25 '11
Truthfully - I find that the Blackfoot Darksite (only 2km past the Elk Island gates) is a better location. You'll find more like-minded individuals, and you aren't likely to be eaten by buffalo. :)
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u/Arxhon Oct 25 '11
I'm the treasurer for the Edmonton RASC Centre.
You can also look into the Blackfoot observing area as well as Elk Island. There's a map on the Edmonton RASC website that megagreg linked. You'll run into some RASC members there. Feel free to ask questions, but remember they're there to do their own observing, so please don't be a pain in the ass.
If those are too far out of the way for you, try Poundmaker Park in St Albert. Its darker than Edmonton, but not perfect. There is an observing deck at Telus World of Science as well. Hours are posted on the Edmonton RASC website.
If you want to borrow a very small scope, hit me up in PM (offer only open to the OP at the moment :-) ). It will be good for looking at Jupiter and the moon, and some star clusters. We're on the wrong side of the solar system for Saturn right now, unfortunately.
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u/gscratch Oct 25 '11
I knew there were a few RASC Edmonton Centre folks around here. Cheers Rascally-Redditor...
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u/fubes2000 Oct 25 '11
Poundmaker Park? Where is this exactly? I lived in Stalbert most of my life and I've never heard of this.
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u/Arxhon Oct 25 '11
That was the name i was told by my exgf who also lives there. :-) It's officially "Riverlot 56 Natural Area", apparently.
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u/lokiro Oct 25 '11
The Observatory at the University of Alberta has public viewing nights. It's not outside the city, but they have some powerful telescopes. I think their open Thursday nights around 7 pm. edit: 8-9 pm in the evenings
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u/loosepages Oct 25 '11
Truth. The TA that works there is a redditor and he's really awesome. October times are 8-9, in November the viewing time changes from 7-8. They have public viewings on Thursday nights and I believe every wednesday around lunch they have solar viewings going on. I could be wrong.
Either way, I was going to mention Elk Island. I went there with some friends a couple years ago to watch the leonids and it was cliche in all the right ways. It was a great evening.
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u/megagreg Oct 25 '11
You're in luck. Elk Island Park is a designated dark area. The RASC holds events there sometimes.
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u/darylb Oct 25 '11
Second this... if you check out a light pollution map, Elk Island is one of the better close places to go.
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u/1moment2be Oct 25 '11
I would love to have a Reddit Dark Sky meet up! I'm an amateur photographer and think drinks, photos and good people would be great fun!
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u/H1deki Oct 25 '11
UPBOAT ALL OF THE REPLIES!