SOCIETY in focus
Breckland Astronomical Society has been running spring and autumn star parties at the Haw Wood Farm caravan and camping site in Hinton near the Suffolk coast for several years. The parties have been slowly growing in size, with people coming from far and wide to enjoy the very dark skies available at this Dark Sky Discovery Site, where even the gegenschein has been seen!
The management goes to great lengths to ensure that everyone can enjoy the dark skies. All on-site lighting is covered or turned off, a red light policy is enforced and staff try to keep imagers and observers in separate areas. This year the week of 13 to 20 October was reserved for serious astronomers, and a separate public outreach event was held over the following school holiday weekend.
Although not as big as some other star parties, the Haw Wood Farm parties are highly regarded by some serious observers and several large Dobsonians are always in attendance! Being smaller makes these events more intimate and this year views through some of the largest telescopes were freely offered, with targets like the Crescent, Veil and Helix Nebulae clear to see. To add to Sky Quality Meter readings of 21.06, the weather this year was wonderful, with clear skies over the main nights. David Murton, visiting from Orwell Astronomical Society Ipswich