Sandra Voss
Sandra’s top tips for summer stargazing newbies • It must be dark and cloud cover must be at the absolute minimum, ideally opt for cloudless skies and a minimum of light pollution • Go out into the garden, or up to the Downs, take a blanket, lie down and watch the night sky light up • With the naked eye, the more you look the more you see as your eyes adjust to the darkness 13 inch Astrographic Refractor
were coupled with accurate maritime timepieces linked to GMT, it was possible for ships to locate themselves exactly. As a result, the number of shipwrecks drastically reduced. John Harrison, a marine chronometer, developed the first accurate maritime timepieces and it was Harrison’s ‘lesser watch’ that made the Trotter brothers millionaires in the Only Fools and Horses episode Time on our Hands. Over time, the study of the stars became a scientific endeavour that is still searching for the answer to how it all began as well as fulfilling humankind’s innate inclination to explore the heavens above us… think one small step in 1969 and return to the moon in 2025. Sandra picked up the story. “After WWII it was decided to move from
• Ideally there should be a new moon rather than a full moon • Even with a full moon, constellations like the plough are visible • With a new moon and darker skies, the stars within the constellations start to become visible • After looking at the sky for an hour the rotation of the earth becomes obvious
Greenwich, due to increasing light pollution and magnetic interference from the electrification of London’s railways.” Over 70 sites were investigated, before the Royal Greenwich Observatory, Herstmonceux opened in 1957. The six telescopes that were transported from Greenwich became known as the ‘Equatorial Group’ and included the astronomically famous Yapp telescope. The observatory domes were coated in copper and a chemical coating was applied to speed up the weathering, to help them blend into the countryside. “Rumour has it, the chemical coating was equine urine.” Sandra revealed with a smile. Trees were planted during construction to screen the observatory
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