It is with deep sadness that I share the news that our dear friend and longtime member, Sid Sidhu, passed away this weekend.
Sid was a stalwart of everything good about the RASC. He was an unwavering champion of our school program, a tireless supporter of public outreach, and a cherished friend to so many of us. His contributions to our Centre and to astronomy education in our community are immeasurable, and his absence will be profoundly felt.
Dan Posey, President, RASC Victoria Centre
Presentation at University of Victoria on November 12, 2025 starting at 7:30PM. “Maximizing image resolution for ground-based telescopes using Adaptive Optics: it is all in the details” – Dr. Maaike van Kooten, AO developer, Herzberg Astronomy & Astrophysics, National Research Council Canada.
In this talk, I will focus on the latest AO R&D happening in Victoria on our local telescopes and put it into context of the wider global AO community. I will also highlight the work being done at large facilities in Hawaii to further push the limits of our AO systems.
Meade 127ED 5” f/9 ED Apochromatic Refractor Telescope c/w Also included are the following genuine Meade accessories All equipment in excellent condition. Hardly ever used. Asking price for all the above $1,400.00 CAD Contact – Trevor Brown (250) 896-7708 (email)
Intro – Chris Purse; New maps of the Apollo 17 LRV traverses (of the Moon) – Phil Stooke; M42 Orion Nebula – Dave Payne; The friendly skies – Saskatchewan Star Party ; Comet I3/Atlas – Randy Enkin; Dark Sky Reserve – Hanle, Ldakh, India – Natasha van Bentum; Space Mission News – Chris Gainor; Events – Lauri Roche, Dave Payne; Comets: C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) and C/2025 F2 SWAN – Randy Enkin & David Lee
As fall settles over Victoria and we are faced with what may be the last stretches of clear evening skies (for a time at least), I hope everyone has a chance to wind up any lingering observing projects.
Looking back at the summer there was so much activity from our society that I failed to share a summer highlight of my own: a visit to the David Dunlap Observatory in July.
For those who haven’t had a chance to work with one of these large telescopes up close, I’m pleased to announce our next Plaskett Night, scheduled for October 25. As always, it’s a special opportunity to use the 1.8m telescope and chase down some faint targets.
Intro & New Members – Jeff Pivnick; New comets this month – Jeff Pivnick; The Sun – Jeff Pivnick; Titan Shadow Transit of Saturn – David Lee & Alex Schmid; The Moon – Randy Enkin; RASC Victoria Memorabilia – Randy Enkin; Events – Lauri Roche, David Lee, Reg Dunkley