Astronomy Cafe is an informal gathering of both RASC Victoria Centre members and non-members to socialize, drink coffee, eat cookies, and partake in both informal and formal presentations related to astronomy, space missions, and cosmology.
Astronomy Cafe is normally held every Monday evening in Fairfield, Victoria, BC, Canada except during summer months and when the Monday falls on a statutory holiday.
You are invited to share content you would like to present to upcoming online Astro Cafe meetings to our President Randy Enkin (president@victoria.rasc.ca). We will usually post your submitted content to our website and/or Youtube channel, unless you request otherwise. Zoom links to our online meetings are emailed to RASC Victoria Centre members a day or two ahead of time, so please join us!
Our weekly Astro Café will resume on Monday, September 11, 2023 at 7 p.m.
These evenings may be attended in person or via Zoom. There will be many member led discussions again this year. We also have a guest speaker later in the month. We hope you will be able to attend and participate.
Due to the dates on which statutory holidays fall, we will meet on the following dates for the remainder of 2023:
September 11, 18, and 25 October 16, 23, and 30 November 6, 20, and 27 December 4, 11, and 18
See below for meeting room location and maps
Parking lot near 1335 Thurlow Road (navigate to here)
Street parking is also available on Thurlow if the lot is full
FGCA main building address: 1330 Fairfield Road. Limited parking available in front for those who cannot use stairs.
Astronomy Cafe meeting is held in the Lower Lounge, located between the Fairfield Gonzales Community Association main building and the portable building Astro Cafe used to be held in.Park in the lot off Thurlow Road and walk south to Astronomy Cafe.
Location: Bright Angel Park at rural and dark Cowichan Station, in the beautiful Cowichan Valley on southern Vancouver Island, BC, Canada
Gates will open at 2pm on Friday. Camp on the field, setup your telescope and bring binoculars to enjoy observing the night sky from a dark site.
Cost: Free of charge for drop-ins!Suggested donation of $20/Adult observers who camp overnight (cash only) – one night or two. Kids camp free.
Everyone who is present is entitled to tickets for door prizes, can attend planned activities and have access to the observing field. Prizes include a telescope!
Star Party Poster – please print it, stick it on your fridge and share with friends! PDFs: 8.5″x11″ & 11″x17″
Don’t want to camp? No problem…it’s no more than a 20-minute drive from most areas of the Cowichan Valley, and only a 45-minute drive from Victoria. Live out of town? Stay in one of the many guest houses, hotels and motels in the Cowichan Valley, however reserve early, since accommodation fills up during the summer.
Staying after dark? Please bring a red light with you – do not use white lights, including cellphone flashes!
Come observe the stars and the Perseid meteor shower from this dark site in the Cowichan Valley. Lots of amateur astronomers will be there to talk about astronomy and to help you observe celestial objects after dark. Observe the Sun (safely) during the day, and hike the trails, swim, play, and enjoy this natural treasure of a regional park. Two days/nights on the weekend – Friday Aug 11th starting at 2PM, all day and evening on Saturday Aug 12th. Camp overnight (1 night or 2), or just drop in for an evening of fun and fascination. A free event, but campers will be asked for a donation if staying overnight.
Schedule of Events
Friday Aug 11th
2:00 pm – Gates open
7:30 pm – Telescope tour
8:00 pm – Welcome and door prizes
8:30 pm – Speaker – Seeing is believing: capturing images of nearby solar systems – William Thompson
10:00 pm until dawn: observing! No white lights during this time, please
Seeing is believing: capturing images of nearby solar systems – William Thompson
Astronomers have now discovered over five thousand planets around other stars, ranging from scorching hot Jupiters, to puffy mini-Neptunes, and rocky worlds devoid of atmospheres. Now that we know planets are common, the next step is to learn more about them and compare them with our solar system.
In this talk, I will show how we can take pictures of nearby planets and present the latest developments in the quest to image planets just like our own.
William Thompson is an astronomy PhD candidate at the University of Victoria and an exoplanet hunter. He uses the techniques of direct imaging, radial velocity, and astrometric motion to find and photograph young giant planets, and to study their orbits. William will be joining the National Research Council this fall as a Herzberg Instrument Science Fellow, where he will continue to work on astronomical instrumentation and observational projects.
Saturday Aug 12th
Solar viewing – all day on the field
Nature Walk through the park trails – afternoon
7:30 pm – Telescope tour
8:00 pm – Door prizes
8:30 pm – Speaker – Probing the Universe with Type Ia Supernovae: legacy and future – Melissa Amenouche
9:30 pm – Public viewing of the night sky with telescopes on the field
10:30 pm until dawn: observing! No white lights during this time, please
Probing the Universe with Type Ia Supernovae: legacy and future – Melissa Amenouche
Type Ia Supernovae (SNeIa) are very luminous explosive events in the sky. They can be detected in very remote galaxies and are excellent distance indicators. In the late 90s, the accelerated expansion of the Universe was discovered using the measurements of SNeIa, revealing for the first time the existence of Dark Energy. Today, one of the main goals of modern cosmology is to understand its nature using SNeIa measurements combined with other cosmological probes.
In the past two decades, the number of SNeIa has drastically increased along with our understanding of these objects and their ability to indicate distances. And this will continue with the current and new generation of surveys like the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) and the Large Survey of Space and Time (LSST). I will review the ongoing efforts to unlock precise cosmological measurements with ZTF samples, many of which can be extended to LSST data, with a focus on key steps of the analysis.
Melissa completed her PhD in December 2022 in France. She is currently a postdoc fellow at NRC-Herzburg Astronomy and Astrophysics Research Centre involved in a new Canadian spatial telescope (CASTOR). She is also calibrating and simulating Type Ia Supernovae data from the Zwicky Transient Facility (a great telescope in California) to help answer key questions about our understanding of the Universe and its evolution.
Sunday Aug 13th
Cleanup – everyone please pitch-in & help
12:00 pm – departures by Noon please!
The Island Star Party is hosted by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Victoria Centre, with support from the Cowichan Valley Starfinders.
Directions to the star party
Head west off the Trans-Canada Highway on Koksilah Road and turn right onto Tigwell Road. The park is at the end of the road. If you are driving a big vehicle, we suggest you turn west off the Trans-Canada Highway at Allenby Road, then turn left onto Koksilah Road and left onto Tigwell Road. This slightly longer route will avoid a low-clearance rail bridge on the more direct route.
Bright Angel Park, 4528 Tigwell Rd, Cowichan Station, BC
Lat 48° 44.0246′ N, Long 123° 40.5144’W
What to expect
Dark sky and red lights on the observing field
The night sky at this location is very dark, but there is a light dome to the north from the City of Duncan. Views in the other directions and overhead are excellent, and at this time of year Sagittarius is visible in the early part of the evening to the southwest.
There is limited camping on the observing field with your tent and car where telescopes and other astronomy gear can be set up. There is some power on the field for astronomy equipment and to charge small devices. Please do NOT park on the field with your vehicle if you plan to leave after dark! In this case, move your vehicle off the field after setting up, and park outside the gate on Tigwell Road with your headlights facing away from the field. The same parking request applies to visitors for the evening – park outside the gate and walk into the field.
Washrooms are a short walk from the observing field with sinks, toilets and urinals, but no showers. Red lights will mark the way at night along the forest trail.
Playground and workout gym on the observing field
Park gates are open from 7am – 9pm daily. Make sure your vehicle is outside the gates before 9PM if you plan to leave later on!
Explore the trails through the forest and along the Koksilah River – a nice way to spend the day. Good swimming too, although the river water is cold!
Pets are allowed in the park and at the star party, but must be under effective control of their owners at all times. If your dog knocks over an expensive telescope, you just bought it!
Drinking alcohol or smoking is not allowed in public areas of the park.
Trailers and motorhomes are not allowed in this regional park.
Dry summer conditions demand that no open flame be used. Please cook using a camp stove in the Picnic Shelter by the lower parking lot. No campfires or open flame please!
Although the observing field is flat, it is bumpy, so people with mobility issues may find some areas are not easy to navigate. The washrooms are accessible by using the trail through the forest and navigating a modest slope.
What’s nearby
Tim Horton’s fast food dine-in and drive-thru and a Co-op gas station and convenience store are both nearby at Bench Road and the Trans-Canada Highway.
Big box stores, grocery stores and malls are a short drive away in Duncan, Cobble Hill and Mill Bay.
Pizza and other fast food can be ordered from and/or picked up at numerous local establishments.
Espresso drinks and other fancy beverages are available in Duncan, Cowichan Bay, Cobble Hill and Mill Bay.
Whippletree Junction – a variety of eclectic stores that are worth a visit, located nearby on the highway.
The fascinating and historic Kinsol Trestle is a short drive from the park, where the Trans-Canada Trail crosses the Koksilah River. The trestle is an easy walk from the parking lot – level and accessible.
Wineries in the area are too numerous to mention individually! Look here: Wine Festival Specials
BC Forest Discovery Centre – steam trains, historic forestry equipment and local history – fun for all ages
Cowichan Bay village – fish boats, oceanfront restaurants and shops, whale watching, sea lions
2023 Island Star Party t-shirt
Island Star Party t-shirt
Fruit of the Loom quality cotton t-shirt, printed ink design. Men’s sizes in black: S, M, L, XL, 2XL. Sold out. A second order list is being taken, so contact Joe Carr – Email
Contact
Dave Payne – Email – mobile +1 (403) 874-1980 – Event Lead
I’ve been something of an amateur astronomer since I was little. I like to say it was the Apollo missions that sparked my interest – all my friends wanted to be astronauts – but I thought the astronomers on the ground had the really interesting jobs. My observations of lunar phases started back in 1990 and I have dabbled in other astronomical projects since. After the 2017 Solar Eclipse, I decided to buy a better telescope, and then another, and now we’re at a dozen!
But the biggest thing that happened after the eclipse, was getting invited to give at talk at the Victoria Centre Astro Cafe. And I got to meet this wonderful community – this set of interesting and entertaining people. And then, two years ago, you elected me President of the Victoria Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. There’s nothing like being president to get to know people and learn what’s going on in a group! Fortunately, our community is strong with enthusiasm and volunteerism. We get stuff done!
We successfully made the transformation to online events and then to hybrid events. We have continued outreach events, such as the International Astronomy Day, the Saanich Fair, and the Fall Fairfield. We have started new programs like our Special Interest Groups and the Sky Darkness Survey. We have combined our star party with the Cowichan Valley Starfinders’ star party to develop a unified Island Star Party, which we hope can thrive for decades.
We have successfully developed and ushered in a new set of bylaws, to bring our community into the electronic age and provide for a smaller, more supple board of directors. And we have a promising set of executives and directors nominated to lead us into the future.
Thank-you for two excellent years. I often feel more like a cheerleader than a leader. But mostly, I feel I have found my people. I look forward to seeing photos and sketches of the sky: in emails, social media, and in SkyNews. I love learning about the sky at Astro Cafe. I love having people with whom I can share my learning about astronomy.
As we look forward to the new year of the Victoria Centre, we also remember to Look Up!
