Set up in the backyard for some variable star estimates. Temperature was a "comfortable" minus 5 deg C.
R Leonis = mag. 6.5
Z Ursae Majoris = mag. 8.5
I left the telescope set up to observe Comet Levy the next morning at 04:00, but it clouded over.

About 10 people came to this organized Toronto Centre city star party. Observed a few deep sky objects, plus variable star estimate. R Leonis = mag. 8.0

Set up in the backyard for some variable star estimates.
R Leonis = mag. 8.9
Z Ursae Majoris = mag. 8.4

Set up in the parking lot at the David Dunlap Observatory. Estimate for R Leonis = mang. 8.9. Also observed the asteroid Vesta at about magnitude 6.

Set up in the parking lot at the David Dunlap Observatory. Variable star estimates:
R Leonis = mag. 8.9
Z Ursae Majoris = mag. 8.9
Observed Vesta again, which moved about two degrees from April 11. Observed 1 "new" deep sky object: NGC 2903.

Spotted Vesta in my 16 x 50 binoculars.

Arrived on site at about 21:00 but it clouded over. Doug Clapp and Bob May were also there. We then sat in our cars while it rained heavily! Fortuantely by about 23:00 it cleared and we set up our telescopes. I observed 1 "new" deep sky object: NGC 4656.

Arrived on site at 22:00 with Doug Clapp and Randy Hendriks. The sky was good, but not excellent. It was cool with a temperature of just 10 deg. C., and little wind. I observer 10 "new" deep sky objects: NGC 6800, NGC 6830, NGC 6823, NGC 6802, NGC 6815, NGC 6885, Cr 399, NGC 6834, Harvard 20, NGC 6871.

Arrived on site at 22:30 with Doug Clapp and Randy Hendriks. The sky was good at first, but later we had some haze and clouds, but no dew. I observer 7 "new" deep sky objects: NGC 6400, NGC 6302, NGC 6284, NGC 7331, NGC 7457, NGC 7448, NGC 6217.

Starfest '85

Arrived on Friday afternoon at about 15:30. Camped out with Doug Clapp, Randy Hendriks, Walter MacDonald, Jamie Fougere, Steve Atkinson. We had good observing weather on Friday night, but clouds and thunderstorms on Saturday night. I left the site to go back home on Saturday at about 18:00.


In 1985 there still was no big tent and as you can see the campground was relatively empty.

On Friday night I observed 16 "new" deep sky objects: NGC 6522, NGC 6528, NGC 6520, NGC 6540, NGC 6624, NGC 6774, NGC 6818, NGC 6652, NGC 6645, NGC 6756, NGC 6781, NGC 6760, NGC 6751, NGC 6804, NGC 6960.

The U of T observatory is located in the east end of Toronto. Walter MacDonald, a student there at the time, took me and Doug Clapp there for some observing. This was my first time using this telescope, but after I started attending U of T in the fall of 1986 I used this telescope several times. We looked at a few deep sky objects, including 1 "new" deep sky object: NGC 404. Later, while Doug Clapp fell asleep on the floor of the observatory, Walter and I looked for Comet Gacobini-Zinner, but after a half-hour search we still could not find it.

I observed the Perseid Meteor Shower from my backyard for half-hour. Saw 8 Perseids and 1 sporadic meteor.

At 20:20 I spotted Comet Hartley-Good. At 62x it is very faint with a large coma, no tail visible.
At 21:46 I spotted Comet Halley. Found easily at 62x. Round and about twice as large as Hartley-Good, no tail either.

First spotted in 16 x 50 binoculars. In the 8-inch it's just a round patch with no tail. Rather disappointing. The sky however, was not very transparent on this night.