by Shneor Sherman
I did not last much longer, I think I starter to pack around 1. Gene kindly let me warm up in his trailer after I was done, which allowed me to change and not turn into an icicle.
The light dome from Sacramento did dim a little after midnight, but it really affected the entire sky and reduced contrast considerably.
I did not renew my Dark Sky membership, mainly because there has been no activity at the state levle here, That's where it's really necessary. And anytime I've made noises about going to the legislature, I've been told "leave it to the IDA".
I think it owuld be neat to invite ARnold and family to IHOP in the summer, just so he can see the scope of the problem. You never know, there's a chance of getting positive results. Even though it means more regulaiton, it also reduced electricity ocnsumption, still a sore point with the latest warnings on power shortages next summer as old plants are taken offline.
Anyway, I really was not too cold last night, and I still had layers I did not use. Too bad the sky was so uncooperative; I literally recollimated 4 times because I couldn't believe the star images were so bad with a 9mm eyepiece! It was great to see so many observing buddies again.
I am planning to observe again next Friday night; moonset is just before 10 p.m.