Star-gazing with Baker Street Astronomers

The Baker Street Irregular Astronomers (BSIA) meet every month in central London to look at the sky and socialise. Bring a 'scope if you have one, if not, don't worry, everyone is very friendly and happy to share - some nights there are 30+ telescopes there.

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The March meeting could be the last opportunity we get to see Jupiter from Regent’s Park this year. The King of Planets is slipping lower on the horizon, but the moons and atmospheric detail should still be apparent through binoculars and telescopes respectively. 3rd March saw a Martian opposition – where the Sun, Earth and Mars are aligned with Earth and Mars at their closest approaches during this particular orbit. And Mars will still be prime for observing until the end of the month – ideal for our meeting! Saturn rises above the horizon around 9pm and we may be able to get a view of its ring system sometime later on in the evening.

On a clear night, there can be over 100 people at this event, so to help us connect with other members of this group, I'll stake out a table inside the Hub, with a Meetup sign, so come say hello. Or call (I'll email members my number the day before), especially if you have difficulty in finding the place. The Hub serves tea, coffee, wine and beer the whole night :-) Please make sure to dress up warm!

Visit the BSIA's website here for more details: http://www.bakerstreetastro.org.uk (http://www.bakerstreetastro.org.uk/)

[A note on directions: after dark, the only gate open into Regents Park is Monkey Gate, which is at the very north of the park. If you have short legs like me, it's a 20-25 minute walk from either Baker Street or Camden Town stations, so if you're taking the tube, I'd recommend going to Baker Street and catching the bus to London Zoo to save the walking. Once inside the park, it's only 150 meters or so (3 minutes) to the Hub - please be vigilant, though it is pretty safe and there are astronomers coming and going along that short path all evening.]