The Tri-Valley Stargazers Astronomy Club, Livermore CA, welcomes you. There is a lot
of information here on the many activities of our club.
Learn why you should join the club to get the most out of your
amateur astronomy hobby in the east San Francisco Bay Area.
The Tri-Valley Stargazers Privacy Policy is available
here.
The Latest News & Upcoming Events
Important Annoucement - The IRS has revoked our 501(c)(3) status due to an error in our filings for the years
2020-2022. We're addressing this issue and are working on our reinstatment retroactive to 2022. We anticipate success but will keep you informed. But for the moment we are not eligible for charitable donations.
May 2024 Member Meeting Presentation
This meeting will be live at the Unitarian church and will also be available using the video conference utility
Zoom.
The meeting link will be emailed to members. For non-members
if you would like to join the meeting, please send an email to
asking for the meeting link and telling us a bit about your areas of interest
in astronomy.
Review and Comparison of Smart Telescopes
Ross Gaunt
Abstract: As we know, telescopes of every type continue to evolve in precision, resolution, and capabilities. The market for amateur telescopes is a billion dollar global market and is growing especially in the area of telescopes for the casual observer. The introduction of so-called Smart Telescopes now provides deep-sky astrophotography free of the learning curve most of us have gone through in past years. With setup in just a few minutes, automatic orientation, built-in plate solving, libraries of searchable objects, and automatic image stacking onto cell phones and tablets, the universe is now open to any consumer. This presentation will compare and contrast the current Smart Telescopes on today’s market.
Bio: Ross Gaunt, like many of you, has been interested in astronomy since childhood. While growing up in Denver his parents took him to the natural history museum for the planetarium shows. In 1984 he met his wife at an observational astronomy class at Chabot College in Hayward. They met, literally, under the stars. It was soon after joining TVS that he purchased his first telescope, a Celestron SCT. He joined TVS in 2016, and is a past secretary of the club. Currently he is the caretaker of the Herb Quick dome and telescope at H2O and he coordinates H2O orientations.
Upcoming star parties
The following star parties are coming soon:
- Saturday, 04/27/24, TVS club party at Tesla Vintners, 5143 Tesla Road, Livermore; 7:30
- Friday, 05/10/24, School star party at Warwick Elementary School in Fremont. Set up 7:30. Observing 8:00 to 9:30.
- Saturday, 05/25/24, Members only Hidden Hill Observatory open house, starts at 6.00 pm
- Saturday, 06/08/24, Public stargazing at Sunol Regional Wilderness
For a complete and up-to-date calendar of upcoming events, visit our
groups.io
calendar.
Please contact
for further information.
June's meeting
Our June meeting will be our annual Summer BBQ. Plan on working up an appetite by
helping to set-up and get the charcoal going at about 5:30pm. We will start eating
around 6:00pm.
The club will provide hamburgers, hotdogs and vegetarian black bean burgers,
along with a variety of toppings. If you wish, provide side dishes for your family, but not
to be shared with members because of COVID.
December's meeting
This month is our Holiday dinner. We'll be opening the doors at 6:30 to set up the tables
and chairs, and then the feast will begin at 7:00 PM. TVS will provide the drinks and
paper/plasticware. In addition we will provide the main course for this month's
holiday celebration, possibly turkey and/or tri-tip. Members are asked to bring a dish to share,
and of course bring family and friends to share in the festivities. Based on the first letter of your
last name members are asked to bring a dish to share:
- A-D Macaroni, Potato, Green or Fruit Salad
- E-J Vegetable or Beans
- K-O Appetizer
- P-Z Dessert
H2O Open House
Our next open house is May 25, 2024 for the club's dark sky site,
Hidden Hill Observatory,
aka H2O.
Anyone can come to our open houses, not just club members; but you cannot go
there without an escort. We will meet at the corner of Mines and Tesla Roads
at 6:00 PM, then caravan to the site on a drive that takes about 50 minutes.
The admission is $3/car; please bring the exact amount. There is no gas on
the way, so be sure to gas up before leaving. The site is essentially in the
wilderness, so there is no electricity and water, and there are only a couple
of pit toilets. Cell-phone reception is iffy at best. While there is a
picnic table there, you really should bring your own chair. If you need to
see what you are doing, bring a red LED flashlight, not a white-light
flashlight. And use masking tape over your car door and interior lights, or
pull the fuse. If you don't have a scope, you can always find someone who is
willing to let you look through theirs. And don't forget to bring your
binoculars. Expect to stay until about midnight and get back to Livermore at
around 1:00 AM.
Member star parties at Tesla Vineyard