07 November 2011 by Tristan Gooley
As promised, here is a more detailed update on my short time in Oman last week. My main reason for being there was to train the Omani Outward Bound instructors. In the short time available I wanted to give them a decent understanding of how to use nature’s clues to find their way in the desert. Just as importantly, I needed to give them the techniques and knowledge they could pass onto their future students.
We started with theory indoors at the offices of Outward Bound Oman, with the help of planetarium software and makeshift whiteboards (paper Sellotaped to a cupboard). After three hours of theory, it was time to head out in 4x4s for a 3 hour drive into the desert, for some more practical training.
We tracked the sun down to the horizon and confirmed that it had indeed set a good 15 degrees south of west.…
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Tags: auriga, capella, desert, desert navigation, dunes, jupiter, kamal, latitude, leo, linear dunes, mars, moon, oman, outward bound, planets, pleiades, stars, sun, taurus |
19 January 2011 by Tristan Gooley
Last night was the inaugural meeting of the Night Navigators Club. This is a ‘loyalty club’ for all those who have been on any one of my courses in the past – or those who come on one in the future.
For three years I have been pondering how to solve a tricky riddle. There are so many people who would love to learn about the night sky, but it is very hard to organise an outdoor course for this in this country because the weather is so unreliable. I need to sort the dates for my courses at least a few weeks in advance and it is impossible to predict the conditions that far away. Also, the best times of the year for star, moon and planet-gazing are not the best times for weather. Mid-summer is great for many outdoor activities, but with the late sunsets it is not…
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Tags: auriga, cassiopeia, cygnus, finding north, gemini, jupiter, navigation book, night navigation courses, north star, orion, pegasus, taurus, the plough, uranus |
14 January 2009 by Tristan Gooley
Yesterday afternoon was spent doing some private training in Angmering Park near Arundel, West Sussex. I did not need to be a native American Indian to realise that this is a very horsey part of the world. There is a stud at the heart of the park and the well churned ground bears witness to a lot of hooves.
We were put through a gentle rinse and spin cycle as what felt like typical cold front conditions mixed things up, sunshine and cold rain wrestling each other throughout an enjoyable afternoon. The skies matured into a more settled pattern towards the end of the day and allowed us a clear view of an incandescent Venus and later the stars, including the ones we needed most: the plough, polaris, auriga, Cassiopeia and Orion.
Tags: auriga, cassiopeia, orion |
As promised, here is a more detailed update on my short time in Oman last week. My main reason for being there was to train the Omani Outward Bound instructors. In the short time available I wanted to give them a decent understanding of how to use nature’s clues to find their way in the desert. Just as importantly, I needed to give them the techniques and knowledge they could pass onto their future students.
