That guy at the dark sky park who kept shining his headlamp at my telescope

Some dude walked right into my viewing spot at Cherry Springs last weekend and aimed his red headlamp straight at my eyepiece while I was lining up Andromeda. Has anyone else had their night vision ruined by someone who clearly never read the park rules?

3 comments

3 Comments

wells.karen26d ago

What gets me is that some of these people with headlamps are actually trying to help, you know? They think they're being considerate with the red light but they have no clue how sensitive these scopes are. At Cherry Springs last fall I had a guy insist he was "being careful" while his beam bounced all over my imaging gear. I finally had to show him how even a brief flash through the eyepiece can mess up your dark adaptation for a solid 20 minutes minimum. Maybe the parks need signs specifically mentioning telescope optics rather than just general "use red lights" rules.

the_derek19d ago

Nah, I gotta push back a little here @wells.karen - most people with red lights mean well but honestly y'all are being way too harsh on a guy who likely just didn't know any better, isn't the whole point of public parks to welcome newcomers?

finley_price2426d ago

Feel your pain completely. Same thing happened to me at a local spot, some guy walked right through my setup with a white light flashlight while I was trying to track Jupiter's moons. Took a good 15 minutes for my eyes to adjust again. People really need to actually follow the rules about red lights and keeping them pointed down at the ground. Ruins the whole vibe for everyone else out there trying to enjoy the stars.