CURRENT STATUS:
Fall sem. operations begin Friday, Aug. 22: Weather permitting, open 9:30 pm EDT Monday through Thursday for Introductory Astronomy classes. Weather permitting, open 9:30 pm EDT Fridays for the OPEN program (Observatory-Planetarium Public Education Nights). Call 706-864-8642 after 7:30 pm EDT for daily operational status.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Observatory will open at 8:00 pm EDT (~sunset) from Mon., Sept. 8th through Thur., Sept. 11th, then again from Mon., Sept. 15th through Thur., 18th, to view Mercury near its greatest eastern elongation.
NGAO WEATHER LINKS:
Clear Sky Clock Homepage
The Clear Sky Clock Homepage uses a Canadian weather service cloud condition forecast graphic to forecast the sky condition (clouds), atmospheric transparency, and darkness at several hundred sites in Canada and the USA. The NGAO clock below is linked to the NGAO clock on the Clear Sky Clock website. Real-time Weather Data (Satellite Page)We usually consult the visible or IR animation for MGM (southeast). The visible image is only usable during daylight hours for the eastern continental U.S. The water vapor image is often helpful as well.
The high wind shear associated with the jet stream creates thin turbulent layers which can degrade the "seeing". (The visible detail of an object as seen through the telescope is limited by atmospheric conditions. Astronomers use the term "seeing" in describing the quality of the detail or resolution allowed by the atmosphere, as in: "good seeing" = lots of detail, "bad seeing" = not much detail) If the core of the jet stream is within a couple hundred kilometers of the observing site, the seeing may be affected.
NGAO WEBCAMS:
NGAO WEATHERCAM (view to northwest):
(Not implemented as of August 2008)
NGAO OBSERVING DECK WEBCAM:
(Not implemented as of August 2008)
NGAO CONTROL ROOM WEBCAM:
