THE HAM NOTEBOOK
This month’s column is inspired by a recent trip to the local desert to participate in an astronomy event called “Nightfall,” introduced to me by Dennis Kidder, W6DQ, and Doug Millar, K6JEY.
This once-a-year event is in the San Diego County desert community of Borrego Springs. It is about two hours away from my home, a reasonable commute, and is held at the Palm Canyon Hotel and RV Resort (Photo A).
Borrego Springs is the only California town surrounded by a state park (Anza-Borrego) and is an official International Dark Sky Community, dedicated to protecting the night sky from light pollution. During Nightfall, the shops and streets are illuminated with red lights to help maximize darkness for optimum observing (Photo B).
The main focus of my trip was stargazing and learning as much as I can about which telescope to buy. Nightfall turned out to be a great experience, since I
