Whirlpool Star Party 2007

An absolutely superb weekend from start to finish.
Well done to the SAC for organising it, along with top-class speakers.
There was something very special being out with Sue French showing us the wonders of the sky.
Great crack on the observing nights too, to the extent it was hard leaving despite the lateness of the hour.
It was also good putting so many faces to the online names, and you can be sure there'll be another strong representation from East Antrim next year.
Well done all.

It was great to see so many faces from the EAAS making the long trip down.

I'd like to re-iterate the previous comments and thanks and appreciation to Shannonside for providing such a stimulating & entertaining weekend.
Thanks again from everyone here in Waterford

On behalf of Shannonside Astronomy Club, I'd like to thank you all for attending and making it yet again a fine weekend to remember.
We appreciate you all coming along, without your support the WSP would not be possible! Its great to finally meet people who I've been chatting to over the past while on these boards.

Also, many thanks to all the speakers, some of which travelled a great distance to make it here, their support is very much appreciated.!

Dave and Michael,

Thanks for the incredible views tho' your 20"s. No seriously if your into astrophotography these beasts will change your mind about why you put yourself through all that bother. For those of us that must endure a modest aperature, a CCD or a DSLR is the only way to "see", but when you've got 20" at your disposal the whole sky is given the "Hubble" treatment right in front of your eyes. !!WOW!! The Veil nebula looked like a solid rope that you could swing from , and Mars even tho' so low was the best I've ever seen. These scopes were definitely the main attraction, and the queues just prove the point.

Chris Lintotts presentation certainly lived up to expectation and John Mason as always came across with a passion (All presentations exceeded expectations) and well done our Dave MacD. Thanks to all the organisers for a fabulous weekend, the best yet (INMHO).

If we disregard astronomy for a minute (WHAT??). The world is a beautiful place and Birr Demense is a fine example with fantastic Natural Phenomon aound every turn. So despite any objections here is a pic of just one of the many natural wonders in Birr, Demense. Mods - Shoot me if you will:


Nature at it's best - and thats what we're all about!!
Canon 350D, 18-55mm @F5.6, composite of 2 images.
I'll post some more pics of all the speakers later when I've had a chance to trawl through my images and remove a bad dose of red-eye fever.
Again thanks to all the organisers for a most enjoyble and enlightening weekend.

I'd also like to say 'thanks y'all' for coming along and making it a great weekend!

I have to say a special thank you to all the reps who did a great job selling the lines for the draw.
Your time and effort is greatly appreciated by us.

Thanks also to the chap that tweeked the sound for us,
(sorry I can't remember your name)
Also to those that gave me photos from the previous years - it's much appreciated.

It was really great to finally get to chat in person with some of the
people on these boards and also to catch up with some familiar faces.

I had a great laugh at the dinner, some of the yarns told are just classics!
(and even more yarns were told in the bar until 4:30 am, how Chris Lintot
managed to give such a great talk this morning I'll never know!!)

I have to admit, all the talks were just top class.
They were as good if indeed not better than what I saw at
Astrofest in the UK earlier this year and let that be a testament to the professionalism of the speakers.


The observing in the castle grounds was the icing for me.
It was a great opportunity to look through so many different scopes.
It was nothing short of a miracle that it cleared up (what about that light pollution eh!?)
Thanks so much for all of you that made the effort to bring your gear down.
Having the numbers bring the gear makes all the difference.

Thanks again to all who lent a hand or contributed in some way to the party.

I'll be writing up a report for the club website over the next few days
and I'll throw up a link here to it.

Homer sleep now!

Well done guys, an enjoyable weekend all round. And we had superb clear skies (for the most part) both nights to boot too! I hope Cosmos '08 will be as lucky!

Seanie.