Announcements

Second Announcement

February 1^st, 2008

Dear Voyagers,

Very Exciting things have been happening in anticipation of the Milky Way Voyage.

The Wonder List of Milky Way Voyage is now complete! A brand new list for a brand new star party. It contains 149 beautiful, spectacular and record holder deep-sky wonders in the Milky Way. The List is organised according to the galactic longitude of the object. Voyage objects are named from V-1 to V-149 and all lie between 15° & -15° Galactic Latitude. Some exceptional objects which lie between 20° and -20° galactic latitude have also been included. Examples are Network, Cooling Tower, Northern Jewel Box, Fireworks Galaxy along with the famous Lagoon Nebula, Omega Centauri, Eta Carinae etc. The Wonder list can easily be completed with the help of a 8" or a 10" telescope. The Wonder List contains objects distributed all round the Milky Way, consequently some objects will not be visible from Nainital.

ARIES has agreed to make available 22" the second largest telescope at Manora Peak the 22-inch for the use of Milky Way Voyage Participants.

Three largest telescopes ever built by amateurs in India will be unveiled and have their First Light Ceremony at ARIES. Its really exciting to work towards the Voyage!

Our aim is to gather Amateurs, Planetarium & Observatory Outreach, Telescope Vendors to interact under the clear skies of Nainital. Awareness of Amateur Astronomy in India is growing quickly and such a star party has become a necessity. Such events are totally missing from the Indian Astronomy Calendar. Milky Way Voyage wants to be an annual stage where fellow astronomers meet, image, visually use instruments, see each other working and learn various simple & effective practices followed by each other. The other important aspect of Milky Way Voyage is the Telescope Showcase. Amateur Astronomers are encouraged to bring their home-brewed telescopes and innovations in the showcase.

The logo of Milky Way Voyage is actually the Milky Way as seen from Nainital, on March 8th at about 0200 Hrs. Looking east, our logo depicts a 180° view. A little artistic license has been used, the Milky Way has been depicted fully above and below the horizon. The direction is that of the famous Cygnus Rift. We’re sure this logo will make a connection while you are at looking at stars rising over the Himalayas of Uttarakhand.

Ajay Talwar & Nilesh Vayada - 1st February, 2008

‘The Beginning’ of a Voyage of a Life-Time

The amazing sky above has always had the intriguing element in it. It has made man to be afraid; wonder and respect it. You can’t even realise the extent of impact of astronomy and astronomical events on our lives till you actually take time out and ponder. You start to find it and simply get amazed. Twinkle Twinkle little star is first poem that a kid learns, we celebrate all our festivals according to the position of moon, sun or nakshatras, Christmas marks the beginning of the upward motion of the sun from the Topic of Capricorn towards the Tropic of Cancer, one will not be surprised by the fact that this day was celebrated even before Christ.

The sky is the laboratory that is available to all and it is the teacher that has always taught mankind. I am sure Milky Way Voyage will be an event that the astronomy fraternity will be proud of, for years to come. We present you our mother galaxy in a new make up. The motivation to look at it and say ‘Wow, What a Beauty’. I hope that The Voyage will add a new dimension of thoughts to all who participate.

Sachin Bahmba, Founder and General Secretary, S.P.A.C.E.

Competitions Two competitions are running at the Milky Way Voyage. First is the Best Astro-Photo Competition, & other is the Telescope showcase. (see details on Contests page)

Shuttle Services: A full shuttle service will be provided to registered participants of Milky Way Voyage, between Tallital bus stand and the Observatory. Particiapants can transport their telescopes & equipment in the shuttle. Shuttle service will remain in constant operation in the evening time, and the morning return time. A few shuttle services will operate at night too. Shuttle taxis will be marked with the Milky Way Voyage stickers and will start from the Tallital bus stand, exact location is adjoining the Nainital Lake. When the participants have any telescope and equipment to transport to the telescope grounds, the taxi will go up to the telescope grounds. On other instances the taxi will drop participants without any equipment at Hanuman Garhi, from where the observatory is a pleasant and scenic one km walk on a trail. It takes 10 minutes to reach the Observatory from Hanuman Garhi.

Registration Desk: A Registration desk will be maintained at Hotel Sarovar, Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN) Tourist Rest House, Tallital (05942-235570, 231503), apart from the Voyage grounds. This desk will start operating from Noon of 7th March. Here paritcipants can intimate their arrival at Nainital, inform their hotel name, collect their registration material. The location for your telescope will be allotted at the registration desk. Inquiries will also be handled at the registration desk.

Telescope Grounds: All participant telescopes will be accommodated in an area called the ‘Telescope Grounds’. The area is on top of the Manora Peak around the 40" telescope building. Since the observatory is located at the same location, any one spot will not be able to access the whole sky. Some small portion of the sky will be behind the 40" dome. You are welcome to change the position of your telescope anytime during the observation; there will be enough space on the telescope grounds to do so. Do keep in mind that the shifting has to be completed without the use of any bright light and minimum disturbance to other voyagers. Keeping this in mind, you may ask for a particular location on the telescope grounds at the registration desk. Possible locations are South, West, North & East. Electricity will be provided for your telescope and observation related equipment. While moving around on the telescope grounds, please ensure that you do not trip over someone’s electric line, or disturb other voyagers’ observation. BRIGHT LIGHTS ARE NOT ALLOWED AT ANY TIME DURING THE LIGHTS-OFF PERIOD, RED TORCHES TO POINT TOWARDS THE GROUND AT ALL TIMES.

Accommodation: It is participants’ own responsibility to arrange accommodation at Nainital. There is an extensive list of hotels and their telephone numbers at the accomodation page on our website www.milkywayvoyage.org. Links to the hotels’ websites have also been provided. There have been a few enquiries from participants about tents being setup on the telescope grounds. ARIES has agreed and allotted a space for participants’ tents to be setup very close to the telescope grounds. Do keep in mind that bare minimum facilities will exist to those who elect to stay in their own tents inside the observatory premises.

Demos: We are arranging several demonstration sessions from experts in their particular fields. The demonstrations planned are: Observing techniques at the eyepiece; touring the Milky Way with naked eye; Basic astrophotography techniques; Advanced astrophotography techniques. Help will be on hand to complete the Milky Way Voyage and the Messier Marathon. And not to forget the manual use of observatory’s 22" telescope.

Your Presentations: A room will be made available for the use of participants’ presentations. Your can bring along your presentations on a CD or a pen drive. A period of 10-12 minutes will be allotted to each participant. Your presentations may be about telescope making, observing, a special photograph, or a special observation trip etc. A computer and projector will be provided in the presentation room.

There is full cellphone coverage at the telescope grounds from various companies. Cell phones are a cause of an inadvertant light pollution and participants must take care not to display the lighted screen prominently, move sufficiently away before taking out from their pockets.

First Announcement

December 27^th, 2007

Ajay Talwar & Nilesh Vayada Present the Milky Way Voyage,
in asociation with Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators, (SPACE).

    The Milky Way Voyage (MyWave'08) organising committee for Year 2008 extends its warmest greetings to all readers of this First Announcement. We are pleased to inform you that planning for MyWave'08 is well under way, bringing a wide array of Amateur Astronomers, Planetarium & Observatory outreach Personnel from all over the India to Nainital in the Spring of 2008. This is the First ever National Star party being organised in India. Milky Way Voyage wants to be an annual event, evolving and getting better with each passing year.

    Milky Way Voyage will take place at Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences, ARIES, Manora Peak, Nainital, Uttrakhand, India on the March 7th - 8th, 2008. The location will be Telescope Grounds, between the 40" Sampurnanand Telescope and 22" Telescope Building at ARIES. Milky Way Voyage will start in the afternoon of March 7th, with a few light hearted presentations. Telescopes will gather under the crystal clear skies of Nainital on two nights near a new moon. The largest amateur telescopes in India will be on site for viewing the heavens.

    Invitation is extended to all Amateur Astronomers, Planetarium Educators, Observatory Outreach persons and Telescope Vendors in India. Milky Way Voyage will be able to offer a wide platform for interactions between Amateur Astronomers themselves and with Planetariums and Observatories across India. The current level of amateur astronomy in India is growing quickly. This star party will certainly be an eye opener for some, and opportunity to interact with people of similar interests for others. We are sure that all connected with astronomy in India will take advantage of this opportunity. Milky Way Voyage organisers are striving to create an national gathering that will provoke, question, enrich, and inspire all attending astronomy community members. Participants are encouraged to bring along their telescopes to the Milky Way Voyage. A strict lights-off philosophy will be enforced at the Voyage for best visual and photographic observations. The skies at Nainital are legendary, and will be remembered for many years to come.

    The activities planned at site are the The Milky Way Voyage - A voyage of 135 beautiful Deep sky wonders, all within the River in the Sky, Messier Marathon, Best Astrophoto Contest, Best homemade telescope or telescope innovation in the telescope showcase.

    Registration is now open at www.milkywayvoyage.org. Participation is limited to a total of 300. Please register yourself early to avoid disappointment. The last date for registration is 15th February, 2008. The fee for registration is Rs. 500/- per participant. (which includes Voyage material, Snacks & Tea/coffee, shuttle services between Nainital city and ARIES. The registration amount does not include lodging & boarding.)
We offer following payment options:
1. Pay cash at our Administrative office in Mumbai, address given below.
2. Send Demand Draft or Money Order or Cheque in favour of Milky Way Voyage payable at Mumbai.
    Address at which payment is to be sent -
    Milky Way Voyage
    503A, Prem Kunj, Navroji Lane,Ghatkopar (W), Bombay 400086.
    Tel: 022-25119195 / 09323554536 / 09821082487
3.Direct Deposit or Fund transfer to Milky Way Voyage account with SBI. Account details: Account No 66019691677 Account Name: Milky Way Voyage. Please inform us after you deposit / transfer the money. Retain your copy of pay in slip for the confirmation.
4.Online Bank transfer to our above SBI Bank Account
5.Payment by Credit Card on our website www.milkywayvoyage.org

Join the discussion group regarding all topics related to the Milky Way Voyage at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/milkywayvoyage

    Hotel Accommodation: ARIES campus is situated 9kms from Nainital city (by road) although it is only 4 kms walking distance. There are numerous hotels in this tourist heaven. March 7th & 8th happens to be in the middle of off-Season, when maximum discounts are applicable on hotel rates. We have identified 3 hotels which we recommend to the participants. Telephonic reservations are available in two, namely Welcome Park and Evelyn. We have tied up with these two hotels to get maximum discount possible for participants. Hotel Sarovar, which is run by the Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN) has a booking facility at Janpath, New Delhi. We will endeavour to make a bulk booking in Hotel Sarovar. Booking will be made on 100% advance basis. The last date for making payment to us is 15th January, 2008. Alternatively online booking is available and there are a number of booking centres all over India for this hotel. More accommodation information is available on our website www.milkywayvoyage.org

    About Nainital: Nainital is a glittering jewel in the Himalayan necklace, blessed with scenic natural spledour and varied natural resources . Dotted with lakes , Nainital has earned the epithet of 'Lake District' of India . The most prominent of the lakes is Naini lake ringed by hills . Nainital has a varied topography . Some of the important places in the district are Nainital, Haldwani, Kaladhungi, Ramnagar, Bhowali, Ramgarh, Mukteshwar, Bhimtal, Sattal and Naukuchiatal. Nainital’s unending expense of scenic beauty is nothing short of a romance with awe-inspiring and pristine Mother nature.

Milky Way Voyage is presented by Ajay Talwar & Nilesh Vayada, in Association with

Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators, (SPACE).

Co-organised by -

Confederation of Indian Amateur Astronomers (CIAA),

Amateur Astronomers Association of Delhi (AAAD).

Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) has graciously agreed to host the Voyage at Nainital.

    Milky Way Voyage
    503A, Prem Kunj, Navroji Lane,Ghatkopar (W), Bombay 400086.
    Tel: 022-25119195 / 09323554536 / 09821082487
    E-mail: starparty@milkywayvoyage.org
    Web site: www.milkywayvoyage.org

Calendar of Events
25th Dec, 2007    Registration Begins
15th Jan, 2008    Sarovar Hotel booking deadline
1st Feb, 2008    Second Announcement

15th Feb, 2008    Registration Ends
15th Feb, 2008    Astrophotography competition submission deadline
7th Mar, 2008    Voyage starts in the afternoon
9th Mar, 2008    Voyage ends at dawn