Saturn Steals the Show at Blackheath – 13 September 2025

After the huge crowds for last week’s lunar eclipse event, our latest Blackheath observing session on Saturday 13 September was a much quieter affair. Around 50–60 people attended, which in many ways worked to our advantage. With fewer people, volunteers were able to spend more time with each visitor at the eyepiece, and there was also plenty of opportunity for volunteers to catch up with one another – all of which helps to build the team spirit that makes these evenings so enjoyable.

The skies were a little more cloudy than we’d have liked, though never enough to spoil the evening. Saturn was the undoubted highlight, and Mark’s large refractor quickly became the centrepiece of the field. It took a while for the scope to cool down properly, with Mark concerned at first that the image wasn’t as steady as in my shorter 100/800 refractor, but once it settled the views were superb. Titan was easily visible from early on, with Dione flickering in and out as Saturn rose higher in the sky.

We also managed to track down Neptune – still rather underwhelming visually, though Tim reported that to his eyes it appeared red rather than the familiar photographic blue-green. That observation certainly sparked some debate! An ISS flyby overhead added an extra highlight to the evening, drawing plenty of attention from the crowd.

Double stars were also a popular choice. Albireo and Almach are always favourites, though the evening produced plenty of discussion about how people perceive the colours of their component stars. Smartscopes were in good use too. Alec had a frustrating time with his Dwarf 3, which was stuck in the middle of a forced firmware update. With no way around it, the device was essentially reduced to a “brick on a stick” for the night. Others had better fortune: Richard, Yvonne and Brendan produced some excellent live images, while Sara had her new Seestar S30 out for the first time and had it working smoothly within minutes.

As the session went on, the Moon provided another target, before our first glimpse of the Pleiades rising towards the end of the evening – a sure sign that winter skies are not too far away.

Perhaps the most memorable moment came at the eyepiece of Saturn. A Flamsteed member, seeing its rings through a telescope for the first time, described it as a lifetime’s ambition achieved, adding with a smile, “I promised myself I’d see Saturn through a telescope before I die.” Quick as a flash, someone in the crowd called back, “Don’t look!” – a perfect mix of awe and humour that summed up the evening.

All in all, a very enjoyable session. Thanks as ever to all our volunteers for making the event such a success. Our next Blackheath observing session is scheduled for Saturday 27 or Sunday 28 September (weather depending).

Pictures from the evening (by Mike Meynell and Brendan Cooper):