Fri, Nov 17 2017 - Pre-dawn Peak of Leonid Meteor Shower + Stargazing Hike at Mason Mill Park (View Original Event Details) Trip Leader(s): Charlie Cottingham Participants: DaveO, KimVo, Bill Wey, Grace, Maria I, Ayo, jing zheng, Janet W, Aaron, Sayli Dapse, AJ, Babita Kumari, Deepak Kumar, Charlie Cottingham, Huiling, Janelle, Lisa W, Linda h, Sheri, Carin

We AOC "early-bird skygazer-hikers" took advantage of the gorgeous clear weather at 5:30 this morning in the eerie stillness of Mason Mill Park.  Many of us enjoyed relaxing supine on yoga mats, etc. on the PATH Trail's high wooden deck to marvel at the wonders of the night sky.  Although none of managed to spot any meteors we still had splendid views of lots of fascinating objects, including Orion, Leo, the Big Dipper, the North Star, Taurus, the Pleiades, Sirius, several satellites, and even a brilliant passage of the International Space Station.  Our thanks to Kim for discovering online info about exactly when the ISS would transit (between 6:30 & 6:35 AM).  Thanks also to Aaron who used a cool smartphone app to precisely locate where the space station would "rise and set."
  It was fun having new members Sayli, AJ and Deepak with us on their very first AOC event.  Just after our observing session they joined me for a twilight hike on the massively beautiful new portion of the PATH Boardwalk between the park and North Druid Hills Road.  Aaron reports that progress is being made to formally connect these nice Mason Mill PATH trails with the trail network at Emory University via a creekside trail underneath Clairmont Road.  - Submitted by Charlie, 11:00 AM Friday