More AAVSO stuff, and ramblings
I have been working on my third AAVSO CHOICE class, "Developing a Visual Observing Program". The course ran from August 5 to August 31, but they gave us an extension for a week because a lot of the participants were experiencing bad weather and or smoke from wildfires. I took this course hoping to learn more and improve my visual observing skills. The coursework involved using charts created using the AAVSO's VSP (Variable Star Plotter) program. This is accessible from the AAVSO home page and you don't have to be a member to use it. There was also a set of practical exercises that typically involved using charts and atlases to locate a target by starhopping, and at least identifying the star field where the target star was located. I found these exercises to be great practice when I had a night that I could actually practice. Most of the month we had bad smoke fro wildfires in California, Idaho, and others within 20 miles of us. This was...