3RF Events and Activities

As a major part of 3RF's mission to promote interest & education in astronomy, we regularly support a number of local and regional star parties by providing and operating large, quality telescopes and running public Sky Tours for the benefit of those people wishing to attend those events.

Why do we do this? Because we know that so many of the people attending those events either do not have their own telescopes, or wonder what it would be like to observe through a larger telescope than they currently own or have access to.

A small selection of the events we support are listed below:

Deepest South Texas Star Safari
9 - 20 March 2010
One of the main events coordinated by 3RF Australia is the popular Deepest South Texas Star Safari (DSTSS), held each year near Coonabarabran, New South Wales - The Astronomy Capital of Australia.

The Deepest South Texas Star Safari, as the name suggests, is an event which is aimed at assisting amateur observers from the United States of America by providing them with the opportunity to experience the grandeur of the southern skies without the need to transport large telescopes.

The 2010 DSTSS will be held from 9 - 20 March 2010 with the observing portion scheduled from 12 - 19 March 2010.

For further details, including booking information, please visit: www.OzSky.org.

South Pacific Star Party
14 - 16 May 2010
The annual South Pacific Star Party (SPSP) is a major star party hosted by the Astronomical Society of New South Wales and is one which 3RF has supported for a number of years. The 2010 SPSP will be held over the weekend of 14 - 16 May 2010.

For the past several years 3RF has supported the SPSP by providing large telescopes for public Sky Tours on the Friday and Saturday nights, and has also donated door prizes of free private observings sessions using some of 3RF's largest telescopes.

Border StarGaze
1 - 5 September, 2010
The Border StarGaze is a star party hosted by the Astronomical Society of Albury-Wodonga and proudly supported by 3RF. The 2010 event will be held from 1 - 5 September 2010 at the 120 hectare (300 acre) Wymah Valley Retreat, 32km north of Albury, New South Wales.

3RF will again offer its support for Border StarGaze by providing a number of large telescopes for the Public Astronomy Sky Tours on the Friday and Saturday nights. Telescopes provided may include 18", 25" and 30" telescopes as well as a 12½" binocular telescope, for the benefit of those attending this event.

IceInSpace Astro Camp
7 - 10 October 2010
IceInSpace Astro Camp (IISAC) is a star party organised by the IceInSpace online community, and will be held over 3 nights from 7 - 10 October 2010 at Lostock Scout Camp, Lostock in the beautiful Hunter Valley area of NSW. The location was chosen because of its proximity to Sydney, the Central Coast and Newcastle, and at under 4 hours drive from Sydney you'll be amongst clear, very dark skies in a lovely country setting.

3RF will be attending IISAC 10 again in 2010, and will support the event by providing and operating a number of large telescopes including 18" and 25" telescopes.

OzSky Alumni Star Safari
3 - 10 November 2010
Another of the main events being coordinated by 3RF Australia is the OzSky Alumni Star Safari (OzSky Alumni), held annually near Coonabarabran, New South Wales - The Astronomy Capital of Australia.

The OzSky Alumni is an event which is aimed at providing past attendees of the Deepest South Texas Star Safari with a dedicated observing week under the grandeur of the November southern skies without the need to transport large telescopes across the Pacific Ocean.

The 2010 OzSky Alumni will be held from 3 - 10 November 2010, so stay tuned for further updates!

Transit of Venus Outback Safari
5 - 14 June 2012
Watch this space for further details

Total Solar Eclipse Observing Trip
November 2012
Watch this space for further details