Pj Riley 

Good news - as the night gets longer, you have more opportunity to observe.  Bad news - the nights also get colder! Brrr! (gave me a chill just typing it). 
I have learned two basic rules in life that apply to winter observing - one, common sense isn't that common, and two, state the obvious.  So I have included a partial reprint from NASA. 
It contains information about how to dress when outside in cold weather.  Even though it is common sense, and obvious, I feel it's worth a read.  I don't know 'bout y'all, but I have suffered frostbite - it isn't fun !  I expect you to reach spring without frostbite! 
The article refers to observing an eclipse, but the info applies equally to stargazin'.... 

"Cold weather requires considerable care in dressing. The secret is to use loose layers of clothing, leaving lots of room for air pockets to trap heat where it is wanted. Never underestimate the penetrating power of the cold - you may be able to walk about at -20° C at home, but you will be much less active during an eclipse and the cold will penetrate after an hour or so. Wear thermal underwear, pants and an outer covering (skidoo pants or even carpenter's coveralls) on your legs. A good winter jacket, preferably down-filled, will keep you warm above, but layers of undershirts, shirts, and sweaters, covered by a winter coat will do. Big friends with large ski jackets will help here, but ski wear is not suitable by itself to handle the low level of activity when observing in the cold. 
Feet deserve special attention, but the technique is similar to other parts of the body. Use layers: socks, woolen work socks, down or woolen booties, then a large pair of winter boots to cover it all. Try to keep it loose if possible to trap warm air and allow your feet to move and warm up. Don't neglect the underside of your feet - pick boots with a good thick insole to block cold coming up through the bottom. 
Gloves should be thin to handle the small parts of the telescope, but your hands will probably be cold nevertheless. Thin gloves under a larger pair of mitts work best. Mitts with one or two fingers (usually sold in hunting shops) are warmest, and fingers can easily be extracted from the mitt to

Lyle Jones
The Holiday Season is almost on us! This year has sure flown by.  This Fall we have had some great skies for viewing. I hope that you got out and did some.
Kathy Sheldon and I are looking for entertainment for the Stargazers' Annual Christmas Party, which will be held on December 10^th at the Presbyterian Church in Smyrna from 2:00 to 5:00 PM.  Kathy is also planning the white elephant present exchange so save your junk!  For those of you who have not been there before, the Stargazers supply turkey, ham and drinks plus the plates and eating utensils.  It is always a fun afternoon. 
If you want to grind a mirror in March 2006, be sure to get up with Don Surles (302-653-9445).  Slots are filling up quickly. In fact, one individual is coming from Hawaii. 
Those of you who did not attend the November meeting missed a great presentation by Dave Groski on off-axis telescopes.  Our program for December will be "What is new in astronomy for this coming year?" Don Surles will handle the new products while Jerry Truitt will handle astronomical events for the upcoming year. Tom Pomponio will do a short program on his modification of the CCD camera for astronomical pictures.  For January Dan Kennedy and Chris Abramowicz will do a program on the Chesapeake Bay Impact.  It should be a very interesting program.  The Stargazers still have a few 2006 astronomical calendars and Handbooks for sale.  If you're interested, contact Don Surles. For those members attending our monthly meetings, how are they? Doug Miller had some helpful suggestions on the meeting format. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. 
On Sunday, November 12^th I helped a young couple with their Meade Autostar 4 inch reflector.  It has been in their closet for three years.  Their scope was badly mis-aligned

Don Surles

Looking at the Sun can be very interesting.  The Sun changes it's appearance routinely and presents a different portrait depending on the wavelength of EMS one chooses to view.
A word of caution before attempting solar viewing…please do it safely.  Always use the proper filter to eliminate the Sun's harmful radiation that can severely damage the human eye.  My rule of thumb is to filter the "aperture" end of the scope or bino thus ensuring the harmful radiation is not introduced into the viewing instrument.  I always filter my finder scope and remove the Telrad (to prevent the possible destruction of the Telrad reticle).  Another good idea is to carry and use a pair of solar glasses to protect your eyes from sun glare and to ensure you have "spot free" vision when looking through the eyepiece.
The most popular filters are white light viewing and are normally made from aluminized glass, aluminized mylar, or Baader "solar film".  The #9 welder's lens is ok but does not perform as well as the other mentioned above.  These filters can be used safely with refractors, reflectors and binos.  These filters will show sunspots and granulation on the sun's surface.
The Herschel Wedge:  The Herschel Wedge is a shallow triangular piece of glass with optically flat surfaces. The surfaces are set at an angle of about 3 degrees. The wedge is used to reflect light from the forward surface into the eyepiece, while light from the rear surface is reflected out of the eyepiece field, preventing double images. HERSCHEL WEDGES ARE NOT SAFE WHEN USED ALONE. The 3% to 5% of the light reflected into the eyepiece is still intense enough to require filtration. According to various authorities, the use of a #12 welder's glass as a secondary filter is safe. Those wanting to use Herschel wedges are advised to make independent measurements of what level of additional filtration is safe.
The Herschel Wedge is only recommended for use with refracting telescopes, NOT Schmidt-Cassegrain, Maksutov, or any other Reflecting Telescopes. 
Today there are relatively inexpensive scopes for viewing the surface and prominences.  The Coronado SunScope is a good example that works well.  The DayStar filter accessory for your scope also works well but costs a bit more.  And if you were fortunate and built a "Prom" scope at our MidAtlantic Mirror Making Weekend then you have an excellent scope

So, stay safe and enjoy the view - often!            Don…

Jerry Truitt

President Lyle Jones opened the November meeting of the Delmarva Stargazers with a group discussion on what's up. Various members contributed with their recent observations plus we had some discussion about what's been on the Yahoo site as well.
There was of course a lot of talk about Mars. Quite a few members had witnessed bright fire balls and gave their account of what and when they had seen them.
Several members had commented on what a great job Pj Riley has done with our newsletter. This has been done in large without much help from the membership. Anyone with something to contribute please step up and help Paul make our news letter even better.
Lyle is still working on getting a trailer for the club. This will be used to both store and transport club equipment.
Don Surles is running the Mirror Making event this year. Don says people are starting to sign up already. He also noted with have a new distance record as we have a person who works at the Keck signed up. So he'll be coming all the way from the Big Khuna Hawaii.
The Christmas Party is December 10^th so please plan on attending. Family is welcome too. We're still looking for entertainment so if you have any ideas let Lyle know via e-mail.
Don did a great presentation on Solar observing. Don pleaded for us to remember to filter first and make sure that