 |
|
"And no one said that the 'Southern Nights' - it is so easy"
Andrey Ostapenko
/ Organizer of AstroFest /
Some go to the Crimea to rest, bathe in the sun, but for the participants of the "Southern Nights" is each time a test for hardness and resilience. Understandably, the Crimea - a place where you relax and it is desirable to have a rest actively. Day. When you look at these mountains and valleys, you realize the presence of a relative near the sea, cave towns, ancient ruins, it will hardly be able to resist, that would not taste all this at least for a little bit on the edge.
But the amateur astronomers go to the Crimea, and even for the sake of the beautiful sky, the southern star, nonrising in the middle band of constellations and of course for the sake of such as themselves - for good company and which are held in all the observations astrosleta night long.
But once in a while and sleep when it is necessary. The question is only - when?
The answer is right: Sleeping on "Southern Nights" absolutely no time. But it is very desirable, especially after a mountain hike, travel to the sea, and certainly want after observations.
We have to carve out a few hours on it, and if not a great atmosphere at the emotional recovery rally, no one would have survived such a regime and the intensity of "active rest".
|
To begin with, get to the village of Science, though not fundamentally difficult, but also not so easy.
Usually the path is as follows: The train arrives in Simferopol. From the r / w station, it is necessary to get to the western car-station. It's not close. Historic trolley rides to the type with a half-hour - no less. There it is necessary to manage to buy a ticket to the "Observatory" (this is - Researcher), but on the next flight tickets anymore. This does not mean that you will not be allowed on the bus, but an hour throwing from side to side along the mountain road you spend standing. You can certainly buy a ticket on the next flight (if it is still - the buses run until 5 pm), after waiting half an hour, but we decided not to. Our things, of which there were quite a few, in the left common trunk of the bus (which is subsequently loaded, then emptied at each stop, but nothing is lost), and we ourselves pretending herring climbed into the barrel.
I would say that on the top shelf after the daily confinement in the train (which I loved as a child), travel to the bus station in the packed bus, this 30-kilometer journey was the last straw after which wanted to prick and forget. But when on the last kilometers of serpentine rock in the window seemed pure white shining on the top of the tower observatory (which sang in his song Timur Kryachko) state of tiredness and fatigue began to recede.
Oh and when I managed to fall out of the bus, to breathe clean mountain air, step for PPC on the sacred territory of the Temple of Astronomy Crimea, any desire somewhere to sit, rest up, otdyhivatsya gone - as was not at all. The only thing was to create an account, get the keys to the rooms in the hotel, throw things on the floor and put himself in order.
The observatory itself was founded in 1945 in a deserted and uninhabited parts of the mountain area 12 kilometers from the outskirts of Bakhchisarai on one of the peaks from where a magnificent overview of all senses. The initiator of the construction was Pulkovo Observatory, which is located near St. Petersburg - in those years she could not engage in serious study of deep space from its northern latitude with vague climate and large flare, and in the summer - because of the white nights.
Road was built, erected a dome, manufactured, delivered and installed at the time the biggest telescopes, and what scientist would not have to come every evening from Simferopol and Bakhchisarai around campus smashed towers to the hotel infrastructure and generally everything you need. For a long time the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory (Crimean Astrophysical Observatory) was the largest observatory of the Soviet Union. Its arsenal was the largest telescope in Europe - ZTSH (Mirror Telescope named after Academician Shain.) With a mirror 2.6 meters in diameter. But later captured leadership in size built in the North Caucasus in the 70s of the CAO (Special Astrophysical Observatory), famous for its 6-meter telescope, which for decades held the palm among telescopes dinosaurs. But the urgency of the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory on this has not diminished. It was the cutting edge of Soviet science.
Then came the collapse of the socialist system. CrAO was on the territory of Ukraine, was nationalized (like many other observatories now in the territory of our Central Asian neighbors) and began to slowly fade. Fortunately, over the years, this separatist Wilt stopped, like it is now the observatory back to before the scientific mainstream, although it can and became shallow in places, but the campus village Science badly degenerated, many scientists had left, many who have not been an employee of the observatory but worked in its infrastructure in times of crisis' 90s, too, sold their homes for nothing (well, who wants to live without working in the mountains far away from civilization?), and now Scientific - is not the same. He lives there, for the most part, who fell, sells melons, spread around funky gardens, such as those drawn in the Moscow region along the railroads, and the observatory territory itself as an overgrown jungle and the ground is not so easy to see the stars ... but there are several open areas for review - and that's where we ought to observe.
The first night nature took pity on us. How to put it on this occasion experienced lovers - "a cloud caught on the mountain." Everywhere, except for scientific, in the Crimea, it was clear and only slowly rotating above us and did not want to leave hung a huge cloud. Lovers with their telescopes vainly expected changes in the stamping ground on the hillside, but those who were posmyshlenee realized that a sin to miss this chance - when there still will be able to sleep ?!
And I, too, went to sleep. And so it was the first night of the Crimean - with great benefits for the body. All the other five nights were clear. And it was not before bedtime.
                                                                                                                                                                       
|
