Tell me about the night sky at sea...

[Stinasmom]

Are there just a million stars visible? Has anyone ever taken star charts to find constellations or particular stars?
Is there too much light from the ship to see well? Where might the best vantage point be? Deck 7 aft (aka secret deck7?) or anywhere?
Just something I was thinking about and couldn't find a similar thread...

 

[mmouse37]

The decks are lit up pretty well at night so you will have ambient light getting in the way sometimes....late at night, all the way forward on deck 10 is probably the best spot....very dark and very windy (stand behind the wind barrier). If people are playing basketball then the lights will be on. I actually thought I would see more stars that I did (a few cruises when it was very clear we see some beautiful night sky)

Deck 7 aft (secret deck) is locked at 11:00 pm...that might be good before that time though...

 

[SeaSpray]

The night sky was absolutely breathtaking, and something that took us by surprise on our first night! Before the cruise, I kept daydreaming of spending time on the verandah during the day, but didn't give nighttime too much thought.

We had a cabin with a verandah, and each night we were on the side of the ship that the moon was on, so we got to see the moonlight shining on the ocean almost every single night. That was amazing. We tried to take some pictures of it but we don't know the different settings so they didn't come out at all like what it actually looked like in person.

If you don't have a verandah you can try and find a spot on one of the decks at night without too much light. You're in for a real treat

 

[ksjayhawks]

I like to go to Deck 4 at night. It is dimly lit and you have such a clear view of the sky! Plus I love to sit back in the deck chairs and listen to the ship cut through the water! I could almost go to sleep out there!

 

[goofyforlife]

Deck 10 works for me....

On one of the nights of our Dec 04 wonder cruise, there was a meteor shower. It was beautiful with stars streaming by every minute or so.

We were mid-ship but I didn't feel like the lighting interfered.

I've always loved the cruises we took that coincided with the full moon also....

 

[Spectro is #1]

The thing I liked was watching distant T-storms.

 

[plutospup]

...especially with lightning! Natures Fireworks!

If you're all the way forward on deck 10, in front of the windscreen, raise your hand to block a navigational light. You'll see a magnificent skyfull of stars!

 

[ljql_5969]

Not only the stars but looking out on the immense, dark ocean is neat too. It always amazes me.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Here a few of my amateur pictures. It'll give you some idea. It's really beautiful at night.

Taken from our verandah during the night.

Deck 4 at sunset - it's even prettier at night (sorry, a bit blurry).

Leaving Nassau.

And a sunrise for good measure.

 

[WDWLVR]

On our May '03 cruise there was a lunar eclipse one night at sea. The sky that night was the most beautiful I have ever seen. A zillion stars out - awesome!

 

[mykel mouse]

I was highly impressed with those pictures. I was hoping to get some at night. Looks like I can do it with just a regular camera.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I was highly impressed with those pictures. I was hoping to get some at night. Looks like I can do it with just a regular camera.

Why, thank you Mykel! I was having trouble getting a clear shot so I balanced our "box 'o wine" on the verandah railing and put the camera up on it as a makeshift tripod. Guess I was lucky they both didn't go in the drink!

 

[drclaws]

The thing I liked was watching distant T-storms.

Absolutely! We out ran one leaving Port Canaveral and then again leaving Key West. Near, but far enough away to enjoy from our verandah. Later on the distant storms with cloud to cloud vivid, jagged strikes, but at the same time looking a different direction and seeing the moon and stars. Some things you just can't see as easily on land.....

 

[RickW]

I was having trouble getting a clear shot so I balanced our "box 'o wine" on the verandah railing and put the camera up on it as a makeshift tripod.:

Well, that's the first time I've heard of someone using wine to improve their balance.

 

[GracieA7]

There is a possible meteor shower from the Schwassmann Wachman comet. I'll be boarding the Wonder on May 25th - my husband will definitely be on the lookout.

From Website: http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=4166

QUOTE: Cudnik hopes another May event, the close approach of fractured Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachman 3 on May 24, may produce impacts, too. "The comet is broken into at least 31 fragments," Cudnik says. "If there's a wider swath of smaller debris around them, the particles could produce meteors for Earth and impacts for the Moon."