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BARBADOS MISSION #1 REPORT 2016

MARCH 11th - 28th, 2016

Above: Moonrise to the east over the pool near sunset during the trip.

Tired of the weather at home i made a last minute decision to take a trip to catch Jupiter at opposition for 2016. March is well into the dry season on the island and i was optimistic of catching some good conditions. Jupiter was also extremely well placed as seen from Barbados passing just shy of the zenith at over 80 degrees altitude. As a bonus Saturn was also very well placed before sunrise along with Mars which was on approach to its 2016 opposition in June.

Overall the trip was a great success and i captured among my best ever imagery of the giant planet. Several nights of near perfect seeing were experienced resulting in some highly detailed images. I was also able to produce one of my best ever whole planet maps and animations. Saturn and Mars also put on a fine show during the dawn hours, and one morning especially resulted in some very high quality Saturn imagery.

Sadly the flight home was far from ideal due to storm Katie battering the UK (its arrival and peak winds coincided almost perfectly with my return flight arrival.) On approach to landing the Captain aborted landing at 3000ft due to severe wind gusts of 70mph at the surface (turbulence was among the worst i can remember on any flight ive taken!) So we again climbed altitude to fly north to land in Manchester where the winds were much lighter we we remained sat on the runway awaiting a slot to return to London. 4hrs of waiting later (stuck on the plane) we finally returned to London landing there 6hrs late. i then had another 1.5hr drive home. A truly exhausting day!

Once again its a big thank you to Eric & Louise Norris on Barbados for their help and hospitality during my stay.

Mars on March 27th, 2016

Mars on March 26th, 2016

Mars on March 25th, 2016

Mars on March 23rd, 2016

Mars on March 19th, 2016

Mars on March 18th, 2016

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March 27th, 2016. Good conditions. Small storms and the polar hexagon are clearly visible.

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March 26th, 2016. Very good conditions.

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March 25th, 2016. Excellent conditions.

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March 23rd, 2016. Fair seeing conditions.

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March 20th, 2016. Good seeing conditions.

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March 19th, 2016. Good seeing conditions.

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March 18th, 2016. Excellent conditions. Small storms and the polar hexagon are clearly visible.

Movie of the planet from March 18th - 22nd, 2016.

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Map of the planet from March 18th - 22nd, 2016.

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Jupiter on March 27th, 2016. Excellent seeing conditions.

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Jupiter on March 26th, 2016. Excellent seeing conditions. Callisto alongside the planet.

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Jupiter on March 25th, 2016. Very good seeing conditions.

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Jupiter on March 24th, 2016. Excellent seeing conditions. Ganymede and Io in transit.

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Jupiter on March 23rd, 2016. Good seeing conditions but large amounts of cloud prevented a good series of images.

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Jupiter on March 22nd, 2016. Excellent seeing conditions. Io and Europa alongside and in transit later on.

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Jupiter on March 21st, 2016. Excellent seeing conditions.

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Jupiter on March 20th, 2016. Good seeing conditions.

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Jupiter on March 19th, 2016. Excellent seeing conditions.

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Jupiter on March 18th, 2016. Great seeing conditions. The first night on Barbados.