Mike Simmons wrote:

You can expect some very helpful people to be there to guide you on what
to look for. There's always an experienced observer from the Mount
Wilson Observatory Association in the dome to help. ...


I can vouch for this. Last Wednesday night/Thursday morning I was a
tag-along with an independent film crew who are putting together a
documentary on Mars. They filmed extensively up on Mount Wilson and
captured some great video of the planet through the 60-inch on opposition
night.

And all the while the Mount Wilson Observatory Association folk were
splendid hosts -- friendly and helpful; it was a pleasure to work with
them. Best of all, I had the honor of meeting the esteemed Mike Simmons
in person.

By the way, when this documentary eventually airs, perhaps on Discovery
Channel or similar in 2004, you'll no doubt see Mike Simmons in action.
The film crew relied heavily on Mike to supply details on the history of
the Observatory and to describe aspects of the featured reddish orb.

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Mark Gingrich San Leandro, California