CONTENTS
AEA Astronomy Club Items
Astronomy News
Picture(s) of the Day
General Calendar
Useful Links
AEA Astronomy Club Items.
Calendar
March 17 Club mtg. at 11:30am in A9/2906. “The Mt. Wilson Observatory – Then & Now,” Guest speaker Don Nicholson – our 1st club president (1977-82) & currently Mt. Wilson Institute Associate Deputy Director for External Affairs. He will cover both the history & science achievements of the observatory, including his father’s. Some excellent background to an upcoming club tour of Mt. Wilson. Also, voting on club bylaws & possibly an equipment purchase.
A9/2906 is the Thor Conference Room (left off the 2nd floor elevator to the end of the hall, and another left -- overlooks El Segundo Blvd.).
Other upcoming AEA Astronomy Club meeting programs (3rd Wednesday at 11:30 in A9/2906):
• April 21 – David Bearden, General Manager NASA & Civil Programs, on the Augustine
Commission, especially Aerospace support
• May 19 – “A Grand Tour of the Universe” slideshow
• TBD (when road reopens) – a Saturday Tour of Mt. Wilson (docent-guided) , possibly followed by a picnic & star party
Membership. Please use the attached membership application form to join & submit annual membership dues, which are $12 for employees, $16 for others – made out to AEA Astronomy Club, and sent to our treasurer, Vic Christensen, at M1-167. Benefits will include use of club telescope(s) & library/software, discounts on Sky & Telescope magazine and Observer’s Handbook, field trips, great programs, having a say in club activities & elections, etc.
Committee Suggestions & Volunteers. Feel free to contact: Leslie Wickman, Program Committee Chairwoman (& club VP), David Wright, the Activities Committee Chairman (& club Secretary), or Vic Christensen, Resource Committee Chairman (over equipment & library, and club Treasurer).
Astronomy News:
NASA (Feb. 25):
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden appeared before the Senate Commerce science and space subcommittee yesterday to defend NASA's mission. He told the panel that the agency must spend more time upgrading its technology before it can plan missions to other planets. But lawmakers expressed their displeasure and told Bolden that NASA needs to have a specific goal of getting somewhere instead of just talking about it. Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) said, "Resources without vision is a waste of time and money." He has vowed to vigorously oppose Obama's plan for NASA.
NASA (Feb. 26):
For the second consecutive day, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden appeared before a congressional committee to defend the Obama administration's fiscal 2010 NASA budget, which cancels the Constellation program returning humans to the moon, relies on private industry to transport astronauts to low Earth orbit in the future, and invests more in new space technologies. Yesterday, Bolden took fire from the House Science and Technology Committee, whose members made it clear that they disagree with NASA's new direction. Even members who don't represent NASA centers (Florida, Alabama, Texas) spoke out against cancelling Constellation.
As much as lawmakers dislike Obama's proposed changes, there is little hope that Congress will provide the funding to continue the Constellation program. According to the Augustine Commission, NASA would need $45 billion to $65 billion over the next decade to continue on the original path. (The New York Times, pg. A17, Feb. 26, 2010)
Astronomers detect earliest galaxies
A team of astronomers that includes Carnegie's Ivo Labbé have broken the distance limit for galaxies by uncovering a primordial population of compact and ultra-blue galaxies that have never been seen before. These galaxies are from 13 billion years ago, just 600 to 800 million years after the Big Bang. [ctrl+click image or title for link to more info] http://obs.carnegiescience.edu/news/distantgalaxies
This WISE image shows dust speckling the Andromeda galaxy's spiral arms. The hot dust, heated by newborn stars, outlines the thin arms to the center of the galaxy. This photo is an infrared image taken at the longest wavelengths perceptible by WISE, which appear in orange and red. Click to enlarge. http://www.space.com/php/multimedia/imagedisplay/img_display.php?pic=ig386-wise-05-02.jpg
Astronomy Picture of the Day -- M78 and Reflecting Dust Clouds in Orion
Credit & Copyright: Ignacio de la Cueva Torregrosa
2010 March 2
Explanation: An eerie blue glow and ominous columns of dark dust highlight M78 and other bright reflection nebula in the constellation of Orion. The dark filamentary dust not only absorbs light, but also reflects the light of several bright blue stars that formed recently in the nebula. Of the two reflection nebulas pictured above, the more famous nebula is M78, in the image center, while NGC 2071 can be seen to its lower left. The same type of scattering that colors the daytime sky further enhances the blue color. M78 is about five light-years across and visible through a small telescope. M78 appears above only as it was 1600 years ago, however, because that is how long it takes light to go from there to here. M78 belongs to the larger Orion Molecular Cloud Complex that contains the Great Nebula in Orion and the Horsehead Nebula. http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1003/m78_torregrosa_big.jpg
General Calendar:
5 March -- SBAS (South Bay Astronomical Soc.) monthly general mtg., Guest Speaker: Dr. Steven Levin, JPL. Topic: Discussion, El Camino College. 7:30pm, El Camino College Planetarium, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance. www.sbastro.org
6 March -- SBAS star party (weather permitting): RPV at Ridgecrest Middle School 28915 North Bay Rd.
13 March SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Banecke www.sbastro.org.
15 March Carnegie astronomy lectures will be held on 15 March (“Massive Stars: Life and Death,” José Luis Prieto, Ph.D., Carnegie-Princeton Fellow, Carnegie Observatories), 12 and 19 April and 17 May at 7:30 PM in the Huntington Gardens. For more information, go to: obs.carnegiescience.edu. Free and open to the public. Visit www.huntington.org for directions. Please call 626-304-0250 for more information on these popular lectures.
17 March Aerospace Astronomy Club mtg. 11:30am, A9/2906 -- Don Nicholson – 1st club president & Mt.
Wilson affiliate/expert -- “The Mt. Wilson Observatory – Then & Now,”
The von Kármán Lecture Series -- Using NASA Satellites to Study the Earth’s Climate by Dr. Eric Fetzer.
Thursday, March 18, 2010, 7pm
The von Kármán Auditorium at JPL
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena, CA
› Directions
Friday, March 19, 2010, 7pm
The Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College
1570 East Colorado Blvd.
Pasadena, CA
› Directions
LAAS Events: (L.A. Astronomical Society -- www.laas.org)
3/8/2010 (Mon) General Meeting
Griffith Observatory Event Horizon Theater 7:45 PM to 9:45 PM
3/13/2010 (Sat) Dark Sky Night
Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical site)
3/20/2010 (Sat) Public Star Party
Griffith Observatory 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. More details are provided in the bulletin.
July 11 total solar eclipse crosses Easter Island, Chile.
Dec. 21 total lunar eclipse for Western Hemisphere
Internet Links:
So. Calif. astronomy organizations, observatories & planetaria: http://www.mwoa.org/local.html
MWOA (Mt. Wilson Observatory Assn.), including status for visits & roads: www.mwoa.org
Western Amateur Astronomers (consortium of various regional societies): www.waa.av.org/Club_members.html
LAAS list of links (incl. Tools, Journals, Vendors, Other Societies, Databases, Members) http://www.laas.org/Links.htm
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2010 February Newsletter
CONTENTS
AEA Astronomy Club Items
Astronomy News
Picture of the Day
General Calendar
Useful Links
AEA Astronomy Club Items.
Meetings. Our February mtg. will be Wed., Feb. 17, at 11:30am in A9 . “A Grand Tour of the Universe” slideshow. & some club business (draft bylaws).
Meetings will be the 3rd Wed. of each month. We have a standing room reservation thru Dec. in A9/2906, the Thor Conference Room (left off the elevator to the end of the hall, and another left, overlooks El Segundo Blvd.).
Other upcoming AEA Astronomy Club meeting programs (3rd Wednesday at 11:30 in A9/2906):
• March 17 – David Bearden, General Manager NASA & Civil Programs, on the Augustine Commission, especially Aerospace support
• April 21 – Don Nicholson – 1st club president & Mt. Wilson affiliate/expert -- topic TBD
Committee Suggestions & Volunteers. We expect to sponsor quarterly off-site activities, and are taking requests – contact David Wright, the Activities Committee Chairman (& club Secretary). If you have a topic of interest to you, or that you (or someone you know) would like to share, short or long, contact Leslie Wickman, Program Committee Chairwoman (& club VP). If you have recommendations for club acquisitions (equipment or library items), contact Vic Christensen, Resource Committee Chairman (& club Treasurer).
We would like 2 member volunteers to round out each committee: Resources (Equipment Manager, Librarian), Programs & Activities. Contact Mark Clayson and/or the committee chairman if interested.
Membership. Please use the attached membership application form to join & submit annual membership dues, which are $12 for employees, $16 for others – made out to AEA Astronomy Club, and sent to our treasurer, Vic Christensen, at M1-167. Benefits will include use of club telescope(s) & library/software, discounts on Sky & Telescope magazine and Observer’s Handbook, field trips, great programs, having a say in club activities & elections, etc.
We have received a startup check from AEA for $500. With some member dues, we’ll be able to afford a $530 computerized 8” Dobsonian we’re considering. Future AEA allotments are expected to be considerably larger – depending on our activities, membership & proposals.
Astronomy News:
From the Washington Report, Feb. 1:
FY '11 NASA BUDGET:
According to preliminary briefings, the budget President Obama will unveil today effectively kills NASA's Constellation program. The plan to return human beings to the moon will not be funded in the fiscal 2011 NASA budget. The numbers will show a slight increase over the current $18.7 billion NASA budget, but not enough for the Ares I, which was supposed to replace the space shuttle. There should be a brutal fight in Congress over this decision as Constellation has many supporters among lawmakers in districts that will be most affected by the change.
Obama's budget will call for spending $6 billion over the next five years to help develop a commercial space launch industry that will eventually ferry humans to low Earth orbit. The additional funding is about $2 billion a year short of what the Augustine panel recommended if the government wished to continue with a worthwhile human spaceflight program. (The Washington Post, pg. A8, Feb. 1, 2010).
The Kepler Space Telescope is already finding planets – see:
http://kepler.nasa.gov/news/nasakeplernews/index.cfm?FuseAction=ShowNews&NewsID=16 &
http://kepler.nasa.gov/Science/expectedResults/
NASA Extends Cassini's Tour of Saturn [to 2017]
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2010-039&cid=release_2010-039
Beautiful composite eclipse photo of solar coronal & lunar features
http://www.scientificamerican.com/gallery_directory.cfm?photo_id=71C9B58A-B27F-B7AE-D41E9E4A7EB9982D&sc=WR_20100203
Astronomy Picture of the Day --
Mars and a Colorful Lunar Fog Bow
Credit & Copyright: Wally Pacholka (AstroPics.com, TWAN)
Explanation: Even from the top of a volcanic crater, this vista was unusual. For one reason, Mars was dazzlingly bright two weeks ago, when this picture was taken, as it was nearing its brightest time of the entire year. Mars, on the far upper left, is the brightest object in the above picture. The brightness of the red planet peaked last week near when Mars reached opposition, the time when Earth and Mars are closest together in their orbits. Arching across the lower part of the image is a rare lunar fog bow. Unlike a more commonly seen rainbow, which is created by sunlight reflected prismatically by falling rain, this fog bow was created by moonlight reflected by the small water drops that compose fog. Although most fog bows appear white, all of the colors of the rainbow were somehow visible here. The above image was taken from high atop Haleakala, a huge volcano in Hawaii, USA.
General Calendar:
5 Feb. -- SBAS (South Bay Astronomical Soc.) monthly general mtg., "Planetarium Show," Prof. David Vakil, El Camino College. 7:30pm, El Camino College Planetarium, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance. www.sbastro.org
6 Feb. -- SBAS star party (weather permitting): RPV at Ridgecrest Middle School 28915 North Bay Rd.
13 Feb. SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Banecke www.sbastro.org.
17 Feb. Aerospace Astronomy Club mtg. 11:30am, A9/2906 (tentative) -- "A Grand Tour of the Universe"
LAAS Events: (L.A. Astronomical Soc. -- www.laas.org)
2/8/2010 (Mon) General Meeting
Griffith Observatory Event Horizon Theater 7:45 PM to 9:45 PM
2/13/2010 (Sat) Dark Sky Night
Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical site)
2/20/2010 (Sat) Public Star Party
Griffith Observatory 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. More details are provided in the bulletin.
The von Kármán Lecture Series -- Dr. Joseph Bar-Cohen, “Humanlike Robots: The Realization of the Science Fiction of Synthetic Humans.”
Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010, 7pm
The von Kármán Auditorium at JPL
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena, CA
› Directions
Friday, Feb. 19, 2010, 7pm
The Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College
1570 East Colorado Blvd.
Pasadena, CA
› Directions
July 11 total solar eclipse crosses Easter Island, Chile.
Dec. 21 total lunar eclipse for Western Hemisphere
Internet Links:
So. Calif. astronomy organizations, observatories & planetaria: http://www.mwoa.org/local.html
MWOA (Mt. Wilson Observatory Assn.), including status for visits & roads: www.mwoa.org
Western Amateur Astronomers (consortium of various regional societies): www.waa.av.org/Club_members.html
LAAS list of links (incl. Tools, Journals, Vendors, Other Societies, Databases, Members) http://www.laas.org/Links.htm
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JANUARY 2010 NEWSLETTER
AEA Astronomy Club Items
The AEA Astronomy Club is now officially recognized following our presentation to the AEA board in Dec.
Our first official mtg. will be Wed., Jan. 20, at 11:30am in A3 Dining Rm. A or B (tentatively). We will get to know everyone, discuss plans for the year, bylaws and a proposed club telescope purchase with our AEA funding & dues. We will also have a “sharing time” joint presentation on the current “Golden Age of Astronomy,” highlighting recent key discoveries & the vast array of space & ground observatories, including upcoming very large apertures. Come & share any insights you have. See links with lists of telescopes at the end.
Also, you are invited to share with me a list of astronomical topics you (or someone you know) are especially familiar with (or will research) and could share with the rest of us in a club mtg. -– presentations ranging from 2 to 40 minutes (please indicate approximate length). Topics of most interest to club members (as identified in our recent survey -- those of higher general interest are greener & have higher numbers) are:
==Astronomy/ Space Sciences==
1.45 Cosmology (incl. dark matter/energy, cosmic web, galactic clusters & superclusters...)
1.55 Stellar/Galactic sciences, interstellar/intergalactic/nebulae astrophysics & relativity,
. galactic archaeology, exotic objects (black holes, quasars,...)
1.00 Planetology (incl. Solar system, exoplanets, exobiology & SETI)
1.36 Smaller objects (dwarf planets (e.g., Pluto) & Kuiper objects, Moons, Comets,
. asteroids, meteors,...) & phenomena (eclipses,...)
1.00 Instruments (ground, air & space observatories) & methodologies
1.00 Amateur observing (tools, opportunities, constellations)
1.73 Astronautics, space travel, exploration, colonization, planetary defense
0.45 Environmental impacts on space systems
1.00 Historical (incl. archaeoastronomy, sky lore, astronomers,...)
. Other: Gamma Ray Astronomy
. Other: Astronomy Software (PC & iPhone)
. '''Earth Sciences'''
0.73 Atmosphere (meteorology, climatology, upper atmosphere, solar-terrestrial effects)
0.73 Hydrosphere (Oceanography (physical/chemical), hydrology, cryosphere,...)
0.55 Lithosphere/geosphere (geophysics (incl. tectonics), geology, pedosphere)
0.27 Biosphere
0.55 Earth systems theory (e.g., Gaia)
0.55 Instruments (ground, air & space) & methods
. Other:
. General
0.73 Anthropic principle, intelligent design
Future mtgs. will tentatively be every 3rd Wednesday at 11:30, in A3 dining rm. A or B if available.
Annual dues are $10 for employees, $12 for others – made out to AEA Astronomy Club, and send to our treasurer, Vic Christensen, at M1-167. Benefits will include use of club telescope(s) & library/software, discount Sky & Telescope magazine and Observer’s Handbook, field trips, great programs, etc.
Following the Picture of the Day, see the calendar of upcoming events, and internet links.
Astronomy Picture of the Day
The Tail of the Small Magellanic Cloud
Explanation: A satellite galaxy of our Milky Way, the Small Magellanic Cloud is wonder of the southern sky, named for 16th century Portuguese circumnavigator Ferdinand Magellan. Some 200,000 light-years distant in the constellation Tucana, the small irregular galaxy's stars, gas, and dust that lie along a bar and extended "wing", are familiar in images from optical telescopes. But the galaxy also has a tail. Explored in this false-color, infrared mosaic from the Spitzer Space Telescope, the tail extends to the right of the more familiar bar and wing. Likely stripped from the galaxy by gravitational tides, the tail contains mostly gas, dust, and newly formed stars. Two clusters of newly formed stars, warming their surrounding natal dust clouds, are seen in the tail as red spots.
==Calendar==
8 Jan. -- SBAS (South Bay Astronomical Soc.) monthly general mtg., "Arizona Astronomy," Tom Bash, SBAS. 7:30pm, El Camino College Planetarium, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance. www.sbastro.org
9 Jan. -- SBAS star parties (weather permitting): El Segundo at Hilltop Park 5:30-9:00pm; RPV at Ridgecrest Middle School 28915 North Bay Rd.
14 Jan.: Aerospace Cross-Program Lesson Sharing Forum -- Robert Manning, chief engineer, Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will discuss Lessons from the Red Planet, Thursday, Jan. 14, from 10 to 11 a.m. PST in D8-1010 and Greens I 6B (via videoteleconference). In 2011, NASA will launch the MSL, a nuclear powered, mini-Cooper size rover. To ensure MSL’s success, JPL rigorously applies lessons from its earlier triumphs such as the Mars Rovers and setbacks.
16 Jan. SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Banecke.
20 Jan. Aerospace Astronomy Club mtg. 11:30am, A3/dining room A or B (tentative) -- "The (Current) Golden Age of Astronomy"
LAAS Events: (L.A. Astronomical Soc. -- www.laas.org)
1/16/2010 (Sat) Dark Sky Night
Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical site)
1/23/2010 (Sat) Public Star Party
Griffith Observatory
2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
More details are provided in the bulletin.
2/8/2010 (Mon) General Meeting
Griffith Observatory
Event Horizon Theater
7:45 PM to 9:45 PM
21 & 22 Jan. The von Kármán Lecture Series -- Dr. John Trauger, and his title: Principal Investigator and Project Scientist for the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2).
The Hubble Telescope's Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 was one of NASA's most prolific science instruments, opening up our Universe in way previously never before seen. It's thousands of images answered many questions, but like all good science instruments, created many more. It's return to earth on May of 2009 marked the end of an era, but the images it provided will continue to be examined for decades to come.
Thursday, Jan. 21, 2010, 7pm
The von Kármán Auditorium at JPL
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena, CA
› Directions
Friday, Jan. 22, 2010, 7pm
The Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College
1570 East Colorado Blvd.
Pasadena, CA
› Directions
Internet Links
Mt. Wilson Institute, including status for visits & roads: http://www.mtwilson.edu/links/
Western Amateur Astronomers (consortium of various regional societies): http://www.waa.av.org/Club_members.html
Space & ground astronomical telescopes lists & descriptions:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_space_telescopes
http://ranier.hq.nasa.gov/Sensors_page/GroundObserv.html
http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?showtopic=4888
http://astro.nineplanets.org/bigeyes.html
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/090518-space-telescopes.html
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/090518-telescope-list.html
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