Contents
AEA Astronomy Club News & Calendar p.1
Picture(s) of the Month p. 2
Astronomy News p. 8
General Calendar p. 8
Colloquia, lectures, mtgs. p. 8
Observing p. 9
Useful Links p. 10
About the Club p. 10
Club News & Calendar. News:
Memorial Weekend Club Field Trip to the Big Bear RTMC Astronomy Expo – a report from David Wright.
“My son Gabriel and I made it up to RTMC on Friday night pretty late. It was windy, but there were plenty of people with equipment set up. On Saturday it got windier and windier. We checked out the vendors and displays, including a very cool homemade automatic mirror grinder demonstration. We ate in the dining hall and attended the main announcements/awards meeting Saturday evening. Unfortunately, we didn't win any of the door prizes (including two very fancy telescopes donated by Meade, an 8" LS series and a 6" refractor, both in the $2000-4000 range). By the end of the meeting it was so windy that many people left. Despite the "no driving at night unless it's a medical emergency" rule, there were all sorts of cars leaving and people walking around with white (!) flashlights. “We set up the 10" anyway and got to see quite a few objects. There were very clear dark skies despite the wind buffeting the telescope, although compared to Los Angeles, almost anything looks amazing.The initial alignment was problematic (the alignment stars weren't even in the finderscope), but once I slewed over to the stars it seemed like it was going for, tracking and alignment worked perfectly. A married couple found me and asked if they could join me -- they had come up to stay in Big Bear and come over for the Star Party, and I was the only person they could find actually observing. They own a larger Meade LX200 which is too big for their current car, but they were very familiar with how it worked and helped with the alignment issues. We saw various clusters, galaxies, nebulae, and some double stars. “The wind picked up even more overnight and the next morning it was a disaster area, with several vendor tents blown down, over, and in one case wrapped around a tree with boxes of stuff strewn over the ground. At breakfast and lunch on Sunday, the dining hall was only half full, if that, so not the best year for RTMC. I also came down with a sinus infection, probably from standing around in all the dusty wind Saturday night. Success with the 10", however, and Gabriel is already asking me when we're going back to camp in the "high mountains"! “By the way, I called Meade about the alignment issue and they said that it's a common problem for a new scope, that the drives just need to be trained. It's an option in the computer thing, so I'll check it out this weekend.”
Club acquisition suggestions so far include: case for the 10-inch, a CCD or DSLR imager for the 10-inch, laptop computer, spectroscope, astronomical (giant or image-stabilized) binoculars, and a smaller-aperture, more portable telescope.
Suggested speakers and activities are also welcome.
Calendar
16 June
Monthly Meeting
Space Weather, Leslie Belsma, Aerospace
Other upcoming AEA Astronomy Club meeting programs (3rd Thursdays) at 11:45am in A9/1026) & activities:
[TBD]
Astronomy Picture(s) of the Month
(from Astronomy Picture of the Day, APOD: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html)
2011 May 17
A Starry Night of Iceland Credit: Stephane Vetter (Nuits sacrees)
Explanation: On some nights, the sky is the best show in town. On this night, the sky was not only the best show in town, but a composite image of the sky won an international competition for landscape astrophotography. The above winning image was taken two months ago over Jökulsárlón, the largest glacial lake in Iceland. The photographer combined six exposures to capture not only two green auroral rings, but their reflections off the serene lake. Visible in the distant background sky is the band of our Milky Way Galaxy, the Pleiades open clusters of stars, and the Andromeda galaxy. A powerful coronal mass ejection from the Sun caused auroras to be seen as far south as Wisconsin, USA. As the Sun progresses toward solar maximum in the next few years, many more spectacular images of aurora are expected.
2011 May 24
Three Arches Above Utah Credit & Copyright: Brad Goldpaint (Goldpaint Photography)
Explanation: How many arches can you count in the above image? If you count both spans of the Double Arch in the Arches National Park in Utah, USA, then two. But since the above image was taken during a clear dark night, it caught a photogenic third arch far in the distance -- that of the overreaching Milky Way Galaxy. Because we are situated in the midst of the spiral Milky Way Galaxy, the band of the central disk appears all around us. The sandstone arches of the Double Arch were formed from the erosion of falling water. The larger arch rises over 30 meters above the surrounding salt bed and spans close to 50 meters across. The dark silhouettes across the image bottom are sandstone monoliths left over from silt-filled crevices in an evaporated 300 million year old salty sea. A dim glow created by light pollution from Moab, Utah can also be seen in the distance.
2011 May 22
Io: The Prometheus Plume Credit: Galileo Project, JPL, NASA
Explanation: What's happening on Jupiter's moon Io? Two sulfurous eruptions are visible on Jupiter's volcanic moon Io in this color composite image from the robotic Galileo spacecraft that orbited Jupiter from 1995 to 2003. At the image top, over Io's limb, a bluish plume rises about 140 kilometers above the surface of a volcanic caldera known as Pillan Patera. In the image middle, near the night/day shadow line, the ring shaped Prometheus plume is seen rising about 75 kilometers above Io while casting a shadow below the volcanic vent. Named for the Greek god who gave mortals fire, the Prometheus plume is visible in every image ever made of the region dating back to the Voyager flybys of 1979 - presenting the possibility that this plume has been continuously active for at least 18 years. The above digitally sharpened image of Io was originally recorded in 1997 from a distance of about 600,000 kilometers. Recent analyses of Galileo data has uncovered evidence of a magma ocean beneath Io's surface.
2011 May 20
A Journey Through the Night Sky Image Credit & Copyright: Nick Risinger (Photopic Sky Survey)
Explanation: Majestic nebulae and stars of our Milky Way Galaxy stretch across this panoramic image of the entire night sky. At full resolution, the 5 gigapixel mosaic was stitched together from over 37,000 images, the result of a season following, year long effort and 60,000 travel miles in search of still dark skies in the American west and the western Cape of South Africa. The well-planned project combined many exposures from the dark sites, intended to produce an inspiring view of the night to rival the brightness of day. An interactive journey through the scene will uncover a congeries of innumerable stars with vast clouds of gas and dust strewn along the galactic plane and central bulge, too faint to see with the unaided eye. Even galaxies of stars beyond our Milky Way can be found within the cosmic vista.
2011 May 12
Enceladus Looms Credit: Cassini Imaging Team, ISS, JPL, ESA, NASA
Explanation: A sunlit crescent of Saturn's moon Enceladus looms above the night side of Saturn in this dramatic image from the Cassini spacecraft. Captured on August 13, 2010 looking in a sunward direction during a flyby of the icy moon, the view also traces layers in the upper atmosphere of Saturn scattering sunlight along the planet's bright limb. Closer to the spacecraft than Saturn, Enceladus is a mere 60,000 kilometers from Cassini's camera. The south polar region of the 500 kilometer-diameter moon is illuminated, including plumes of water vapor and icy particles spraying above the long fissures in the moon's surface. The fissures have been dubbed tiger stripes. First discovered in Cassini images from 2005, the plumes are strong evidence that liquid water exists near the surface of surprisingly active Enceladus.
2011 May 11
The Southern Cliff in the Lagoon Credit: Julia I. Arias and Rodolfo H. Barbá (Dept. Fisica, Univ. de La Serena), ICATE-CONICET, Gemini Observatory/AURA
Explanation: Undulating bright ridges and dusty clouds cross this close-up of the nearby star forming region M8, also known as the Lagoon Nebula. A sharp, false-color composite of narrow band visible and broad band near-infrared data from the 8-meter Gemini South Telescope, the entire view spans about 20 light-years through a region of the nebula sometimes called the Southern Cliff. The highly detailed image explores the association of many newborn stars imbedded in the tips of the bright-rimmed clouds and Herbig-Haro objects. Abundant in star-forming regions, Herbig-Haro objects are produced as powerful jets emitted by young stars in the process of formation heat the surrounding clouds of gas and dust. The cosmic Lagoon is found some 5,000 light-years away toward constellation Sagittarius and the center of our Milky Way Galaxy. (Editor's Note: For location and scale, check out this image superimposing the close-up region shown in today's APOD on the larger Lagoon Nebula. Scale image is courtesy R. Barbá.)
2011 May 27
Messier Marathon Image Credit & Copyright: Babak Tafreshi (TWAN)
Explanation: In this action scene, red night vision lights, green laser pointers, tripods and telescopes in faint silhouette surround intrepid sky gazers embarked on the 10th annual Iran Messier Marathon. Completing the marathon requires viewing all 110 objects in 18th century French astronomer Charles Messier's catalog in one glorious dusk-to-dawn observing run. As daunting as it sounds, there are often favorable weekend dates for northern hemisphere marathoners to complete the task that fall on nearly moonless nights near the spring equinox. With the Milky Way as a backdrop, this group of about 150 astronomy enthusiasts conducted their 2011 marathon on such a night in April from the desert area of Seh Qaleh, in eastern Iran. Placing your cursor over the image will map the stunning night sky above their remote and very dark observing site. Follow the green laser pointer toward the Messier catalog objects (for example, M8) near the galactic center. Astronomer and former Messier Marathon organizer Babak Tafreshi also composed Sky Gazers, a time-lapse movie of this year's event.
Astronomy News: [TBD]
[These news bites are from the July 2011 issue of Sky & Telescope Magazine. Below is a recap of email news releases forwarded to club members by Vic Christensen, not including the Scientific American articles.]
Date
Description
URL
[Work in progress – will be posted on the club website]
General Calendar:
Colloquia, Lectures, Seminars, Meetings, Open Houses & Tours: Colloquia: Carnegie (Tues. 4pm), UCLA, Caltech (Wed. 4pm), IPAC (Wed. 12:15pm) & other Pasadena (daily 12-4pm): http://obs.carnegiescience.edu/seminars/
Carnegie astronomy lectures – only 4 per year in the Spring www.obs.carnegiescience.edu. Visit www.huntington.org for directions.
3 June
SBAS Monthly General Meeting at El Camino College planetarium. 7:30 PM
Topic: “The Pioneer Anomaly”
Guest Speaker: Dr. Steven Morris. www.sbastro.org.
June 9 & 10 -- The von Kármán Lecture Series http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures.cfm
Climate Change Impact on Civilizations: Lessons from Space Data and Archaeology
Recently, NASA and other remote sensing data have enabled significant progress in archaeological research. One factor emerging from this body of work is that past civilizations were significantly influenced by even minor climatic events. In order to assess and anticipate possible impacts and responses of civilization to climate change, it is instructive to examine the historical and archaeological record and compare it to increasingly detailed climate records from ice cores, sediment cores, cave data and other climate data. Consider that although humans have been anatomically modern for about 130,000 years, and that humans left Africa over 50,000 years ago, and that stunning artistic cultural achievements over 30,000 years old adorn European caves, yet agriculture and complex societies did not emerge until about 10,000 years ago. Coincidentally, this time was when rapid sea-level rise following de-glaciation slowed, and various climate proxies show the global climate system settling into the present stable regime. Nonetheless, minor climate changes helped bring down the Old Kingdom of Egypt, the Maya, and others. How will we react? The message from the past is not reassuring.
Speaker:
Dr. Ron Blom
Locations:
Thursday, June 9, 2011, 7pmThe von Kármán Auditorium at JPL4800 Oak Grove DrivePasadena, CA› Directions Friday, June 10, 2011, 7pmThe Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College1570 East Colorado Blvd.Pasadena, CA› Directions
Webcast:
For the webcast on Thursday at 7 p.m. PST, click here If you don't have RealPlayer, you can download the free RealPlayer 8 Basic.
13 June
LAAS General Meeting.
Griffith ObservatoryEvent Horizon Theater7:45 PM to 9:45 PM
16 June
Monthly Meeting
Space Weather (?), Leslie Belsma, Aerospace
Note: As of Feb. 28, 2011, the Mt. Wilson Observatory Assn. (MWOA) no longer exists. All public outreach activities of Mt. Wilson will be through the Mt. Wilson Institute (www.mtwilson.edu/ -- links for virtual tour & Quick Time video) No lectures noted yet to replace the previous MWOA 4th Saturday lecture series. The Angeles Crest Highway has recently reopened, and the Observatory is open for public visits daily 10-4 from April thru Nov.
Observing:
The following data are from the 2011 Observer’s Handbook, and Sky & Telescope’s Skygazer’s Almanac.
Sun, Moon & Planets for June:
Planets: Venus, Mars, Jupiter & Uranus rise between midnight & 1 hr before dawn. Saturn sets between midnight and 2am. Mercury goes from pre-dawn to post-sunset June 12.
Other Events:
4 June
SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Benecke www.sbastro.org.
11 June
LAAS Public Star Party: Griffith Observatory Grounds 2-10pm
14-16 June Lyrid Meteor Shower
The June Lyrids is a low-rate shower during which you could see up to 10 meteors per
hour during its peak. This year’s shower will be competing with the full moon.
14 June earliest sunrise
17 June earliest morning twilight
19-22 June Mars & Pleiades within 5 deg pre-dawn.
21 June Summer solstice
24 June Latest twilight
25 June
LAAS Dark Sky Night: Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical Site; LAAS members and their guests only)
25 June
SBAS Star Party (weather permitting): RPV at Ridgecrest Middle School 28915 North Bay Rd.
28 June Latest sunset
28 June Pleiades & Mars above & below crescent Moon an hour before dawn
Internet Links:
Link(s) of the Month
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110516.html (Time lapse clouds & sky over the Canary Islands)
http://www.astronautix.com/ (Encyclopedia Astronautica)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1O66XsbrOA&feature=player_embedded (Time lapse Earth Rotating Under Very Large Telescopes)
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/space/stories/red-dwarf-star-distant-rocky-planet-could-be-future-human-home
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap081231.html (The Sky in Motion time lapse)
General
e! Science News Astronomy & Space
NASA Gallery
Astronomical Society of the Pacific (educational, amateur & professional)
Amateur Online Tools, Journals, Vendors, Societies, Databases
The Astronomy White Pages (U.S. & International Amateur Clubs & Societies)
American Astronomical Society (professional)
More...
Regional (esp. Southern California)
Western Amateur Astronomers (consortium of various regional societies)
Mt. Wilson Institute (www.mtwilson.edu/), including status for visits & roads
Los Angeles Astronomical Society (LAAS)
South Bay Astronomical Society (SBAS)
Orange County Astronomers
The Local Group Astronomy Club (Santa Clarita)
Ventura County Astronomical Society
About the Club
Club Website: https://aeropedia.aero.org/aeropedia/index.php/Astronomy_Club It is updated to reflect this newsletter, in addition to a listing of past club mtg. presentations, astronomy news, photos & events from prior newsletters, club equipment, membership & constitution. In the future, we may link some presentation materials from past mtgs.
Membership. For information, current dues & application, contact Vic Christensen (x63021, M1-167), or see the club website where a form is also available. 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, acquisitions & elections, etc.
Committee Suggestions & Volunteers. Feel free to contact: Michelle Darrah, 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).
Mark Clayson, AEA Astronomy Club President
=========================================
AEA Astronomy Club Newsletter, May 2011
Contents
AEA Astronomy Club News & Calendar p.1
Picture(s) of the Month p. 2
Astronomy News p. 5
General Calendar p. 6
Colloquia, lectures, mtgs. p. 6
Observing p. 6
Useful Links p. 7
About the Club p. 8
Club News & Calendar.
News:
Memorial Weekend Club Field Trip. We’ll be taking our big “guns” to the RTMC Astronomy Expo (near Big Bear) for a club star party May 27-28. It’ll also be a chance for you to look through many other amateur telescopes, and see the exhibits, etc. David Wright is coordinating – let him know if you plan to attend, and you’ll register when you arrive – pre-registration is now closed. See http://www.rtmcastronomyexpo.org/general.html for more info -- registration allows you to camp, or there are other arrangements possible, incl. meal plans. And many other family activities at Camp Oakes. There’s also the nearby Symposium on [amateur] Telescope Science May 24-26 -- registration cut-off for that is May 15 (http://www.socastrosci.org/SASFiles/Symposium/2011/SAS_2011_Reg.pdf).
Club acquisition suggestions are now being solicited for our upcoming AEA budget request. Feel free to pass them on. Our last speaker, Les DeLong, highly recommended a pair of astronomical (giant or image-stabilized) binoculars. A smaller-aperture, more portable telescope also seems desirable.
Suggested speakers and activities are also welcome.
Club Mtg. Room change for 2011. Another reminder that our club meeting room has changed to A9 1026 (Atlas III) for the upcoming year (beginning with our Jan. 20 mtg.). Same bldg. but ground floor.
Dues are Due (or Overdue). Renewals of club membership should be made now for 2011, including submission of the form Victor distributed (also available on AeroLink, or linked at the club website https://aeropedia.aero.org/aeropedia/index.php/Astronomy_Club).
Appointments. We are still seeking committee members for the Resources and Activities committees. Outreach events like school star parties probably fall under the activities committee, and it would be good if we had a coordinator there.
Calendar
19 May
Monthly Meeting
Amateur Spectroscopy, Leon Palmer, Aerospace
Other upcoming AEA Astronomy Club meeting programs (3rd Thursdays) at 11:45am in A9/1026) & activities:
27/28 May
Field Trip
RTMC Astronomy Expo (near Big Bear) & club star party (& Symposium on [amateur] Telescope Science May 24-26 same location?)
16 June
Monthly Meeting
Space Weather (?), Leslie Belsma, Aerospace
Astronomy Picture(s) of the Month
(from Astronomy Picture of the Day, APOD: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html)
2011 April 13
Centaurus Radio Jets Rising Credit: Ilana Feain, Tim Cornwell & Ron Ekers (CSIRO/ATNF); ATCA northern middle lobe pointing courtesy R. Morganti (ASTRON); Parkes data courtesy N. Junkes (MPIfR); ATCA & Moon photo: Shaun Amy, CSIRO
Explanation: What if you could see the huge radio jets of Centaurus A rising? The Cen A radio jets are not only over a million light years long, they occupy an angular area over 200 times greater than the full Moon in Earth's sky. The jets are expelled by a violent black hole millions of times the mass of our Sun embedded deep in the center of nearby active galaxy Cen A. Somehow, the black hole creates the fast moving jets as other matter falls in. In this picture, radio telescopes from the Australian Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) near Narrabri, NSW, Australia, were captured in front of a full Moon, with a radio image of Cen A superposed at its real angular size in the background. The above picture includes the most detailed map yet of any galaxy-class radio jets in the universe, taking several years and over 1,000 hours exposure time to complete. Details in the photo may yield clues as to how radio jets interact with stars and intergalactic dust. The light dots in the image depict not stars, but typically other radio bright galaxies in the even more distant universe.
2011 May 6
Farther Along Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech
Explanation: What is humanity's most distant spacecraft? Launched in 1977, Voyager 1 now holds that distinction at 17.5 billion kilometers from the Sun. That corresponds to 16 Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. or 117 Astronomical Units (AU). This graphic shows the position of Voyager 1 relative to the outer solar system (top and side views) along with other distant spacecraft contenders. Next most distant, Pioneer 10 is about 15.4 billion kilometers from the Sun, though on the opposite side of the solar system from Voyager 1. Voyager 2 and Pioneer 11, both also well beyond the orbit of Pluto, are 14.2 billion and 12.4 billion kilometers from the Sun respectively. Still outbound for Pluto, the New Horizons spacecraft is presently 3 billion kilometers from the Sun and will encounter the Pluto system in July of 2015. All these spacecraft have used sling-shot style gravity assist maneuvers to increase their speeds through the outer solar system. Voyager 1 is moving the fastest, escaping the solar system at about 17 kilometers per second. Still operational, both Voyagers are headed towards the outer boundary of the solar system, in search of the heliopause and the beginning of interstellar space.
2011 May 5
50 Years Ago: Freedom 7 Flies Credit: NASA
Explanation: Fifty years ago, near the dawn of the space age, NASA controllers "lit the candle" and sent Mercury astronaut Alan Shepard arcing into space atop a Redstone rocket. His cramped space capsule was dubbed Freedom 7. Broadcast live to a global television audience, the historic Mercury-Redstone 3 (MR-3) spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral Florida at 9:34 a.m. Eastern Time on May 5, 1961. The flight of Freedom 7 - the first space flight by an American - followed less than a month after the first human venture into space by Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. The 15 minute sub-orbital flight achieved an altitude of 116 miles and a maximum speed of 5,134 miles per hour. As Shepard looked back toward planet Earth near the peak of Freedom 7's trajectory, he could see the outlines of the west coast of Florida, Lake Okeechobe in central Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Bahamas.
Astronomy News:
2011 May 10
Gravity Probe B Confirms the Existence of Gravitomagnetism Credit: Gravity Probe B Team, Stanford, NASA
Explanation: Does gravity have a magnetic counterpart? Spin any electric charge and you get a magnetic field. Spin any mass and, according to Einstein, you should get a very slight effect that acts something like magnetism. This effect is expected to be so small that it is beyond practical experience and ground laboratory measurement. In a bold attempt to directly measure gravitomagnetism, NASA launched in 2004 the smoothest spheres ever manufactured into space to see how they spin. These four spheres, each roughly the size of a ping-pong ball, are the key to the ultra-precise gyroscopes at the core of Gravity Probe B. Last week, after accounting for persistent background signals, the results were announced -- the gyroscopes precessed at a rate consistent with the gravitational predictions of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity. The results, which bolster existing findings, may have untold long term benefits as well as shorter term benefits such as better clocks and global positioning trackers. [Hopefully David Naiditch can explain for us the distinction between gravity waves and gravitomagnetism]
New Spectral Class of Stars? Lying between the coolest known brown dwarfs (440 deg F) and Jupiter (-190 deg F) is a class of newly discovered objects – “stars” – at room temperature (80 deg F). For over a century the spectral classes have been OBAFGKM (hotter to cooler), but in the last 15 years, 2 new classes have been added – L and T, for even cooler, dimmer dwarfs. For T dwarfs below about 450 deg. F, new IR spectral features of ammonia and water clouds should appear, and other spectral features disappear. This newest class are really super Jupiters (6-15 times its mass), and the proposed class name is “Y.” [Shoot, now I’ve got to learn a whole new mnemonic besides “Oh, Be A Fine Girl, Kiss Me.”]
[The second news bite is from the June 2011 issue of Sky & Telescope Magazine. Below is a recap of email news releases forwarded to club members by Vic Christensen, not including the Scientific American articles.]
Date
Description
URL
[Work in progress – will be posted on the club website]
General Calendar: Colloquia, Lectures, Seminars, Meetings, Open Houses & Tours: Colloquia: Carnegie (Tues. 4pm), UCLA, Caltech (Wed. 4pm), IPAC (Wed. 12:15pm) & other Pasadena (daily 12-4pm): http://obs.carnegiescience.edu/seminars/
Carnegie astronomy lectures – only 4 per year in the Spring www.obs.carnegiescience.edu. Visit www.huntington.org for directions.
6 May
SBAS Monthly General Meeting at El Camino College planetarium. 7:30 PM
Topic: “The Enigmatic Satellites of Saturn”
Guest Speaker: Prof. Gary Peterson, San Diego State University www.sbastro.org.
9 May
LAAS General Meeting.
Griffith ObservatoryEvent Horizon Theater7:45 PM to 9:45 PM
14-15 May JPL Open House Time: 9am-5pm both daysAdmission and parking are free http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/open-house.cfm
19 May
Monthly Meeting
Amateur Spectroscopy, Leon Palmer, Aerospace
None in May -- The von Kármán Lecture Series http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures.cfm
Note: As of Feb. 28, 2011, the Mt. Wilson Observatory Assn. (MWOA) no longer exists. All public outreach activities of Mt. Wilson will be through the Mt. Wilson Institute (www.mtwilson.edu/) No lectures noted yet to replace the previous MWOA 4th Saturday lecture series.
Observing:
The following data are from the 2011 Observer’s Handbook, and Sky & Telescope’s Skygazer’s Almanac.
Sun, Moon & Planets for May:
Planets: Mercury, Venus, Mars & Jupiter are all visible low in the dawn sky, doing a tightly clustered dance the 2nd & 3rd weeks of the month. Pretty much only Saturn is visible at night (all night), setting before sunrise – just before Jupiter rises.
Other Events:
5-6 May Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower
The Eta Aquarid meteor shower is the first of two showers that occur each year as a result of Earth passing through dust released by Halley's Comet, with the second being the Orionids. Every year, the earliest Eta Aquarids can be seen around April 21 and they persist until about May 12; however, the number of meteors you are likely to see will be low until around the time of the peak on May 5/6. At this time, observers in the Northern Hemisphere are likely to see about 10 meteors every hour, while Southern Hemisphere observers will see about 30 per hour.
7 May
SBAS Star Party (weather permitting): RPV at Ridgecrest Middle School 28915 North Bay Rd.
7 May Mercury 27 deg west of the Sun
8 May Mercury is 1.4 deg to the lower left of Venus
11 May Jupiter is 0.6 deg to the upper left of Venus, and Mercury is 2.1 deg below Jupiter
18 May Mercury is 1.3 deg below Venus
21 May Mars is 2.1 deg to the upper left of Mercury
23 May Mars is 1.0 deg to the upper left of Venus
27/28 May
AEA Astronomy Club Field Trip
RTMC Astronomy Expo (near Big Bear) & club star party (& Symposium on [amateur] Telescope Science May 24-26 same location?)
28 May
SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Benecke www.sbastro.org.
28 May
LAAS Dark Sky Night: Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical Site; LAAS members and their guests only)
Internet Links:
Link(s) of the Month
http://vimeo.com/terjes/themountain (Time lapse video of Milky Way from El Teide Observatory)
www.solarsystemscope.com (Solar system visualization tool)
General
e! Science News Astronomy & Space
NASA Gallery
Astronomical Society of the Pacific (educational, amateur & professional)
Amateur Online Tools, Journals, Vendors, Societies, Databases
The Astronomy White Pages (U.S. & International Amateur Clubs & Societies)
American Astronomical Society (professional)
More...
Regional (esp. Southern California)
Western Amateur Astronomers (consortium of various regional societies)
Mt. Wilson Institute (www.mtwilson.edu/), including status for visits & roads
Los Angeles Astronomical Society (LAAS)
South Bay Astronomical Society (SBAS)
Orange County Astronomers
The Local Group Astronomy Club (Santa Clarita)
Ventura County Astronomical Society
About the Club
Club Website: https://aeropedia.aero.org/aeropedia/index.php/Astronomy_Club It is updated to reflect this newsletter, in addition to a listing of past club mtg. presentations, astronomy news, photos & events from prior newsletters, club equipment, membership & constitution. In the future, we may link some presentation materials from past mtgs.
Membership. For information, current dues & application, contact Vic Christensen (x63021, M1-167), or see the club website where a form is also available. 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, acquisitions & elections, etc.
Committee Suggestions & Volunteers. Feel free to contact: Michelle Darrah, 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). Mark Clayson, AEA Astronomy Club President
========================================
AEA Astronomy Club Newsletter, April 2011
Contents
AEA Astronomy Club News & Calendar p.1
Picture(s) of the Month p. 1
Astronomy News p. 5
General Calendar p. 6
Colloquia, lectures, mtgs. p. 6
Observing p. 8
Useful Links p. 9
About the Club p. 10
Club News & Calendar.
News:
Club acquisition suggestions are now being solicited for our upcoming AEA budget request. Feel free to pass them on. Our last speaker, Les DeLong, highly recommended a pair of astronomical (giant or image-stabilized) binoculars. A smaller-aperture, more portable telescope also seems desirable.
Suggested speakers and activities are also welcome.
Club Mtg. Room change for 2011. Another reminder that our club meeting room has changed to A9 1026 (Atlas III) for the upcoming year (beginning with our Jan. 20 mtg.). Same bldg. but ground floor.
Dues are Due (or Overdue). Renewals of club membership should be made now for 2011, including submission of the form Victor distributed (also available on AeroLink, or linked at the club website https://aeropedia.aero.org/aeropedia/index.php/Astronomy_Club).
Appointments. We are still seeking committee members for the Resources and Activities committees. Outreach events like school star parties probably fall under the activities committee, and it would be good if we had a coordinator there.
Calendar
21 April
Monthly Meeting
The Large Hadron Collider; a New Window on the Universe, David Naiditch, Aerospace
Other upcoming AEA Astronomy Club meeting programs (3rd Thursdays) at 11:45am in A9/1026) & activities:
19 May
Monthly Meeting
Space Weather (?), Leslie Belsma, Aerospace
27/28 May
Field Trip
RTMC Astronomy Expo (near Big Bear) & club star party (& Symposium on [amateur] Telescope Science May 24-26 same location?)
16 June
Monthly Meeting
Astronomy Picture(s) of the Month
(from Astronomy Picture of the Day, APOD: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html)
2011 March 31
MESSENGER at Mercury Credit: NASA/JHU APL/CIW
Explanation: On March 17, the MESSENGER spacecraft became the first to orbit Mercury, the solar system's innermost planet. This is its first processed color image since entering Mercury orbit. Larger, denser, and with almost twice the surface gravity of Earth's moon, Mercury still looks moon-like at first glance. But in this view its terrain shows light blue and brown areas near craters and long bright rays of material streaking the surface. The prominent bright ray crater Debussy at the upper right is 80 kilometers (50 miles) in diameter. Terrain toward the bottom of the historic image extends to Mercury's south pole and includes a region not previously imaged from space.
2011 April 2
Endeavour Looking Up Credit & Copyright: Ben Cooper ( Spaceflight Now, Launch Photography)
Explanation: First flown in 1992, Endeavour, the youngest space shuttle orbiter, is being prepared for its 25th and final trip to low Earth orbit. Seen here from an exciting perspective 400 feet above the floor of Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building, Endeavour (OV-105) is mated to an external tank and solid rocket boosters just prior to roll out to launch pad 39A on March 11. The completed space shuttle stands over 18 stories tall. Intended for an April 19 near sunset launch on STS-134, Endeavour will head for the International Space Station and deliver the AMS cosmic ray experiment. The final flight of Endeavour will be the penultimate planned space shuttle flight.
2011 March 29
Kepler's Suns and Planets Illustration Credit: Jason Rowe, Kepler Mission
Explanation: Using the prolific planet hunting Kepler spacecraft, astronomers have discovered 1,235 candidate planets orbiting other suns since the Kepler mission's search for Earth-like worlds began in 2009. To find them, Kepler monitors a rich star field to identify planetary transits by the slight dimming of starlight caused by a planet crossing the face of its parent star. In this remarkable illustration, all of Kepler's planet candidates are shown in transit with their parent stars ordered by size from top left to bottom right. Simulated stellar disks and the silhouettes of transiting planets are all shown at the same relative scale, with saturated star colors. Of course, some stars show more than one planet in transit, but you may have to examine the picture at high resolution to spot them all. For reference, the Sun is shown at the same scale, by itself below the top row on the right. In silhouette against the Sun's disk, both Jupiter and Earth are in transit.
Some other great photos & videos at the APOD archive (http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html) this past month: 3/7 solar prominence (video), 3/9 ISS expands again, 3/14 spacecraft over Colorado, 3/15 Cassini approaches Saturn (video), 3/20 Parthenon moon, and 4/3 NGC 6872.
Astronomy News:
Messenger at Mercury [redundant if you know your mythology]. March 31, 2011 by Adina Wadsworth. NASA on Wednesday released the first pictures taken of the planet Mercury [see above] by the Mercury Messenger Spacecraft, which entered the planet’s orbit on March 17. The Messenger will spend the next year photographing, measuring and studying the planet. The Messenger has spent the past 6.5 years traveling in loops through the inner solar system. After being captured by Mercury’s gravity, the Messenger responded to the commands of engineers on the ground and began taking pictures. It is expected to snap more than 75,000 photos over the next year. Beginning on Monday, the spacecraft will also use its instruments to take measurements of emissions to help scientists determine Mercury’s mineral properties. (The New York Times, pg. A14, March 31, 2011)
Kepler’s Planet Bonanza. The Kepler science team has released findings from the first 4 months (May-Sept., 2009) of the 3 ½ yr mission monitoring 156,000 stars. They are confident that 90-95% of the 1235 candidate planets so far will be confirmed [by Doppler and/or further transits]. There are many multiple-planet systems: 115 doubles, 45 triples, 8 quadruples, 1 quintuple and 1 sextet. Size-wise, there are 68 roughly earth-sized (five of those in habitable zones), 288 super-Earths, 662 Neptune class, 165 Jupiter-class and 19 significantly larger. 49 others in habitable zones range from twice Earth’s diameter to larger than Jupiter. “Overall, ... the statistics [so far] indicate that some 20% of stars are closely orbited by planets Earth-size and up.”
[Editor’s Notes: The above graph is courtesy of http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/2011/02/kepler-bonanza-making-sense-of-over.html, who has links to the full data set. For the above, he “...used 0.8-1.25 Earth radii as the criteria for 'Earth-like" but Kepler goes down to smaller radii.” Neptune is 4 Earth diameters, Jupiter 12. Sky & Telescope has a size (to 20 Earth diameter) vs period (to ~120 days) scatter plot, including pre-Kepler discoveries. The latter are very biased towards larger (>10 Earth diameter) and shorter period (<10 days) planets, due to the limitations of Doppler detection (large mass and/or close to star). Of course this early Kepler 4-month sample is biased/limited to 120 day periods (Mercury-sized orbits or smaller for a star like the sun) to get a 2nd transit in that time frame. We’ll need to wait for the longer data set to get planets at earth-like distances from sun-like (G) stars.]
[John Johnson (Caltech – we hope to get him to speak) in April S&T noted that searching for small, rocky planets (like Earth) would be best done looking near red-dwarf (M) stars. And I recall the recent discovery that those stars are about 3 times as numerous in the universe than previously thought (most of the increase is in elliptical galaxies). Johnson also describes how Jupiter-mass planets are much more likely to be found around massive A-type stars (e.g., Sirius), and/or those w. high metallicity (elements heavier than helium). And I note that one likely condition for life on a rocky planet is the existence in the same system of a Jupiter-like planet to sweep out & protect from too-frequent K-T type impacts. Johnson finds about 1 star in 16 similar to the Sun (in mass & metallicity) have one or more Jupiter-sized planets. We should now be refining our Drake Equation terms.]
The 6-planet, coplanar system discovered by Kepler has a lot of interest and scrutiny. They orbit a very Sun-like star, and 5 orbits are smaller than Mercury’s. Sizes range from 2 to 4.5 Earth diameters, masses 2 to 13 Earth masses, and densities 0.5 to 3 g/cc (vs Earth’s 5.5), so probably rock-iron cores w. envelopes of ices and gas – i.e., Neptune-class mini-giants. Computer simulations show the orbits can be gravitationally stable over the star’s estimated age of 8 billion years.
[The second news bite is from the May 2011 issue of Sky & Telescope Magazine. Below is a recap of email news releases forwarded to club members by Vic Christensen, not including the Scientific American articles.]
Date
Description
URL
[Work in progress – will be posted on the club website]
General Calendar: Colloquia, Lectures, Seminars, Meetings, Open Houses & Tours: Colloquia: Carnegie (Tues. 4pm), UCLA, Caltech (Wed. 4pm), IPAC (Wed. 12:15pm) & other Pasadena (daily 12-4pm): http://obs.carnegiescience.edu/seminars
Carnegie astronomy lectures – only 4 per year in the Spring http://www.obs.carnegiescience.edu/. Visit www.huntington.org for directions.
. Monday, April 4, 2011The Lights of Cosmic Dawn Dr. Alan Dressler, Staff Astronomer, Carnegie ObservatoriesThe "modern universe" began when the first stars and quasars - ravenous black holes - began to flood the darkness. This 'first light' appeared a few hundred million years after the Big Bang, but some of it arrives at Earth every day - 14 billion years later. Amazingly, the largest telescopes and most sensitive instruments allow astronomers to see back to this beginning, but the view is dim and difficult. Dr. Dressler will describe what we have seen, and what the prospects are for the future, with more ambitious telescopes and new techniques.
Monday, April 18, 2011Our Universe in a Supercomputer Dr. Thomas J. Cox, Carnegie-Rubin Fellow, Carnegie ObservatoriesHow did galaxies such as our Milky Way come to be? Astronomers now have a well formed and highly accurate picture for how our universe began - with a "big bang" roughly 14 billion years ago. However, physically mapping the initial conditions of galaxies we see through modern telescope has proven to be a complex and elusive task. In this talk Dr. Cox will talk about how the combination of supercomputers and today's most powerful telescopes are working together to address outstanding questions about the origin and evolution of galaxies.
1 April
SBAS Monthly General Meeting at El Camino College planetarium.
Topic: Dark Matter and Dark Energy
http://www.sbastro.org/. Guest Speaker: Dr. Steven Naftilan
11 April
LAAS General Meeting.
Griffith ObservatoryEvent Horizon Theater7:45 PM to 9:45 PM
April 14 & 15 -- The von Kármán Lecture Series – A Unique Opportunity: Scientific Research and Human Space Flight in the Shuttle Era, Dr. Eugene Trinh, Manager, NASA Management Office at JPL
For an entire generation around the world, thirty years of access to low-Earth orbit using the Space Shuttle orbiter and solid rocket boosters has created the almost iconic image of the winged ascending spacecraft lighting up the Florida sky. The once coveted pictures of Earth from two hundred miles up have become commonplace, as thousands of hours of video and still photography have been downloaded on millions of hard drives. Experiencing low gravity living has become a commercial marketing topic, and motion pictures special effects artists have mastered its simulation in action-packed, exciting sequences. Human space flight aboard the Space Shuttle is not, however, a very good spectator sport, as the real excitement and gratification are found in the doing. The context, perspective, and human experience of a singular research project enabled by Shuttle orbital flights will be discussed in this lecture. The value and impact of just one of many research endeavors will be discussed in detail, and in terms that will avoid superlatives often used in arguments about Human Space Flight.
Location:
Thursday, April 14, 2010, 7pmThe von Kármán Auditorium at JPL4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA› Directions Friday, April 15, 2010, 7pmThe Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College1570 East Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA› Directions
21 April
Monthly Meeting
The Large Hadron Collider; a New Window on the Universe, David Naiditch, Aerospace
28 April -- The von Kármán Lecture Series – John F. Kennedy and Project Apollo
May 25 of this year will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the 1961 speech to a joint session of Congress in which President John F. Kennedy, just four months in office, proposed sending Americans to the Moon "before this decade is out." This was the start of Project Apollo, which between 1969 and 1972 took twelve astronauts to the lunar surface. Three presidents since John Kennedy have proposed resuming human space travel beyond the immediate vicinity of Earth – George H.W. Bush in 1989, George W. Bush in 2004, and Barack Obama in 2010. The first two proposals literally went nowhere, and the fate of the third remains very uncertain. Noted space policy expert and author Dr. John M. Logsdon will examine how John Kennedy through his continuing involvement transformed his1961 proposal into the grand achievement that was Project Apollo. He will compare Kennedy's actions in implementing the decision to go to the Moon to those of his successors as they have proposed, without success, similar journeys of exploration. Based on Logsdon's recent research, the talk will highlight the little-known reality that racing the Soviet Union to the Moon was JFK's second choice. Kennedy, Logsdon will reveal, would have preferred to make outer space an arena for U.S.-Soviet cooperation, and at the end of his life proposed turning the lunar landing effort into a joint undertaking. The talk will conclude with an assessment of Project Apollo in terms both of how it served JFK's goals and influenced the long-range future of the American space effort, and whether there are any lessons that can be drawn from the Apollo experience relevant to today's space policy debates.
Speaker:
Dr. John M. Logsdon is Professor Emeritus of Political Science and International Affairs at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, where he was the founder and long-time director of GW's Space Policy Institute. Author of The Decision to Go to the Moon (1970), John F. Kennedy and the Race to the Moon (2010) and the main article on "space exploration" for the Encyclopedia Britannica, and general editor of the seven-volume series Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space Program, he is a sought-after commentator on space issues who has appeared on all major broadcast and cable networks in addition to be frequently quoted in the print media. In 2008-2009 he held the Charles A. Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. He has served on numerous advisory committees, including the NASA Advisory Council, and was a member of the 2003 Columbia Accident Investigation Board.
Location:
Thursday, April 28, 2011, 7pmThe von Kármán Auditorium at JPL4800 Oak Grove DrivePasadena, CA› Directions
Webcast:
For the webcast on Thursday at 7 p.m. PST, click here If you don't have RealPlayer, you can download the free RealPlayer 8 Basic.
Note: As of Feb. 28, 2011, the Mt. Wilson Observatory Assn. (MWOA) no longer exists. All public outreach activities of Mt. Wilson will be through the Mt. Wilson Institute (www.mtwilson.edu/) No lectures noted yet to replace the previous MWOA 4th Saturday lecture series.
Observing:
The following data are from the 2011 Observer’s Handbook, and Sky & Telescope’s Skygazer’s Almanac.
Sun, Moon & Planets for March:
Planets: See the April 3-4 and 29 entries below. Pretty much only Saturn is visible at night (all night), and the rest are clustered very low in the East just before sunrise.
Other Events:
2 April
SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Benecke http://www.sbastro.org/.
2 April
LAAS Dark Sky Night: Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical Site; LAAS members and their guests only)
2-3 April – Prime Messier Marathon opportunity (new moon near Vernal Equinox). See:
www.laas.org/joomlasite/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=185&Itemid=152
3-4 April – Saturn at opposition (rises at sunset, transits near midnight, sets at sunrise) – “near its biggest & brightest (through a telescope) for 2011. The rings are finally beginning to open up after being nearly edge-on to Earth for the past two years.”
9 April
LAAS Public Star Party at Griffith Observatory, 2:00 p.m. to 9:45 p.m.
21-22 April -- Lyrid Meteor Shower
The swift and bright Lyrid meteors disintegrate after hitting our atmosphere at a moderate
speed of 29.8 miles per second. They often produce luminous trains of dust that can be
observed for several seconds. Best seen around midnight with Lyra high and moon not yet risen.
23 April
SBAS Star Party (weather permitting): RPV at Ridgecrest Middle School 28915 North Bay Rd.
30 April
SBAS out-of-town observing – contact Greg Benecke http://www.sbastro.org/.
30 April
LAAS Dark Sky Night: Lockwood Valley (Steve Kufeld Astronomical Site; LAAS members and their guests only)
29 April-1 May – for early risers, about 30 minutes before sunrise, you may be able to see Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Venus (< 5 deg above horizon, in order away from (above) the sun) & crescent moon (10 deg above horizon) with binoculars all within a 10 degree region in the east.
Internet Links:
General
e! Science News Astronomy & Space
NASA Gallery
Astronomical Society of the Pacific (educational, amateur & professional)
Amateur Online Tools, Journals, Vendors, Societies, Databases
The Astronomy White Pages (U.S. & International Amateur Clubs & Societies)
American Astronomical Society (professional)
More...
Regional (esp. Southern California)
Western Amateur Astronomers (consortium of various regional societies)
Mt. Wilson Institute (www.mtwilson.edu/), including status for visits & roads
Los Angeles Astronomical Society (LAAS)
South Bay Astronomical Society (SBAS)
Orange County Astronomers
The Local Group Astronomy Club (Santa Clarita)
Ventura County Astronomical Society
About the Club
Club Website: https://aeropedia.aero.org/aeropedia/index.php/Astronomy_Club It is updated to reflect this newsletter, in addition to a listing of past club mtg. presentations, astronomy news, photos & events from prior newsletters, club equipment, membership & constitution. In the future, we may link some presentation materials from past mtgs.
Membership. For information, current dues & application, contact Vic Christensen (x63021, M1-167), or see the club website where a form is also available. 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, acquisitions & elections, etc.
Committee Suggestions & Volunteers. Feel free to contact: Michelle Darrah, 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). Mark Clayson, AEA Astronomy Club President
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