Stargazer Astronomical Society of South East Texas P O Box 654

ASSET NEWSLETTER STARGAZER ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF SOUTH EAST TEXAS P O BOX 654

President - Will Young Vice-President - Kyle Overturf Secretary - Brenda Tantzen president@asset-astronomer. org [email protected] [email protected] Treasurer - Eddie & Cat Trevino Newsletter Editor - Howard Minor [email protected] [email protected] THE CLUB WEB SITE: CHECK THESE ARTICLES MARCH 2017 ISSUE asset-astronomer.org PAGE 2…….Standard Time NEXT MEETING IS FRIDAY ASSET Meeting

PAGE 3…….The Sailboat Location D

MARCH 10TH, AT 7:00 PM

PAGE 4…….Comet Campaign BISD -

The meeting is back in I

19TH ST 19TH

the Frank Planetarium PAGE 5…….Fun Facts R ACCESS PARKING OK MEMBERS, PLEASE PAY OVERFLOW PAGE 6…….Planet Parade NORTH ST. THOSE CLUB DUES: THANKS

BRENDA’S MINUTES WILL’S WORDS Flowers are in bloom and the ASSET Minutes February 10, 2017 winter constellations are making their way toward the west! It's Welcome new member Julie Page. We also had two visitors. We will be having Solar a great time of year to get out and observe. Safety and Introduction to Astronomy classes Speaking of observing, the Hodges Gardens sometime in May at the Planetarium. The Star Party is coming up! This is a very close Hodges Garden Star Party is March 22-26. star party and is one of my favorites. Bring Hodges Gardens is south of Many, LA, and a your dry camping gear as there is no power but great site for a star party. Kids event spon- the skies are very good. I'll have more on this sored by the Beaumont Art Museum on April 7. We will be setting up at Riverfront Park. one at the March meeting. Our dark sky spot Meet about 6:30 p.m. Martin Dies Star Party, at Magnolia Ridge is as good as ever. We had April 22, 6:45 p.m. Will had a video about the our monthly dark sky party and the skies were iridium flares that have made for such vivid fantastic! The park is excited to have us come displays of light in the sky. They are being out so we need to take advantage. We have deorbited and replaced. Don’t forget to several outreach events coming up as well! SMILE when you buy on AMAZON. Watch for emails about those and help if you Attendance: 20 can. We appreciate those of you who help March refreshments: Julie Choate educate future astronomers! I will see you at Brenda Tantzen the March meeting! Will ASSET Secretary

PA OBSERVERS’ PAGE

WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT STANDARD TIME? In the 1800’s the time was a local matter, and most cities used some form of solar time. As trains began to travel across the country, time was seen to be more standardized. On Nov. 18, 1883, railroad companies agreed to a new system which divided the U.S. into 4 standard zones. This was established by U.S. law by the “Standard Time Act” of March 19, 1918. For the purposes of navigation and astronomy (especially interferometry in radio astronomy), it is useful to have a single time for the entire Earth. For historical reasons, this “world time” was chosen to be the mean solar time at Greenwich, England (0 degrees longitude), and this time is called the Universal Time (UT). But due to a physical processes, such as mass mo- tions in the atmosphere, the rate of rotation of the Earth varies from the mean solar time, and so a timescale called Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) was adopted. On the internet there is a ton of info on time around the world. Check it out!

LAST SATURDAY NIGHT THE CLUB DARK SKY STAR PARTY HAD GOOD SKIES! Will reported with this Quick Note. The star party at Magnolia Ridge was amazing! Gerald and I brought scopes out and Patrick, our park ranger, and new members Linda and Alex came out to observe with us. We saw quite a few good objects. About 10pm the dew came in and got all my gear. But the skies were amazing. We truly have a nice spot at that park.

STARTING TONIGHT, AS YOU GET THIS STARGAZER, THE NEXT 7 DAYS WILL BE A CRESCENT MOON The time is now to get out the Telescope, Binoculars, and your Naked Eye, to observe the Moon dancing pass Venus and Mars. And as it continues across the sky watch the terminator change the surface features from night to night. Maybe the skies will clear enough for a good week to catch the “Crescent Moon”. Pull out your Moon Maps and find some of the neat features like the Mares, Craters and Mountains. How small a crateret can you see or did you notice a mountain in the center of a crater?

HODGES GDNS STAR PARTY, IT IS NOT TO0 LATE TO GO! You don’t have to sign up ahead of time, just go. You also can just make the weekend. It is so simple. Please check with Will at the meeting on the 10th. He can get you lined out, if you can’t make up your mind. The cost is cheap. Just the weekend nights total, approx. 20 to 25 bucks plus gas and food. 2 hours up there!

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PAGE 2 LIKE ME, HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN ABOUT THE VOYAGER 1 AND 2? HERE IS A REMINDER OF THE MISSION OVERVIEW The twin Voyager 1 and 2 spacecrafts are exploring where noth- ing from Earth has flown before. Continuing on their more-than-37- year journey since their 1977 launches, they each are much farther away from Earth and the Sun than Pluto. In August 2012, Voyager 1 made the historic entry into interstellar space, the region between stars, filled with material ejected by the death of nearby stars millions of years ago. Scientists hope to learn more about this region when Voyager 2, in the "heliosheath" -- the outermost layer of the helio- sphere where the solar wind is slowed by the pressure of interstellar medium -- also reaches interstellar space. Both spacecraft are still sending scientific information about their surroundings through the Deep Space Network, or DSN. The primary mission was the exploration of Jupiter and Saturn. After making a string of discov- eries there -- such as active volcanoes on Jupiter's moon Io and intricacies of Saturn's rings -- the mission was extended. Voyager 2 went on to explore Uranus and Neptune, and is still the only spacecraft to have visited those outer planets. The adventurers' current mission, the Voyager Interstellar Mission (VIM), will explore the outermost edge of the Sun's domain. And beyond. (FROM NASA—JPL)

Seven Earth-like Planets Orbit Nearby Star Well I guess you all saw on the nightly news about the 7 planets found. Here is a little more detail on them. Seven Earth-sized planets have been discovered orbiting a star (TRAPPIST-1), just 40 lightyears away, three of which could host oceans of liquid water on their surfaces. As- tronomers made the discovery by looking for dips in the light emitted by TRAPPIST-1, as this can indicate the presence of an orbiting planet. These dips are known as ‘transits’ and studying them also enables astronomers to learn much about the planets’ composition, sizes and orbits. TRAPPIST-1 is just 8 per cent the mass of our Sun and appears very dim when viewed from Earth. The orbits of the seven planets are thought to be smaller than the orbits of Mercury, which is the closest planet to the Sun in our Solar System. Because TRAPPIST-1 is much smaller and cool- er than our own Sun, the close orbit of the planets puts them in the ‘habitable’ zone, meaning they are just the right temperature to potentially support life. Density measurements also revealed the six innermost planets could be rocky in composition. Planets e, f and g, are thought to orbit in the 'Goldilocks zone' and could host water, meaning there is the potential for life to exist. All this sounds like it is the most important discovery since the exoplanet project was started.

The Sailboat Cluster Leo Minor The Sailboat Cluster looks a lot like a sailboat. The 13 or 14 stars that form this asterism are blue/white and have different magnitudes. It also contains the star 22 Leonis. In the mast there are 2 red colored stars visible. In binoculars the Sailboat stands upside down. 22 Leo Minoris is 6th mag., so easy in binoculars. The other stars are fainter, . 22 Leo Minoris but your binoculars should show down to 9th 22 LEO mag. Also, the asterism was brought to the MINORIS amateur community in the summer of 1988. (from Sky & Telescope Mag.) PAGE 3 Comet Campaign: Amateurs Wanted By Marcus Woo In a cosmic coincidence, three comets will soon be approaching Earth—and astronomers want you to help study them. This global campaign, which will begin at the end of January when the first comet is bright enough, will enlist amateur astronomers to help researchers continuously monitor how the comets change over time and, ultimately, learn what these ancient ice chunks reveal about the origins of the solar system. Over the last few years, spacecraft like NASA's Deep Impact/EPOXI or ESA's Rosetta (of which NASA played a part) discovered that comets are more dynamic than anyone realized. The missions found that dust and gas burst from a comet's nucleus every few days or weeks—fleeting phenomena that would have gone unnoticed if it were- n't for the constant and nearby observations. But space missions are expensive, so for three upcoming cometary visits, researchers are instead recruiting the combined efforts of telescopes from around the world. "This is a way that we hope can get the same sorts of observations: by harnessing the power of the masses from various amateurs," says Matthew Knight, an astronomer at the University of Maryland. By observing the gas and dust in the coma (the comet's atmosphere of gas and dust), and tracking outbursts, amateurs will help professional researchers measure the properties of the comet's nucleus, such as its composition, rotation speed, and how well it holds together. The observations may also help NASA scout out future des- tinations. The three targets are so-called Jupiter family comets, with relatively short periods just over five years—and orbits that are accessible to spacecraft. "The better under- stood a comet is," Knight says, "the better NASA can plan for a mission and figure out what the environment is going to be like, and what specifications the spacecraft will need to An orbit diagram of comet 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak ensure that it will be successful." on February 8, 2017—a day that falls during the The first comet to arrive is 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak, comet’s prime visibility window. This image was creat- whose prime window runs from the end of January to the ed with the Orbit Viewer applet, provided by the end of July. Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova will be Osamu Ajiki (AstroArts) and modified by Ron Baalke most visible between mid-February and mid-March. The (Solar System Dynamics group, JPL). third target, comet 46P/Wirtanen won't arrive until 2018. Still, the opportunity to observe three relatively bright comets within roughly 18 months is rare. "We're talking 20 or more years since we've had anything remotely resembling this," Knight says. "Telescope technology and our knowledge of comets are just totally different now than the last time any of these were good for observing." For more information about how to participate in the campaign, visit http://www.psi.edu/41P45P46P. Want to teach kids about the anatomy of a comet? Go to the NASA Space Place and use Comet on a Stick activi- ty! http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/comet-stick/

This article is provided by NASA Space Place. With articles, activities, crafts, games, and lesson plans, NASA Space Place encourages everyone to get excited about science and technology. Visit spaceplace.nasa.gov to explore space and Earth science!

OCCULTATION OF ALDEBARAN OCCULTATION OF ALDEBARAN IN TAURUS, BY THE MOON On Saturday March 4th this observing event will take place. It is a “naked This is for the Houston area eye” event, but can be viewed with the telescope, for more precise timing of the occultation. The timing is at a prime time for viewing, starting at approxi- mately (the disappearance) 9:44 PM and reappearing at 10:50 PM. Get your binoculars and scopes out, to help seeing it, but it is naked eye! MARCH 4TH, 9:45 TO 10:50 PM PAGE 4 PERSEUS, CONSTELLATION OF THE MONTH DID YOU KNOW VENUS IS LARGER THAN JUPITER? This is mainly for all WESTERN PERSEUS That is in the telescope, of course! The appar- you binocular users, as Mirfak (α) ent diameter is Venus, 47” (seconds) as it is mov- this constellation has a 35σ ing closer to Earth, in its orbit at the beginning very neat area for clus- of March. Jupiter is also getting closer to Earth ters of stars. Starting and is a diameter of 42”. By the end of March, with the alpha (α) star, Venus is over 58”in dia. and Jupiter is 44”, Mirfak, and it is the 39δ brightest star in There are a series of events with the Solar Sys- Perseus, and it has a tem planets and Moon this month, so be sure and NGC1528 47λ great field for the read about the planets on page 6. Howard 48 binoculars around it. 51μ Work your way down NGC1545 Does the word Cosmology scare you? the connecting lines If a speaker was going to talk on Cosmology, and go slow to take in the faint points of light. would you not come because it may be boring? Also if you have your scope out, when you find Or if he was going to talk on the study of the rich area of stars, check it out with the telescope. heavens, that is much better, right! So here is a Very rewarding! NGC1528 is the hardest to de- definition. Cosmology - Physical cosmology is tect and 15X70’s may be needed for it. the branch of physics and astrophysics that deals (info from Sky & Telescope Mag.) with the study of the physical origins and evolu- tion of the Universe. It also includes the study of DeeDee and Frank Hommel pose the nature of the Universe on a large scale. In its with the 760 pound (345 kilogram) Clarendon (c) meteorite discov- earliest form, it was what is now known as ered on their land. The stony me- "celestial mechanics", or the study of the heav- teorite may be the second largest ens. See you at the next meeting. It will be on single chondrite ever found in the study of the heavens, but not on cosmology! the United States. It displays dark

fusion crust on the topside; the HA, HA! Howard bottom side, which faced down in the soil, is covered with caliche I FOUND SOME MORE FUN FACTS (ka-LEE-chee), a cement-like min- eral deposit of calcium carbonate. Star in a car If you could travel to the Credit: Ruben Garcia nearest star in a car at 70 miles an hour, it would take 356,908,917,036 years! A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT from the Meteoritical Society. According to Einstein's Theory of Relativity, this leads to odd effects. Here's a limerick: When it comes to stony chon- There was a young fellow named Bright drites, Clarendon (c) is by far Who could travel much faster than light the largest individual space He went out one day MOSTLY BURIED rock to come out of Texas. It In a relative way And came back the previous night. also appears to be the second largest individual chon- (This isn't really true but it sounds good drite meteorite ever found in the United States. Only the Paragould meteorite, which exploded over Arkan- The light from the star Arcturus was used to sas in 1930, dropped a larger individual — 820 pounds open the 1933 Chicago World's Fair because (371.9 kg) of pure meteorite goodness that’s on dis- it was then thought that the star was 40 light play at the Arkansas Center for Space and Planetary years away. So the light would have left the Sciences in Fayetteville. The meteorite was sold to star in 1893 when the previous fair was held. Texas Christian University for display. There’s truth But we now know that Arcturus is only 36.7 to the saying that everything’s bigger in Texas. light years away, and the light that was PAGE 5 used actually started its journey in 1896.

MARCH 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3 Moon 4 CRESCENT VENERA 3, 1ST MOON S P ? DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME BEGINS Closest to Occultation of MARCH 12TH CRAFT ON Earth, Moon with VENUS, 1966 Perigee Aldebaran 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 ASSET JOHN HERSCHEL CLUB 1ST MEETING BORN 1792 7 PM 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 GODDARD Moon WM HERSCHEL ALBERT EINSTEIN farthest FULL DISCOVERS LAUNCHES 1ST from BORN 1879 LIQUID-FUELED URANUS 1781 Earth, ROCKET 1926 Apogee 19 20 21 22 23 1ST 24 25 PHOTOGRAPH 3RD 1ST DAY OF THE MOON OF SPRING Hodges Garden Star Party is March 22-26 26 27 28 29 30 31 MARINER 10 Moon NEW MERCURY Closest to FLYBY 1974 Earth, Perigee WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM? WHERE ARE THE PLANETS?

March is going to have a fine display of Venus, Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn. VENUS is still –4.8 magnitude and most people notice it for sure. Venus is going to make a fast dive for the horizon, and will pass the Sun on the way to the morning sky on March 25th. This is the time when Venus becomes a very thin crescent and get much larger, almost a minute in diameter, as the 25th approaches. Get telescopes out and check Venus every few days for its fast changes. When Venus passes the Sun, it is called inferior conjunction. On the last day of March, Venus will rise in the morning sky about an hour before the Sun. MERCURY is getting ready for its own show by moving into the western sky. It will make its appearance at mid month and keep climbing higher till months end. And actually will keep getting higher in April. When Mercury is at its highest, that is called apparition. Mercury will be passing both Venus and Mars on its way up higher. JUPITER on April 7th is at opposition (highest point in sky or meridian crossing), so it is in great position for observing the next couple of months. The telescopic view shows Jupiter at its apparent largest and stays near Virgo’s alpha star, Spica. Chances for Jupiter’s best detail in the telescope is in March, and use the highest magnification your scope can handle to get it. SATURN in Sagit- tarius still rises after midnight, but the morning skies will yield great views. The rings are wide open and prominent all March. Saturn’s magnitude is at +0.4 and look for the shadows from the rings on the planet and always check carefully to see how many moons you can detect. Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are too close to the Sun to see. The MOON on March 1st is in with Venus and Mars and of course on the 4th it occults Aldebaran in Taurus (see page 4 at bottom) and this is a Naked Eye event, but use at least binoculars. At the end of the month, on the 29th, the Moon will be with Mars and Mercury. No METEOR SHOWERS in March, but it is a time for Fireballs across the sky, so stay alert and keep looking up! PAGE 6