The

Published by the Peter Underwood Centre April 27, 2020

Follow us on Facebook Options for Test your finding your aviation direction: knowledge:

Page 2 www.facebook.com/ Page 2 UnderwoodCentre/

Share projects inspired by The Wonder Weekly with us. Email: [email protected]

IN ORBIT: An illustration of the International Space Station (ISS) orbiting Earth, main picture, and the ISS crossing above city houses, inset. Images: iStock.com/#DSculptor/Peter Vernon Morris SKYGAZING Spot the International Space Station from your home HAVE you noticed any unusual including Tasmania: about 950km per hour, while the your location, but you won’t need operated by Russia; and the looking lights moving swiftly spotthestation.nasa.gov/ ISS flies at about 28,000km/h. a telescope. United States Orbital Segment across the sky in the last two sightings The ISS circles the Earth roughly You can even sign up for alerts (USOS), which is shared by weeks? In Tasmania, the locations are every 92 minutes and completes via email or text, and NASA will several countries. If so, you may have spotted the Hobart, Launceston and Burnie, 15.5 orbits per day. notify you of good sighting The first part of the ISS was International Space Station but the space station is visible for But it is only bright enough to be opportunities. launched in 1998, and the first (ISS). a radius of about 80km around seen at dusk or dawn, when the The ISS is a research laboratory long-term residents arrived on If you haven’t yet, there is still the selected locations. station remains sunlit but the in low earth orbit - an altitude of November 2, 2000. time. The space station looks like a earth and sky are dark. about 400km from Earth. The ISS has been occupied NASA provides a schedule of the bright star or a very fast moving You can only spot the ISS when The station is divided into two since then by astronauts, best times to see the ISS from aeroplane. it is going over head at those sections: the Russian Orbital cosmonauts and “space tourists”. locations around the world, Aeroplanes generally travel at particular times of the day at Segment (ROS) which is Continued Page 2 “Education perhaps more than anything else is a passport to a better life.” - Peter Underwood AC April 27, 2020 The Wonder Weekly P2 Skygazing preparations From Page 1 Pointing you There are currently three people aboard the ISS - NASA The Southern Cross astronaut Chris Cassidy, serving in the right as station commander, and Roscosmos’ Anatoly Ivanishin direction and Ivan Vagner, serving as IF you don’t own a compass flight engineers. there are a number of ways to The station is visited and work out directions. serviced by a variety of QVMAG Planetarium spacecraft, including the Coordinator Dr Martin George Russian Soyuz and Progress, has three suggestions: the US Dragon and Cygnus, and 1. Follow the stars - If you the Japanese H-II Transfer Location Date & Time Visible Max Height Appears Disappears imagine a line joining the `top’ Vehicle. Burnie Mon Apr 27 6:51pm 3min 16° 11° above SW 14° above SSE and ‘bottom’ stars in the The sighting opportunities for Tues Apr 28 6:03pm 4min 20° 13° above WSW 10° above SSE Southern Cross (see image top Tasmania for the next five days Tues Apr 28 7:41pm <1min 11° 10° above SSW 11° above SSW left) and extend the line about are provided in the table, right. 4.5 times, you will reach a point Wed Apr 29 6:53pm 3min 14° 10° above SW 13° above SSE But to know where to look, you which sits directly above the will need to be prepared and use Thurs Apr 30 6:04pm 4min 14° 10° above SW 10° above SSE southern horizon.* the height and direction Thurs Apr 30 7:42pm <1min 11° 10° above SSW 11° above SSW 2. Use street a map - line up your information in the table. Fri May 1 6:54pm 2min 15° 10° above SSW 15° above S street with the map, and the top of the map will be pointing north. Height or elevation is measured in degrees. The horizon is at 3. Use the Sun - At about Launceston Mon Apr 27 6:51pm 3min 17° 11° above SW 15° above S zero degrees and directly 12:13pm (the exact time varies overhead is 90 degrees. Tues Apr 28 6:03pm 4min 20° 13° above WSW 11° above SSE according to the date and If you hold your fist at arm’s Tues Apr 28 7:41pm <1min 11° 10° above SSW 11° above SSW longitude) in Tasmania the Sun length and rest it on the horizon, Wed Apr 29 6:53pm 2min 14° 10° above SW 14° above S will be in the north. Don’t look at the top will be about 10 degrees, the Sun though. Instead place a Thurs Apr 30 6:05pm 4min 15° 10° above SW 10° above SSE and if you put your other fist on stick onto level ground. Make top, that will be 20 degrees. Thurs Apr 30 7:42pm <1min 10° 10° above SSW 10° above SSW sure it is vertical and note the direction of the shadow - it will The letters in the table represent Fri May 1 6:54pm 2min 16° 11° above SSW 16° above S point south. compass directions - N is north, *You may need to use this WNW is west by northwest and Hobart Mon Apr 27 6:51pm 3min 21° 12° above WSW 18° above SSE so on. method the night before spotting Tues Apr 28 6:03pm 4min 25° 17° above WSW 11° above SE the ISS, as it might not be dark If you don’t have a compass, or enough to spot the Southern a phone with a compass app, Tues Apr 28 7:40pm <1min 13° 10° above SW 13° above SSW Cross in the early evening. the article on the right side of Wed Apr 29 6:52pm 3min 18° 10° above SW 18° above S this page will help with working Thurs Apr 30 6:04pm 5min 19° 10° above SW 10° above SE Dr George also reminded those out directions. using a compass that “true north” Thurs Apr 30 7:42pm <1min 12° 11° above SW 12° above SW is about 14 degrees to the left of If you have access to online you Fri May 1 6:54pm 2min 20° 10° above SW 20° above S where a magnetic compass can livestream what the station needle will point. is seeing, including 16 sunsets and sunrises a day, via the Crossword No.6 - Aviation Google ISS livestream. For an additional Across Your challenge is to challenge, try producing 4. Another name for a pilot spot the ISS as often your own crossword. 5. Very large jet aircraft as you can over the 7. Unmanned aircraft controlled by computers next five days and 10. Aircraft which takes off and lands on water keep a record of your sightings. 11. Heathrow Airport is in this city 12. Fixed-wing aircraft which doesn’t need an engine to fly Children’s University Down Tasmania members can 1. Operates the controls of a plane earn stamps in their passports 2. Hobart airport is located here for this space challenge, at the 3. Aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur ... discretion of their school 6. Supersonic passenger airliner (retired in 2003) coordinators. Image: iStock.com/scanrail 8. Royal Australian Air Force 9. Australian airline WORD SCRAMBLER 10. Par Avion provides flights to this West Coast town LESBEET Image: iStock.com/ Henrik_L PAWS EAWRIG HASSGROPPER COACHROCK FEAL TAN BLUTTERFY Crossword No.5 solution (check your answers) Across 7. Ferdinand Down 1. Arendelle 9. Pixar 2. Lightsaber 3. Hanks 10. Potter 6. Infinity 4. Worries 12. Oz 8. Krypton Image: iStock.com/Irina Kuznetsova Solution next week. 5. Marlin 13. ET 11. Eve