Highlights of the January Sky. . .

- - - 1st - - - Dusk: 10º to right of crescent . PrimePrime FocusFocus

- - - 3rd - - - A Publication of the KalamazooKalamazoo Astronomical Society Quadrantid meteor shower (40 meteors per hour).

- - - 6th - - - January 2006 First Quarter Moon

- - - 8th - - - PM: Mars lower right of This Months KAS Events Moon. This Months Events

- - - 9th - - - PM: Pleiades left of Moon. General Meeting: Friday, January 6 @ 7:00 pm

Kalamazoo Area Math & Science Center - - - 10th - - - AM: Jupiter passes 1º to upper left of Full Moon Theater: Saturday, January 14 @ 7:00 pm for next 7 mornings. WMU Main Campus, Rood Hall, Room 1110 - See Page 4 for Details - - - 13th - - - PM: Pollux lower left of Board Meeting: Sunday, January 15 @ 5:00 pm Moon. Sunnyside Church - 2800 Gull Road - All Members Welcome - - - 14th - - - Full Moon Young Astronomers: Tuesday, January 17 @ 6:30 pm PM: Saturn below Moon. Trinity Reformed Church - See Page 11 for Details - - - 16th - - - PM: below Moon.

- - - 22nd - - - AM: Spica upper right of Moon. InsideInside thethe Newsletter.Newsletter. .. ..

Last Quarter Moon December Meeting Minutes...... p. 2 - - - 23rd - - - AM: Jupiter upper left of Board Meeting Minutes...... p. 2 Moon. Observations...... p. 3 - - - 24th - - - Full Moon Theater Preview...... p. 4 PM: Saturn passes within 1º of Beehive open cluster Hands on the Conference...... p. 5 (M44) for next 3 weeks. Challenger Disaster: 20 Later.. p. 7 - - - 25th - - - AM: Antares above Moon. Cassini Reveals an Active Moon...... p. 8 Membership Application Form...... p. 9 - - - 27th - - - Saturn at opposition. January Night Sky...... p. 10

- - - 29th - - - KAS Officers & Announcements...... p. 11 New Moon www.kasonline.org January 2006 Page 2

December Meeting Minutes Board Meeting Minutes

The annual meeting of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Soci- The 2005 KAS Officers and At-Large board members as- ety, featuring our seventh Holiday Party, began at 6:30 pm sembled for the last time on Sunday, December 11. We de- on Friday, December 2, 2005. Only 25 members were in cided to hold a special dinner meeting at Old Burdick’s Bar attendance at the Kalamazoo Area Math & Science Center & Grill in the Radisson Plaza Hotel since so many people (KAMSC), which was a big shock since the December meet- were leaving the Board. President Richard Bell, Vice Presi- ing is usually very well attended. dent Jean DeMott, Secretary/ALCOR Roger Williams, Newsletter Editor Robert Wade, and Members-At-Large Once we realized that no one else was going to show up we Bob Havira, Frank Severance, Mike Sinclair, and Carol Van started serving dinner shortly after 7:00 pm. Special thanks Dien were in attendance. Only KAS Treasurer Rich Mather to Jack & Ruth Price for providing the wonderful meatballs was not in present. and Gary & Phyllis Lubbert for provided the delicious pop- corn chicken. Those dishes are now a Holiday Party tradi- Among those leaving the Board are Jean DeMott, Bob tion! All the other dishes and desserts were fantastic as well, Havira, Mike Sinclair, Robert Wade, and Carol Van Dien. so thanks to everyone that made the dinner a big success. Jean served as a Member-At-Large from 1998-2000 and again in 2004. She also served one term as Vice President in We then played five rousing rounds of BINGO, which was a 2005. Bob Havira served as a Member-At-Large in 2005, big hit as always. The lucky winners were: but will retain his position as the KAS Librarian. Mike Sin- clair is leaving the Board after ten years of service. He • Bob Havira - Red Beam II LED Flashlight served as President from 1996-2001, Newsletter Editor from - Donated by Rider’s Hobby Shop of Livonia 2002-2004, and as a Member-At-Large in 2005. Robert • Amy Lubbert - Celestial Wonders 2006 Calendar Wade served as Newsletter Editor in 2005, but originally - Donated by Sky & Telescope became involved in the KAS in the mid-1960’s. Carol Van Dien served as a Member-At-Large from 2003-2005 and • Phyllis Lubbert - Cosmo’s Restaurant Gift Certificate will remain our Young Astronomer Coordinator. - Donated by the KAS

• Rich Mather - Framed Photograph of M8 & M20 We sat down at our table shortly after 6:00 pm. The first - Donated by Richard Bell (photo) & KAS (frame) item of business was to order our drinks! Richard then jumped into our brief agenda. First, was feedback on the • Mike Sinclair - Deep Map 600 Chart Holiday Party held at the December meeting and possible - Donated by Rider’s Hobby Shop of Livonia explanations for the lower-than-usual attendance. One rea- son for the low attendance was that folks may not be Thanks to all those that donated prizes and congratulations downloading and/or reading the PDF newsletter in time to to the winners. We also received two donations from Orion find out about KAS events. It was agreed that we should Telescopes & Binoculars, but they were not delivered in mail out postcard invitations to the 2006 Holiday Party to time for the meeting. We’ll save those for the 2006 party! remind and encourage members to attend.

Everyone then gathered into the presentation center. KAS Carol reported that the Young Astronomers will hold an President Richard Bell played a short musical slide show of overnight activity beginning at 8:00 pm on December 28 at our recent field trip to East Lansing. The slide show was set Trinity Reformed Church. Richard said he’d like to hold to the theme “Holiday Road” from National Lampoons Va- another Full Moon Theater in January. Mike said he’d cation (it seemed appropriate). Bob Havira then asked for check his schedule to see if we can hold it at KAMSC. If final nominations of 2006 board members (none were given) not then Richard will look for another location. Everyone and then elections were held (see page 11 for the results). agreed to play the new DVD documentary on John Dobson called A Sidewalk Astronomer (see page 4 details). Mark Miller gave a quick report on his light pollution survey of southwest Michigan. He promised a full report will be We then discussed general meeting topics for 2006. The published in the newsletter. Astronomical news and upcom- first three months are set, but we’re still working on the rest ing events were then discussed. Before drawing door prizes of the . Richard is seeking articles from long-time mem- (everyone won something), Richard thanked out-going Vice bers about memorable events while in the KAS as part of our President Jean DeMott for all her hard work with prepara- 70th anniversary. We then ordered dinner and then enjoyed tions and decorations for the Holiday Party. The meeting ourselves! The dinner meeting concluded at about 8:10 pm. concluded at 8:51 pm. See you next year! January 2006 Page 3

ObservationsObservations By Richard S. Bell

The past 12 months have been filled with stargazing, star about 50 people! The last session of the year was parties, space exploration, and all around good times with “MarsWatch 2005” and that also enjoyed clear skies and a my fellow KAS members. Overall, 2005 was another great capacity crowd. However, my favorite session of the year year for astronomy, but it was perhaps the first “normal” took place on July 9th. There wasn’t anything special hap- year we’ve had in a while. There weren’t any bright com- pening that night, but the sky conditions were excellent. ets, rare transits, historic oppositions, or eclipses like we’ve There must have been two dozen ‘scopes set up around enjoyed the past several years. However, we managed to Owl Observatory – including Robert Wade’s 20” Obses- make our own fun despite it being an ordinary year. sion - and the total number of people that attended was easily over 100. I wish every session could be like that, The year got off to a great start on January 7th when Roger because there was a terrific star party feel in the air. & Molly Williams gave a presentation on their trip to Ice- land. It was the perfect lecture to start the year and every- Speaking of star parties, KAS members attended several in one really enjoyed their photographs - especially of the 2005. Six members traveled down to the Florida Keys for northern lights. Several other members gave fantastic pres- the Winter Star Party, which was held from February 7th – entations in 2005. Our resident astronomer, Dr. Kirk 12th. Fortunately, I was one of them. The weather was Korista, told us “What’s in the Dark?” at the general meet- excellent and I really enjoyed observing the Eta Carinae ing on June 3rd and Bill Van Dien bailed us out at nearly Nebula (NGC 3372) for the first time. I visited the Ken- the last minute with a presenta- nedy Space Center for the first tion on “Atmospheric Effects time as well. You can read and Phenomena” at the July more about my trip to WSP and meeting. Frank Severance and KSC on my personal web site. Mike Sinclair also gave superb talks in September and Novem- Eight members of the KAS took ber, respectfully. We’re very the short drive to North Web- fortunate to have so many tal- ster, Indiana for NIAG Fest on ented speakers in the KAS. April 22nd – 23rd. The weather was poor (it even snowed), but We only had two guest speakers the shear number of members in 2005, but they were both fan- that attended made for a great tastic. I really enjoyed the his- time. I also got to attend the torical presentation and slides Robert Wade prepares his 20” Obsession for the Public Black Forest Star Party for the from Professor Rudi Lindner Observing Session on July 9, 2005. Bob Havira can be seen first time in early September. from the University of Michi- in the background getting his 8” LX90 ready. That was another great weekend gan. His presentation was called “Hammers and Chisels and I intend to go back this year (and, hopefully, bring Against Einstein”, which was very fitting since 2005 was more KAS members with me). the “World Year of Physics”. My unofficial “lecture of the year” award would have to go to Dr. Timothy Beers from Two other important KAS events took place in 2005. The Michigan State University. People are still talking about first is our attempt to form several standing committees. his five star lecture on “The Formation and Evolution of This latest and most serious effort to form a committee the Milky Way” at the meeting on April 1st. We’re hoping structure was headed by Frank Severance. He laid out his to make 2006 an especially big year for guest speakers in plans in an article which appeared in the July 2005 issue of celebration of the 70th anniversary of the KAS. Keep your Prime Focus. A handful of members have already signed eyes on the newsletter and the web site and plan to attend up for some of the committees, which is a good start. One many general meetings this year! of my goals in 2006 is to have at least 3 members serve on each committee. It may sound easy, but it isn’t. The big- The 2005 Public Observing Sessions were again success- gest problem any astronomy club faces is getting people ful, at least for the most part (Michigan = clouds you involved. know). It may be hard to believe, but the first session of the year (on April 2nd) wasn’t clouded out! In fact the sky The other significant event held in 2005 was the “KAS at conditions were excellent and we even had a crowd of the Crossroads” retreat on October 29th, which was organ- January 2006 Page 4 ized by then Vice President Jean DeMott. Ten members spent the day generating ideas and trying to envision where they would like to see the KAS in 10 or even 20 years. The Join us for our next

next step is to organize all the brainstorming done that day into a questionnaire so you can rate each one. After that comes the hard part; actually getting members to help make Full Moon Theater these ideas a reality which is why getting the committees off the ground is so crucial. Saturday, January 14 @ 7:00 pm

Lastly, it’s time to report on the state of the membership. WMU Main Campus - Rood Hall - Room 1110 Last year I reported that we experienced the first drop in membership in over a decade. This year, I’m happy to re- port that we held steady. We ended 2005 with 114 member- Now Playing... ships, which is a one member increase as compared to 2004. Now, we need to get all of our current members to renew and then continue to make the KAS the best organization possible so we can attract more members.

There are a few goals that I have set for 2006. First, I’m going to try and get a grant for a Paramount ME equatorial mount for Owl Observatory. This will more than solve the instability problem we’re having with the 12” SCT and al- low us to get a higher quality (and larger aperture) telescope in the future. Second, I plan to increase the number of KAS member-only activities this year. I’d like to do more work- shops such as astrophotography. Bill Nigg has offered to run an eyepiece cleaning workshop sometime early this year. I’d also like to see someone run a telescope making work- shop. It won’t be me, because Amateur Telescope Making (ATM) is one of the few areas in amateur astronomy that I haven’t developed an interest for yet. Maybe an ATM work- shop could build a portable 8” Dobsonian that could be On any given night around the world, thousands of people passed around from member to member. I also plan to bring peer into deep space because of former monk and co- back the “Introduction to Amateur Astronomy” class this founder of Sidewalk Astronomers John Dobson. An 89- year. If there are any other events or activities you’d like us year old with a white ponytail and a knack for comedy, to do in 2006 then please let me know. John Dobson revolutionized astronomy. He is the inventor of the Dobsonian telescope mount, which changed the field Another thing we need to finally get is a set of KAS ban- of astronomy dramatically, making telescopes accessible to ners! If you work at a sign making shop (or know of some- the public on every continent. one that does) and can get us a good deal then let me know! I’m sure other tasks will arise, but those are the main things The film follows John as he tours the country from the I’ll be focusing on in 2006. Lastly, I hope for high atten- sidewalks of San Francisco to colleges, universities, astron- dance [at ALL KAS activities] and having fun with my fel- omy clubs, star parties and to Stellafane, a convention of low KAS members under a clear, dark, starry sky! ÂÂÂ telescope makers in Vermont. It features sequences on sidewalk astronomy, telescope making, the Moon, Sun, major , , Big Bang Theory, and the nature of time and space. We also get to know John Dobson, a fasci- nating thinker, philosopher, teacher, and inventor who en- courages us to think about the Universe.

Directions to Rood Hall

Head north up the Howard Street hill from the intersection of Howard and Stadium Drive. Turn right onto W. Michi- gan Ave. and then go left at the round-a-bout. Turn right into the parking lot. Rood Hall is located just past Everett Tower. For further directions please visit KAS Online. January 2006 Page 5

The Sun is the only star in which we can directly observe details in its photosphere (the apparent “surface”) and in the extended regions of its chromosphere and corona. In- frequent solar eclipses permit direct, but brief, observations of chromospheric features such as spicules and promi- nences. Until recently, amateur astronomers, for the most part, have been very limited in the kinds of solar observa- tions, being limited to observing the sunspots in the photo- sphere, in white light, or by making long voyages to solar eclipses.

In recent years, advances in optics have brought about a new and exciting way of looking at the Sun. By isolating light in a very narrow part of the spectrum (of one Ang- strom, or less), we can look at the Sun at these very spe- cific wavelengths where absorption and emission features These HOTS attendees gather around the same occur and view the Sun’s features in phenomenal detail. MaxScope 90 at the Kitt Peak Visitors center. Most narrow band solar observing takes place in the red tunate to be among the seventy attendees for three days of end of the spectrum at the Hydrogen alpha line (in the hands-on workshops, presentations and solar observing. Balmer series of spectral lines), at 6563 Angstroms (or The conference began on Thursday evening with registra- 656.3 nanometers). tion and a review of the SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) spacecraft which has been observing the Sun From October 6 to 9, Coronado hosted their fifth annual for nearly a decade. Dr. Steele Hill from NASA gave an conference for solar observing. This conference is appro- incredible program, using a number of video clips of cor- priately called HOTS, for Hands on the Sun and I was for- onal events, flares and coronal mass ejections.

On Friday, the entire group participated in an all day field trip to Kitt Peak. We took a number of Coronado instru- ments to spend the day observing the Sun and touring the mountain facilities and of course, visiting and observing at the McMath-Pierce solar telescope, learning about recent work with a new near infra-red camera as an observing run was finishing.

Early Saturday morning, the conference began promptly with a talk by Richard Hill (of the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona), where he ex- plained solar features that one can observe visually. When- ever I’m in Tucson, I stay with the Hill family and this year, that gave me an opportunity to get to the conference very early Saturday, just as the Sun peaked over the Rincon mountains. I was first to get to a 90mm Solar Max tele- scope with a double-stacked filter to enjoy some of the finest solar observing I’ve ever done. There, I saw tiny solar features that rivaled the views I used to get when I worked at Kitt Peak where I would frequently use their Razdow solar telescope. (That telescope has since been The author prepares to observe prominences, filaments, and spicules through a Coronado MaxScope 90. replaced by a Coronado instrument.) January 2006 Page 6 even small schools and planetariums have access to safe and affordable solar observing.

The biggest news of this year is the introduction of the Cal- cium II K-line solar telescopes where different chromos- pheric features in the blue are seen at 3934 Angstroms. Some people who are middle-age may have a difficult time seeing detail at this short wavelength, so this conference provide the opportunity to test your vision with the Calcium PST before contemplating a purchase. Interestingly for me, blocking out all extraneous light helped a great deal. Most Ca K line observers use the electronic eyepiece or CCD and run the output to a video monitor or laptop computer.

This conference activities were valuable for a beginning HOTS attendees were also treated to a tour of the solar observer as well as an experienced one. For those in- McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona. terested in making photos of the changing solar features, this is the place to go to get access to both the equipment and the A number of people like Gary Palmer, Tom Masterson, experts. I was amazed at what can be accomplished with John Adair and others who are well known for their solar even a basic 40mm aperture Personal Solar Telescope and an images which appear in the magazines were present entry level digital camera. My excitement about solar ob- throughout the conference to give presentations and assis- serving has grown since I purchased a PST about a year ago. tance with actual observing and photography and image I use is almost every clear day, and this meeting provided a processing. Gary Palmer’s photos which appear in Coro- great opportunity to learn about it. nado advertisements are made with stock Coronado prod- ucts, from his home near Los Angeles. I was surprised to The Sixth Annual Conference is scheduled for October, learn that generally his best images are made in the very 2006. Details will be announced on their web site at early morning hours with the Sun low over the ocean. One www.coronadofilters.com. particularly funny presentation by John Adair was tips on all the things not to do: the bloopers of solar photography. Robert Miller is a member of the Capital Area Astronomy The workshops continued through Sunday afternoon where Association and a frequent KAS guest speaker. He is the co- we all had plenty of opportunity to observe, take pictures author of “Making and Enjoying Telescopes” and creator of and get help in processing them. On Saturday, a dinner the Miller Planisphere. and reception was graciously hosted by Gerry Hogan, wife of David Lunt. A nice fireworks display at a nearby wed- ding reception was a nice addition to a thoroughly enjoy- able evening.

A half dozen years ago, the late David Lunt, who was a cosmologist before he became an optical physicist and founded Coronado Instruments in Tucson, Arizona. Lunt’s amazing contribution to astronomy was the development of an affordable way of making high-precision Fabry-Perot etalons which are optical devices which can isolate very narrow wavelengths of light. Lunt held patent rights to this work, and after retiring from producing custom optics for industry and the military, he turned to using these etalons as the critical elements in affordable solar telescopes. Re- cent introductions of the Personal Solar Telescope brought the entry cost of solar observing to $499.

Unfortunately Coronado’s founder, David Lunt, died in January 2005, but his vision and company lives on. His products, the Coronado solar telescopes, the Solar Max telescopes, filters and more recently the Personal Solar Telescopes have literally revolutionized solar observing This HOTS attendee enjoys a view of the Hydrogen and opened up this field to amateur astronomers. Now, Alpha Sun through a Coronado MaxScope 40 at the Kitt Peak Visitor’s Center. January 2006 Page 7 TheThe ChallengerChallenger DisasteDisasterr —— 20 YearsYears Laterr —— By Richard S. Bell

The following is a paper I wrote for a College Writing Shuttle program and NASA. The booster rocket has been course in the early 1990’s. I had hoped that the loss of the completely redesigned and each inch has been thoroughly Challenger would always be the Space Shuttle disaster, but checked for any flaws whatsoever. Thus far, no other acci- with the loss of the Columbia and her crew of seven on dents have happened with our remaining Shuttles -- February 1, 2003, that turned out not to be the case. Columbia, Discovery, Atlantis, and now Endeavor.

January 28, 1986 is a date the National Aeronautics and Many citizens feel the same way as I do about the Shuttle Space Administration (NASA) and I will never forget. At program. As a matter of fact the majority of Americans 11:39.13 AM the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded, kill- feel we should keep on going with space exploration. In a ing all seven passengers on board. On that date people like poll taken by U.S. News and World Report 73% of the you and I began to question the very existence of NASA Americans questioned feel "The Challenger disaster is a and its space program. They began asking questions such regrettable but a price we must be willing to pay for the as should the Shuttle program be canceled and is the quest exploration of space." Seventy-five percent of Americans for knowledge worth the loss of life? I believe the loss of polled feel we should continue with manned space probes. life is a terrible price to On the same day the pay, but it is not enough Challenger exploded, to give up our thirst for President Reagan stated, the unknown. "Man will continue his conquest of space, to Some Americans still feel reach out for new goals the Shuttle program and even greater should be terminated, not achievements." He also just because of the Chal- went on to say, "That is lenger crew, but because the way we shall com- of how the disaster hap- memorate our seven pened in the first place. Challenger heroes." Why did the Challenger explode? Because of a The space program will faulty quarter of an inch continue to send men and thick and twelve foot in women into and diameter piece of rubber beyond, for now. The called an O-ring. This O- Challenger disaster was ring is actually a seal that The crew of STS 51-L.. They are (back row, left to right); Ellison Onizuka, not the first disaster and Christa McAuliffe, Greg Jarvis and Judy Resnik. In front, from left to right, are is placed in a connecting Mike Smith, Dick Scobee, and Ron McNair. it will not be the last. In piece of the Challenger's 1967 a fire destroyed an booster rockets. When this seal was broken, hot gases Apollo spacecraft on the launching pad, killing the three were released which ignited. That is why the Challenger astronauts on board. For twenty-one months no manned exploded. What makes people so angry is that this prob- space flights were performed. They did continue and lem could have been easily corrected. Even before the Apollo 11 went on to the Moon in July of 1969. I think the Shuttle launch, a small group of men led by Roger Bois- crew of Challenger would not want us to give up our quest joly, one of the men who helped design the booster rocket, for space. If one of the crew members had survived, I bet said that the O-rings were faulty and the launch should be he or she would go up again. delayed. Management decision makers of NASA and Boisjoly's company said the risks were acceptable and de- We know people will die in earthquakes, so why not cided to continue with the Shuttle mission as planned. evacuate California? Because human beings will not run from danger. That's the way we are. If we did just give up It does make me feel angry knowing the Challenger disas- and stay home where we belong, we would lose our spirit ter could have been prevented. But, as usual, we have to to learn and to live and that is much worse than dying. We learn our mistakes the hard way. I believe NASA will must never give up our quest for space, no matter what. never take risks like that again, to do so would destroy the January 2006 Page 8 CassiniCassini RevealsReveals EvidenceEvidence ofof anan ActiveActive MoonMoon

Jets of fine, icy particles streaming from Saturn’s moon Enceladus were captured in recent images from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft. The images provide unambiguous vis- ual evidence the moon is geologically active.

“For planetary explorers like us, there is little that can com- pare to the sighting of activity on another solar system body,” said Dr. Carolyn Porco, Cassini imaging team leader at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colorado. “This has been a heart-stopper, and surely one of our most thrill- ing results.”

The Cassini images clearly show multiple jets emanating from the moon’s south polar region (see image to the right). Based on earlier data, scientists strongly suspected these jets arise from warm fractures in the region. The fractures, informally dubbed “tiger stripes,” (see image below) are viewed essentially broadside in the new images. The recent images were part of a sequence planned to con- firm the presence of the plumes and examine them in finer The fainter, extended plume stretches at least 300 miles detail. Imaging team member Dr. Andrew Ingersoll from above the surface of Enceladus, which is only 300 miles the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, said, “I wide. Cassini flew through the plume in July, when it think what we’re seeing are ice particles in jets of water passed a few hundred kilometers above the moon. During vapor that emanate from pressurized vents. To form the that flyby, Cassini’s instruments measured the plume’s particles and carry them aloft, the vapor must have a certain constituent water vapor and icy particles. density, and that implies surprisingly warm temperatures for a cold body like Enceladus.” Imaging team members analyzed images of Enceladus taken earlier this year at similar viewing angles. It was a Imaging scientists are comparing the new images to earlier rigorous effort to demonstrate earlier apparitions of the Cassini data in hopes of arriving at a more detailed, three- plumes, seen as far back as January, were in fact real and dimensional picture of the plumes and understanding how not due to imperfections in the camera. activity has come about on such a small moon. They are not sure about the precise cause of the moon’s unexpected geologic vitality.

“In some ways, Enceladus resembles a huge comet,” said Dr. Torrence Johnson, imaging team member from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena. “Only, in the case of Enceladus, the energy source for the geyser-like activity is believed to be due to internal heating by perhaps radioactivity and tides rather than the sunlight which causes cometary jets.” The new data also give yet another indication of how Enceladus keeps supplying mate- rial to Saturn’s gossamer E ring.

For the latest Cassini images on the Web, including a time sequence showing the plumes, visit:

• http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov • http://www.nasa.gov/cassini • http://ciclops.org Kalamazoo Astronomical Society

Membership Application Form

ˆ New Membership ˆ Membership Renewal Date: ______I have checked the class of membership desired and enclosed a check or money order made payable to the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society for:

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ˆ Owl Observatory Fund: ______(Contributions to this fund are tax-deductible.) Total: ______Please fill out the information below as completely as possible. Some of the information will be posted on our Member Profile page which can be found on KAS Online. Private information will not be shared with anyone.

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Observing Equipment: ______Favorite Subjects of Astronomy: ______Favorite Objects to Observe: ______Are you interested in taking the five part Introduction to Amateur Astronomy course? ˆ Yes ˆ No If yes, which day and time are best for you? ______How did you find out about the KAS? ˆ TV ˆ Radio ˆ Newspaper Mail To... ˆ Internet ˆ School ˆ Friend ˆ KAS Member Who? ______Kalamazoo Astronomical Society ˆ Kalamazoo Nature Center ˆ Other ______c/o KAMSC 600 West Vine, Suite 400 Please provide any additional comments for the Member Profile page (i.e. How I Kalamazoo, MI 49008 got started in astronomy.) on the back side of this form. Thanks! www.kasonline.org JanuaryJanuary NightNight Sky...... Sky......

This star map is property of the This map represents the sky at the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society. NORTH following local standard times: However you may make as many copies as you wish free-of-charge, y Late December 10 pm so long as it is for non-profit y Early January 9 pm educational purposes and full y Late January 8 pm credit is given to the KAS. y Early February 7 pm www.kasonline.org EAST WEST

SOUTH

he Quadrantid Meteor Shower about 11:00 pm until dawn, with the Beehive open cluster (M44) at the peaks during the early radiant rising higher throughout the beginning of January. The separation morning hours of January 3rd. morning hours. The Quadrantids get will close to 1º beginning on January Approximately 40 meteors their name from the now defunct 24th. The ringed and the Beehive will appear to originate from the Quadrans Muralis. Cluster will be visible in the same field constellation Boötes every hour. The of view with binoculars or a short focal Quadrantids are best observed from Saturn can be found 2.5º from the length telescope. KAS OFFICERS January 2006 Page 11 PRESIDENT Richard S. Bell 373-8942 [email protected] YYoungoung AAstronomersstronomers

VICE PRESIDENT MEETING PREVIEW Frank Severance 372-2237 How did our Moon form, and how would life [email protected] on Earth be different if we had no Moon? Learn the answers to these questions TREASURER Rich Mather and more in the Discovery Channel program 629-5312 “If We Had No Moon”. For more [email protected] information please contact Young Astronomer Coordinator Carol Van Dien (342-4983). SECRETARY/ALCOR Roger Williams Tuesday, January 17 @ 6:30 pm 375-4867 Trinity Reformed Church [email protected]

MEMBERS-AT-LARGE Dave Andrews 637-6117 [email protected] JoinJoin [email protected]@topica.com

Beverly Byle [email protected] [email protected] is the electronic mailing list of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Jack Price Society. Here are a few of the reasons why you should subscribe today: 343-3193 [email protected] Share Information With Other Members Last Minute Observing Sessions Dave Woolf KAS Online Updates 373-7080 Aurora Alerts [email protected] To join, simply send an e-mail to “[email protected]”. To post a message to the group just send an e-mail message to “[email protected]”. Inside the Newsletter. . .

October Meeting Minutes...... p. 2 Board Meeting Minutes...... p. 3 Observations...... p. 4 Semi-Annual Field Trip...... p. 5 for the NASA Space Place...... February p. 5 2006 Issue of Membership Application Form...... p. 6 KAS Officers & Announcements...... PrimePrime p. 7 FocuFocuss General Meeting Preview...... is..... January p. 8 15, 2006

Please submit all articles to the Editor in text or Microsoft Word format. Thanks! General Meeting Preview TheThe World’sWorld’s LargestLargest AmateurAmateur TelescopeTelescope??

Presented by Dr. John Miller

The Tierra Astronomical Institute, a private consortium in southern California, has been quietly constructing a 48", f/12.5 equatorial Ritchey-Chrétien that is probably the world's largest amateur telescope. KAS member and WMU Associate Professor of Chemistry John Miller will discuss the ups and downs of two recent observing trips to this unique facility, located on a mountaintop on the edge of the Manzanita Reservation east of San Diego. Dr. Miller will also present some interim results in the quest to measure the speed of light from highly redshifted, and apparently dim, objects.

Friday, January 6 @ 7:00 pm Kalamazoo Area Math & Science Center 600 West Vine, Suite 400

Kalamazoo Astronomical Society c/o KAMSC STAMP 600 West Vine, Suite 400 Kalamazoo, MI 49008

© January 2006, Stargazer Productions