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SEPTEMBER 2009 OBSERVER Inside the Dog Days of Summer? Observer

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SEPTEMBER 2009 OBSERVER Inside the Dog Days of Summer? Observer THE DENVER OBSERVER SEPTEMBER 2009 OBSERVER Inside the Dog Days of Summer? Observer President’s Corner........................... 2 Society Directory............................. 2 October Speaker.............................. 3 Chief Observer, Jack Eastman........... 4 IYA 2009 Astrophotography............. 5 Colorado Exploradome..................... 6 NASA’S Space Place......................... 7 Schedule of Events.............. back page Calendar 4.................................................... Full moon CAT’S PAW NEBULA 11..................................... Last quarter moon NGC 6334, the “Cat's Paw Nebula” in Scorpius. The nebula at the top left is NGC 6357, and 18.................................................. New moon NGC 6302, the “Bug Nebula,” is the small red oval between the “Cat's Paw” and the lower right corner. Joe used an SBIG ST-2000XM CCD camera with an 110mm Mamiya RZ lens at 22..................................... Autumnal equinox f/5.6. 20 minute LRGB plus 25 minute Ha filtered exposures in 5 minute increments. Image copyright 2009 Joe Gafford 25.................................... First quarter moon SEPTEMBER SKIES by Dennis Cochran he sparse Aurigid meteor shower radiates from the charioteer on Tues- in a bulging spiral arm that could be thought of as the Front Range of the Tday, the first, just the thing for a cool, rainy early autumn night (which Milky Way. Rather like our own Front Range concealing the 14ers behind it, really means the morning hours of the next day). On the moon on that this spiral arm hides the true center of the galaxy that only infrared and same night, look for Galileo’s crater in Oceanus Procellarum, per S&T, Page radio telescopes can see. 45, during lunar sunrise, which shines light directly on the sides of the crater. M22, a large globular cluster, is just to the left of the Lambda star at the The comet I mentioned last month is Kopff. It cruises through Aquarius, top of the teapot lid. As it is a glob instead of a gas cloud, it will not be going generally west between Delta Aquarius and the Delta Capricor- wheeling around in a spiral arm, but diving right through the disk of the nus, essentially on the ecliptic. Jupiter is on the ecliptic too, all night. galaxy, to spend most of its time out on the fringe of intergalactic space. Sagittarius is well placed for observation this month. All of its nebulae are We’ve discovered 152 or more of these self-contained mini-galaxies buzzing condensing out of the steam of the teapot’s spout. Going up from the spout around our Milky Way like a swarm of bees. What else is in this rich region? they include M8, 20, 17 & 16, all clouds of gas and dust, birthplaces of stars Continued on Page 3 and planets. They might be the neon-lit downtowns of our galaxy, clumped The Denver Astronomical Society One Mile Nearer the Stars Page 1 THE DENVER OBSERVER SEPTEMBER 2009 Society Directory PRESIDENT’S CORNER President: Ron Mickle (303) 229-6868 [email protected] ore than 70 members and guests attended step is the depositing of the data into a serial Vice President: M the Society’s annual picnic in July. register, or, in our case, a historian to compile the Keith Pool (303) 718-7273 Noteworthy of the occasion was the information. The information would then be [email protected] celebration of the Denver Astronomical Society’s formed into a picture reflecting the Society’s Secretary: Ron Pearson (303) 670-1299 (DAS) 60th anniversary, 1949-2009. As with any history. If you or anyone you know has an DAS function, there were many members who interest in helping to compile the history of Treasurer: helped in making the event a success. In DAS, please let me know. Brad Gilman (720) 488-1028 particular, Keith Pool for organizing and doing a I’ll close this portion of the Observer from the lot of the legwork and Aaron Reid for, among University of Denver’s Echo Lake Lab and the other functions, staffing the grill. Meyer-Womble Observatory as we look forward Executive Board Members Jack Eastman David Shouldice It is news to a lot of us when we discover that to the start of Fall and the autumnal equinox on Joe Gafford the DAS originally started as an amateur the 22nd.—Ronald E. Tim Pimentel Ginny Kramer Steve Solon telescope-making club operated out of the Mickle, President Frank Mancini Dan Wray basement of Chamberlin Observatory. The Wayne Green, Past President articles of incorporation were filed April 19, 1954, President Emeritus, Larry Brooks officially adopting the DAS’ current name. Special thanks to Wayne Green for the research Committees Van Nattan-Hansen Scholarship Fund: into Colorado’s Secretary of State website. Ron Pearson (Chair) Several of you may have seen a string of emails P.O. Box 150743 on the listserver discussing the need for a Lakewood, Colorado 80215-0743 historian. Over the past decades, the DAS’ EGK Dark Site Committee: Email: [email protected] history has been collected by individuals, similar IDA Representative: to the way vertical binning in a CCD works, Dr. Robert Stencel where pixels are collecting the photons. The next Email: [email protected] Public Outreach Committee: 2009 DAS ANNUAL PICNIC/POTLUCK Ron Mickle (Chair) Ron Mickle, right (at the grill) was in charge of cooking up bodacious burgers for the Student Astronomy Chair: annual picnic! More than 70 members attended. Naomi Pequette (Chair) Finance Committee Frank Mancini (303) 663-5263 Volunteers or Appointed Representatives ALCor: Darrell Dodge (303) 932-1309 Newsletter: Editor: Patti Kurtz (720) 217-5707 Email: [email protected] Proofreader: Steve Solon The Observer is available in color PDF format from the DAS website. Website: Darrell Dodge Email: [email protected] Librarian: Phil Klos DAS Information Line:(303) 871-5172 DAS Correspondence: Denver Astronomical Society Chamberlin Observatory c/o Ron Mickle 2930 East Warren Avenue Denver, Colorado 80210 The Executive Board conducts the business of the DAS at 7:30 p.m. at Chamberlin Observatory. Please see the Schedule of Events for meeting dates. A) members are welcome. www.denverastro.org The Denver Astronomical Society One Mile Nearer the Stars Page 2 THE DENVER OBSERVER SEPTEMBER 2009 DAS MEMBER AARON REID TO SPEAK AT THE OCTOBER GENERAL MEETING by Keith Pool ctober’s General Meeting guest speaker is Aaron Reid (photo at Educationally speaking, Oright), who will detail the restoration of Historic Chamberlin Ob- Aaron is currently seeking servatory. Most of us know Aaron as a long time DAS member who is his EE Degree from DU very active in many club functions. He’s also the Chamberlin University towards working directly to Building Coordinator. eradicate light pollution. Aaron was bitten by the astronomy “bug” as a high school student, Aaron was an integral living in Fruita, CO. His teacher gave some impromptu astronomy quiz- part of the restoration zes in class one day, and Aaron had most of the answers. Earth Science process Chamberlin Obser- class was the center of all things astronomical in high school, but unfor- vatory underwent last year tunately only a few weeks of the class were actually devoted to astron- and worked closely with omy and the space sciences, far too little time in Aaron’s mind, so he was every aspect of the work directed to the local astronomy club and the rest is history. From black from the very start to fin- holes to the lack of black at night, you will find Aaron doing things far ish. The beautiful results and wide that foster the education of astronomy. that we all have enjoyed this Some of Aaron’s other interests include building and working with past year are the direct light pollution control devices, such as light shields, etc. (he is very active result of Aaron’s hard work in the International Dark Sky Association), mentoring students at local and dedication schools in the field of astronomy, and using his electrical and machining As always, October’s skills to guide students in the US FIRST robotics program. When he General Meeting will be held in room 105 of Olin Hall on the DU cam- isn’t doing all that, he stays busy making bio-diesel fuel for his vehicles pus, followed by refreshments and, weather permitting, views through and remodeling his house (I sometimes wonder if he’s using leftover the 20-inch refractor at the newly remodeled Historic Chamberlin Ob- pieces/parts from Chamberlin?) servatory. SEPTEMBER SKIES (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1) Let’s look at it again from M24; to its east is cluster M25, and to its west another angle. Rather than M23. It seems that star clusters and nebulae the spout with its steam, occur in the same parts of the galaxy, in the start from the large open spiral arms—not surprising when you think cluster, M11, hanging just about it, because a star-forming nebula will west of the arrow point of create a star cluster, and indeed you often see Aquila the Eagle, the Delta them superimposed. Clusters without nebular star that we discussed last surroundings have had their cloudy nurseries month. One could con- dispersed by the hot breaths of their giant O & tinue from there to cascade B blue-white stars. southwest down into the Yet another Messier twenty-something clus- Realm of the Nebulae (ex- ter is farther southwest, M21. It’s just above cuse me, Edwin Hubble), M20, the Trifid Nebula, which is above M8, the by then ducking almost Lagoon. So we are back where we started, in south through Scutum to the steam of the teapot. Below M8 and even find cluster M26 just below the edge of the spout are faint globs that southeast of Alpha Scutum. Sue French describes on p.59 of S&T, while OF FIREFLIES AND SCORPIONS Southwest of that, towards others are over in the teapot lid-M22 region.
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