MECATX October 2019 Sky Charts Remote Video Astronomy Group
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MECATX October 2019 Sky Charts Remote Video Astronomy Group (1) Phoenix (FEE-nix), the Phoenix - October 4 (2) Andromeda (an-DRAH-mih-duh), the Princess of Ethiopia – October 9 (3) Cassiopeia (CASS-ee-uh-PEE-uh), the Queen of Ethiopia – October 9 (4) Cetus (SEE-tus), the Sea Monster (whale) – October 15 (5) Triangulum (try-ANG-gyuh-lum), the Triangle – October 23 (6) Hydrus (HIGH-drus), the Southern Water Snake - October 26 (7) Aries (AIR-eez), the Ram – October 30 Revised by: Alyssa Donnell 09.29.2019 MECA RVA October 2019 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott October 4 Phoenix (FEE-nix), the Phoenix Phe, Phoenicis (fuh-NICE-iss) MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 1 Phoenix Meaning: The Phoenix Pronunciation: fee' niks Abbreviation: Phe Possessive form: Phoenicis (fen ee' siss) Asterisms: none Bordering constellations: Eridanus, Fornax, Grus, Sculptor, Tucana Overall brightness: 5.753 (64) Central point: RA = 00h54m Dec.= —49° Directional extremes: N = 400 S = —58° E = 2h24m W = 23h24m Messier objects: none Meteor showers: July Phoenicids (14 Jul) December Phoenicids (5 Dec) Midnight culmination date: 4 Oct Bright stars: a (79) Named stars: Ankaa (a) Near stars: L 362-81 (121) Size: 469.32 square degrees (1.138% of the sky) Rank in size: 37 Solar conjunction date: 5 Apr Visibility: completely visible from latitudes: S of +32° completely invisible from latitudes: N of +50° Visible stars: (number of stars brighter than magnitude 5.5): 27 Interesting facts: (1) This is one of 11 constellations invented by Pieter Dirksz Keyser and Frederick de Houtman, during the years 1595-7. MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 2 October 9 Andromeda (an-DRAH-mih-duh), the Chained Maiden And, Andromedae (an-DRAH-mih-dee) MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 3 Andromeda Meaning: The Princess of Ethiopia Pronunciation: an draw' meh duh Abbreviation: And Possessive form: Andromedae (an drom' uh die) Asterisms: The Baseball Diamond, Frederik's Glory, The Great Square, The Large Dipper The Three Guides Bordering constellations: Cassiopeia, Lacerta, Pegasus, Perseus, Pisces, Triangulum Overall brightness: 7.476 (37) Central point: RA = 0h46m Dec. = +37° Directional extremes: N = +53° S = +21° E = 2h36m W = 22h56m Messier objects: M31, M32, M110 Meteor showers: annual Andromedids (3 Oct) Andromedids (27 Nov) Midnight culmination date: 9 Oct Bright stars: a (51), 3 (52), y (69) Named stars: Adhil (), Alamak (y1), Almach (y), Alpheratz (ct), Mirach (3), Sirrah (a) Near stars: Ross 248 (9), Groombridge 34A-B (17) Size: 722.28 square degrees (1. 751 % of the sky) Rank in size: 19 Solar conjunction date: 3 Apr Visibility: completely visible from latitudes: N of —37° completely invisible from latitudes: S of —69° Visible stars: (number of stars brighter than magnitude 5.5): 54 Non-traditional 'mythology': 3 And and yAnd, along with the four stars in the 'great square' of Pegasus (a And, a Peg, 3 Peg, ,y Peg) and a Per, comprise what some have termed the 'Giant Dipper.' This 'dipper,' like its 'big' northern counterpart, also has a pair of stars at the end of the bowl which point to the north celestial pole. If 3 Per (presumably at maximum) is used instead of a, one can even note a "bend" in the handle! MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 4 Interesting facts: (1) Alpheratz ((x And) has only recently (1928) been assigned to Andromeda. Since ancient times it has been a common star with Pegasus lying, as it does, at the northeast corner of the Great Square. It was also known as 8 Peg, but did not have any other common name which specifically linked it to Pegasus. (2) The Andromeda Galaxy, M31, is often referred to as the most distant visible naked- eye object. Some observers, however, are able to detect M33, the spiral galaxy in Triangulum which is about one and one-third magnitudes fainter than M31. (3) M31 is 2.3 million light years away and is approaching us at approximately 300 km/sec. It is the closest known spiral galaxy. (4) Almach (y And) is a multiple star system. Three stars may be telescopically detected, although small instruments will only show the two brightest. These two show a remarkable contrast in color, as one is orange and the other blue. MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 5 M31: The Andromeda Galaxy Explanation: What is the nearest major galaxy to our own Milky Way Galaxy? Andromeda. In fact, our Galaxy is thought to look much like Andromeda. Together these two galaxies dominate the Local Group of galaxies. The diffuse light from Andromeda is caused by the hundreds of billions of stars that compose it. The several distinct stars that surround Andromeda's image are actually stars in our Galaxy that are well in front of the background object. Andromeda is frequently referred to as M31 since it is the 31st object on Messier's list of diffuse sky objects.M31 is so distant it takes about two million years for light to reach us from there. Although visible without aid, the above image of M31 is a digital mosaic of 20 frames taken with a small telescope. Much about M31 remains unknown, including exactly how long it will before it collides with our home galaxy. M110: Satellite of the Andromeda Galaxy Explanation: Our Milky Way Galaxy is not alone. It is part of a gathering of about 25 galaxies known as the Local Group. Members include the Great Andromeda Galaxy (M31), M32, M33, the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Small Magellanic Cloud, Dwingeloo 1, several smallirregular galaxies, and many dwarf elliptical and dwarf spheroidal galaxies. Pictured on the lower right is one of the dwarf ellipticals: NGC 205. Like M32, NGC 205 is a companion to the large M31, and can sometimes be seen to the south of M31's center in photographs. The image shows NGC 205 to be unusual for an elliptical galaxy in that it contains at least two dust clouds (at 9 and 2 o'clock - they are visible but hard to spot) and signs of recent star formation. This galaxy is sometimes known as M110, although it was actually not part of Messier's original catalog. MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 6 October 9 Cassiopeia (CASS-ee-uh-PEE-uh), the Seated Queen, Cassiopeia (CASS-ee-uh-PEE-ye) MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 7 Cassiopeia Meaning: The Queen of Ethiopia Pronunciation: kass ee oh pee' uh Abbreviation: Cas Possessive form: Cassiopeiae (kass ee oh pee' eye) Asterisms: The Three Guides Bordering constellations: Andromeda, Camelopardalis, Cepheus, Lacerta, Perseus Overall brightness: 8.523 (30) Central point: RA = 1hl6m Dec. = +62° Directional extremes: N = +78° S = +46° E = 3h36m W = 22h56 Messier objects: M52, M103 Meteor showers: none Midnight culmination date: 9 Oct Bright stars: a (64), 1 (70), y (88), ö (105) Named stars: Achird (i). Caph (3), Cih (y), Ksora (s), Navi (e), Ruchbah (ö), Schedar (a), Segin (E), Tsih (y) Near stars: r Cas A-B (55), BD+56°2966 (82), jt Cas (112), Ross 318 (138), BD+630238 (140), V388 Cas (146), Wolf 46 (155) Size: 598.41 square degrees (1.451% of the sky) Rank in size: 25 Solar conjunction date: 11 Apr Visibility: completely visible from latitudes: N of —12° completely invisible from latitudes: S of —44° Visible stars: (number of stars brighter than magnitude 5.5): 51 Interesting facts: (1) The asterism The Three Guides, formed by the stars 3 Cas, a And, and 'y Pegmark the equinoctial colure. This is the great circle which intersects both celestial poles and both equinoxes. (2) B Cas, also known as 'Tycho's Star,' represents the supernova of 1572, one of only four observed supernovae known to have originated in our galaxy. The others are the novae of 1006 in Lupus, 1054 in Taurus (the event which produced the Crab Nebula), and 1604 in Ophiuchus (now known as 'Kepler's Star'). Tycho's Star was visible to the unaided eye for over 16 months and at its brightest this object could be easily detected in full daylight. MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 8 The Bubble and M52 Explanation: To the eye, this cosmic composition nicely balances the Bubble Nebula at the lower left with open star cluster M52 above it and to the right. The pair would be lopsided on other scales, though. Embedded in a complex of interstellar dust and gas and blown by the winds from a single, massive O-type star, the Bubble Nebula, also known as NGC 7635, is a mere 10 light-years wide. On the other hand,M52 is a rich open cluster of around a thousand stars. The cluster is about 25 light-years across. Seen toward the northern boundary of Cassiopeia, distance estimates for the Bubble Nebula and associated cloud complex are around 11,000 light-years, while star cluster M52 lies nearly 5,000 light-years away. The wide telescopic field of view spans about two degrees on the sky or four times the apparent size of the Full Moon. MECA RVA October 2018 - www.mecatx.ning.com – Youtube – MECATX – www.ustream.tv – dfkott 9 Distant Open Cluster M103 Explanation: Bright blue stars highlight the open cluster known as M103. The gas clouds from which these stars condensed has long dispersed.