Vol. 56, No. 5, May, 2011

Next Meeting – May 17th, 2011 at 6:00 PM ~ Annual Dinner Meeting at the Hilton Wilmington/Christiana ~ See Pages 4 & 5 for full Details on this Event Celebrating the DAS Amateur Astronomer of the Year

FROM THE PRESIDENT Bill Hanagan To start off, I’d like to thank Bill McKibben for his LAST CALL for the presentation at the April meeting on the Ancient Astronomy of Machu Picchu and Greg Lee for his presentation on DAS Dinner Meeting “What’s Up in the Sky”. If you missed the April meeting, you also missed my presentation on the sizing, positioning, and th surface quality of Newtonian secondary mirrors. Tuesday, May 17 Our May meeting is the annual “dinner” meeting of the DAS and it will be held on Tuesday, May 17 at the Christiana You’ll need to call Treasurer McKibben Hilton, the same location as last year. Social hour begins at at this late hour for Reservations. 6:00 P.M. followed by dinner at 7:00 P.M. After dinner, we’ll view a short video of time lapse astrophotos followed by the Andrew K. Johnston presentation of the Amateur Astronomer of the Year Award. We’ll conclude the evening with a talk titled “Navigating across from the the Solar System” by Mr. Andrew K. Johnston from the National Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Mr. Johnston is the co-author of the “Smithsonian Atlas of Space Exploration” and his talk will give National Air & us a look at the history and technology of solar system explora- tion. This is sure to be an evening you won’t want to miss. Space Museum’s By the time you read this, it may be too late to send Center for Earth in a reservation via U.S. post. However, you can send any last minute reservations up to 5pm Saturday, May 14 to & Planetary Studies will speak on Bill McKibben by phoning 410-392-3444. Be sure to relate the number of people in your party and their entrée selec- “The History and Technology tions and bring a check to the dinner made out to “DAS” in the appropriate amount. of Solar System Exploration” Finally, I’d like to remind you that a club works best when all of its able-bodied members pitch in and help out in The full story on this great speaker, whatever way they can. A good idea of your own is always contact phone number for reservations, the welcome, provided it doesn’t cost the club a lot and you’re variety of dinner selections, along with direc- willing to lead the charge! If you would like to help out but tions to the Hilton Wilmington/Christiana you aren’t sure how, give me a call at 302-239-0949 and we appear once again on pages 4 and 5. can talk about how you can contribute to the DAS.

Each issue of FOCUS is full of useful hyperlinks. Just click on any graphic or telltale blue web address and your browser should take you to additional linked web resources. Rings & Moons Circling Uranus - Credit: NASA and Erich Karkoschka, University of Arizona

Observing with the Delaware Astronomical Society...

DAS Member Star Parties (MSP’s) Bill Hanagan favorable for both nights. When the weather forecast onlylooks good for one night, the MSP will often be redirected NEW In April, DAS observers met for an MSP on April 29 to a closer site such as the Elk River site or the Sawin observatory. and 30 in conjunction with the Delmarva Stargaze. The Delmar- The DAS has a core group of visual observers and va Star Gaze itself actually started on Thursday, April 28. astro-imagers who travel to Tuckahoe State Park in Mary- While the overall weather pattern this spring has land, Cherry Springs State Park in Pennsylvania, the Moun- been mostly cloudy and rainy, clouds gave way to clear tain Institute and Greenbank in West Virginia, and other dark skies for several hours on all three nights of the Stargaze, sky sites as opportunities and the weather allow. If you’re giving us our first “GO” for a Member Star Party (MSP) this interested in going along or meeting up on any of the road year. See the report on the Spring Stargaze / DAS MSP on trips mentioned in the MSP schedule, let me know and I’ll try page 8 for more details and photos of the event. to include you in the early planning stage. The next lunar cycle gives us potential MSP dates While DAS members who go on road trips are often of May 27 and 28 as well as June 3 and 4. I’ll be the MSP involved in both observing and imaging, these road trips are supervisor for this cycle. There are two different destina- particularly valuable for visual observers because they offer tions being considered for two-night road trips on these the best opportunity to see deep sky objects through large dates: Tuckahoe State Park in Maryland for May 27 and 28, aperture telescopes under dark skies. If you are truly inter- and Cherry Springs State Park in Pennsylvania for June 3 ested in visual observing, you owe it to yourself to see first- and 4. As always, a “Possible Go” announcement with hand what dark skies and a large aperture will allow you to see. details on the plan will be issued on the Wednesday prior to Note that the June 3 & 4 trip to Cherry Springs is each potential MSP. Ideally, you should respond to a scheduled for the weekend after the Astronomical Society of “Possible Go” announcement if you can make it to the star Harrisburg hosts the official “Cherry Springs Star Party”. This party because it encourages others to attend and lets the allows us to delay registering until after the weather proves to MSP supervisor know how many members are interested. be favorable. That way, no one pays a non-refundable pre- Road trips require that several DAS members registration fee far ahead of the event and then risks “losing” it commit to going in advance should the weather prove if the weather turns out to be unfavorable. May 17: Dinner Meeting: Andrew K. Johnston from DAS Main Meeting Topics Smithsonian Air & Space Museum’s Center for Earth & and Speakers Through June Planetary Studies on Navigating Across the Solar System

Regular Feature: Greg Lee will once again give June 21: Mini-talks: 1) Eyepieces Inside and Out by Dave us regular briefings on “What’s Up in the Sky.” Sewell and Terry Lisansky and 2) Scheduling Next Year’s Talks, by Bill Hanagan

“PUBLIC NIGHTS” at the Mt. CUBA OBSERVATORY... MCAO PUBLIC NIGHTS Greg Weaver nights at 8pm. Please check the website for programs The Mt. Cuba planned, full details and updates. Observatory Public The schedule for Spring 2011 follows: Nights continue year round! In addition to Date Speaker Topic learning about many aspects of the heavens, May 16 S. Jackson/M. Cox How Galaxies Came to Be you’ll have a chance to Jun 6 J. Provencal/G.Weaver The Latest Frontiers in Modern Astronomy visit and view our all-digital full-dome planetarium. You can Jun 20 D.Wilson/D. Groski The Planets of Our pick up a schedule when you next come to a meeting or get Solar System the latest updated version off the website at: http:// MountCuba.org. Programs are presented on Monday

-2- DAS Special Interest Groups for Photography and Telescope Construction... DAS ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY NEW The next AP SIG meeting will be flex-scheduled for either Friday, May 20, or Saturday May 21 at 7:30 P.M. at SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP Bill Hanagan Mount Cuba. Saturn will be in a good position for imaging and The DAS astrophotography special interest group (DAS if the weather and the seeing allow we will move the meeting to AP SIG) meets on Friday nights at 7:30pm every other month at Mt. the Sawin observatory to image Saturn. As usual, the specific Cuba regardless of weather. The SIG also meets for photo shoots date of the meeting will be announced via email to the AP-SIG scheduled on 1-2 day notice to synchronize with the weather. group members and via the DAS Yahoo group email list. If you The monthly meetings are informal and typically are interested in attending but can only make it on one of include the presentation of astrophotos taken by the members these dates, let me know. I’ll factor in the potential attendance along with an extended question and answer period. Objects and the weather when deciding which night to use. commonly photographed include constellations, auroras, lunar eclipses, and planetary photos, as well as a wide variety of deep- As always, please consider submitting one or more of sky objects such as nebulae, galaxies, star clusters, etc. The your favorite astrophotos for publication in the FOCUS. A topics discussed cover the entire gamut of astrophotography, recent photo is not required. You can email your photo(s) as from how to get started with a minimum of equipment, to polar .jpg files to our FOCUS editor, Joe Neuberger at his address at aligning your telescope, all of the way to the fine points of using [email protected]. Please include a text file briefly auto-guiders and post-processing digital images. describing how you made each photo (in Microsoft Word You can get started in astrophotography with just format) along with any by-lines or captions you would like Joe your current camera mounted on a tripod or a motorized to use. If you would like, you can write a more in-depth telescope by taking wide field photographs of meteor showers, discussion to go with your photos. Joe can make a masterful conjunctions, constellations, and star trails. As you move to layout, but if you would like to suggest a layout of your own progressively fainter and smaller subjects, you’ll need better you can insert copies of your photos into the Word document equipment. Joining the AP SIG is a great way to learn what to give him an idea what you would like to see. Either way, equipment you’ll need and what works well before you spend don’t forget to attach a high resolution .jpg file to your email for your money. If you are interested in joining the AP SIG, just each photo. Joe has done a great job improving the look of the email your name, address, and phone number to me at FOCUS and adding relevant links to take advantage of the fact that the FOCUS is now on-line, but like all newsletter editors, [email protected]. he needs as much material as he can get from club members.

DAS. AMATEUR TELESCOPE MAKING SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP Bill Hanagan The DAS Amateur Telescope Making (ATM) Special telescopes and observing. Interest Group (SIG ) meets on evenings and weekends Anyone interested in joining the ATM SIG should according to the availability of the members and the particu- email their name, address, and phone number to me at lar projects that are underway. Currently the ATM SIG has a [email protected]. medium Dob building program under way. The general range Meeting dates are announced primarily by email, so of activities of the ATM SIG includes all manner of telescope if you are interested in telescope making, be sure to let making, mirror making, and the making of accessories for me know!

LOANER TELESCOPES and SAWIN OBSERVATORY REMINDER Tom Sidowski One of the best advantages of being a member of The DAS also maintains a club observatory on the the Delaware Astronomical Society is that all members have grounds of the Mt. Cuba Astronomical Observatory. The the privilege of being trained to use and then borrow equip- Sawin Observatory houses the club’s permanently mounted ment owned by the club for personal use. Currently, we 12.5" reflecting telescope and a 17.5" Coulter Odyssey 2 have two scopes available for loan: a Celestron 8" Schmidt- Dobsonian telescope. They are for the use of club members Cassegrain, and a 6" Orion Sky-Quest XT6 Dobsonian once they are trained and checked-out in a simple operating reflector. The loan is for at least a month. If you’re interested procedure. Members who are interested in becoming key in checking out either of these scopes, contact Tom Sidowski holders of the Sawin Observatory should contact me at 239- at 239-1844. 1844 to arrange for training in the use of the facility.

FOCUS uses plenty of photos So how about you?? HAVE ANY in banners & elsewhere each issue, and OLD or NEW ASTROPHOTOS?? we want to use YOURS...not Hubble’s!! PLEASE email. to FOCUS editor Photos need NOT be current. (or tell us where they can be found on the web if your photos reside there)

-3- Andrew K. Johnston of the Smithsonian’s Center for Earth & Planetary Studies is featured at th the Annual DAS Dinner Meeting May 17 At this late Hour you will need to CALL Treasurer McKibben for Reservations NOW for this Special Event Honoring the DAS Amateur Astronomer of the Year This year’s annual selection and all entrees come with a Tossed Salad with DAS Awards Dinner will choice of dressings. Entrees are served with the Chef’’s again be held Tuesday, Choice of Starch and Vegetables with either Chicken Picatta May17th at the Hilton Wilm- in a Lemon, Caper and Parsley Butter Sauce, Salmon with ington/Christiana hotel’s Champagne Dill Sauce or Vegetarian Penne Pasta banquet rooms at 100 Primavera with Garlic and Olive Oil, all accompanied by Continental Drive in New- freshly baked rolls and butter, freshly brewed coffees, iced ark. An extraordinary event tea, and soft drinks. The dinner finishes with cheesecake is planned with cash bar with a bing cherry topping for dessert. cocktails and fellowship Cost to attend is $37.00, with over $6 of that attrib- Andrew K. Johnston of the beginning at 6:00pm, with uted to the costs of travel and expenses related to the the dinner to be served at featured speaker for the evening. 7:00 and the awards To register for the event at this late hour please ceremony at 8:30pm. CALL Treasurer McKibben at 410-392-3444 and give him Directions to the facility appear on the next page. your details from the Reservation Form at the bottom of the As is usual, the highlight of the evening will be the pre- following page. You can then bring a check in the proper sentation of the DAS Amateur Astronomer of the Year amount with you to the Dinner Meeting and present it to award, followed by our special guest speaker for the event, Treasurer McKibben for the amount due. Andrew K. Johnston who comes to us from the Smithsonian Please join fellow members of DAS for this annual Air & Space Museum’s Center for Earth & Planetary Studies evening of fellowship and the presentation of our Amateur in Washington, D.C.. Astronomer of the Year award. Andrew Johnston’s research involves using remote sensing techniques to understand geography and environ- Abstract of the Main Speaker’s 8:45pm Presentation: mental change. He develops and implements museum Many types of have been launched since exhibits, programs, and publications on themes related to the beginning of the space age, from Earth-orbiting satellites geography and astronomy. Johnston is author of the book to missions to the outer planets. Success for these missions Earth from Space. required accurate navigation to guide spacecraft to their His presentation will give a look at the history and destinations. Early Apollo missions to the Moon experi- technology of solar system exploration, focusing on trajec- mented with celestial techniques similar to those used tory design and space navigation. Much of the material for centuries ago for crossing the oceans. More recent space the presentation comes from two of Johnston’s recent navigation combined star sightings with radio transmissions projects: The Smithsonian Atlas of Space Exploration and a and precise time keeping. As navigation improved, more new exhibit being developed on Time and Navigation. complex missions became possible. Techniques have been Visualizations will be presented, along with images returned developed to navigate spacecraft with pinpoint accuracy from planetary missions. Mr. Johnston will also reveal some across millions of miles. Complex trajectories now routinely details of the mission-related work being done in his re- include aspects such as gravity assist and aerobraking to search department in the National Air and Space Museum. reach objectives. In this talk, learn how spacecraft are A brief abstract of his talk appears at the end of this article.. accurately navigated as they orbit the Earth, land on Please make sure to contact Bill McKibben and other planets, and travel across the solar system. New reserve your ticket today for this year’s exciting event. visualizations will be presented to illustrate trajectories and There is a choice of two entrees plus a vegetarian planetary orbits.

DAS Board Votes 8-0-1 to Increase Annual Dues to $30 Effective November 1, 2011 At the April board meeting, having previously been made aware of the need to raise funds for club equipment, the board voted 8 in favor and 0 against increasing our club’s dues to $30/ year effective Novem- ber 1, 2011. There was 1 abstention.

-4- VOTE in the Board-Member-At-Large Election Sara Baird Four DAS Members are Vying for the Three At-Large Seats on the Board of Directors

This year, the three "at-large" positions on for a different candidate. the DAS governing board are up for election. The three The board member-at-large elections is being candidates receiving the most votes will be elected to a 2 handled by electronic ballot this year. Instead of receiving a year term in office, so the race isn’t against anyone in ballot by postcard, each DAS member has received an email particular. A "board member at large" has a vote in all with a link to an internet web page. Clicking on that link will decisions voted on by the board and therefore has some direct your web browser to an internet page that will handle influence in deciding how the DAS operates and its future the voting. The voting page will list the candidates and allow direction. you to vote. This new system has been tested and shown to There are four candidates running for board member work well. It has the advantage of being convenient and will at large. In alphabetical order, they are: Jeff Lawrence, save the DAS money on postage. Terry Lisansky, Bob Mentzer, and David "Gus" Swartout. Voting will remain open until Sunday, May 15th. You can cast up to 3 votes in this election, but each must be Please cast your vote before the close of that date.

Directions to the May Dinner Meeting at the Hilton Wilmington/ Christiana Hotel From the North: Follow I-95 South. Take Delaware exit #4B (Churchman’s Road/Route 58). Bear right at the top of the exit ramp and proceed on Churchman’s Road to the fourth traffic light. Make a left onto Continental Drive. The Hotel will be the first driveway on the left.

From the South: Follow I-95 North. Take Delaware exit #4B (Route 7 North). Stay in the right-hand lane and proceed to exit #166 (Churchman’s Road/Churchman’s Crossing/Route 58). Turn right at the bottom of the exit ramp, yielding onto Churchman’s Road. Follow to the second traffic light, and make a left onto Continental Drive. The Hotel is the first driveway on the left.

------May Dinner Meeting Entree Order & Reservation Form NAME: ______

1. Chicken Entree $37.00 x______(number) = Amount $______

2. Salmon Entree $37.00 x ______(number) = Amount $ ______

3. Vegetarian Entree $37.00 x ______(number) = Amount $______Total $______CALL DAS Treasurer Bill McKibben at 410-392-3444 by Saturday, 5/14 at 5pm to make Reservations!

-5- A Global Mars Map - Credit: Steve Lee (University of Colorado), Jim Bell (Cornell University), Mike Wolff (Space Science Institute), and NASA

MEMBERSHIP EXPIRATION NOTICES DAS FORUM / E-MAIL SITE ON YAHOO Bill McKibben Don Shedrick If you receive the FOCUS by email, you will be This is a restricted e-mail service for use by notified of your membership renewal by email. If you DAS members for DAS purposes. To use this site, receive the FOCUS in the mail and the mailing label go to http://groups.yahoo.com; search for Delaware on the envelope containing your FOCUS is marked Astronomical Society; and click on the link that comes with red marker, your membership is expiring or has up. To join, you must have a Yahoo ID and password; expired. Please see the renewal form at the end of if you don’t, you can register at this time by following the FOCUS for additional renewal information. Also Yahoo’s instructions. You will then be allowed to “Join see the “Magazine Subscriptions” section in the the group” upon clicking in that box. You must then FOCUS for information about subscription renewal. register for the DAS group and add your profile by clicking on “add new profile” and completing the form. Glenn Bentley LIBRARY NEWS When adding or editing your profile, you will need I invite the membership to drop by the library to enter your actual name in the “Real Name” box so you after each meeting to check out reading material for can be identified as a DAS member so Don Shedrick those cloudy spring nights or to just shoot the breeze can approve your application to join the DAS group, and about current astronomical events. everyone will know to whom they are communicating. ASTRONOMICAL LEAGUE MEMBERSHIP Finally, specify your desired email address for delivery of messages. Note: you may choose to not DAS members have the opportunity to become have your name and email address displayed to anyone members in the Astronomical League at the dis- other than DAS members who are members of the counted rate of $7.50 per year. Benefits include the Yahoo DAS email group. Reflector (a quarterly newsletter), observing programs, For more detailed instructions, go to the DAS awards, discounts on books and educational materi- website under DAS Resource Links. als. For questions on joining the Astronomical League, contact Lynn King at meetings, call 302-764-8816 or MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS Bill McKibbon email [email protected]. SKY & TELESCOPE will be processed by the MT. CUBA LENDING LIBRARY Paul Stratton club for the first subscription year only. The publisher should then send renewal notices directly to the Here’s two books for Spring. subscriber at the club rate of $32.95. The subscriber Lunar Photographs from Apollos 8, 10 and 11 can then pay the publisher directly. (Book #251) Very detailed and informative shots of NOTE: If you receive a renewal notice for an various Moon Craters. If your into the Moon, this is a amount other than $32.95, check to see if there are must see book. any special offers included in the rate. Also check the Also: Conscious Universe, The Part and renewal date printed on the magazine address label. Whole of Modern Physical Theory (Book # 436), These ‘special offers’ are likely to occur several authors Kafatos/Nadeau. If you can get through the months prior to the renewal date. However, if you are Science-Philosophy, Physicis-Philospphy and Quan- approaching your renewal date and have not received tum-Theory this is quite a great read. It was first the correct renewal notice, contact me and I will published in 1990. That just makes this book all the process the renewal through the club. more interesting when compared to what we ASTRONOMY will continue to be processed know today. by the club for all subscription years. For all those now using the Mt. Cuba Lending Please see the renewal form at the end of the Library a hardy thanks. Please remember that the FOCUS for additional renewal information. lending period is two months. If you’d like to keep the book longer, please re-sign the log sheet.

-6- ASTRO-PHOTO Wonder & Mystery Above the VLT’s of the Photo Credit: Yuri Beletsky (European Southern Observatory) MONTH

Explanation: What’s that bright orange dot above the large telescope on the usually stretches dramatically overhead, appears to arch above the elevated right? Even seasoned sky enthusiasts might ponder the origin of the orange Chilean landscape. Under the Milky Way arch, toward the left, lie both the Large orb in this panoramic image, taken last December. Perhaps identifying known and Small Magellanic Cloud galaxies, while toward the right lies the constellation objects will help. To start, on the far left is a diagonal band of light known as of Orion surrounded by the red ring of Barnard’s Loop. On the ground, each of zodiacal light, sunlight reflected off of dust orbiting in the inner Solar System. the Very Large Telescopes is busy keeping an eye on the distant universe. The The bright white spot on the left, just above the horizon, is Venus, which also orange spot — it’s the Moon. The image was taken during a total lunar eclipse glows by reflected sunlight. Rising diagonally from the ground to the right of when the normally bright full moon turned into a faint orb tinted orange by the Venus is the band of our Milky Way Galaxy. In the image, the band, which intervening Earth’s atmosphere. Click for full sized image. WEBSITE NASA’s Longest Mission: Mars Odyssey of the MONTH

http://www.zooniverse.org/ The Zooniverse is home to the internet’s largest, most popular and most successful citizen science projects. Our current projects are here but plenty more are on the way. If you’re new to the Zooniverse, we suggest picking a project and diving in - the same account will get you into all of our projects, and you can keep track of what you’ve contributed by watching ‘My Zooniverse’. The Zooniverse and the suite of projects it contains is produced, maintained and developed by the Citizen Science Alliance. The member institutions of the CSA work with many academic and other partners around the world to produce projects that use the efforts and ability of volunteers to help scientists and researchers deal with the flood of data that confronts them. The Zooniverse began with a single project, Galaxy Zoo , which was launched in July 2007. The Galaxy Zoo team had expected a fairly quiet life, but were overwhelmed and overawed by the response to the project. Once they’d recovered from their server buckling under the strain, they set about planning the future! Galaxy Zoo was important because not only was it incredibly popular, but it produced many unique scientific results, ranging from individual, serendipitous discoveries to those using classifications that depend on the input of everyone who’s visited the site. This commitment to producing real research - so that you know that we’re not wasting your time - is at the heart of everything we do.

-7- Recap of the Delmarva Star Gaze and DAS MSP Bill Hanagan In April, DAS observers met for an MSP on April 29 In the next photo, Bill prepares to remove the and 30 in conjunction with the Delmarva Star Gaze at the protective cover from the secondary mirror as Greg Lee Tuckahoe State Park in Maryland. While the overall weather examines the telescope’s altitude bearings. This photo gives pattern this spring has been mostly cloudy and rainy, clouds a good view of the 18 point whiffle-tree used to support the gave way to clear skies for several hours on all three nights “thin”, lightweight primary mirror. The realization that large, of the Stargaze, giving us our first “GO” for a Member Star thin mirrors could be supported in this fashion was a key Party (MSP) this year. More than 50 participants attended factor in the event, as seen in the group photo below, which was making taken after the fish fry dinner on Saturday and just before the large door and raffle prizes were awarded. aperture While the Stargaze is very well attended, the truss tube Tuckahoe Equestrian center where the event has been held Dobs a for the last several years could easily accommodate twice practical this number of people. More to the point, there’s room for reality. many more DAS members to attend!

The next photo shows the beautiful sunset we witnessed on Friday evening. Though the cloud cover was still thick at this point, it disappeared within about 30 minutes, giving us clear skies from dusk until about 1:30 From here on, I’ll try to relate the events in a chrono- A.M. There was no noticeable dew on Friday night, only a 4- logical fashion. My story actually begins on Friday afternoon 6 mph breeze after Bill McKibbin and I met up with Greg Lee, who had come down for observing on Thursday night. Greg gave me a hand setting up my new tent, after which we pro- ceeded to help Bill McKibben with the setup of his new 18” Obsession truss tube Dob, which experienced Bill McKibben’s new 18” Obsession truss tube Dob “first light” at this was also joined by Greg Lee’s 15” Discovery split tube Dob, event. The photo which appeared in the November 2010 issue of the FOCUS. at left shows Bill Both telescopes gave fantastic views of M3, M13, M51, M81 McKibben (right) & M82, as well as many other deep sky objects. The storm and Greg Lee (left) on Saturn was visible as a cloud band, but the Cassini locking down the division was barely visible owing to the shallow ring tilt and upper cage of Bill’s average seeing. new telescope. We slept in until about 9:30 A.M. on Saturday morning, ate our breakfast, and headed off to the swap meet (continued on next page) -8- Recap of the Delmarva Star Gaze (continued from preceeding page) (which unfortunately had started at 7:30 A.M.!) The Satur- The many door prize winners are seen in the photo day morning swap meet at the Stargaze star parties usually below along with the gentleman who won the raffle prize (a features a wide variety of used astronomy gear of all sizes 100 degree FOV Zhumell 9 mm eyepiece). There were many and types, often on sale at a very attractive price. door prizes! The weather on Saturday was mostly sunny and we did some solar observing with the Stargazers’ Lunt Solar Telescope, seen below with Bill McKibben at the controls. Several small prominences and one large loop were visible at the time along with several sunspots and reticulae and one very prominent dark line. There were several other tele- scopes on the field that were equipped for solar observing which we were invited to observe with as we toured the field.

Back-tracking a bit on the timeline, Rob Lancaster arrived around 3 P.M. with his partially completed 10” Newtonian OTA. Rob made the 10” mirror in this telescope himself at the Mid-Atlantic Mirror Making Seminar 3 years ago. In the photo below, Rob (right) and his girlfriend Lindsay Karzon (left) are seen just before sunset working to get Rob’s OTA put together. Rob and I continued work on his telescope until about 11:30 P.M., at which point the OTA was ready for its first glimpse at starlight. Unfortunately, the cradle required to mount the OTA on Rob’s Losmandy G-11 Gemini mount wasn’t ready to go yet, so the scope didn’t see much use at the star party. Still, it represents an impressive milestone for someone living in an apartment.

Around 5 P.M. we attended the fish fry, which was included in the price of admission to the Stargaze. After dinner, Don Surles passed out a flurry of door prizes includ- ing eyepieces and other astronomy related items. Don is seen in the photo below along with Karen and Chuck Jennings, who kept track of the winners so that “thank you” notes could be sent to the sponsors.

Two other amateur built telescopes using primary mirrors made at the Mid-Atlantic Mirror Making Seminar last spring saw first light at the star party and appear in the photos on the next page along with their respective makers. Chuck Jennings and his 12.5” truss tube Dob appears on the left. Doug Towner and his 8” tube Dob is seen on the right. Congratulations to Rob, Chuck, and Doug on first light with their self-made mirrors and telescopes. (continued on page 10) -9- Recap of the Delmarva Star Gaze (continued from page 9) On Saturday night there was no breeze, but light dew appeared at dusk and became moderate over time. A few high wispy clouds passed by, but only about 5% of the sky was affected until heavier cloud cover developed around 1:30 A.M. By then, the members of the DAS contingent decided to call it a night. On Sunday morning, we enjoyed a late and leisurely breakfast and packed up for the drive home. The photo below shows Bill McKibben moving his 18” Obsession telescope up a simple ramp and into the back of his truck.

The photo below shows the DAS “operations center” shortly after sunset on Saturday. Rob’s 10” Newtonian is seen in the foreground with Greg and Bill’s larger telescopes appearing farther back. There are many more scopes on the field positioned both north and east of the Barn seen in the right rear of this photo. In fact, all of the Dobs over 20” in aperture are obscured behind the white RV in the rear center of this photo.

The final photo shows Bill with his telescope in the truck, with lots of room left for packing his remaining gear. By comparison, Bill’s “smaller” 16 inch Meade tube Dob occupied almost the entire truck when loaded and even hung insecurely out the back of the open truck. To transport that The next photo old 16” Meade tube Dob shows the extreme south end more than a couple of miles of the field beyond the DAS required two vehicles: Bill’s operations center. This part truck to carry the OTA and of the field was populated by another vehicle with a large many of the smaller Dobs cargo area to carry the base. appearing at the star party. There are literally acres of open space that go unoccu- pied at every Stargaze just waiting for someone to come and join in on the fun! -10- Interesting Astro Gear Bill Hanagan When I attend a regional star party like the Del- Both types of lights marva Stargaze, I like to tour the field along with other DAS were used at the members during daylight hours to get a look at all of the Stargaze to good effect. equipment that other amateur astronomers have found useful The last and to talk to the owners about their equipment. There were item I’d like to enough interesting items at the Spring Star Gaze this year mention is my new that I decided to write a separate article describing them. tent. For quite some The first item of note is an observing chair. I’ve seen time, whenever I’ve and used observing chairs before that have been hard to gone on the road to adjust, uncomfortable, and just plain dicey. The two observ- a star party, I’ve ing chairs in the photo below are from two generations of a camped in the back highly evolved chair being built in batches by Paul Henze. of my vehicle or The most borrowed a tent from recent version is the another DAS slightly larger one in member. There are the back. The Henze always one or two chair is hands down people in our core group of observers and travelling imagers the best observing who have a spare tent available. After trying out a couple of chair I’ve ever used and different tents and sleeping in the back of my vehicle, I the easiest to adjust. decided that I finally knew enough about what I wanted that I Unlike some observing was ready to buy a tent of my own. The tent I finally settled chairs, the seat has no on is the Eureka Equinox 6, which appears in the photo tendency to slip when below from the Spring Star Gaze. you sit down. The This seat is large and well particular tent padded, and the has several vertical rails are well desirable positioned to act as a features very comfortable back besides its rest over most of the astronomical height range of the name. The seat. The height of the nearly vertical seat is continuously adjustable thanks to the fact that the walls allow me design does not rely on notches to keep the seat where you to stand up over position it. The chair frame folds flat for storage and trans- most of the floor area and to make better use of the floor port. The main disadvantage that I could identify is that, space than a tent with a low ceiling and walls that slope being built of oak, you may need to refinish the frame every rapidly inward. This particular tent is well known for resisting few years. strong winds due to its hexagon structure. The hexagonal Several DAS members are planning a group buy to layout may at first seem to guarantee inefficient use of floor try to persuade the builder to make another batch of these space, but the six little alcoves formed inside the tent are chairs. The price is expected to be $125 each, which is great for stashing gear out of the way. On each of those reportedly only about $25 over the cost of materials. Let me alcoves there is a sturdy ring attached to the tent about 3’ know by Tuesday, May 17 if you’re interested in obtaining above the floor that is directly supported by the arch in each one of these chairs. of the six tent poles. These rings are useful for hanging Another interesting piece of gear in use at the items that you don’t want to leave on the floor. The outer Stargaze is the reflective telescope cover seen in the photo covering, known as the “rain fly” is gold in color, while the at the top right column. When your telescope sits out during roof of the tent beneath it is white, allowing the tent to stay the day at a multi-night star party, it’s very important to cover cooler in the than tents made of darker materials. This it up to keep it from absorbing unnecessarily large amounts allows me to sleep in awhile longer before the tent heats up of heat. Otherwise, it may take your telescope a very long in the morning sun. That’s a good thing when you stay up time to cool off after sunset. This is particularly true of late at night, as amateur astronomers often do. The tent has telescopes that are dark in color. a large door and 3 large zippered windows as well as a A variety of reflective telescope covers are available zippered roof vent for ventilation and cooling. Having zippers from two different vendors: Astrogizmos and Telegizmos. on all of the openings makes it easier to keep rain and dust Astrogizmos also offers Solar powered red LED path lights out should the need arise. The Equinox 6 is not perfect (it and tiny red LED “kick me not” lights that you can attach could use an aluminized rain fly), but it suits my purposes as to tripod legs and other collision hazards to make them visible. well as any tent I’ve ever seen.

-11- Notes on the Member Star Parties (MSPs) For each MSP cycle there are usually four potential dates designated in advance, but which of these is used for the event is “flex-scheduled” according to the weather using the DAS Yahoo Group email system. Please be sure to mark your calendars with the potential MSP dates that appear in the table! Obviously, you need to keep as many of these dates open as possible so when a GO announcement is made you’re in a position to attend the DAS Member Star Party regardless of which date the weather favors! The DAS has a core group of visual observers and astro-imagers who travel to Tuckahoe, Cherry Springs, West Virginia, and other dark sky sites as opportunities and the weather allow. If you’re interested in going along or meeting up on any of the road trips mentioned in the MSP schedule, let me know and I’ll fill you in on the details and keep you apprised as plans develop. These road trips are especially valuable for visual observers because they offer the best opportunity to see deep sky objects through large aperture telescopes under dark skies. Finally, I’d like to remind you that you need to be signed up for the DAS Yahoo Group to receive the scheduling announcements for the MSPs. A full description of the MSP program appears on the DAS website at http://delastro.org/ and in the December 2009 issue of the FOCUS.

-12--8- -10- 1. 2. 3. Solar Activity Heats Up...Sunspot Counts on Rise April 14, 2011: If you’ve of depressed solar activity in ever stood in front of a the early 19th century. The hot stove, watching a fourth was Cycle #1 itself, pot of water and waiting around 1755, also a relatively impatiently for it to boil, low solar cycle,” he says. you know what it feels In his study, Turner like to be a solar physicist. used sunspots as the key Back in 2008, the metric of solar activity. solar cycle plunged into Folding in the recent spate the deepest minimum in of sunspots does not sub- stantially alter his conclu- NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory nearly a century. recorded this X1.5-class solar flare on Sunspots all but sion: “Solar Cycle 24 is a March 9, 2011. [Click for movie.] vanished, solar flares slow starter,” he says. Better late than never. subsided, and the sun was eerily quiet. After years of lying low, sunspot counts are “Ever since, we’ve been waiting for solar activity to See the Science- on the rise again. pick up,” says Richard Fisher, head of the Heliophysics Cast of this story on You- Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington DC. “It’s Tube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBl_FOONrB0. been three long years.” Quiet spells on the sun are nothing new. They come A solar eruptive prominence along every 11 years or so—it’s a natural part of the solar as seen in extreme UV light cycle.. This particular solar minimum, however, was lasting on March 30, 2010 with longer than usual, prompting some researchers to wonder if Earth superimposed for a it would ever end. sense of scale. Credit: NASA/SDO News flash: The pot is starting to boil. “Finally,” says Fisher, “we are beginning to see some action.” As 2011 unfolds, sunspots have returned and they are crackling with activity. On February 15th and again on Author: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA March 9th, Earth orbiting satellites detected a pair of “X- Click Below for More Information: class” solar flares—the most powerful kind of x-ray flare. The last such eruption occurred back in December 2006. The fast CME of March 7, 2011 — a movie prepared by Karl Another eruption on March 7th hurled a billion-ton Battams of the Naval Research Lab in Washington DC cloud of plasma away from the sun at five million mph (2200 km/s). The rapidly expanding cloud wasn’t aimed directly at NASA Heliophysics News Earth, but it did deliver a glancing blow to our planet’s magnetic field. The off-center impact on March 10th was enough to send Space Weather FAQ Northern Lights spilling over the Canadian border into US states such as Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan. “That was the fastest coronal mass ejection in almost six years,” says Angelos Vourlidas of the Naval Research Lab in Washington DC. “It reminds me of a similar series of events back in Nov. 1997 that kicked off Solar Cycle 23, the solar cycle before this one.” “To me,” says Vourlidas, “this marks the be- ginning of Solar Cycle 24.” The slow build-up to this moment is more than just “the watched pot failing to boil,” says Ron Turner, a space weather analyst at Analytic Services, Inc. “It really has been historically slow.” There have been 24 numbered solar cycles since researchers started keeping track of them in the mid- 18th century. In an article just accepted for publication by the Space Weather Journal, Turner shows that, in all that time, only four cycles have started more slowly than this Auroras over Grand Portage, Minnesota, on March 10, 2011. one. “Three of them were in the Dalton Minimum, a period Credit and copyright Travis Novitsky. -13- Source: JPL press release posted: 05/08/11 Three Missions Compete for 2016 Discovery NASA has selected three science investigations, from which it will pick one potential 2016 mission: to look at Mars’ interior for the first time; study an extraterrestrial sea on one of Saturn’s moons; or study in unprecedented detail the surface of a ’s nucleus. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., would lead the Mars investigation. Each investigation team will receive $3 million to conduct its mission’s concept phase or preliminary design studies and analyses. After another detailed review in 2012 of the concept studies, NASA will select one to continue development efforts leading up to launch. The selected mission will be cost-capped at $425 million, not including launch vehicle funding. An artist’s concept portrays the proposed NASA’s requested proposals for spaceflight investigations in June 2010. Geophysical Monitoring Station mission for A panel of NASA and other scientists and engineers reviewed 28 submissions. The selected investigations studying the deep interior of Mars. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech could reveal much about the formation of our solar system and its dynamic processes. Three technology developments for possible future planetary missions also were selected. ”NASA continues to do extraordinary science that is re-writing textbooks,” said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. “Missions like these hold great promise to vastly increase our knowledge, extend our reach into the Solar System and inspire future generations of explorers.” The planetary missions selected to pursue preliminary design studies are: - Geophysical Monitoring Station (GEMS) would study the structure and composition of the interior of Mars and advance understanding of the formation and evolution of terrestrial planets. Bruce Banerdt of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., is principal investigator. JPL would manage the project. The proposed Mars would carry three experiments. A seismometer for measuring Mars quakes would yield knowledge about interior materials from the crust to the core. A thermal probe beneath the surface would monitor heat flow from the planet’s interior. Radio capability for Doppler tracking of tiny variations in the planet’s wobble would provide information about the size and nature of the core. Understanding more about the deep interior of another planet would enable important new comparisons with what is known about Earth’s interior. “We want to know more about how the pieces that formed planets came together in the first place, and about the changes that took place afterwards,” Banerdt said. “This would be a mission to understand the formation and evolution of terrestrial planets.” - (TiME) would provide the first direct exploration of an ocean environment beyond Earth by landing in, and floating on, a large methane-ethane sea on Saturn’s moon Titan. Ellen Stofan of Proxemy Research Inc. in Gaithersburg, Md., is principal investigator. Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md., would manage the project. - Comet Hopper would study cometary evolution by landing on a comet multiple times and observing An artists’ rendition of a possible its changes as it interacts with the sun. Jessica Sunshine of the University of Maryland in College Park is principal Titan Mare Explorer (TiME). Credit: investigator. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., would manage the project. TSSM NASA/ESA joint summary report. ”This is high science return at a price that’s right,” said Jim Green, director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division in Washington. “The selected studies clearly demonstrate a new era with missions that all touch their targets to perform unique and exciting science.” The three selected technology development proposals will expand the ability to catalog near-Earth objects, or NEOs; enhance the capability to determine the composition of comet ices; and validate a new method to reveal the population of objects in the poorly understood, far-distant part of our solar system. During the next several years, selected teams will receive funding that is determined through contract negotiations to bring their respective technologies to a higher level of readiness. To be considered for flight, teams must demonstrate progress in a future mission proposal competition. The proposals selected for technology development are: - NEOCam would develop a telescope to study the origin and evolution of near-Earth Objects and study the present risk of Earth-impact. It would generate a catalog of objects and accurate infrared measurements to provide a better understanding of small bodies that cross our planet’s orbit. Amy Mainzer of JPL is principal investigator. A space-based telescope, NEOCam would be positioned in a location about four times the distance between Earth and the moon. From this lofty perch, NEOCam could observe the comings and goings of NEOs every day without Comet Hopper would study cometary the impediments to efficient observing like cloud cover and even daylight. The location in space NEOCam would inhabit evolution by landing on a comet is also important, because it allows the monitoring of areas of the sky generally inaccessible to ground-based surveys. multiple times. Above is an image of ”Near-Earth objects are some of the most bountiful, intriguing and least understood of Earth’s neigh- the comet Hale-Bopp. bors,” said Amy Mainzer. “With NEOCam, we would get to know these solar system nomads in greater detail.” - Primitive Material Explorer (PriME) would develop a mass spectrometer that would provide highly precise measurements of the chemical composition of a comet and explore the objects’ role in delivering volatiles to Earth. Anita Cochran of the University of Texas in Austin is principal investigator. - : Reaching into the Outer Solar System would develop and validate a technique called blind occultation that could lead to the discovery of various celestial objects in the outer solar system and revolutionize our understanding of the area’s structure. Charles Alcock of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Mass., is principal investigator.

-14- Better Than Coffee: Planets Align in the Morning Sky May 9, 2011: Have you ever woken up at the crack of , shuffled to the kitchen counter for your first cup of joe, only to discover that you’re out of coffee beans? Cruel. This week it’s not a problem, because there’s something to open your eyes even better than coffee. Four bright planets are aligning in the morning sky.

Click on the coffee to watch a video about the Great Morning Planet Show of May 2011.

Look out any east-facing window about a half hour before sunrise. If you have a clear view of the horizon, you’ll see Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter clustered together in a patch of sky less than 10o wide. If you wanted to, you could hide them all behind your outstretched hand—but don’t. The view is too good. The best morning is May 11th, when Venus and Jupiter converge to form a tight pair only 1/2o apart. (Now you can hide them using no more than one finger.) Venus and Jupiter are so bright you might think you’ve witnessed a double supernova beaming through the morning twilight. But, no, it’s just the two brightest planets in our own solar system. Keep an eye on Venus in particular. As the sun rises and the sky fills with morning blue, the Goddess of Love does not fade away. You can actually see Venus in broad daylight if you know where to look. May 11th is just the beginning. Throughout the month, the quartet of worlds will rearrange themselves on a daily basis, forming different shapes in the pre- dawn sky. On May 13th, for instance, Mercury, Venus and Jupiter form a bright celestial triangle—almost equilateral. It’s a geometry lesson before breakfast. On May 20th, a new triangle will appear. This time the vertices are Mars, Venus, and Mercury. Observ- ing tip: Mars is not as bright as the others. Binoculars may be required to help you find and fully appreciate the red planet in morning twilight. The show comes to an end on May 30th when an exquisite crescent Moon Click above for a ScienceCast video about this event which contains an joins the four planets for a Grand Finale—five heavenly lights dotting the eastern sky animated sky map. all at once. What a way to begin the day.

Author: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA For More Information Click Below:

Video: The Great Morning Planet Show of May 2011 — from Science@NASA

-15- Citizen Scientists Making Incredible Discoveries Author: Dauna Coulter | Editor: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA April 22, 2011: “Somewhere, something incredible is and dubbed themselves the “Peas-Corp.” (See picture waiting to be known,” wrote Carl Sagan. bottom left.) And now you can be the one to find it, thanks to The peas turned out to be small, round green Zooniverse, a unique citizen science website. Zooniverse galaxies about a tenth the size of the Milky Way. These are volunteers, who call themselves “Zooites,” are working on a now believed to be the most efficient star factories in the project called Galaxy Zoo, classifying distant galaxies universe, forming huge numbers of stars in a hurry. “It was imaged by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.1 easy to find ‘peas’ by computer once we knew they were “Not only are people better than computers at there, but without the human factor we’d never have noticed detecting the subtleties that differentiate galaxies, they can them,” says Lintott. do things computers can’t do, like spot things that just look Lintott started Zooniverse in 2007 to solve a very interesting,” explains Zooniverse director Chris Lintott, an large and unique problem: “I had too many galaxies on my astronomer at the University of Oxford. hands,” he explains. Zooite Hanny van Arkel, a Dutch schoolteacher, Lintott was faced with classifying, by shape, one discovered this strange green object floating in her cosmic soup: million galaxies imaged by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. First he did what any self-respecting scientist would do. “I asked a graduate student to classify them.” The student was good at it, but after he catalogued 50,000 images, it was obvious he needed help – a lot of help — sorting the other 950,000. The solution came to Lintott and the very relieved student while they were sitting in a pub. “Why not ask for volunteers?” Zooniverse and its first project, Galaxy Zoo, were born. “We were blown away by the response. We had so many hits that our web server crashed on the first morning!” They quickly solved the server problem and the project took off. With the Hubble Space Telescope, Galaxy Zoo is taking volunteers deeper into the cosmos than ever before. And the Zooniverse team has proven that the Zooites’ classifications are as good as those by professional astronomers. “Their contributions are extremely important,” says Lintott. “They’re helping us learn how galaxies form and evolve. And they take their work seriously.” But that doesn’t prevent them from bringing a sense of adventure and just sheer fun to the research. “Not long ago some Zooites asked us to take them on a pilgrimage to Zooniverse’s birthplace. There was quite a celebration at the pub that night!”3 In this image, the Voorwerp floats near a spiral galaxy. Credit: NASA/ESA After Galaxy Zoo kicked off, scientists began When van Arkel noticed this unusual greenish object approaching Lintott at conferences asking for help. “They and posted an image of it on the Galaxy Zoo forum, not even realized that we’d found a great way to sort a lot of data fast.” the experts knew what it was.2 They named it “Voorwerp,” Zooniverse now offers several citizen science Dutch for “object.” projects, including three more using NASA data. Moon Zoo Another group of Zooites found green “peas” in theirs, volunteers use data from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter to count craters, helping write the history of the moon. Milky Way project participants scour infrared images gath- ered in two NASA Spitzer Space Tele- scope surveys of the Milky Way’s inner regions. They help astronomers catalogue intriguing features, map our galaxy, and plan future research. Zooniverse’s Planet Hunters are helping NASA’s Kepler telescope find stars likely to host planets. “I’d love to confirm one of their finds and be able to send an email to someone saying, ‘You’ve found a planet!’ “ Now, please excuse this writer. These “green peas” are actually galaxies. Credit: Carolin Cardamone and Sloan Digital Sky Survey She has planet hunting to do. (continued on next page) -16- McDonald Observatory Dodges Wildfire

NEWS BLOG by Kelly Beatty Posted April 22, 2011

Davis, which is about 10 miles to the observatory’s southeast.

Last week, when the fire had crept to within about a mile of Mount Locke, firefighters used a control burn on a nearby peak to consume tinder- dry vegetation that would otherwise have provided the raging flames with a pathway to the observa- Photo by Frank Cianciolo / McDonald Observatory tory. Most of McDonald’s 80-person staff and their families evacuated. One of the few who stayed was With the dome of McDonald Observatory’s Hobby-Eberly Tele- senior program coordinator Frank Cianciolo, who took scope at lower right, this view taken on April 17, 2011, shows fire the dramatic image seen here and several others. raging on nearby Black Mountain. The bright lines to the dome’s upper left are the advancing Rock House Fire (at right) and a The National Forest Service reports that the control burn (at left) set by firefighters. fire is now 75% contained and, fortunately, the There’s a vastness to West Texas that maps observatory is out of danger. Its visitor center just can’t convey. You can travel the region’s Sun- reopened on Wednesday. Also in the clear is the bleached roads for hours and not encounter a single historic Prude Ranch, which will host the 32nd Starbucks or Whataburger. This remoteness, coupled annual Texas Star Party from May 29th to June 5th. with abundant clear, dry night skies, long ago drew No fires have been reported on the sprawling ranch, astronomers from the University of Texas to the and in fact no burned land is visible in any direction town of Fort Davis and especially to the command- from meeting site. “Of course, with the continued ing view from atop nearby Mount Locke, 6,790 feet dry conditions this may change,” notes TSP staffer (2,070 m) above sea level. Dave Clark. “But burned areas tend not to reburn so we may be relatively safe from any new large wild- But for the past two weeks, McDonald fire.” Observatory’s mountaintop perch has been under siege, as a catastrophic inferno dubbed the Rock McDonald Observatory hosts four major House Fire has decimated more than 300 square instruments. Its first, the 2.1-m (82-inch) Otto miles of the surrounding countryside. Dozens of Struve Telescope, was erected in 1939. The most homes and businesses have been destroyed in Fort recent addition, the enormous Hobby-Eberly Tele- scope, boasts a 30-foot (9.2-m) aperture. Specializ- Citizen Scientists (continued from preceeding page) ing in spectroscopic work, the HET saw first light in For More Information: 1996. To learn more about Zooniverse, visit http:// www.zooniverse.org/ or see details in this month’s “Website The Rock House Fire brought back vivid of the Month” on page 7 of this issue of FOCUS. memories of another major conflagration in 2010 Footnotes: that threatened — but ultimately spared — Mount Wilson Observatory. However, historic Mount Stromlo (1) In earlier phases of the project, volunteers classified images from other telescopes such as the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Observatory wasn’t as fortunate: in 2003 a fero- (2) Researchers took follow-up telescope observations of the cious brushfire overran the compound near “Voorwerp.”According to an American Astronomical Society press Canberra, Australia, and destroyed six of its tele- release: “One of the strangest space objects ever seen is being scopes. scrutinized by the penetrating vision of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. A mysterious, glowing green blob of gas is floating in space near a spiral galaxy. Hubble uncovered delicate filaments of gas and a pocket of young star clusters in the giant object, which is the size of the Milky Way. The Hubble revelations are the latest finds in an ongoing probe of Hanny’s Voorwerp …In the sharpest view yet of Hanny’s Voorwerp, Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 and Advanced Camera for Surveys have uncovered star birth in a region of the green object that faces the spiral galaxy IC 2497 — a bright, energetic object that is powered by a black hole.” (3) Zooniverse blog comments are another indication of the volunteers’ sometimes playful approach: “When I’m on @galaxyzoo I like to pretend I’m a vengeful deity, discarding galaxies ... Is this wrong?” -17- DAS CONTACTS Please call any of us with your concerns! Observatory: Tom Sidowski -- 239-1884 or [email protected] Board members: also, Star Parties Officers Library Glenn Bentley -- 610-869-0706 President: Bill Hanagan -- 239-0949 or [email protected] Board Members at Large also, ATM and Astronomical Photography David Swartout -- 836-4618 or [email protected] Special Interest Group, By-Laws, programs also, Awards Committee Chair Vice-President: John Case -- 836-4888 or [email protected] Dave Groski -- [email protected] Secretary: Lynn King -- 764-8816 or [email protected] Other Chairs: also, Messier Club Sarah Baird - 561- 0810 or [email protected] Treasurer: William McKibben -- [email protected] Youth Coordinator, Elections Chair Sky & Telescope & Astronomy magazine issues Rene Van Caneghem -- 410-392-3718 Standing Chairs Archivist Publications: Joe Neuberger -- 655-2142 [email protected] Sheila Vincent --322-4739 also, FOCUS contributions/submissions Ad-hoc star parties Education: Bob Karcha -- 999-9509 Observing: Greg Lee -- 762-5358 or [email protected] MCAO Web Page: www.MountCuba.org also, What’s Up? DAS Web Page: www.DelAstro.org

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The Last Word. . . The Warm Weather is HERE— and HOPEFULLY the Weather will cooperate for MORE Astro-Viewing...

And with that it’s good to keep in mind that Outreach is something that all of us can do EACH and EVERY time we are at the telescope. WE are Astronomy’s Best Ambassadors — So the next time you’ve got FOCUS editor the equipment out on those balmy Spring and Summer evenings, take a look Joe Neuberger around for that neighborhood youngster and give them a peek at the Universe. It’s our best bet for growing the Astronomers of tomorrow!