Sky Chart and Viewing Guide July 2020

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SKY CHART AND VIEWING GUIDE JULY 2020 r t o h N Planet positions shown for mid-month. The New England night sky as it appears at: July 1 at 11:00 p.m. EDT Double Cluster Double A July 16 at 10:00 p.m. N D R July 31 at 9:00 p.m. O M E D A R C THE PLANETS: Jupiter and Saturn are A O Andromeda Galaxy Andromeda S J S A I O M up until just before dawn. Mars rises near A P S E R I U A midnight, followed by Venus before daybreak. N o r t h S t a r P o l a r i s Mercury is low in morning twilight near the end of the month. G R E R E A P P O T I D July 20 and 27: The two outer planets are E S G I L Q C exactly opposite the Sun in the sky. They’ll B Y U G D be visible all night—Jupiter on the 20th and A Alcor and Mizar and Alcor e N n R e Saturn on the 27th. Now is the best time to U b E S see them in a telescope. P S U E M G M Jupiter Saturn V A E E e t g July 20 July 27 R S a a s U T s R e S I t A N W G L L Y Ring Nebula Cluster M13 E R A A S lt s a E u r ir T tu Ö rc B O A O A G Q R Looking east, 4:10 a.m. U For people enjoying the night sky I I L in remote locations, this month’s V A chart shows many fainter stars, S a ic A the Milky Way and several p T J Trifid Nebula S PHASES OF THE MOON U U Lagoon Nebula deep-sky objects visible in R P N IT binoculars or a small telescope. E R Full moon Last quarter New moon First quarter July 5 July 12 July 20 July 27 S Antares A G I T S HOW TO USE CHART: T A P I U R I S C O R Hold it overhead so “North” U S on chart points at true north. THE STARS: Objects near the center of the South This chart shows the main star chart are overhead; those near the edge groups and constellations visible Charles Hayden Planetarium: are low in the sky. This map is set for latitude near large cities. More stars appear on 42° north, but may be used in most of the US. moonless nights in less urban areas. 617-723-2500, mos.org.

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The Summer Sky by Dr
The Summer Sky by Dr. Whitney Shane, MIRA’s Charles Hitchcock Adams Fellow Fixed Stars Some years ago this column had occasion to discuss planetary nebulae, using the Ring Nebula in Lyra, everyone’s favorite, as an example. The simple morphology of the Ring Nebula makes it ideal for this purpose. It can be explained as a slightly ellipsoidal expanding shell, where the asym- metry is due to a slight anisotropy in the initial expansion velocity. Very few planetary nebulae have the simple structure of the Ring Nebula. In fact, there is a baffling variety in the shapes of these objects. Most of them, however, show symmetry about a plane, which we might identify with the equator of the central star. The expansion seems to take place mainly in the direction of the poles. This could be caused by the presence of a massive ring of material around the equator, which would direct the expansion toward the poles. This ring might have been left over from the giant phase of the star. This agreeable situa- tion came to an abrupt end when Hubble Space Telescope images of planetary nebulae, starting with the Cat’s Eye Nebula (NGC 6543), showed far more com- plex structures than had been previously sus- pected. This complexity, particularly its fine detail, could not be ex- plained by the model of an equatorial ring direct- ing a general expansion toward the poles. Attempts to explain these structures seem to fall into two categories. The presence of a companion star would provide both the dy- namical perturbations and the symmetry plane (in this case the orbital plane) required by the observa- tions.
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Planetary Nebula
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MESSIER 13 RA(2000) : 16H 41M 42S DEC(2000): +36° 27'
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Messier Objects
Messier Objects From the Stocker Astroscience Center at Florida International University Miami Florida The Messier Project Main contributors: • Daniel Puentes • Steven Revesz • Bobby Martinez Charles Messier • Gabriel Salazar • Riya Gandhi • Dr. James Webb – Director, Stocker Astroscience center • All images reduced and combined using MIRA image processing software. (Mirametrics) What are Messier Objects? • Messier objects are a list of astronomical sources compiled by Charles Messier, an 18th and early 19th century astronomer. He created a list of distracting objects to avoid while comet hunting. This list now contains over 110 objects, many of which are the most famous astronomical bodies known. The list contains planetary nebula, star clusters, and other galaxies. - Bobby Martinez The Telescope The telescope used to take these images is an Astronomical Consultants and Equipment (ACE) 24- inch (0.61-meter) Ritchey-Chretien reflecting telescope. It has a focal ratio of F6.2 and is supported on a structure independent of the building that houses it. It is equipped with a Finger Lakes 1kx1k CCD camera cooled to -30o C at the Cassegrain focus. It is equipped with dual filter wheels, the first containing UBVRI scientific filters and the second RGBL color filters. Messier 1 Found 6,500 light years away in the constellation of Taurus, the Crab Nebula (known as M1) is a supernova remnant. The original supernova that formed the crab nebula was observed by Chinese, Japanese and Arab astronomers in 1054 AD as an incredibly bright “Guest star” which was visible for over twenty-two months. The supernova that produced the Crab Nebula is thought to have been an evolved star roughly ten times more massive than the Sun.
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2020 Observatory Schedule
Astronomy Club of Akron 2020 Observatory Schedule 5031 Manchester Road, Akron, OH www.acaoh.org – The following events are open to the public. Please join us for stargazing and educational activities. Please arrive on time to avoid headlight distraction. – For notice of “impromptu star parties” not listed, send e-mail to [email protected] to request e-mail notification of unscheduled observing sessions. – Events will be cancelled if skies are cloudy. Always check website for star party status two hours before event. – This is an outdoor activity in an unheated environment. Nighttime temperatures drop rapidly, even during summer. A general rule of thumb is to dress for 15 degrees cooler than predicted nighttime low temperature. – Please respect those who set up their telescopes. Children should be supervised at all times. The observatory grounds are no place for toys or tomfoolery. – Please, No Smoking on observatory grounds. Smoke reacts with optical surfaces, damaging optical coatings. – Please, no use of cell phones or tablets in observatory (to preserve night vision). April 18 – 8:15pm July 18 – 9:00pm Venus is well placed for observing early, and then we’ll view Come out to view open cluster NGC6633, Wild Duck Ghost of Jupiter and the beautiful star cluster M37 through Cluster, Ring Nebula, M26 Star Cloud, and Swan Nebula the 16” observatory telescope and view Beehive Cluster using an OIII filter. through the 100mm wide field telescope. July 25 – 9:00pm April 25 – 8:30pm We’ll be observing a 5-day old Moon. This is a great Special Event: Messier Marathon – stay all night to observe opportunity to see crater central peaks lit up by the grazing all 110 Messier objects with ACA members.
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Deep-Sky Objects - Autumn Collection an Addition To: Explore the Universe Observing Certificate Third Edition RASC NW Cons Object Mag
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Astronomy in the Park 2014 Schedule
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Carbon Fiber 600 Mm Telescope W/ AZ Mount Instruction Manual
+ AGES 10 CF600 Carbon Fiber 600 mm Telescope w/ AZ Mount Instruction Manual ! WARNING: ! WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD — Small parts. SUN HAZARD — Never look directly Not for children under 3 years. at the sun with this device. 1 WARNING: Never attempt to observe the sun with this telescope. Make sure children do not attempt to observe the sun with the telescope. Observing the sun directly, even for a short time, may cause blindness. Packing materials, like plastic bags, should be kept out of the reach of children. Risk to your child! Tips on cleaning Never look through this device directly at or near the sun. There Clean the lens (objective and eyepiece) only with a soft, is a risk of BLINDING YOURSELF! lint-free cloth, like a microfiber cloth. Do not use excessive pressure - this may scratch the lens. To clean a very dirty lens, dampen the cleaning cloth with Children should only use this device under supervision. Keep eyeglass cleaning solution, and wipe the lens gently. packaging materials, like plastic bags and rubber bands, out of the reach of children, as they pose a choking hazard. Protect the device against dirt and dust. Leave it to dry properly after use at room temperature. Then put the dust caps on and Fire and burn risk! store the device in a suitable location. Never subject the device, especially the lenses, to direct sunlight. Light ray concentration can cause fires and/or burns. Respect privacy! This device is meant for private use. Respect others‘ privacy. Risk of material damage! Do not use the device to look into other people‘s homes, or Never take the device apart.
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The Messier Catalog
The Messier Catalog Messier 1 Messier 2 Messier 3 Messier 4 Messier 5 Crab Nebula globular cluster globular cluster globular cluster globular cluster Messier 6 Messier 7 Messier 8 Messier 9 Messier 10 open cluster open cluster Lagoon Nebula globular cluster globular cluster Butterfly Cluster Ptolemy's Cluster Messier 11 Messier 12 Messier 13 Messier 14 Messier 15 Wild Duck Cluster globular cluster Hercules glob luster globular cluster globular cluster Messier 16 Messier 17 Messier 18 Messier 19 Messier 20 Eagle Nebula The Omega, Swan, open cluster globular cluster Trifid Nebula or Horseshoe Nebula Messier 21 Messier 22 Messier 23 Messier 24 Messier 25 open cluster globular cluster open cluster Milky Way Patch open cluster Messier 26 Messier 27 Messier 28 Messier 29 Messier 30 open cluster Dumbbell Nebula globular cluster open cluster globular cluster Messier 31 Messier 32 Messier 33 Messier 34 Messier 35 Andromeda dwarf Andromeda Galaxy Triangulum Galaxy open cluster open cluster elliptical galaxy Messier 36 Messier 37 Messier 38 Messier 39 Messier 40 open cluster open cluster open cluster open cluster double star Winecke 4 Messier 41 Messier 42/43 Messier 44 Messier 45 Messier 46 open cluster Orion Nebula Praesepe Pleiades open cluster Beehive Cluster Suburu Messier 47 Messier 48 Messier 49 Messier 50 Messier 51 open cluster open cluster elliptical galaxy open cluster Whirlpool Galaxy Messier 52 Messier 53 Messier 54 Messier 55 Messier 56 open cluster globular cluster globular cluster globular cluster globular cluster Messier 57 Messier
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Binocular Observing Olympics Stellafane 2018
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Properties of Planetary Nebula
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Just What Are Those Sky Chart "M" and "NGC" Numbers? by Barry D
Just what are those Sky Chart "M" and "NGC" Numbers? By Barry D. Malpas – Special to the Williams-Grand Canyon News – 2014 November One of the pastimes for some early sky observers was to locate new comets. Charles Messier (1730-1817) was a French comet hunter during the late 1700s, and discovered 13 new comets between 1760 and 1785. His interest in astronomy, and comets in particular, was influenced by seeing the great comet of 1744, and the comet of 1759 (of which Edmond Halley had believed the comets of 1531, 1607, and 1682 were the same and had predicted the comet’s 1759 apparition which is now known as Halley's Comet.) At this time telescopes were relatively small. The understanding of supernovae, or galaxies, was not yet in the current knowledge, as such objects only appeared as blurry smudges that did not move across the sky. In order not to waste time and become frustrated with viewing fuzzy objects that resembled, but were not, comets, Messier compiled a list of 110 of these celestial blurs which we now refer to as Messier, or "M Objects." The Messier Catalog has become a very popular list of "Deep Sky Objects" among amateur astronomers around the world because it consists of most of the galaxies, nebulae and star clusters easily observable with binoculars or small telescopes in the northern skies. Now, however, the objects in the list are the source of interest, as opposed to the reason the compilation was originally intended by Messier. At large astronomical get-togethers, known as "star parties", there is often a "Messier Marathon" competition to view the most Messier Objects during one observing night.
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