EXOPLANET NEWS an ASTRONOMICAL VOYAGE to CHILE GRAVITATIONAL LENSES Contents 2020 Calendar
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Published by the Astronomical League Vol. 72, No. 1 December 2019 EXOPLANET NEWS AN ASTRONOMICAL VOYAGE TO CHILE GRAVITATIONAL LENSES Amateur Shrine to the Stars Fast Facts Stellafane t, a quiet revolution Get Off the Beaten Path A century ago in Springfield, Vermon in astronomy took place. Led by Russell W. Porter, a STELLAFANE IS BORN ered a class in small group of hobbyists refined and promoted amateur In 1920, Russell Porter (above left) off n Springfield, telescope making into a worldwide phenomenon. Those telescope making to a group of 16 peopleer was idetermined Vermont. Primarily self-taught, Port first Springfield Telescope Makers held a convention arned so others could build their STELLAFANE CONVENTION to share what he had le n commercial ones were rare at their hilltop clubhouse, Stellafane (“Shrine to the zed by: Springfield Telescope own telescopes at a time whe Organi rticipants ground their own Stars”). The annual Stellafane convention Makers and prohibitively expensive. Pa constructed mounts. The has become the oldest amateur Location: Breezy Hill, Springfield, VT mirrors, built their tubes, and 1926 to meet, eventually becoming First Convention: July 3-4, group grew and continued astronomy gathering 1926: ~ 30; 2019: ~900 elescope Makers. They built a clubhouse in the world. Attendance: the Springfield T donated by Porter, Contents cope Competition: ot of land Amateur Teles on Breezy Hill on a small pl . Today, optical and n (above right) in 1926 ~20 awards in various and held their first conventio but eur telescope making, ic2020al categories celebrates amat mechan Stellafane still onomy is Website: Stellafane.org anyone with an interest in telescopes and astr August 13-16 2020 Convention Date: encouraged to attend. Calendar Join a Astronomy Tour vv A DIFFERENT KIND OF ATM Stellafane After nearly a century, the heart and soul of escope makers (ATMs) is still the creativity and skill of amateur tel nd mechanical handiwork and compete each . who display their optical a 4 mpling of the variety of THE ONLY THING CONSTANT... ident than on the year for awards in numerous categories. Here is a sa dmired by throngs of Stellafaners. President’s Corner Nowhere are Stellafane’s traditions more pink ev clubhouse and the telescopes built by innovative ATMs and a pmann medial refractor; summit of Breezy Hill, where the iconic ed, for close Clockwise from top right: a 6-inch f/12-inch Schu f/15 Alvan Clark refractor replica; Porter Turret Telescope have stood, nearly unchangtage point a 12.5-inch f/4.5 Newtonian-Dobsonian; a 6 . These views, taken from the same van f/4.7 Newtonian-Dobsonian shaped like to a century 13), illustrate a fully-machined Catadioptric; a 10-inch nch f/12 but separated in time by six decades (1954 and 20 a Tardis; a 12.5-inch f/2.8 Newtonian Dobsonian; an 8-i the timeless appeal of amateur telescope making. Newtonian on a hybrid equatorial mount. 4 . From the New Editor September 2020 S M T W T F S In 1989, the original 1 2 3 4 5 July 2020 11 12 Stellafane site at 6 7 8 9 10 ...IS CHANGE 17 18 19 W T F S 13 14 15 16 S M T the summit of Breezy 24 25 26 1 2 3 4 20 21 22 23 Stellafane is linked to the past, but not 11 28 29 30 5 6 7 8 9 10 Hill was designated 27 18 chained to it. In the 1980s, 40 acres 12 13 14 15 16 17 afane East,” a 25 a National Historic were purchased for “Stell 19 20 21 22 23 24 August 2020 African Stargazing Safari 26 27 28 29 30 31 Landmark. short walk from the clubhouse. There, Saturday the McGregor observatory (above left) Thursday Friday . housing a 13” Schupmann refractor, Wednesday Jupiter 1.5° north of Moon 5 Tuesday n 2006, a 10” ide was dedicated in 1995. I Sunday Monday August Sky Gu 1 Sun’s glare most of this month. • Mercury is lost in the Dues Notice Cassegrain telescope was added to in the southeastern sky as • Jupiter and Saturn can be seen midnight. The sible in the south around nd the Breuning Observatory there (above night falls, and are vi st/2 . y n the evening of the 1 middle). In 2016, the Simoni Observator Moon is below Jupiter o h at and is visible high in the sout • Mars rises around midnight th. and its spectrohelioscope were dedicated se by on the morning of the 9 dawn. The Moon is clo itchell born tern sky before sunrise. Look 1818: Maria M near the clubhouse (above right). the eas 1967: Lunar Orbiter V launched • Venus is easy to see in on the morning duction ends 1968: Saturn V pro test for a beautiful pairing with a crescent Moon 1973: First X-24B lifting body glide July 17–23, 2020 Join astronomer Stephen James of the 15th, just to the left of the bright stars of Orion. RUSSELL W. PORTER Neptune 4° north of Moon 8 6 7 Born in Full Moon 11:59 AM ET 5 Springfield, Mercury 7° south of Pollux 4 Pluto 1.1° north of Moon 3 Vermont in Saturn 2° north of Moon 2 . 1877, Russell 5 W. Porter was enus 2 launched an artist, 1978: Pioneer-V aunched 1989: Hipparcos observatory l k 2 launched; first full-day launched umbia launched architect, 1961: Vosto Titov 1959: Explorer 6 1989: STS-28 Col RTMC Astro Expo Closes Shop human space mission; Gherman 1969: Zond 7 launched 2001: Genesis spacecraft launched ration engineer, polar 1930: Neil Armstrong born eep in space Viking 1 orbiter ceases ope Endeavour launched es sixth astronaut test first person to sl oratory rover 1980: ched 2007: STS-118 explorer, 1967: NASA announc 1966: Final M2-F1 glide 2012: Mars Science Lab 1997: STS-85 Discovery laun ed class 1969: Mariner 7 flies by Mars Curiosity lands on Mars and amateur 2004: MESSENGER spacecraft launch 4: First Ariane 3 launched Juno spacecraft launched Venus 4° south of Moon O’Meara in wildlife-rich Botswana ar module Falcon 198 nder launched 2011: nary mer. 1971: Apollo 15 lun to Mercury 2007: Phoenix Mars La Uranus statio astrono first televised lunar liftoff e shuttle repair Perseid meteor shower 15 leaves Moon in 2005: First in-flight spac t elongation In 1923, he STS-43 Atlantis launched Venus greates 14 1991: t Qtr Moon 12:45 PM ET W) oon Las (46° 13 founded the Uranus 4° north of M Perseid meteor shower 12 Springfield Mars 0.8° north of Moon 11 Moon at apogee 10 Telescope Makers, the first club 9 dedicated to mateura telescope lped popularize the on making, and he Hall discovers Deimos, mo hobby worldwide. In the 1930s, 1877: Asaph of Mars ed Porter played an instrumental role 1960: Echo 1 satellite launch 1962: Vostok 4 launched e optical and mechanical ed in th 1977: HEAO-1 launch e test pe Shuttle Enterprise’s first glid design of the 200” Hale Telesco ule becomes first 1977: ched 1960: Discoverer 13 caps 2005: Mars Recon. Orbiter laun ar. Porter died in nar Orbiter I launched ered from orbit lar Probe launched on Mount Palom 1966: Lu und Venus object recov 2018: Parker So 0: Magellan enters orbit aro ostok 3 launched Moon at perigee . Pasadena, California in 1949. SIV-B stage 199 launched 1962: V for evening stargazing and daytime st static test of Discovery 22 5 Fir STS-105 1965: 2001: launched 21 1976: Luna 24 41 PM ET ction New Moon 10: 20 New AL Secretary Mercury in super ior conjun 18 19 16 17 r a X-15 sets world altitude record fo The Year in clipse leads to discovery 1963: eet) 1868: Total solar e winged craft (354,000 f of helium First Redstone rocket launched ini V launched turns soil samples from vers Phobos, moon orn 1953: 1965: Gem 1976: Luna 24 re 1877: Asaph Hall disco 1646: John Flamsteed b 1960: Sputnik 5 launched 1972: OAO-3 launched Moon Humason born ed rocket launched of Mars first 1891: Milton 1975: Viking 1 launch 2002: First Atlas V Discoverer XIV launched; unched; Svetlana ger 2 launched d 1960: tellite 1982: Soyuz T-7 la space 1977: Voya f Moon 1966: Pioneer 7 launche successful U.S. photo recon sa Savitskaya is second woman in Pluto 1.2° north o hed ht es at opposition f Moon glide 1970: Venera 7 launc 1993: First DC-X flig Cer Saturn 2° north o g body makes first ger 1 is 100 AU from Earth Jupiter 1.4° north of Moon 29 1963: M2-F1 liftin y a C-47 2006: Voya safari drives at three luxury field flight after being towed aloft b T 28 Save 25%First Qtr Moon 1:58 PM E 26 27 25 23 24 6 . 1966: Lunar Orbiter I returns first image of Earth from Moon el discovers PAGE 8 roves full- 1789: William Hersch nson app 1965: President Joh 1962: Mariner 2 launched Enceladus, moon of Saturn cale development of MOL In Space program o probe flies by asteroid Ida Call for Officer Nominations 31 s launched 1984: Teacher 1993: Galile Apollo-Saturn 202 Discovery launched 30 1966: ast Saturn announced 2009: STS-128 1981: Voyager 2 flies p 1985: STS-51I Discovery launched ger 2 flies past Neptune launched 1989: Voya 1983: STS-8 Challenger 2003: Spitzer Space Telescope launched ret Telescope, 1984: STS-41D Discovery camps. Only 16 spaces available! launched The optics of the odd-looking Porter-designed the rotating Turdome, allowing Year In Space Fun Fact: mounted on a boom outside $ located in front of the clubhouse, are ce inside the building, sheltered from the cold.