San Jose Astronomical Association Membership Form
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Astronomy tour more about telescope optics Paul Kohlmiller and observatory management than the science of as- On May 3-10, 2003, my wife and I tronomy. participated in Sky & Telescope We did a tour of Kitt magazine’s astronomy tour called Peak, located about 50 miles Arizona Deep Skies and Deserts. southwest of Tucson. Kitt The tour group consisted of about Peak is the largest observa- 40 people. The astronomy expertise tory in the world in terms of level of the group covered a wide area. the number of telescopes at Some did not own a scope and had one location. We saw the never been to a star party. Others were The author reflected in a 10-meter array of mirrors used solar telescope and then quite advanced amateurs with one for detecting gamma ray bursts. checked out some other participant anxiously waiting delivery of scopes. We had a light his 14” LX200 GPS. We had a tour not much easier than they are at home. supper in the observatory dining room guide who had lived almost his entire The weather either curtailed or and then they gave us a talk in the life in Arizona. Also, Stuart Goldman of cancelled 4 of the 6 viewing sessions. Sky & Telescope led many of the The result is that the trip felt like it was Continued on next page astronomical events. We were bussed to virtually every event in a Greyhound- SJAA activities calendar sized bus. Most of the sky-gazing events (at Jim Van Nuland least 5 out of 6) were conducted while June July the moon was a factor so it is difficult 6 Houge Park star party. Sunset 5 ATM class. Houge Park, 7:30 to say how much darker the skies are 8:25 p.m., 43% Moon sets 1:39 p.m. in Arizona. a.m. Star party hours 9:30 p.m. to 10 ATM class. Houge Park, 7:30 One test for transparency is the midnight p.m. ability to see all the stars in Ursa 7 ATM class. Houge Park, 7:30 p.m. 12 General meeting, Houge Park. Minor. The dimmest star in the bowl of 14 General meeting, Houge Park. 8:00 p.m. speaker to be an- the little dipper could barely be de- 8:00 p.m. Dr. Scott Sandford The nounced tected using averted vision. My test is Stardust mission: To return a 18 Astronomy class. Houge Park, being able to see Kappa and Lambda sample from a comet 7:30 p.m. subject to be an- Leonis without averted vision which I 19 ATM class. Houge Park, 7:30 p.m. nounced can just barely do from my back yard in 20 Astronomy class. Houge Park, 18 Houge Park star party. Sunset Gilroy when those stars are close to 7:30 p.m., subject to be an- 8:26 p.m., 70% Moon rises 11:49 the zenith. These stars were visible but nounced p.m. Star party hours 9:30 p.m. 20 Houge Park star party. Sunset to midnight 8:31 p.m., 55% Moon rises 1:24 19 Deep sky weekend. Sunset 8:26 a.m. Star party hours 9:30 p.m. to p.m., 68% Moon rises 0:13 a.m. midnight 25-26 SJAA Yosemite star party 21 Deep sky weekend. Sunset 8:31 26 Deep sky weekend. Sunset 8:21 p.m., 45% Moon rises 1:16 a.m. p.m., 4% Moon rises 4:16 a.m. 28 Deep sky weekend. Sunset 8:32 p.m., 0% Moon rises 5:31 a.m. The Board of Directors meet at 6:30 25-30 Wednesday - Monday p.m. preceding each general meeting. Shingletown star party All are welcome. 24 Hour News and Information Hotline: (408) 559-1221 Mary Kohlmiller poses on the rim of the Grand Canyon. http://www.sjaa.net Copyright © 2003 San Jose Astronomical Association, Inc. Volume 14 Number 6 Official Publication of the San Jose Astronomical Association, June 2003 Astronomy tour partial rainbow rising out of the canyon. Out there Continued from previous page You can walk into observatory dome after dome and pretty soon they Springtime galaxies, visitor center. Besides discussing all look alike. At Lowell Observatory’s doubles and globulars distances between stars and galaxies, Anderson Mesa site we saw something Mark Wagner they also handed out a planisphere quite different. The difference was the (that wheel star chart that you know interferometer located there. This Last month I wrote “Between the and love) and a pair of high quality consists of a Y-shaped array of tubes serpents” which took us from Draco to binoculars to each participant. They that gather light and precisely merge Hydra. This month’s 2-hour-wide also gave each of us a red light flash- the light from up to 6 different locations observing window is between R.A. light that we got to keep. Then we split along the array. The light hits 24 mirrors 15:30 and 17:30, and again begins with into two groups -– each going to one of along the way following paths whose galaxies in Draco, but finishes with the two scopes that still use eye- total distance must be accurate to 10 globular clusters in the arms of pieces. Our group used a 16-inch microns (soon to be 1 micron). The Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer. We’ll Meade LX 200. This was my first time result is the resolving power of a scope throw in some nice double stars along viewing the star cluster Omega that has a diameter the size of the the way as well. Centauri. First we found this object array (more than 400 meters) although NGC 5982 and NGC 5985 are two using binoculars. Then the view through the limiting magnitude is much smaller. bright galaxies that share one field of the scope filled up the entire field of The last astronomical event of this view, located conveniently between the view. This was also the first time I tour was a lecture by Dr. Jeff Hester of two bright stars that bend the serpent viewed M51 through a scope where the Arizona State University. Let me set the around the bowl of the Little Dipper. The two galaxies looked like they were in scene. We are on the balcony level of a stars are mag 3.3 Edasich and mag 4.0 contact with each other. sports bar in Phoenix. The bar is owned Theta Draconis. Point your scope about We were deciding whether our by rock and roller Alice Cooper so it’s 1/3rd the way from Edasich toward astronomical vacation should be at one called Cooper’s Town. All waitresses Theta, and nudge it north. Richard of those astronomical B&B’s or this wear Cooper-inspired eye makeup. The Navarrete’s notes say “These were all tour. The clincher was the opportunity speaker’s Powerpoint slides are in a line with 5985 the largest and to visit renowned astronomer David projected onto a sheet while three other brightest in the group. A very interesting Levy (of comet Shoemaker-Levy fame) sheets attempt to cover the window. field!” A third dimmer galaxy rounds out at his house and check out his obser- But Hester is in fine form regardless this famous trio ... one spiral, one vatory. David has about 10 scopes in and his talk, while basic, gave an elliptical and an edge-on ... set in a his observatory. We used 2 of the impressive structure for looking at the sweep of stars that parallel the galaxies scopes to view various items: Jupiter, universe — from the Big Bang to star from southeast to northwest. Beautiful M51, Albireo, M57 (Ring Nebula) and formation. If you haven’t heard of Dr. sight. others. David and Wendee Levy were Hester, you may have seen the Hubble For a side trip follow the two prior very gracious hosts. David also pointed picture called Pillars of Creation — an locator stars toward Draco’s head. out some interesting astronomical image credited to him and his team. They’ll point toward the double star Nu details such as the variability of Delta — Paul Kohlmiller, [email protected] Draconis, the northwestern star and Scorpii and the full extent of the Hydra dimmest of the four comprising Draco’s constellation. head. The double Nu is a nice sight, There are no observato- but while here, move four degrees west ries (that I know of) at the to mag 5 Mu Draconis, another nice Grand Canyon. However it double. My own observation was a was fun to watch the shad- “gold pair that is very tight with a clean ows move up the cliffs during split at 100x. The components are sunset. At 2 a.m., a hardy equal brightness and lay N/S.” subset (no more than 10) set Continue in the same direction up a couple of scopes and four and one half degrees to another tried to do some viewing. fine double star, 16 and 17 Draconis. I After about an hour in very wrote “mag 5.6 visible naked eye. Nice cold and windy conditions, white pair with 16 Draconis just 7' N. half of the group gave up Pair is tight at about 1.5” with brighter which apparently signaled star to the W.” the clouds to part. Before the A pair of 6.5 meter mirrors are being produced. One NGC 6229 is a surprise in Her- sunset there was a short mirror is nearly completed. The closer mirror is actually cules.