The Comet's Tale
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Naming the Extrasolar Planets
Naming the extrasolar planets W. Lyra Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, K¨onigstuhl 17, 69177, Heidelberg, Germany [email protected] Abstract and OGLE-TR-182 b, which does not help educators convey the message that these planets are quite similar to Jupiter. Extrasolar planets are not named and are referred to only In stark contrast, the sentence“planet Apollo is a gas giant by their assigned scientific designation. The reason given like Jupiter” is heavily - yet invisibly - coated with Coper- by the IAU to not name the planets is that it is consid- nicanism. ered impractical as planets are expected to be common. I One reason given by the IAU for not considering naming advance some reasons as to why this logic is flawed, and sug- the extrasolar planets is that it is a task deemed impractical. gest names for the 403 extrasolar planet candidates known One source is quoted as having said “if planets are found to as of Oct 2009. The names follow a scheme of association occur very frequently in the Universe, a system of individual with the constellation that the host star pertains to, and names for planets might well rapidly be found equally im- therefore are mostly drawn from Roman-Greek mythology. practicable as it is for stars, as planet discoveries progress.” Other mythologies may also be used given that a suitable 1. This leads to a second argument. It is indeed impractical association is established. to name all stars. But some stars are named nonetheless. In fact, all other classes of astronomical bodies are named. -
March 21–25, 2016
FORTY-SEVENTH LUNAR AND PLANETARY SCIENCE CONFERENCE PROGRAM OF TECHNICAL SESSIONS MARCH 21–25, 2016 The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center The Woodlands, Texas INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT Universities Space Research Association Lunar and Planetary Institute National Aeronautics and Space Administration CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS Stephen Mackwell, Lunar and Planetary Institute Eileen Stansbery, NASA Johnson Space Center PROGRAM COMMITTEE CHAIRS David Draper, NASA Johnson Space Center Walter Kiefer, Lunar and Planetary Institute PROGRAM COMMITTEE P. Doug Archer, NASA Johnson Space Center Nicolas LeCorvec, Lunar and Planetary Institute Katherine Bermingham, University of Maryland Yo Matsubara, Smithsonian Institute Janice Bishop, SETI and NASA Ames Research Center Francis McCubbin, NASA Johnson Space Center Jeremy Boyce, University of California, Los Angeles Andrew Needham, Carnegie Institution of Washington Lisa Danielson, NASA Johnson Space Center Lan-Anh Nguyen, NASA Johnson Space Center Deepak Dhingra, University of Idaho Paul Niles, NASA Johnson Space Center Stephen Elardo, Carnegie Institution of Washington Dorothy Oehler, NASA Johnson Space Center Marc Fries, NASA Johnson Space Center D. Alex Patthoff, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Cyrena Goodrich, Lunar and Planetary Institute Elizabeth Rampe, Aerodyne Industries, Jacobs JETS at John Gruener, NASA Johnson Space Center NASA Johnson Space Center Justin Hagerty, U.S. Geological Survey Carol Raymond, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Lindsay Hays, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Paul Schenk, -
Ice& Stone 2020
Ice & Stone 2020 WEEK 51: DECEMBER 13-19 Presented by The Earthrise Institute # 51 Authored by Alan Hale COMET OF THE WEEK: The Great Comet of 1680 Perihelion: 1680 December 18.49, q = 0.006 AU The Great Comet of 1680 over Rotterdam in The Netherlands, during late December 1680 as painted by the Dutch artist Lieve Verschuier. This particular comet was undoubtedly one of the brightest comets of the 17th Century, but it is also one of the most important comets in history from a scientific perspective, and perhaps even from the perspective of overall human history. While there were certainly plenty of superstitions attached to the comet’s appearance, the scientific investigations made of it were among the beginnings of the era in European history we now call The Enlightenment, and indeed, in a sense the Great Comet of 1680 can perhaps be considered as one of the sparks of that era. The significance began with the comet’s discovery, which was made on the morning of November 14, 1680, by a German astronomer residing in Coburg, Gottfried Kirch – the first comet ever to be discovered by means of a telescope. It was already around 4th magnitude at that time, and located near the star Regulus in the constellation Leo; from that point it traveled eastward and brightened rapidly, being closest to Earth (0.42 AU) on November 30. By that time it was a conspicuous naked-eye object with a tail 20 to 30 degrees long, and it remained visible for another week before disappearing into morning twilight. -
Orbital Stability Zones About Asteroids
ICARUS 92, 118-131 (1991) Orbital Stability Zones about Asteroids DOUGLAS P. HAMILTON AND JOSEPH A. BURNS Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14853-6801 Received October 5, 1990; revised March 1, 1991 exploration program should be remedied when the Galileo We have numerically investigated a three-body problem con- spacecraft, launched in October 1989, encounters the as- sisting of the Sun, an asteroid, and an infinitesimal particle initially teroid 951 Gaspra on October 29, 1991. It is expected placed about the asteroid. We assume that the asteroid has the that the asteroid's surroundings will be almost devoid of following properties: a circular heliocentric orbit at R -- 2.55 AU, material and therefore benign since, in the analogous case an asteroid/Sun mass ratio of/~ -- 5 x 10-12, and a spherical of the satellites of the giant planets, significant debris has shape with radius R A -- 100 km; these values are close to those of never been detected. The analogy is imperfect, however, the minor planet 29 Amphitrite. In order to describe the zone in and so the possibility that interplanetary debris may be which circum-asteroidal debris could be stably trapped, we pay particular attention to the orbits of particles that are on the verge enhanced in the gravitational well of the asteroid must be of escape. We consider particles to be stable or trapped if they considered. If this is the case, the danger of collision with remain in the asteroid's vicinity for at least 5 asteroid orbits about orbiting debris may increase as the asteroid is approached. -
Prime Focus Page 2 August 2020 the Third Time Is Indeed the Charm
Highlights of the August Sky - - - 1st - - - DAWN: Venus and Zeta (ζ) Tauri are less than 2° apart. DUSK: A waxing gibbous Moon, Jupiter, and Saturn form a triangle. - - - 3rd - - - Full Moon 11:59 am EDT KAS - - - 9th - - - AM: Mars and a waning gibbous Moon are 1° apart. Perseid Potluck Picnic: Saturday, August 8 @ 6:00 pm - - - 11th - - - Last Quarter Moon ― Canceled Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic ― 12:45 pm EDT PM: Perseid Meteor Shower Member Observing: Saturday, August 8 @ 9:00 pm peaks. Jupiter, Saturn & The Summer Triangle • See Page 13 for Details th - - - 13 - - - AM: A waning crescent Moon and Aldebaran are Training Session: August 14, 21 & 28 @ 8:00 pm less than 4° apart. Owl Observatory • See Page 14 for Details and to Register th - - - 15 - - - DAWN: A slender waning crescent Moon is 3.5° to the Member Observing: Saturday, August 22 @ 9:00 pm upper le of Venus. Jupiter, Saturn & Summer Nebulae • See Page 13 for Details - - - 18th - - - New Moon 10:42 pm EDT - - - 22nd - - - Inside the Newsletter. DUSK: A waxing crescent Moon is over 5° to Spica’s upper right. Board Meeng Minutes..................... p. 2 - - - 25th - - - Observaons of NEOWISE................. p. 3 First Quarter Moon 1:58 pm EDT Member NEOWISE Images................ p. 4 DUSK: The Moon is 6° to the KAS Member Observatories...............p. 7 upper right of Antares. Stellar Walkabout.............................. p. 8 th - - - 27 - - - NASA Night Sky Notes........................ p. 10 DUSK: The Moon, Jupiter, and Saturn form a line. Membership of the KAS..................... p. 11 - - - 28th - - - August Night Sky................................ p. 12 DUSK: A gibbous Moon and Jupiter are separated by 2°. -
The Space Investigations Documentation System (SIDS) Report
The Space Investigations Documentation System (SIDS) Report DECEMBER 1974 NATIONAL SPACE SCIENCE DATA CENTER NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION * GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER, GREENBELT, MD. NSSDC 74-16 The Space Investigations Documentation System (SIDS) Report December 1974 FOREWORD The Space Investigations Documentation System (SIDS) report is prepared by the National Space Science Data Center (NSSDC) at Goddard Space Flight Center for the Office of Space Science (OSS) at NASA Headquarters. The report will serve as a users guide for OSS manage- ment. In addition it is intended to provide the professional community with information about OSS current and planned investigative activity in a broad range of scientific disciplines. The report provides brief descriptions for these investigations, as well as the approximate time periods when each investigation operates and collects data. The SIDS report replaces the Space Science and Applications Program document (NHB 8030.2) from April 1960 to August 1968. Information on the supporting research and technology (SRT) and sounding rocket (SR) programs contained in that predecessor report has been deleted from SIDS, but it is available from the Office' of the Associate Administrator for Space Science. The SIDS report differs from the Report on Active and Planned Spacecraft and Experiments, edited by Julius Brecht and published by NSSDC in January 1974, in that it includes experiments and spacecraft of direct concern to OSS. At the spacecraft level, the report includes names of the program scientist and program manager. At the experiment level, the report shows whether an experiment was approved or approved conditionally, specifies the responsible OSS Division, and lists the SIDS investigation discipline codes. -
The Minor Planet Bulletin
THE MINOR PLANET BULLETIN OF THE MINOR PLANETS SECTION OF THE BULLETIN ASSOCIATION OF LUNAR AND PLANETARY OBSERVERS VOLUME 35, NUMBER 3, A.D. 2008 JULY-SEPTEMBER 95. ASTEROID LIGHTCURVE ANALYSIS AT SCT/ST-9E, or 0.35m SCT/STL-1001E. Depending on the THE PALMER DIVIDE OBSERVATORY: binning used, the scale for the images ranged from 1.2-2.5 DECEMBER 2007 – MARCH 2008 arcseconds/pixel. Exposure times were 90–240 s. Most observations were made with no filter. On occasion, e.g., when a Brian D. Warner nearly full moon was present, an R filter was used to decrease the Palmer Divide Observatory/Space Science Institute sky background noise. Guiding was used in almost all cases. 17995 Bakers Farm Rd., Colorado Springs, CO 80908 [email protected] All images were measured using MPO Canopus, which employs differential aperture photometry to determine the values used for (Received: 6 March) analysis. Period analysis was also done using MPO Canopus, which incorporates the Fourier analysis algorithm developed by Harris (1989). Lightcurves for 17 asteroids were obtained at the Palmer Divide Observatory from December 2007 to early The results are summarized in the table below, as are individual March 2008: 793 Arizona, 1092 Lilium, 2093 plots. The data and curves are presented without comment except Genichesk, 3086 Kalbaugh, 4859 Fraknoi, 5806 when warranted. Column 3 gives the full range of dates of Archieroy, 6296 Cleveland, 6310 Jankonke, 6384 observations; column 4 gives the number of data points used in the Kervin, (7283) 1989 TX15, 7560 Spudis, (7579) 1990 analysis. Column 5 gives the range of phase angles. -
Towards Completing Planetary Systems: the Role of Minor Bodies on Life Growth and Survival
Towards completing Planetary Systems: The role of minor bodies on life growth and survival Jorge Lillo-Box (European Southern Observatory - ESO, [email protected]), David Kipping (Columbia University), Isabel Rebollido (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, UAM), Pedro Figueira (ESO), Adrien Leleu (Bern University and Observatoire de Paris), Alexandre Correia (Aveiro University), Philippe Robutel (Observatoire de Paris), Nuno C. Santos (IA, Porto), David Barrado (Astrobiology Center, INTA-CSIC), Benjamín Montesinos (Astrobiology Center, CSIC-INTA), Tjarda Boekholt (Aveiro University) White paper submitted in response to the solicitation of feedback for the “Exoplanet Science Strategy” by the National Academy of Sciences. !1 Abstract The search for extrasolar planets in the past decades has shown that planets abound in the Solar neighborhood. While we are still missing an Earth twin, the forthcoming space missions and ground-based instrumentation are already driven to achieve this goal. But, in order to fully understand the conditions for life appearing in the Solar System, we still miss some pieces of the planetary system jigsaw puzzle, namely a deeper understanding of the minor bodies. Trojans, moons, and comets are tracers of the formation and evolution processes of planetary systems. These missing pieces are also critical to understand the emergence and evolution of life over millions of years. With the large crop of planetary systems discovered so far and yet to be detected with the forthcoming missions, the hunt for minor bodies in extrasolar systems is a natural continuation of our search for real Solar System- and, in particular, Earth- analogs. This white paper is focused on detection of these minor components and their relevance in the emergence, evolution and survival of life. -
Do Slivan States Exist in the Flora Family? A
Do Slivan states exist in the Flora family? A. Kryszczyńska, F. Colas, M. Polińska, R. Hirsch, V. Ivanova, G. Apostolovska, B. Bilkina, F. Velichko, T. Kwiatkowski, P. Kankiewicz, et al. To cite this version: A. Kryszczyńska, F. Colas, M. Polińska, R. Hirsch, V. Ivanova, et al.. Do Slivan states exist in the Flora family?. Astronomy and Astrophysics - A&A, EDP Sciences, 2012, 546, pp.A72. 10.1051/0004- 6361/201219199. hal-03123875 HAL Id: hal-03123875 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-03123875 Submitted on 28 Jan 2021 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. A&A 546, A72 (2012) Astronomy DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201219199 & c ESO 2012 Astrophysics Do Slivan states exist in the Flora family? I. Photometric survey of the Flora region A. Kryszczynska´ 1,F.Colas2,M.Polinska´ 1,R.Hirsch1, V. Ivanova3, G. Apostolovska4, B. Bilkina3, F. P. Velichko5, T. Kwiatkowski1,P.Kankiewicz6,F.Vachier2, V. Umlenski3, T. Michałowski1, A. Marciniak1,A.Maury7, K. Kaminski´ 1, M. Fagas1, W. Dimitrov1, W. Borczyk1, K. Sobkowiak1, J. Lecacheux8,R.Behrend9, A. Klotz10,11, L. Bernasconi12,R.Crippa13, F. Manzini13, R. -
Nick Kanas, M.D
Vol. 53, No. 7 – July 2005 July 20, 2005 – General Meeting Randall Museum 199 Museum Way San Francisco 7:00 pm doors open . 7:30 pm announcements . 8:00 pm speaker ___________________________________________________________________________________ Nick Kanas, M.D. Mapping the Heavens: The Golden Age of Pictorial Celestial Cartography Pictorial celestial cartography reached its zenith in Europe from 1600 to 1800, when grand atlases were produced with plates locating the stars in beautiful constellation images that were placed in accurate heavenly coordinate systems. But these books also included diagrams of the universe that were based on cosmological theories dating back to the time of the Ancient Greeks. In his presentation, Dr. Kanas will discuss how both cosmological theory and stellar mapping developed and were depicted in the great celestial atlases. He will illustrate his talk with slides of pieces from his private collection. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Nick Kanas is a Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California/San Francisco and the San Francisco Veterans Hospital, where he does NASA‐funded research on astronauts working in the International Space Station. He has been observing the heavens through a telescope since childhood, and he has been a member of the SFAA since 1978. He has collected antiquarian celestial books and prints for over 20 years. He has given talks on celestial cartography for the California Map Society, the International Conference on the History of Cartography, the Palo Alto Art Center, Bay Area astronomy groups, and the Sydney (Australia) Observatory. He has also written articles on this topic for Sky and Telescope, Mercury, the Journal of the International Map Collectorsʹ Society, and Imago Mundi. -
Sha Bulletin 33
BULLETIN ISSUE 33 SPRING 2020 2 Contents The Bulletin for the Society for the AGM Autumn Conference History of Astronomy Page 4 SHA Officers and Council Honorary President - Allan Chapman Honorary Vice-President – Arnold Wolfandale Honorary Vice-President – Dr Michael Hoskin Chairman – Gerard Gilligan Vice-Chair and Enews Editor – David Sellers Treasurer – Geoff King General Secretary – Laura Carroll Survey Coordinator – Kevin Johnson Publicity Officer – Mike Leggett Membership Secretary – Graham Jones Events Secretary – Michael White Online Editor – John Chuter 33. Well-trodden Paths: Sidney Bertram Gaythorpe Librarian – James Dawson (1880–1964) by David Sellers Archivist – John Chuter Book Review 40. Astro-research 7 by Paul A. Antiquarian Astronomer Editor – Ian Haley Ridpath Page 11 46. Astro Conundrum Quiz Bulletin Co-Editor – Carolyn Kennett number 6 Bulletin Co-Editor – Kevin Kilburn 47. 19th Century Observatories: 1830-39 by Paul Haley 12. Edward Crossley, SEE THE BACK PAGE Bermerside Observatory and FOR THE FULL the Crossley Reflector by DETAILS OF THE Denis Buczynski SPRING CONFERANCE 18. Bunk and Bilge – Harold Spencer Jones and Richard Woolley on Space Travel by Jonathan Spencer Jones 20. Sir James South’s Five-foot Huddart Equatorial by Richard E. Schmidt Pulkovo Observatory - Russia 26. The Nebra sky disc: an alternative interpretation by Kevin Kilburn 55. Astro Conundrum Quiz number 5 with answers 30. Bright Star!—When did Keats write his famous sonnet? ¬by William Sheehan The Society for the History of Astronomy Bulletin Issue 33 Spring 2020 3 Editorial When I offered to take on the role of co-editor of the SHA Bulletin last November, I wasn’t quite sure what I was letting myself in for. -
Mitteilungen Zur Astronomiegeschichte
MITTEILUNGEN ZUR ASTRONOMIEGESCHICHTE Herausgegeben vom Arbeitskreis Astronomiegeschichte in der Astronomischen Gesellschaft ISSN 0944-1999 Nummer 12, Juni 1998 Historical Conservation at the public outreach programmes.) The collection of a burg zurück, und noch im gleichen Jahr veranlaßte Marseille Observatory few hundred old books from the observatory er die Errichtung eines neuen Gebäudes auf dem library is kept in the museum. The archives are at Pohlhof, seinem Elternhaus, in dem die Sammlung present at the Archives départementales in der Altenburger Öffentlichkeit zugänglich ge- By James Caplan, Marseille Marseille where they were recently inventoried, macht werden sollte. Das Gebäude konnte am 1. and where a large part is now being microfilmed; April 1848 eröffnet werden. ‘‘Die Jugend zu A brief history but in a few months they will be returned to the belehren, das Alter zu erfreuen, dahin ging der The Marseille Observatory was founded in 1702 observatory and stored adjacent to the museum. Zweck meines Sammelns’’, schrieb Lindenau im by the Jesuits, in the Sainte Croix convent near the The book catalogue in a preliminary form is Vorwort zum ersten Sammlungskatalog von 1848. Vieux Port, and was subsidized by the King and available on our Web site; the inventory of the Nach dem Tode Lindenaus und dem Übergang the Royal Navy. The first director was Laval, archives should be posted soon. seiner Kunstsammlungen in Staatseigentum wur- followed by Pezenas until 1763, when the Jesuits The Web site can be consulted at de in den Jahren von 1873 bis 1875 der bereits von Lindenau empfohlene Neubau verwirklicht, das were expelled from France.