Prime Focusfocus

Highlights of the August Sky. . .

- - - 6thth - - - Last Quarter Moon 10:03 pm EDT PrimePrime FocusFocus

- - - 8thth - - - A Publication of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society AM: The Moon forms a triangle with the Pleiades November 2013 and Aldebaran in Taurus. August 2015

DAWN: Mars is about 8º below Pollux. Look low in the ENE as the sky brightens. ThisThis MonthsMonths KAS EventsEvents

- - - 11thth - - - DAWN: On this or the next few mornings, look low in Perseid Potluck Picnic: Saturday, August 8 @ 6:00 pm the ESE about 20 minutes before sunrise for Sirius as Kalamazoo Nature Center - See Page 5 for Details it emerges from the Sun’s glare. Observing Session: Saturday, August 8 @ 9:00 pm - - - 12thth → 13th - - - Saturn & The Summer Triangle - Kalamazoo Nature Center PM - DAWN: The Perseid meteor shower peaks; a waning crescent Moon Observing Session: Saturday, August 22 @ 9:00 pm makes for ideal viewing conditions this year. Overwhelming Open Clusters - Kalamazoo Nature Center Expect at least 60 meteors per hour at maximum.

- - - 14thth - - - New Moon 10:53 am EDT InsideInside thethe Newsletter.Newsletter. .. .. - - - 16thth - - - DUSK: Use binoculars to July Meeting Minutes...... p. 2 spot Mercury ~6º right of a thin waxing crescent NASA Space Place...... p. 3 Moon, very low in the west.

- - - 22nd - - - Observations...... p. 4 First Quarter Moon 3:31 pm EDT Perseid Potluck Picnic...... p. 5

DUSK: The Moon is less Stories Behind the August Perseids....p. 6 than 4º from Saturn, just above and right of Beta Scorpii. New Horizons Reveals Pluto...... p. 9

th - - - 29th - - - August Night Sky...... p. 12 For Cecil Full Moon 2:35 pm EDT KAS Board & Announcements...... p. 13

DAWN: Look due east about 30 minutes before Robotic Telescope Project...... p. 14 sunrise, where Venus is now about 10º above the horizon. www.kasonline.org JulyJuly MeetingMeeting MinutesMinutes The general meeting of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society was brought to order by President Richard Bell on Friday, July 10, 2015 at 7:11 pm EDT. Only 17 members and guests were in attendance in the amphitheater (located next to Owl Observatory) at the Kalamazoo Nature Center.

The theme of the July meeting, as it has been for the past several years, was Gadget Night. Gadget Night is one of the longest running traditions for the KAS; dating back to at least 1954. This year six KAS members brought a variety of gadgets, gizmos, and whatchamacallits to share.

Jim Kurtz does most of his observing and imaging from home, so he often keeps his telescope and equatorial mount setup in the garage. It would be time consuming to breakdown his equipment and setup it up again in the Richard Bell constructed this counterweight caddy - backyard. It’s also too heavy to pick up and carry. That’s making it easier to transport his counterweight. why Jim built wooden wheeley bars. This enables him to easily push his entire setup from the garage to the backyard. He can then use leveling screws to level and stabilize his He said it gives a whole new meaning to the expression mount. Jim’s Mobile (JMI) sells wheeley bars for ~$400 “light bucket!” with shipping, but Jim built his for a fraction of the cost. KAS Vice President Jack Price shared a red LED glow stick Eric Jeska had four gadgets to share. The first was a red that twists on and off. They’re not at all expensive and LED with a head strap. This allows him to read star charts provide up to 20 hours of light. They can be used for reading and find accessories in his case, while keeping his hands charts, taking notes, or hung from your tripod so no one free. (Plus, it wouldn’t be Gadget Night if someone didn’t bumps into your telescope at night. share some sort of red-lighted flashlight.) Eric also shared a customized tripod head for his beautiful Questar Maksutov- Joe Comiskey does most of his observing from his home Cassegrain, which allows him to more easily attach the driveway as well. Carrying the two pieces of his 10-inch f/6 telescope to the tripod. Extra counterweights can be Starsplitter Dobsonian isn’t too time consuming, but a little expensive, but Eric found a way to make a cheaper one for hard on the back. Therefore, instead of purchasing or his 8-inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain (C8). He attached building wheeley bars Joe uses an ordinary hand truck. A several large washers and bolted them on to a threaded rod. rubber bungee cord is all that’s needed to secure the Eric also didn’t want to spend a lot of money on a dew cap telescope for transport. Joe also shared the step ladder he for his C8, so he built one out of an ordinary black bucket. uses, since his f/6 telescope is close to 6-feet tall when pointed straight up. It’s tall enough so you can grip the top handle and not worry about falling over while viewing through the eyepiece.

Richard Bell got tired of carrying three 9-lb counterweights to the car, which often required about two trips. He thought about buying a counterweight caddy from JMI, but they’re pricey (about $60) and they don’t make them for his style of counterweight. Richard decided to make his own out of wood. The counterweights are held in the box with a wooden dowel and cotter pins on either side. He glued black felt on the inside to avoid scratching the weights. A hard plastic suitcase handle is bolted to the top. The total cost of the project was only $15.

Don Stilwell just purchased a new Meade 10-inch LX90 telescope, which was on sale at OPT. As part of the deal, Jim Kurtz built wheeley bars to easily move his telescope Don received a Meade LXPS 7 Power Supply (similar, if not and mount from the garage to his backyard. identical to Celestron’s PowerTank). The Power Supply

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easily powers his telescope for a night of observing, and can be used to power or charge a variety of other electronic devices. Thanks to all for sharing gadgets! On the Brightness of Venus Richard gave a brief President’s Report after the snack break. Volunteers were needed for our participation at the annual by Dr. Ethan Siegel Kindleberger Festival in Parchment - held on July 11th. (Editor’s Note: Special thanks to Rich Mather, Don Stilwell, and Dave Woolf for volunteering with Richard. They got to Throughout the past few months, Venus and Jupiter have do solar observing early on, but it got cloudy during the been consistently the brightest two objects visible in the afternoon which also forced the cancellation of the Public night sky (besides the Moon) appearing in the west shortly Observing Session at the Nature Center.) after sunset. Jupiter is the largest and most massive planet in the solar system, yet Venus is the planet that comes closest to Don Stilwell made final preparations for the field trip to our world. On June 30th, Venus and Jupiter made their Yerkes Observatory. It was agreed upon to meet at the closest approach to one another as seen from Earth — a Oakland Drive Park-and-Ride at 6:00 am for carpooling. conjunction — coming within just 0.4° of one another, (Editor’s Note: Nine members attended the field trip on July making this the closest conjunction of these two worlds in 18th. We hope to have a full report with pictures in next over 2,000 years. month’s issue of Prime Focus.) And yet throughout all this time, and especially notable near Upcoming events, including an observing session on July its closest approach, Venus far outshines Jupiter by 2.7 25th (which was successful) and the Perseid Potluck Picnic astronomical magnitudes, or a factor of 12 in apparent on August 8th (see page 5), were covered. Richard brightness. You might initially think that Venus’s proximity mentioned his trip to Cherry Springs State Park (see page 4 to Earth would explain this, as a cursory check would seem for more information). He also said his schedule allows him to show. On June 30th Venus was 0.5 astronomical units to attend the 2016 Texas Star Party, being held from May 1st (AU) away from Earth, while Jupiter was 6 AU away. This - 8th. Six members attended TSP in 2001 and 2002. The appears to be exactly the factor of 12 that you need. weather can be mixed, but very transparent when it’s clear. Jean DeMott mentioned that you can watch the Hubble Only this doesn't explain things at all! Brightness falls off as Space Telescope cross the Texas sky every night! the inverse square of the distance, meaning that if all things were equal, Venus ought to seem not 12 but 144 times Both Joe Comiskey and Chris Taylor reported observing the brighter than Jupiter. There are three factors in play that set recent conjunction of Venus and Jupiter with their things back on the right path: size, albedo, and illumination. telescopes. New Horizons historic encounter with Pluto and Jupiter is 11.6 times the diameter of Venus, meaning that its moons was discussed. Roger Williams also gave an despite the great difference in distance, the two worlds update on Rosetta’s mission at Comet 67P/Churyumov– spanned almost exactly the same angular diameter in the sky Gerasimenko. Jack mentioned that former KAS member on the date of the conjunction. Moreover, while Venus is Carol Morin recently moved to Fort Myers, Florida. She covered in thick, sulfuric acid clouds, Jupiter is a reflective, asked members to contact her if they’re ever in the area. The cloudy world, too. All told, Venus possesses only a meeting concluded at 8:21 pm. somewhat greater visual geometric albedo (or amount of reflected visible light) than Jupiter: 67 percent and 52 percent, respectively. Finally, while Venus and Jupiter both reflect sunlight toward Earth, Jupiter is always in the full (or almost full) phase, while Venus (on June 30th) appeared as a thick crescent.

All told, it's a combination of these four factors — distance, size, albedo, and the phase-determined illuminated area — that determine how bright a planet appears to us, and all four need to be taken into account to explain our observations.

Don't fret if you missed the Venus-Jupiter conjunction; three more big, bright, close ones are coming up later this year in the eastern pre-dawn sky: Mars-Jupiter on October 17th, Venus-Jupiter on October 26th, and Venus-Mars on November 3rd. Here are 15 of the 17 KAS members that attended the July General Meeting. It was held in the Kalamazoo Keep watching the skies, and enjoy the spectacular dance of Nature Center’s amphitheater. the planets!

Prime Focus Page 3 August 2015 by ObservationsObservations Richard S. Bell

How about those images of Pluto? The New Horizons Meteor showers are as easy to view as the constellations or spacecraft successfully passed through the Pluto-Charon aurora. No special equipment is required. At minimum system on July 14th and returned some preliminary images. you’ll only need a reclining lawn chair and a blanket. Alan (It’ll take up to 16 months to return all the data to Earth.) MacRobert has more information on The Basics of Meteor I’m sure most of you have viewed them online already, but I Observing on Sky & Telescope’s website. If you have a wanted to share some of the images with you here in Prime DSLR camera, wide-field lens and tripod then perhaps you Focus (starting on page 9). can catch a few shooting stars in the act. Sean Walker has also got this covered on Sky & Telescope's website. Pluto and Triton, Neptune’s largest moon, certainly aren’t the identical twins many thought. Much of Pluto’s surface For several months I’ve been talking about traveling to looks older than Triton’s, but Pluto does seem to have one Cherry Springs State Park in Pennsylvania. Well, this is the area that’s geologically young. It’s that prominent heart- month! The tentative plan is to leave on August 12th. That shaped feature the New Horizons team has informally way we can enjoy the peak of the Perseids under very dark dubbed “Tombaugh Regio.” I hope that name becomes skies. My return date is August 17th, but I’m not opposed to official, because Clyde Tombaugh certainly deserves it. He staying longer. It depends on how good the weather is and may not have discovered the ninth planet, but he found the how long my food holds out! If you’d like to join me then first of an entirely new and fascinating class of objects in the please let me know. Of course, all plans depend on the outer solar system we are just beginning to explore. weather. The long range forecasts don’t look promising right now, but that was also the case in 2005. This year is an excellent one for the Perseid Meteor Shower. The best time to view the shower is on the night of August That’s when I attended the Black Forest Star Party, which 12th/13th, but this year the actual peak time is 4:00 am EDT has been held at Cherry Springs since 1999. The weather on August 13th. By this time Perseus will be very high in the turned out to be perfect that year and I’ve been anxious to northeastern sky. The Moon is practically new, so it won’t return ever since. I hoped to attend Black Forest in 2006 and cause any interference at all. The only question mark, and 2007, but the weather ranged from poor to severe! Let me it’s a big one in Michigan, is the weather. July wasn’t much tell you a little bit about Cherry Springs. It’s 48 acres in size better than June for summer night time observing, so who and is surrounded by the 262,000 acre Susquehannock State knows what August has it store for us. Forest. The nearest town, Coudersport, is located 10 miles to the northwest of Cherry Springs and has a population of about 2,500. Other communities are closer to Cherry Springs, but they are even smaller and located in valleys, which shield the park from any stray light.

In 2000, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources declared Cherry Springs the first Dark Sky Park. The park has become a very popular destination for amateur astronomers over the past 15 years. They allow amateurs to camp on the observing field and offer concrete pads and electricity. You can even rent an observatory now; you just need to supply the telescope. The camping fee is $15 per night per vehicle (for up to 5 people). However, you can also purchase a “Galaxy Pass” for $65. That allows you to have access to the observing area for the rest of the year rather than paying the per night set-up fee. The passes can be purchased in person at the Lyman Run State Park office or ordered by credit card over the phone.

So, what if it’s cloudy at Cherry Springs? There are other possibilities. Both Starfest in Canada and the Manitoulin Star Party are being held that weekend. We could also try and find a good spot in the Upper Peninsula like Tahquamenon The central bulge of the Milky Way stands out for all to Falls State Park or the Copper Harbor area. I’m certainly see at Cherry Springs State Park. This image was taken open to suggestions. I just know I’m ready to hit the road by Terence Dickinson at the 2005 Black Forest Star Party. and find some clear and very dark skies!

Prime Focus Page 4 August 2015 TheThe KASKAS InvitesInvites YouYou toto thethe TwentyTwenty--FirstFirst AnnualAnnual

Saturday, August 8th @ Kalamazoo Nature Center Arrive at 6:00 pm ● Dinner begins at 7:00 pm Observing after sunset (weather permitting)

Mark your calendar. Hope for good weather. It's time for the big social event of the summer for the KAS. So get ready to party! Here are the details:

The KAS will provide the hot dogs, hamburgers, and veggie burgers (by order). You will be required to bring your own beverages, table service, lawn chairs, bug spray, and a dish to pass. Condiments will be provided by the KAS.

While dinner is cooking we will have solar observing available through KAS member telescopes (weather permitting). Feel free to bring any type of outdoor games or toys to pass the time while we wait for dinner.

After dinner, we’ll hold a Public Observing Session - gates open at 8:30 pm. Stargazers should be prepared to observe the deep sky delights of the summer Milky Way, and perhaps some early meteors from the Perseids.

This gathering will take place rain or shine, so be prepared for whatever Mother Nature throws our way!

Prime Focus Page 5 August 2015 The Perseids are my favorite meteor shower because the late Biela's comet put on quite a show on subsequent returns after summer weather is a lot easier to tolerate than some of the its discovery. It was seen to break apart into two pieces in cold winter nights other annual showers happen to occur, like 1846, and in 1852 the two fragments returned as twin the Leonids in November and the Geminids in December. comets! The remains were assumed to have disintegrated entirely since the comet was never seen again. In 1872 and Every August that the Moon promises not to interfere, we are 1885, however, when Earth crossed the path of the comet’s reminded that this will be the best meteor shower of the year. known orbit, bright meteor showers known as Andromedids But there is more to the Perseids than meets the eye and there (or Bielids) were observed. This seemed to prove the idea are some interesting stories behind the Perseids that don't that meteor showers are composed of fragments of generally get told. I'd like to share some of them with you. disintegrated comets. Schiaparelli was also the first to show that the Perseid and Leonid meteor showers were associated Let's start with where do meteor showers come from? with comets.

We know today that there are streams of particles, called Today we know several annual meteor showers and their meteoroids, in orbit around the Sun. When Earth encounters connection to periodic comets. The eta Aquarids and one of these streams, these mostly dust sized particles are Orionids are associated with the famous comet 1P/Halley. trapped by Earth's gravity and burn up as they descend The Southern Taurids are associated with comet 2P/Enke. through the atmosphere. The result of is a meteor, or what I've already explained that the Andromedids come from people commonly refer to as "a shooting star." comet 3P/Biela, the comet that broke into two pieces and then disintegrated entirely. The Leonids come from debris But where do these streams of meteoroids come from? left behind from comet 55P/Temple-Tuttle and, getting back to our August astronomy story, the Perseids occur when In the 1800's Giovanni Schiaparelli was the first to suggest Earth encounters the stream of dust left behind from comet that meteor showers were associated with periodic comets. 109P/Swift-Tuttle. Schiaparelli noted the orbits of some periodic comets coincided with the orbits of streams of particles responsible And here is another story within a story, the naming for meteor showers. One of these, Biela's comet, discovered convention for comets. What is all this 1P/ and 2D stuff all in 1826, was identified by Austrian astronomer Wilhelm about? Baron von Biela as a periodic comet that returned every 6.6 years. The exact rules for comet nomenclature are pretty involved, but essentially the letter P stands for a periodic comet with a period of less than 200 years. C stands for a comet that is not periodic, and D stands for a comet that has broken up or been lost, a dark comet. The names associated with comets are most often the discoverer or co-discoverers of the comet, although some of them, like Halley's Comet are named after the astronomers who first calculated their orbits rather than their original discoverers. The number corresponds to the order and number of discovery of that type of comet. 109P/ Swift-Tuttle, the comet responsible for the Perseid meteor shower each year, is therefore the 109th periodic comet known, and it is named after its co-discoverers, Swift and Tuttle; which leads us to two more stories behind the story of the Perseid meteors.

Who were Swift and Tuttle?

Lewis Swift was born in Clarkson, New York on February 29, 1820. Swift was a farmer and hardware store owner by trade. Between 1866 and 1892 he discovered thirteen comets, making him one of the most prolific comet discoverers of all time. Lewis Swift's life story is one of pain, perseverance, disappointment, delight, fame and We experience a meteor shower when Earth’s crosses a stream of particle left behind by a comet. fortune.

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According to Swift, he first really became interested in do was buy a ticket for 25 cents at Warner's business on St. astronomy after observing the Great Comet of 1843. This Paul Street. It became so well known that it was included in comet was so bright it could be seen in broad daylight and its travel guidebooks. tail extended 40º across the sky! Soon after the observatory opened in 1882, Swift closed his Swift made his first telescope, a 3-inch refractor with a lens hardware store and became, for all intents and purposes, a purchased for $5.00 from the Spencer Optical Company. In professional astronomer. Swift's attentions soon turned from 1858 the 3-inch was accidentally broken, so Swift purchased comets to nebulae. While Charles Messier had considered a 4½-inch 'comet seeker' from the American optical them to be mostly annoyances to the discovery of comets, craftsman Henry Fitz. This was the telescope he made all but Swift believed they were worthy of study in their own right. one of his comet discoveries with. His early observatories By the end of his career he had discovered over 1200 objects, weren't much more than small platforms built on the roof of ranking him third behind the Herschels and number one his barn, accessed through a hole cut in the roof. among American observers.

His first comet discovery, and the one he is most famous for, He was awarded an honorary Ph.D. from Rochester was actually quite by accident. Upon hearing of the University, and received more medals than any other discovery of a comet in the northern sky, near Polaris, the astronomer of his time, including three from the Imperial North Star, Swift decided to observe the comet one July Academy of Science in Australia, four from the evening in 1862. After less than five minutes he came across Astronomical Society of the Pacific, and the Laplace Medal a beautiful comet that he took for granted was the comet he from the French Astronomical Society. In 1897 he was the had been looking for. After following the comet for several first person awarded the Jackson-Gwilt Medal of the Royal nights it become clear that this was actually a different Astronomical Society. comet. In fact, it was the same comet that Harvard astronomer Horace Tuttle had independently discovered a In 1893, motivated largely by the construction of an few days after Swift. Episcopal church next door to the observatory that blocked his view to the sky, Swift relocated the 16-inch telescope to It was in 1866 that Giavonni Shiaparelli announced that Lowe Observatory on Echo Mountain in California, where comet 1862III (Swift-Tuttle) traveled in an orbit virtually he spent the remainder of his career. Swift discovered his last identical to the Perseid meteor stream. Swift and Tuttle comet in 1899 at the age of 79. Although some of his comet argued bitterly for years over who deserved credit for this discoveries can surely be said to be lucky, most were the important comet's discovery. result of persistent, systematic, tireless observations. Swift was known to remark often, "One cannot discover comets In 1872, Swift moved to Rochester, New York and opened a lying in bed." hardware store. He became well known for discovering comets with his 4½-inch telescope from the roof a local cider The second half of the story behind the discovery of Comet mill. As his popularity increased, he began to give lectures Swift-Tuttle is Horace Parnell Tuttle. Born March 17, 1837 on astronomy and often held what we now call star parties, in Newfield, Maine, Horace's life story is a bit more of a showing people comets and other celestial wonders in Lake mystery. View Park. Charles Wesley Tuttle, Horace's older brother, was an In 1879, Swift found a generous patron in Rochester patent amateur astronomer who constructed his own telescope, and medicine businessman Hulbert Harrington Warner, who upon visiting the Harvard Observatory so impressed financed the building of an observatory for Swift. Warner assured "Professor Swift" as he had become known, that if Swift could raise the money to purchase a large telescope, Warner would build an observatory for it. The original estimate for construction of the observatory was $20,000.

Swift was able to fulfill his part of the bargain by collecting donations for a 16-inch Alvan Clark & Sons telescope from the people of Rochester, NY. When the observatory opened it was the fourth largest telescope in the United States. The plans for the observatory also called for an astronomical library, an elevator and a residence for Professor Swift and his family. Ultimately, the observatory cost Warner $100,000.

The observatory itself was the first observatory in the world to encourage visits by the general public. All a visitor had to

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observatory director, William Bond, he was hired as an made his last comet discovery, a recovery of Comet 1888V assistant observer. This was Horace's connection and Barnard. eventual inroad to working at Harvard Observatory later on. Tuttle lived in the Washington, D.C. area from about 1884 Charles was eventually replaced at Harvard by his younger until his death in 1923. In his final years he was feeble and brother Horace as an observatory assistant. Horace became blind. His gravesite is unmarked and its location is unknown. attached to the observatory's 4-inch Merz comet seeker, which he used on the balconies of the observatory of the 15- Comet Swift-Tuttle itself is a pretty interesting story. It is inch refractor, spending night after night in search of new the largest object known to make repeated passes near Earth. comets. While not as prolific as Swift, Horace Tuttle proved It is also one of the oldest known periodic comets with to be a successful comet hunter. sightings by the Chinese as far back as 68 B.C. The best estimate of when it will return is July, 2126. He discovered or co-discovered numerous comets, including 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, parent body of the Leonid meteor The first attempt at computing a definitive orbit was made in shower, 109P/Swift-Tuttle, parent body of the Perseid 1889, when F. Hayn determined the orbital period to be meteor shower, and the "Great Comet of 1860." Other 119.64 years. In 1971, Brian Marsden and Zdenek Sekanina comets that bear his name are 8P/Tuttle, parent comet of the took 212 positions obtained during the period of July 22 to Ursid meteor shower, 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak and October 22, 1862, applied perturbations by all eight planets, C/1861 Y1 Tuttle. In 1859 he was awarded the Lalande Prize and came to a similar conclusion, 119.98 years. of the French Academy of Sciences for discovering of two comets in one year (1858). A couple of years later, Marsden considered the possibility of linking Swift-Tuttle to an earlier comet. He found two in With the outbreak of the Civil War, Horace Tuttle enlisted in the 18th century that looked promising - 1737 (Kegler) and the 44th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and served at 1750 (Wargentin). The 1750 comet appeared at just about the New Bern, North Carolina. He continued to make right time, but the 1750 comet seemed to be moving too fast astronomical observations during the war, reporting on the to fit the orbital calculations. The 1737 comet actually appearance of Comet Tempel 1864 II. exhibited a motion consistent with what would have been expected for Swift-Tuttle but the comet's period would have The war had taken Tuttle out of comet seeking for three and to have been some 10 years longer than was indicated by the a half years, so his discovery of comet 1866 I at the U.S. observations in 1862. Naval Observatory on January 5, 1866 must have felt pretty good after such a long hiatus. This was Comet Tempel- Marsden made two predictions for a forthcoming return. Tuttle, first discovered by the French astronomer, Tempel, First, using the definitive orbit calculated by Sekanina and more than two weeks earlier. Tuttle received a lot of press himself, he suggested a perihelion date of September 16, for this discovery since it was only the second comet ever 1981. Second, he suggested that if the link to the comet of discovered at the Naval Observatory. 1737 was valid, Swift-Tuttle would most likely return to perihelion on November 25, 1992. In 1887 Tuttle obtained a 6.5-inch broken-back reflecting comet seeker, made for him by John Brashear. It was Initial searches for the comet began in 1980, which was installed on the roof of the Naval Observatory, where he within the error range given by calculations, and more rigorous searches were conducted in 1981 and 1982, but the comet was not recovered.

On September 26, 1992, Tsuruhiko Kiuchi, from Japan, discovered a comet and reported it to the National Astronomical Observatory in Tokyo. Several observers were able to confirm the comet within the next 24 hours and the direction and rate of motion were consistent with what would be expected for Swift-Tuttle. The long lost parent of the Perseid meteor shower had indeed returned.

We haven't heard the last of comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. In less than 120 years our ancestors will be learning about Professor Swift's comet as it makes another pass through the inner Solar System, leaving a trail of meteoroids behind to delight another generation with August meteor showers for another 130 years. Observers of all skill levels can enjoy the Perseid meteor shower. All you need are clear, dark skies! This content distributed by the AAVSO Writer's Bureau.

Prime Focus Page 8 August 2015 New Horizons Reveals Pluto

Global Mosaic of Pluto in True Color

Four images from New Horizons’ Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were combined with color data from the Ralph instrument to create this sharper global view of Pluto. (The lower right edge of Pluto in this view currently lacks high‐resolution color coverage.) The images, taken when the spacecraft was 280,000 miles (450,000 kilometers) away from Pluto, show features as small as 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometers). That’s twice the resolution of the single‐image view captured on July 13 and revealed at the approximate time of New Horizons’ July 14 closest approach. This view is dominated by the large, bright heart‐shaped feature the New Horizons team named “Tombaugh Regio,” which measures approximately 990 miles (1,590 kilometers) across.

Charon’s Youthful & Varied Terrain

Remarkable new details of Pluto’s largest moon Charon are revealed in this image from New Horizons’ Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), taken late on July 13, 2015 from a distance of 289,000 miles (466,000 kilometers). A swath of cliﬀs and troughs stretches about 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) from left to right, suggesting widespread fracturing of Charon’s crust, likely a result of internal processes. At upper right, along the moon’s curving edge, is a canyon estimated to be 4 to 6 miles (7 to 9 kilometers) deep. In Charon’s north polar region, a dark marking prominent in New Horizons’ approach images is now seen to have a diﬀuse boundary, suggesting it is a thin deposit of dark material. New Horizons Reveals Pluto

Pluto’s Southern Region

The southern region of Pluto’s Sputnik Planum contains newly discovered ranges of mountains that have been informally named Hillary Montes (Hillary Mountains), left of center, and Norgay Montes (Norgay Montes), right of center, for Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, the ﬁrst two humans to reach the summit of Mount Everest in 1953. The large crater located just to the lower left of the image center is about 30 miles (50 kilometers) wide, approximately the size of the greater Washington, DC area.

Pluto’s Moon Nix

Nix, shown here in enhanced color as imaged by the New Horizons Ralph instrument, has a reddish spot that has attracted the interest of mission scientists. The data were obtained on the morning of July 14, 2015, and received on the ground on July 18. At the time the observations were taken New Horizons was about 102,000 miles (165,000 km) from Nix. The image shows features as small as approximately 2 miles (3 kilometers) across on Nix, which is estimated to be 26 miles (42 kilometers) long and 22 miles (36 kilometers) wide.

Pluto’s Moon Hydra Pluto's small, irregularly shaped moon Hydra is revealed in this black and white image taken from New Horizons' LORRI instrument on July 14, 2015 from a distance of about 143,000 miles (231,000 kilometers). Features as small as 0.7 miles (1.2 kilometers) are visible on Hydra, which measures 34 miles (55 kilometers) in length. New Horizons Reveals Pluto

Plutonian Glaciers?

In the northwestern region of Pluto’s Sputnik Planum, swirl‐shaped patterns of light and dark suggest that a surface layer of exotic ices has ﬂowed around obstacles and into depressions, much like glaciers on Earth.

Pluto’s Hazy Atmosphere

Backlit by the Sun, atmospheric haze rings Pluto’s silhouette like a luminous halo in this image taken by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft around midnight EDT on July 15. This global portrait of the atmosphere was captured when the spacecraft was about 1.25 million miles (2 million kilometers) from Pluto and shows structures as small as 12 miles across. The image was delivered to Earth on July 23.

View more images at: http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/ AugustAugust NightNight Sky...... Sky......

This star map is property of the This map represents the sky at the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society. NORTH following local standard times: However you may make as many  Late July 11 pm copies as you wish free-of-charge, so long as it is for non-profit  Early August 10 pm educational purposes and full  Late August Dusk credit is given to the KAS.

www.kasonline.org EAST WEST

SOUTH

arth passes through the orbital debris view the famed “Tears of St. Lawrence.” higher in the sky. Observers can expect to EE of Comet 109/P Swift-Tuttle on the see 80 ─ 120 meteors per hour (at least night of August 12/13. This is the parent Even better, the Moon is practically new one a minute) under a clear, dark sky. comet of the Perseid Meteor Shower, the so it won’t cause any interference for most-viewed of all meteor showers. The Perseid viewing. The Perseids are best Recommended equipment include a peak of the Perseids is predicted for 4:00 between midnight and dawn. This is reclining lawn chair and a sleeping bag. am EDT on August 13th, so North when the shower’s radiant, in northern Align yourself toward the northeast, but America is in prime position this year to part of the constellation Perseus, climbs take in as much of the sky as possible. KAS BOARD August 2015 Page 13 PRESIDENT

Richard S. Bell 373-8942

VICE PRESIDENT Volunteers Needed!

Jack Price 343-3193 The KAS has been invited to setup telescopes and share views of the Moon and stars with TREASURER patrons at the Pierce Cedar Creek Institute, Rich Mather located 9 miles south of Hastings. Please 629-5312 contact us ASAP if you’d like to volunteer

SECRETARY/ALCOR your time and telescope.

Roger Williams 375-4867 th MEMBERS-AT-LARGE Friday, August 28 @ 8:30 - 11:00 pm

Joe Comiskey Pierce Cedar Creek Institute ● 701 West Cloverdale Rd, Hastings, MI 49058 329-4251

Mike Cook 345-4998 in

Scott Macfarlane the 679-2865

Don Stilwell Did you know that you could purchase products 963-5856 from Orion Telescopes & Binoculars in the KAS’s online store, the SkyShop? E-MAIL a BOARD MEMBER Purchasing Orion products through the SkyShop gives the KAS a commission. Don’t see an item that you want to buy? Please contact us and let us know and we’ll add it or send you a special link ASAP. ─ skyshop.kasonline.org ─ PublicPublic ObservingObserving SessionsSessions

Saturday, August 8th Feature: Saturn & The Summer Triangle

Saturday, August 22nd Feature: Overwhelming Open Clusters

Gates Open: 9:00 pm  Observing Begins: 9:30 pm

Kalamazoo Nature Center ◆ 7000 N. Westnedge Ave. Robotic Telescope Fundraiser The time is now! Contribute to the Robotic Telescope Project today. Every donation brings us closer to our goal.

Learn more about this exciting project on our website, KAS Online.

Donations can be made in one of two ways:

 Via PayPal (send money to [email protected])

 Check or Money Order (made payable to the KAS - use return address shown below)

Please remember that the KAS is a non-profit organization. All contributions are federally recognized as tax deductible per section 501(c)(3) of the IRS code.

Kalamazoo Astronomical Society c/o KAMSC STAMP 600 West Vine, Suite 400 Kalamazoo, MI 49008