UNA Planetarium Image of the Month Newsletter

Vol. 4. No. 3 Mar, 2012

On a cloudy, overcast day it is interesting to think about all the exploration of the solar system that is happening. The MESSENGER spacecraft continues to orbit around Mercury, creating detailed maps of its surface features. In a similar way, the European Venus Express orbiter is collected data on that planet’s storms and atmosphere, trying to figure out how This image of Mars is from the European Mars Express mission. The mountain Venus and Earth, similar in so many ways, range show is Phlegra Montes spanning from about 30⁰N to 50⁰N. Ground ended up so different. Venus became a penetrating radar indicates large amounts of subsurface ice in this region. The hellish world hot enough to melt lead, mountains were probably formed from tectonic forces squeezing of the crust while Earth is ideal for life. of the planet together. Debris near the base of the mountain suggests In our own Earth-Moon system, the Lunar transport of material through glaciers traveling downhill and depositing rock Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is making and soil scooped up along the way. The Image courtesy ESA. an unprecedented survey of our nearest neighbor in space. LRO can even see footprints from astronauts who walked on Astro Quote: the Moon forty years ago! That’s still not Calendar for March 2012 enough proof for some people that we “For my part I know March 2 Planetarium Public Night went there, but you can’t make everyone nothing with any happy. March 4 - 10 Spring Laser Shows certainty, but the sight Mars has had the most scrutiny of any of the stars makes me March 8 1st Quarter Moon planet. There is the Mars rover Spirit exploring the inside of a crater looking for dream.“ Vincent Van Gogh March 13 Planetarium Public Night clues to Mars past. The Mars Express

orbiter from Europe and the Mars March 16 Planetarium Public Night Reconnaissance Orbiter study changes in the planet’s surface. They will all be Planetarium tours start at 7:00PM. March 16 UNA Podcast Star Clusters joined by the Curiosity Rover, the most Tours include a planetarium star sophisticated Mars probe ever, which is on show, a video presentation and March 19. Christa McAuliffe screening course for an August landing. observing through a telescope if weather allows. $3/person, UNA March 20 Planetarium Public Night In the outer solar system, the Dawn students free. No reservations are program has an orbiter around Vesta, the March 20 Vernal Equinox. First day of required. first to ever orbit an asteroid. Dawn will spring. move on to Ceres next year. We also have a probe called Cassini in orbit around Observing Highlights March 22 “Women in Astronomy” Saturn. The images of the famous rings lecture. are some of the most beautiful taken by Venus, Jupiter and the moon will pass any spacecraft. near one another in the western sky March 23 Planetarium Public Night after sunset. Our human curiosity is accomplishing a March 29 Shoals Astronomy Club lot, even on a cloudy day! Look for Mars rising just after sunset Meeting this month low in the eastern sky. Mel Blake. March 30 Planetarium Public Night

UNA Planetarium and Observatory, is operated by the Dept. of Physics and Earth Science The March 2012 Sky for Northern Alabama

How to use this Chart: The sky is shown for 8:00PM, March 15th for Florence, Alabama. It will appear this way one hour earlier for each week difference in time. The stars brightness’s are represented by different sized dots. The faintest stars you can see are the small dots; the brightest ones are large dots. Hold the chart with the direction you are facing down. So if you are facing north, hold the chart with north down. The circle represents the horizon and the center of the chart the point directly over your head. So an object half-way between the center and edge of the chart is half-way up in the sky. This chart was prepared using the SkyNow software of R. M. Blake. This chart may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes with the following acknowledgement included: Courtesy UNA Planetarium and Observatory. http://www.una.edu/planetarium/.

Space Rocked! Our Space Rocks event at the Florence Public Library on Feb 4th was a big success with more than 50 participants showing up to learn about comets, asteroids, impact craters and how to identify meteorites. Here Matthew Sherrill, Shoals Astronomy Club (SAC) Vice President teaches kids about meteorites. It was a great partnership between the planetarium, library and SAC. Materials from NASA’s Night Sky Network were used for the event.

UNA Planetarium Participates in 365 Spring Laser Shows Days of Astronomy UNA Planetarium will bring back its most successful laser show, th th 365 Days of Astronomy is an international with Pink Floyd “The Wall” and U2 March 4 to 10 . The th outreach project which teaches the public about shows will be at 6:30PM, 8:00PM and 9:30PM except March 7 all areas of astronomy. The subscribers sign up when there will be a single show at 9:00PM. Cost is $3 for UNA to receive a podcast at no charge. They then students and all others $5. Shows are about 1.25 hours long. receive a “podcast” which consists of short 5 – 10 minute discussion of some topic related to astronomy. Topics range from how to pick out a telescope, the nature of stars and how galaxies form and everything in between. The podcasts are intended for all ages. UNA Planetarium will contribute for podcasts to 356 Days of Astronomy. Our second podcast will be on March 16th on the subject of star clusters. We will contribute two more, one each month in UNA Planetarium Celebrates Women’s History Month April and May. Work study student Deb Bailey UNA Planetarium will celebrate Women’s History Month with will be helping with this project. two events. On Monday, March 19 at 6:30PM we will show the http://365daysofastronomy.org/ documentary “Christa McAuliffe: Reach for the Stars“. This documentary was produced for NASA and documents the life and background of Christa McAuliffe a school teacher who was to be NASA’s first Teacher in Space. She died tragically in the Challenger disaster while chasing her dream of being an astronaut. On Thursday, March 22 at 6:30PM we will present a special UNA planetarium lecture on “Women in Astronomy: Two Centuries of Exploring the Universe”. We will discuss the role of women like Caroline Hershel who helped chart the heavens with her brother, and Celia Payne who’s PhD thesis was voted as the centuries’ most significant in astronomy. This will lead to more recent contributions by Jocelyn Bell who discovered pulsars and Sara Seager who leads the world in

understanding planetary atmospheres. The talk is intended for Image courtesy NASA. a general audience.