Published by the Astronomical League Vol. 71, No. 4 September 2019 THE BLUE PLANET REPORT FROM STELLAFANE 7.20.69 5 PERSPECTIVE ON APOLLO YEARS APOLLO 11 HOW TO GAIN AND RETAIN NEW MEMBERS mic Hunter h Cos h 4 er’s 5 t h Win 6 7h +30° AURIG A +30° Fast Facts TAURUS Orion +20° χ1 χ2 +20° GE MIN I ated winter nights are domin ο1 Mid ξ ν 2 ORIO N ο tion Orion. This +10° by the constella 1 a π Meiss λ 2 μ π +10° 2 φ1 attended by his φ 3 unter, α γ π cosmic h Bellatrix 4 Betelgeuse π d ω Canis Major an ψ ρ π5 hunting dogs, π6 0° intaka aurus the M78 δ M , follows T 0° ε and Minor Alnitak Alnilam What’s Your Pleasure? ζ h σ η vens eac EROS ross the hea MONOC M43 M42 Bull ac θ τ ι υ ess pursuit. β –10° night in endl Saiph Rigel –10° κ The showpiece of the ANI S C LEPU S ERIDANU S ion MAJOR constellation is the Or ORION (Constellation) –20° wn here), –20° Nebula (M42,sho ion 5 hr; Location: Right Ascens a region of nebulosity ° north 4h Declination 5 5h 6h 7h 2 square degrees th just 1,300 a: 594 and starbir Are 3 4 5 6 0 1 2 0 -2 -1 he Hunter 2 Symbol: T 0 t-years away that is M42 (Orion Nebula); C ligh Notable Objects: a la); NG C 2024 laked eye as a tary nebu e M78 (plane visible to the n n la) d. d (Flame Nebu tch in Orion’s swor a ead Nebula); cloudy pa r C Barnard 33 (Horseh ter ontents ultiple star sy stem) ide the win Trapezium (m Positioned astr is (Betelgeuse, o Brightest Stars: α Orion , Orion is home t ” a; β Milky Way Arabic for “armpit of Orion f th, sprawling is (Rigel, Arabic for “leg o prodigious starbir Orion , and Orion”) regions of nebulosity o ok at From Famous Observatories to Solar Eclipse extreme stars. Here is a l thin the borde rs MORE THAN A HUNTER the treasures wi ter sky. s shape has long of this icon of the win Orion’s hourglas y man form, most durabl conjured images of a hu hield at the read y, f a hunter, club poised, s that o hree evenly spaced OR dangling from a belt of t OL and sword patterns. HORSEHEAD OF A DIFFERENT C ures have seen other stars. But other cult , dark nebula also ple see Biboonkeoni ni us Horsehead Nebula, a th America’s Ojibwe peo The famo uring dust and Nor tified Orion ’s ard 33, is a notch of obsc aker; ancient Aztecs iden known as Barn clou d the Winterm sticks he bright nebula IC 434, a i, representing the wood gas located in front of t Belt as Mamalhuaztl OUD ATLAS can be seen just sou th Polynesian ocean MOLECULAR CL ng ionized hydrogen. It to light a ceremonial fire; of glowi avelength s used use i t he Orion Molecular t star, Alnitak. In visual w it Heiheionakeiki beca Orion is home to t of the leftmost bel te. voyagers called forming regions d appears as a silhouet f a cat’s cradle game. Cloud, a complex of star elow, top) the Horsehea resembled the string o rs across. (b aging from the Hubble ng hundreds of light-yea Infrared im spanni . owever, peers s are visible in this image Space Telesocpe, h Many portion matter, ppears below the belt through the background The Orion Nebula a le, wo feet; the vely rendering it invisib stars and above Orion’s t eecti urround e clouds of the ad and Flame Nebulae s and shows th Horsehe illuminated . belt star; the Lambda Horsehead as though 4 e leftmost th ’s “head”; and directly (bottom). Orionis region is at Orion the President’s Corner d’s Loop nearly encircles Barnar us arc. Take Your Pick From These Tours constellation in a nebulo March 2020 S M T W T F S 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 January 2020 14 8 9 10 11 12 13 19 20 21 M T W T F S 15 16 17 18 S 26 27 28 1 2 3 4 22 23 24 25 1 0 0 31 . 1 3 10 2 29 4 8 9 0 6 7 2 5 uary 18 r 16 17 b 14 15 e 12 13 F 25 Library Telescope Giveaway 19 20 21 22 23 24 26 27 28 29 30 31 y S Friday Saturda PROLIFIC PROPLYD y Thursday of Wednesda ET s home to dozens Tuesday First Qtr Moon 8:42 PM The Orion Nebula i Monday de lyds for short), Sunday February Sky Gui 1 tary disks (prop sily glimpsed low in protoplane , can be most ea th s Mercury , elusive as ever th and 13 . rs for newborn star • set betwee n the 10 the final incubato In 1880, the Orion Nebul the west-southwes t after sun sks a e s outhwestern sky ystems. These di ing sight all month in th their planetary s • Venus is a stunn o ok for a young and became the rst nebul ar ing about 30° high. L vaporatin g a as night falls, appe th nascent stars are e near on the 27 . surrounding ever photographed; sinc crescent Moon passing m other lin e 30° long in the y radiation fro e turn form a diagonal tic Missile Agency being distorted b Mars , Jupiter, and Sa right (west), 1956: Army Ballis or then, M42 has become th • is highest an d farthest A) established glow beca use as t. Mars farthest (ABM . Some proplyds e predawn southe ddle, and Saturn is 1959: First Titan I launch nearby stars s brightest and in the mi ear olumbia destroyed during pea r Jupiter i on. Th e Moon passes n 2003: Shuttle C rs ap most photographed dee cl osest to the horiz th ntry; seven astronauts die stars within, and othe p left (east) and th Saturn on the 20 . ree . of the new th, Jupiter on the 19 , and 5 ind Mars on the 18 atter beh sky object dark because of bright m . form the basis for 8 Library Telescope Update them. The proplyds often 6 7 ng the stars. planetary systems orbiti 4 5 Vesta 0.5° south of Moon 2 3 WISEMAN NNIFER ne born JE 1828: Jules Ver ast , rst untethered spacewalk ay Skylab 4 mission ends, l d on Moon SPS engine 1984: Fi nched 1974: 84-d As an undergra 1966: Luna 9 lands 1965: First test of Apollo 9: Stardust comet probe lau to occupy Skylab eman Challenger launched III launched s 199 nched crew unched Travel Down Under to visit top Wis 1984: STS-41B 1967: Lunar Orbiter 1971: Alan Shepard hit 2001: STS-98 Atlantis lau 010: STS-130 Endeavour la Jennifer 0 Discovery launched nds on Moon launched 2 sics 1994: STS-6 ; Eileen 1971: Apollo 14 la o on Moon 2008: STS-122 Atlantis y TS-63 Discovery launched r 10 uses gravity of Venus t on Heavy launch studied ph 1995: S ilot 1974: Marine 2018: First Falc 17 PM ET e shuttle p its trajectory to Mercury Last Qtr Moon 5: at MIT, wher the ISS launch n adjust 2006: Astronauts aboard 1906: Clyde Tombaugh bor 15 iscovered t satellite Juno stationary she d SuitSa outh of Moon 14 t Groundhog Day Juno 0.6° s 13 the come n - rcury at greatest elongatio 12 114P/Wiseman T Me 11 n Full Moon 2:33 AM E (18° E) 10 Ski. She the 9 Moon at perigee 5 . earned a Ph.D. y in astronom at Harvard alilei born 1564: Galileo G craft . una 20 launched r 10 Full STEAM Ahead University. Dr 1972: L 1973: Pionee lt s r Max launched gh the asteroid be e llite launched 1980: Sola trait to pass throu insk, Wiseman studi 1970: First Japanese sate Voyager 1 solar system por teor explodes over Chelyab Australian Observatories nding at KSC ntractor to build 1990: ros 2013: Me la co rn id E le r 1984: First shuttle 1963: NASA selects 1852: Johan Dreyer bo 2000: NEAR orbits astero Russia, injuring 1,500 peop ns in ou 82 Discovery launched Transporter ähn b to n g regio opes 1997: STS- the Crawler rs 1937: Sigmund J Valentine’s Day star formi io telesc STS-99 Endeavour launched rs 5 enters orbit around Ma observatories, including Siding d rad passes by Venus 2000: rvatory 1974: Ma Eros e ecraft Obse eroid galaxy. She us k 1990: Galileo spac 2010: Solar Dynamics 2001: NEAR lands on ast s of dense dar its way to Jupiter hed lament the from Moon, last on launc .7° north of Moon 22 to map 1971: Apollo 14 returns 1992: First Atlas II launch n Pluto 0 1 s form behind w arantine Jupiter 0.9° north of Moo turn 1.7° north of Moon 2 is no post-mission qu f Moon Sa 20 gas where star Dr. Wiseman s Mars 0.8° south o 19 Orion nebula. S A’ 18 p hysicist at NA Mercury stationary 7 a senior astro ght Centern i 6 1 ard Space Fli as the 1 Godd here she serves Maryland,w r the j ect scientist fo senior pro lescope.