ISSN-0039-2502 Journal of the Association of Lunar & Planetary Observers The Strolling Astronomer Volume 49, Number 1, Winter 2007 Now in Portable Document Format (PDF) for Macintosh and PC-Compatible Computers Inside. • The reliability of lunar drawings by Wilkins • Apparition reports on Mercury and Jupiter • Eye position and the brightness of Saturn’s rings • Index to The Strolling Astronomer, Volume 46 • Book Review: Collins Atlas of the Night Sky . plus reports about your ALPO section activities and much, much more ADVANCED TELESCOPE SYSTEMS APOGEE INSTRUMENTS V ASTRO-PHYSICS BOGEN V BORG V BUSHNELLV CANON CELESTRON V CORONADO V CYANOGEN DISCOVERY DOBS V FLI V FUJINON VJMI KENDRICK VLEICA V LOSMANDY VLUMICON MEADE V NIKON V OGS V OPTEC PARALLAX VPENTAX VQUESTAR RC OPTICAL SYSTEMS V SBIG VSIRIUS OPTICS SOFTWARE BISQUE V STELLARVUE SWAROVSKI V TAKAHASHI V TEC You'll take pride in owning Takahashi's TSA-102S. 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ALPO Interest Section Reports ................................13 Membership Update — Sponsors, Sustaining This publication is the official journal of the Association of Lunar & Members, and Newest Members ............................14 Planetary Observers (ALPO). Feature Stories The purpose of this journal is to share observation reports, opinions, Index to Volume 46 of The Strolling and other news from ALPO members with other members and the Astronomer .............................................................17 professional astronomical community. Book Review: Collins Atlas of the Night Sky ...........19 The 2006 Transit of Mercury: A Pre-Report ............20 © 2007, Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO). The Mercury Apparition Observations in 2004 ...............21 ALPO hereby grants permission to educators, academic libraries and On the Reliability of the Lunar Drawings Made the professional astronomical community to photocopy material for by Hugh P. Wilkins ..................................................26 educational or research purposes as required. There is no charge for Observations During the 1999 - 2000 and these uses provided that credit is given to The Strolling Astronomer, 2000 - 2001 Apparitions of Jupiter ..........................31 the “JALPO” or the ALPO itself, as appropriate. All others must The Perception of Asymmetrical Brightness request permission from the ALPO. of Saturn’s Rings as a Result of Eye Position ........50 For membership or general information about the ALPO, contact: ALPO Resources Matthew Will Board of Directors ....................................................59 ALPO Membership Secretary/Treasurer Publications Staff ......................................................59 P.O. Box 13456 Interest Sections ......................................................59 Springfield, Illinois 62791-3456 Observing Sections ..................................................59 ALPO Publications ...................................................60 E-mail to: [email protected] The Monograph Series .........................................60 ALPO Observing Section Publications ..................61 Other ALPO Publications ......................................63 Visit the ALPO online at: http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/alpo Our Advertisers Anacortes Telescope & Wild Bird ... Inside Front Cover Accurate Graphics ......................................................3 Scope City........................................Inside Back Cover Sky & Telescope ..........................Outside Back Cover Cover Photo: Transit of Mercury as seen Wednesday, November 8, 2006. Images taken by Larry Owens at Mansfield, Georgia USA, using a Celestron C-14 Schmidt-Cassegrain equipped with a Philps ToUcam; software processing done via K3CCD tools; image stacking by Registax. Animation of this image available at http:// www.weasner.com/etx/guests/2003/mercury-transit.html Volume 49, No. 1 Winter 2007 Page 1 The Strolling Astronomer &$/*$5<$/%(57$ -81(72-8/< <$+227KH&DOJDU\&HQWUHLVKRVWLQJWKH *HQHUDO$VVHPEO\RIWKH5R\DO$VWURQRPLFDO &DOOIRU3DSHUV 6RFLHW\RI&DQDGDLQFRQMXQFWLRQZLWKWKH$VVR FLDWLRQRI/XQDUDQG3ODQHWDU\2EVHUYHUV·WK :HLQYLWH\RXWRVXEPLWDSURSRVDOIRUDSDSHURUD $QQXDO0HHWLQJDQGWKH$PHULFDQ$VVRFLDWLRQRI SRVWHUWREHSUHVHQWHGGXULQJ$VWURQRP\5RXQGXS 9DULDEOH6WDU2EVHUYHUV·WK6SULQJ0HHWLQJ 7KHWKHPHRIWKHFRQIHUHQFHLV´$VWURQRP\ LQ2XU%DFN\DUGVµVRSUHVHQWDWLRQVGHVFULELQJ\RXU <RXGRQ·WZDQWWRPLVVLW REVHUYLQJSURJUDPVDQGUHVXOWVDUHSDUWLFXODUO\DSW 2IFRXUVHZHLQYLWHSDSHUVDQGSRVWHUVIURPWKHZLGH 7REHKHOGRQWKHFDPSXVRIWKH8QLYHUVLW\RI&DOJDU\ VSHFWUXPWKDWLVDPDWHXUDVWURQRP\ HYHQWVLQFOXGHRSWLRQDOZRUNVKRSVDVZHOODVSDSHU DQGSRVWHUVHVVLRQVKRVWHGE\PHPEHUVRIWKH5$6& $/32DQG$$9622SWLRQDOWRXUVLQFOXGHDYLVLWWR 3OHDVHVXEPLW\RXUSURSRVDO WKH8QLYHUVLW\·V5RWKQH\$VWURSK\VLFDO2EVHUYDWRU\D YLDHPDLO $5#VKDZFD 0HWHRULWH/DEDQGWZRIXOOGD\WRXUVWKH&UHWDFHRXV E\0DUFK 7HUWLDU\%RXQGDU\DQG7\UUHOO0XVHXP%DGODQGVWRXU DQGWKH/RRNLQJIRU0DUVLQWKH&DQDGLDQ5RFNLHV <RXZLOOEHQRWLÀHGE\$SULOLI\RXUSDSHUKDVEHHQ WRXU DFFHSWHGDVDQRUDOSDSHURUDSRVWHU .H\QRWHVSHDNHUVLQFOXGH5D\9LOODUG1HZV&KLHI 2XUZHEVLWHKDVXSWRGDWHLQIRUPDWLRQUHJDUGLQJSDSHU IURPWKH6SDFH7HOHVFRSH6FLHQFH,QVWLWXWHZKR DQGSRVWHUVHVVLRQVDQGKRZWRVXEPLW\RXUDEVWUDFW ZLOOGHOLYHUDSXEOLFOHFWXUHHQWLWOHG´+XEEOH6SDFH 3OHDVHFRQVLGHUSUHVHQWLQJDSDSHUWRVKDUH\RXUZRUN 7HOHVFRSH·V/HJDF\µ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age 2 Volume 48, No. 1 Winter 2007 The Strolling Astronomer Inside the ALPO Member, section and activity news Association of Lunar & Point of View Planetary Observers (ALPO) Ramblings Board of Directors By Ken Poshedly, editor & publisher, The Strolling Astronomer Executive Director (Chair); Julius L. Benton, Jr. Associate Director; Donald C. Parker Well, our chosen field of interest, astronomy, has made yet another Member of the Board; Ken Poshedly contribution to mainstream life — but perhaps not quite in the way Member of the Board; Michael D. Reynolds we’d like. As this is being written in early January 2007, the news is Member of the Board; Richard Schmude that the 2006 word of the year is (drum roll, please) . “plutoed”. Member of the Board; John E. Westfall Member of the Board & Secretary/Treasurer; Yep, the name of that li’l diminutive body of ice, rock and who- Matthew Will knows-what-else has made its way into mainstream language — at Member of the Board; Sanjay Limaye least for awhile. Founder/Director Emeritus; Walter H. Haas Its meaning – as you might have guessed – is to be dumped, demoted, relegated unceremoniously to a lower level of impor- Publications tance. Perhaps now, or for the time being, workers everywhere will Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, Ken Poshedly no longer be downsized, but instead plutoed.