Hamilton Amateur Astronomers April 1999 Volume 6 Issue 6 The Continuing Saga of the Winter Star Party Oksana and Lou Darcie Elm Street where we visited the two Knoxville, Tennessee, where we amateur astronomers, Dave and Neil had our first touch of clear sky. whom we had previously met at the There they are, Venus, Jupiter, Winter Star Party last year and the Saturn, all hanging around the y now, everyone is aware year before. After a good but brief moon. Quite a pretty sight. Bthat the annual Winter Star visit we beamed up, left that orbit Party normally held at Big Pine and set our course for Wopakenata. Stardate 990219.0930 Key, Key West, Florida, has been On arrival, we found an eating spot, N 38° 29.557' cancelled. Last year, hurricane nourished ourselves, then W 84° 19.990' "Mitch" tore through the area and accommodated ourselves in a local Temperature 9°C completely wiped out the campsite. motel. An aside: (each time we Raining. Having already won a trip to stay cross a state border into a new state, As we travel along, we can see three nights at a hotel in Daytona we find these Welcome Stations. changes in the agricultural growth. Beach, and four nights at a Resort in Not only do they have nice rest Along the highways and byways, Orlando, we were going to Florida, rooms, but they have road maps and we now spy pansies, dandelions and regardless. books of coupons which point out other bright and colourful plants and many places to stay at reasonable flowers. The weather has cleared, so The voyage of the STARSHIP rates, and also all the events in the after stopping for the night and VOYAGER: state areas. We took advantage of refreshing ourselves, we are able to these facilities all the way down to walk around the area and take in the CAPTAIN Lou C Darcie Florida, as well as all the way back sights. The sky is clear, and even FIRST OFFICER Oksana O Darcie to Canada. As our trip started in with my less than perfect eyesight, Stardate 990217.1019 February, and ended in March, the the planets are very plainly visible. Origin N 43° 36.628' March books were all new updated.) It has been a beautiful day. The W 80° 08.078' Overcast, no stars in sight. transport has been uneventful, and we like it like that, and we are just At 53500 kilometres, we left Stardate 990218.0940 awed by all the things that pass the Rockwood. Outside temperature 2° N 42° 57.809' eyes. C, gray overcast, trying to snow, yet W 81° 02.175' the sun is trying to shine. We had an Temperature 5°C Stardate 990220.0830 excellent breakfast at our favourite Cold and gray morning. Roads dry, N 35° 41.641' eatery and are well fortified for the very light traffic. Beamed down to W 84° 25.837' trip to come. Passing Woodstock, one of our favourite eating places, Temperature 10°C we notice that the snow has receded, the Cracker Barrel. Had a quick Bright and sunny morning. We which makes our progress quite refresh, beamed up and continued. arrive in the state of Florida, where admirable. We were hoping that soon we might we visit a Welcome Center. Here we be able to doff our winter clothes, are treated to Orange and Grapefruit Stardate 990217.1600 our boots at least, but I am afraid, juices. No, not freshly squeezed. We Orbited around the town of Findlay, not yet. There is no snow here, but it were surprised at this also. The Ohio, where we beamed down to 24 is still quite cold. Ended our day In (Continued on page 3) Chair’s Report page 2 Constellation of the Month page 6 inside... Rob’serving Report page 3 May Star Chart page 9 Eternal Ice page 5 Calendar of Events page 10 Page 2 Chair's Report n March 27th Grant Dixon In appreciation of all those efforts, O got quite a surprise when he the HAA and the RASC, Hamilton showed up at the planetarium at Centre both presented Grant with McMaster University. He had lifetime memberships and the intended to host a ‘final’ show and biggest slide rule you have ever teach interested people how to give a seen. You may wonder what a slide planetarium show. Instead he found rule has to do with astronomy. He vent Horizon is a himself being honored for all the doesn’t use one to calculate asteroid Epublication of the Hamilton Amateur work he has done over the past 20+ orbits but Grant is a collector of Astronomers (HAA). years of giving planetarium shows. In slide rules. After the presentations the audience were many of his friends and some refreshments Grant The HAA is an amateur astronomy from the HAA and RASC plus his treated us to one of his famous club dedicated to the promotion and wife Doreen, his son Christopher, his planetarium shows. Special thanks enjoyment of astronomy for people of daughter-in -law Krista, Doreen’s go to Ann Tekatch for all the all ages and experience levels parents Gord & Evelyn Gent and his organizational work that she put mother June Merlin. into Grant’s presentation. The cost of the subscription is included in the $15 individual or $20 Grant is one of the founding members I have a couple of web sites for you family membership fee for the year. of the Hamilton Amateur to check out this month. A really Event Horizon is published a Astronomers. He has held many nice compilation of deep sky objects minimum of 10 times a year. positions since the HAA was formed can be found at the site “Adventures HAA Council in 1993. At various times he has been in Deep Space” located at http:// Chair, Second Chair, Councillor-at- www.angelfire.com/id/jsredshift/. Jere Chair Stewart Attlesey Large and Web Page Coordinator. Kahanpaa has a web site with Second Chair Doug Welch Most importantly, he has also held the hundreds of great sketches of deep Secretary Marg Walton position of Public Education Director sky objects appropriately titled Treasurer Barbara Wight during most of those years. “Deep Sky Sketches”. The URL is Obs. Dir Rob Roy http://www.helsinki.fi/~jkahanpa/. Editor Rosa Assalone For over 20 years he has given Membership Dir. Ev Rilett countless Planetarium shows and has Don’t forget, it’s time to start HAJA Coord Rosa Assalone given the proceeds from these shows making plans to attend the HAA star directly to the HAA or the RASC, party on the weekend of June 11/12 Councillors Hamilton Centre. Over this time he at Silent Lake. Ann Tekatch has introduced thousands of people to Ray Badgerow the night sky. By giving these shows, Stewart Attlesey Steve Barnes people who have never been to the [email protected] John McCloy planetarium also benefit through the Gary Sutton low dues that the HAA offers. Grant is solely responsible for the healthy Web Site financial condition of the HAA. http://www.science.mcmaster.ca/HAA/ Editor’s Report he deadline to submit articles for the next issue of Event THorizon is Friday, May 7th. Thank you to everyone who submitted articles this month. Feel free to send pictures for the newsletter as well. Rosa Assalone [email protected] Event Horizon - Hamilton Amateur Astronomers Page 3 Rob'serving Report nights are scheduled for April 9, elongation on April 16. pring for Mars 10 & 17. Call Rob Roy (692- 3245), Bret Culver (575-9492), Venus dominates the western S April-May provide the best or John McCloy (523-4359) at evening sky at magnitude -4 and opportunity to observe Mars. It's 8pm for local weather conditions is still increasing nightly in visible pretty well all night long, and to confirm. The gate will be elevation. though the best viewing occurs opened at 9pm. when it is near the meridian, high Mars rises in the east during the in the sky at around 1am. Mars Monthly In-Sights evening twilight and is visible all is moving westward and will night long. reach opposition to the Earth on April April 24, when it will be its 22 am - Lyrid meteors peak with Jupiter and Saturn are too close brightest since 1990 10-15/hour. Best after midnight to the Sun for any observing. (magnitude -1.6). On May 1 it and Moonset. will have an apparent diameter 24- Mars at opposition Neptune & Uranus are rising in of 16.2", the largest it has Capricornus at dawn. appeared in nine years. Red May Rob Roy, and orange filters are good for 01- Mars nearest Earth. Observing Director observing surface markings, 05- eta-Aquarid meteors peak, [email protected] whereas blue and green are best though active through May 10. for clouds and the north polar cap. Use relatively pale filters The Planets for small scopes. Mercury not visible for northern This month's Binbrook observing observers despite its greatest W Winter Star Party...... (continued) (Continued from page 1) myself included, bike week is an but we did notice that if you did not juices were made from a frozen annual event which brings up to set up the scopes early, viewing was concentrate. Aah such a disillusion, 200,000 that's two hundred quite limited. I suppose it could and all this time we were all led to thousand people, most of whom have been as a result of all the light believe that all that liquid we were own and ride the BIG Harley pollution, because there is certainly having was fresh.