w w w. m n a s t r o . o r g October 2009 An Astronomy Trip to the Southwest By David Sjogren Volume 34 Number 5 This is a trip I have done a number of times in February or March to get away from the cold winter weather in Minnesota. I travel to New Mexico and Arizona to visit some of the many observatories located in those states. This is In the pages of not a technical article, just a sample itinerary that may help you plan your own trip. You may have to juggle the days in the Tucson area to match the availabil- Gemini ity of the programs and the observatories. I am a camper, so that determines the routes I follow. You have to travel MAS BOARD MINUTES — quite a distance the first day when you leave Minnesota to find campgrounds JULY-AUGUST 2009 that are open during the winter months. By Drew Smith, secretary…page 4 Day One I ALWAYS WANTED TO BE Get up early and stop as little as possible. I usually eat in the car and at rest AN ASTRONOMER, PART III stops. My first campsite is at the Emporia, KS, KOA. The temperature this first By Jim Fox…page 5 night can be 70º or 30º with rain or snow, so be prepared. If you make really good time you can reach the campground at Wellington, KS, just north of the CAMPOUT WITH Kansas/Oklahoma boarder. THE STARS…page 8 Day Two BECOME A MAS Head south to Oklahoma City, then west on Interstate 40 to Amarillo, TX. BOARD MEMBER…page 9 From Amarillo head south on Hwy 60 to Clovis. Then take Hwy 70 southwest NORTHERN to Roswell, NM, for the final destination of the day. Set up camp. The elevations NIGHTS STAR FEST of Amarillo and Roswell are over 3,500 feet, so even though you are in Texas By John Marchetti…page 9 and New Mexico on this leg of the trip, you might (it has happened to me more than once) run into snow. 2009 STAR PARTY Day Three SCHEDULE…page 11 Time to visit your first observatories. From Artesia (a town between DIRECTIONS TO STAR Roswell and Carlsbad), take Hwy 82 west to Cloudcroft, NM. You have to watch PARTY LOCATIONS…page 11 the weather; the elevation of Cloudcroft is 8,668 ft. Roads can be snow-covered or even closed. • South of Cloudcroft visit Apache Point Observatory Stories Wanted: Gemini needs your http://nsosp.nso.edu/pr/visitors_center.html; http://www.apo.nmsu.edu story of how you first became inter- • National Solar Observatory at Sacramento Peak ested in astronomy, what you have done over the years, what equipment you have used, what star parties you have attended in other states, and how you have encouraged others, especially young people, to get involved in this fascinating hobby. Submit your story to: [email protected] E-mail Update: If your e-mail address has changed in the past year, chances are that the address MAS has for you is not current. We need to be able to com- municate with all of our members on a timely basis. Please submit new e-mail addresses to MAS vice president Steve Emert at: [email protected] Apache Point Observatory http://nsosp.nso.edu http://www.starfillednights.com/nmskies_observatory_images.htm GEMINI INFO On one trip I had to follow a snowplow in order to reach Apache Point. You can do self-guided tours at both locations. I was traveling with a friend who knew an employee Editors at Apache Point, and he gave us a complete tour of the grounds and equipment. Be sure to stop at the visitors center. Brian Litecky There are beautiful views to the west from Apache Point. As shown in the photo, you Eugene Brown can see the sand dunes of the White Sands National Monument some 4,300 feet below. Webmaster After touring the observatories, take Hwy 82 from Cloudcroft to Alamogordo and Tony Dantona stay at the KOA in town. Time permitting, you can drive into the White Sands National Monument southwest of Alamogordo. Forums Administrator Craig Cotner Day Four Travel west on Hwy 70 to Las Cruces and then west on Interstate 10 to Tucson, AZ. I E-mail List Administrator always stay at the Gilbert Ray Campground on the west side of Tucson in the Tucson Moun- Bob Brose tain Park by the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It has a nice desert feel, with Saguaro Monthly Meeting Presenter Cactus everywhere. A small mountain range to the east blocks a lot of the city lights. Coordinator Tucson has much to delight the traveling astronomer: Kitt Peak, the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory on Mount Hopkins, the Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter northeast of Lauren Nelson Tucson, the astronomy store Starizona in Tucson, and the University of Arizona Flan- Gemini is published 6 times annually by the drau Science Center & Planetarium on the university campus. It would take a number Minnesota Astronomical Society. of days to do justice to them all, and advance planning is definitely necessary because some of the sites require reservations. If you are really lucky, one of the local astronomy Electronic submissions for Gemini clubs will have a star party during your stay in Tucson. I attended one by the visitors cen- may be sent to: ter at the base of Mount Hopkins, south of Tucson. [email protected] Astronomy Clubs in Arizona [email protected] Here are astronomy clubs and societies in the state of Arizona, listed by city. They may feature meetings, star parties, telescope equipment and other astronomy programs. Hardcopy items should be sent to: Name City Minnesota Astronomical Society Astronomers of Verde Valley Cottonwood Attn: Gemini Coconino Astronomical Society Flagstaff P.O. Box 14931 Astronomical Society of the Grand Canyon Grand Canyon Minneapolis, MN 55414 Sonora Astronomical Society Green Valley Send all MAS membership dues, change of High Desert Astronomy Club Kingman address cards, subscriptions and renewals to Prescott Astronomy Club Mayer the current MAS Membership Coordinator. East Valley Astronomy Club Mesa See “How to pay your dues” on the last page Phoenix Astronomical Society Phoenix of this newsletter. Saguaro Astronomy Club Phoenix Desert Skygazer Astronomy Club Pima MAS Officers Sirius Lookers of Sedona Sedona Huachuca Astronomy Club of Southeastern Arizona Sierra Vista President: Ben Huset E-Mail: [email protected] Astronomy Club of Sun City West Sun City West 651-631-1987 Tucson Amateur Astronomy Assn. Tucson University of Arizona Astronomy Club Tucson Vice President: Steve Emert E-Mail: [email protected] Day Five 651-426-2502 • Kitt Peak west of Tucson (Plan to spend the day.) See the April 2009 Gemini for a description of the Kitt Peak Observatory by Mark Con- Treasurer: Bob Benson nolly. Kitt Peak is 56 miles southwest of Tucson via State Route 86 on the Tohono O’Od- E-Mail: [email protected] ham Reservation. Allow 90 minutes of drive time from Tucson. If you are lucky, the desert 952-937-5451 will be in bloom. Spectacular blooms happen only once or twice every 25 years. I have al- ways enjoyed being at Kitt Peak. You can see for miles from the top of the mountain. The Secretary: Drew Smith air is thin, so hiking the steep slopes to the different telescopes may require rest stops to E-Mail: [email protected] catch your breath. There is a picnic area, but it is often closed because of fire danger. 763-443-7902 http://www.noao.edu/kpno http://www.noao.edu/outreach/kpoutreach.html Board Member: Merle Hiltner http://www-kpno.kpno.noao.edu E-Mail: [email protected] 952-891-8228 Board Member:Walt Filson E-Mail: [email protected] G E M I N I • w w w . m n a s t r o . o r g 2 Day Six If there is an event you can attend at the Mt. Lemmon Sky- Center, you are in for a special treat. You can be sitting beside a swimming pool in Tucson in the morning (air temperature 75º). Then take a beautiful drive to the top of Mt. Lemmon (9,000 feet elevation) and ski on snow-covered slopes. • Mt Lemmon SkyCenter northeast of Tucson http://skycenter.arizona.edu Day Seven Take a day to enjoy the city of Tucson, visit the planetarium and a few astronomy stores. The planetarium is located on the campus of the University of Arizona. • University of Arizona: Flandrau Science Center & Planetarium http://www.flandrau.org • Visit the astronomy store Starizona, 5757 N Oracle Rd. The author and Thomas Bopp at Starizona. http://starizona.com/acb I have been to Starizona many times during my travels to Arizona and always look forward to visiting with storeowner Dean Koenig. It is also the hangout for noted astronomers in the Tucson Area. I met Ken Graun, the author of the astronomy field guide What’s Out Tonight? 50 Year Astronomy Field Guide • 2000 to 2050. He was kind enough to autograph my copy of his book. I also met Thomas Bopp, discoverer of Comet Hale- Bopp. What a tremendous opportunity and privilege it was to spend an evening with him discussing his discovery. He gener- ously offered to autograph my volumes of Uranometria 2000.0 and a photograph of the Comet Hale-Bopp. Day Eight Visit the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory visitors cen- ter at the base of Mt. Hopkins, 35 miles south of Tucson. The visitors center is open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Special star parties, featuring lectures and telescopic Dean Koeni, owner of Starizona viewing, are held quarterly at the center on a Saturday, starting late in the afternoon.