monthly notes of the astronomical society of southern africa ISSN 0024-8266 Vol 71 Nos 7 & 8 August 2012 ASSA News ScopeX 2012.................................................................................................................................... 141 SpaceX meets ScopeX CD Stewart...................................................................................................................................142 monthly notes of the astronomical society of southern africa Symposium2012: Looking back, looking forward......................................................................... 145 mnassa Annual General Meeting Vol 71 Nos 7 & 8 August 2012 ASSA President’s Report 2011- 2012 - IS Glass........................................................................ 147 Double Star Section Report - D Blane........................................................................................ 151 Variable Star Section Report - C Middleton.................................................................................151 Comet and Meteor Section Report - T Cooper............................................................................152 Deep-sky Section Report - A Slotegraaf......................................................................................153 Solar Section Report - J Retief....................................................................................................154 Occultation Section Report - B Fraser.........................................................................................155 Cosmology Section Report - F de Bruyn....................................................................................156 Historical Section Report - C de Coning......................................................................................157 Education and Public Communication Section Report - C Rijsdijk............................................158 Scholarships Report - M Soltynski.............................................................................................. 159 Concise Financial Report - AJ Nel.............................................................................................. 160 Summary of ASSA Awards 2012.................................................................................................161 News Notes New Director for SAAO NRF Press Release...........................................................................................................162 Sir Bernard Lovell (OBE FRS) – 1913-2012 Press release, edited.........................................................................................................163 UCT professor elected IAU Vice-President............................................................................ 165 Paardefontein Satellite Tracking Station 1965 – 1981 G Roberts.....................................................................................................................................165 Astronomical Colloquia....................................................................................................... 171 Deep-sky Delights The Proud Indian Magda Streicher................................................................................................................ 176 • ScopeX 2012 • 100th ASSA Annual General Meeting • • New SAAO Director • Sir Bernard Lovell 1913-2012 • • Paardefontein Satellite Tracking Station 1965 – 1981 • Downloadable online from h� p://www.mnassa.org.za monthly notes of the astronomical society of southern africa astronomical society of southern africa editorial board Mr Case Rijsdijk (Editor, MNASSA) The Astronomical Society of Southern Africa (ASSA) was formed in 1922 by the amalgama� on of the Cape Astronomical Associa� on (founded 1912) and the Johannesburg Astronomical Associa� on Mr Auke Slotegraaf (Editor, Sky Guide Africa South) (founded 1918). It is a body consis� ng of both amateur and professional astronomers. Mr Chris� an He� lage (Webmaster) Publica� ons: The Society publishes its own electronic journal, the Monthly Notes of the Astronomical Prof MW Feast (Board Member, Univ. of Cape Town) Society of Southern Africa (MNASSA) bimonthly and an annual printed Sky Guide Africa South. Prof B Warner (Board Member, Univ. of Cape Town) Membership: Membership of the Society is open to all. Poten� al members should consult the Mr Case Rijsdijk (Editor, MNASSA) Society’s web page assa.saao.org.za for details. Joining is possible via one of the Local Centres or as mnassa a Country Member. Dr Ian Glass (Assistant Editor) production Local Centres: Local Centres of the Society exist at Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Harare, Her- Mr Maciej Soltynski (Book Review Editor) manus, Johannesburg, Pietermaritzburg (Natal Midlands Centre), Pretoria and Sedgefi eld district Mr Willie Koorts (Layout Editor). (Garden Route Centre). Membership of any of these Centres automa� cally confers membership of the Society. editorial address MNASSA, PO Box 9, Observatory, 7935, South Africa e-mail: [email protected] Sky & Telescope: Members may subscribe to Sky & Telescope at a signifi cant discount (proof of Cen- tre membership required) . Please contact membership secretary for details. webpage: h� p://mnassa.saao.ac.za Internet contact details: e-mail: [email protected] homepage: h� p://assa.saao.ac.za MNASSA Download Page: www.mnassa.org.za subscriptions From January 2011 MNASSA is available free of charge on Council (2011–2012) the Internet. Paid subscrip� ons will no longer be available President Dr IS Glass [email protected] (see MNASSA, August 2010, p.113). Vice-president Prof MJH Hoff man Hoff [email protected] Membership Secretary Pat Booth [email protected] advertising rates Adver� sements may be placed in MNASSA at the following Hon. Treasurer Adv AJ Nel [email protected] rates per inser� on: full page R400; half page R200; quar- Hon. Secretary L Cross [email protected] ter page R100; classifi ed R2.00 per word. Enquiries and Scholarships MG Soltynski [email protected] copy should be sent to the editor at [email protected]. Members C Stewart [email protected] G Els [email protected] contributions MNASSA mainly serves the Southern African astronomical J Smit johanchsmit@gmail community, professional and amateur. Ar� cles and papers J Richards [email protected] may be submi� ed by members of this community and by J Saunders [email protected] those with strong Southern African connec� ons, or else the L Govender [email protected] C Rijsdijk par� [email protected] papers should deal with ma� ers of direct interest to this Hon. Auditor RG Glass (Horwath Zeller Karro) [email protected] community. Due dates for contribu� ons are: Vol 71 Nos 9 & 10 (Oct 2012 issue), 01 Sep 2012 Directors of Sec� ons Vol 71 Nos 11 & 12 (Dec 2012 issue), 01 Nov 2012 Comet and Meteor Sec� on TP Cooper [email protected] Cosmology Sec� on JFW de Bruyn Tel. 033 396 3624 [email protected] recognition Ar� cles in MNASSA appear in the NASA/ADS data system. Dark-sky Sec� on J Smit Tel. 011 790 4443 [email protected] Deep-sky Sec� on A Slotegraaf Tel. 074 100 7237 [email protected] Double Star Sec� on L Ferreira Tel. 083 376 4910 [email protected] Dark Energy Camera captured the Fornax cluster Educa� on and Public CL Rijsdijk Tel. 044 877 1180 par� [email protected] Communica� on Sec� on Full Dark Energy Camera image of the Fornax cluster of galaxies, about 60 million Historical Sec� on C de Coning Tel/Fax 021 423 4538 [email protected] light years from Earth. The centre of the cluster is the clump of galaxies in the le� Occulta� on Sec� on B Fraser Tel. 016 366 0955 [email protected] por� on of the image. The prominent galaxy at the top is the barred spiral NGC 1365. Solar Sec� on vacant Variable Star Sec� on C Middleton, Tel. 082 920 3107 wbrooke@netac� ve.co.za Credit: Dark Energy Survey Collabora� on (DEC). The DEC uses a 570 Megapixel 62 CCD element array. astronomical society of southern africa deep-sky delights however, in the middle of this galaxy colony is HD 209295. A South African team has discovered that this star pul- sates in two completely diff erent ways mnassa at once – at least 11 diff erent frequen- Monthly Notes of the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa cies, nine of them rela� vely slow (1–3 Vol 71 Nos 7 & 8 August 2012 cycles per day) and two much faster vi- bra� ons (about 14–26 cycles per day). assa news The reason is that an invisible compan- ion star orbits each other every 3 days ScopeX 2012 (MNASSA, December 2001). Lerika Cross and her team again produced followed by what we can expect as Some � me ago, when I visited a na- a remarkable ScopeX this year. The we reach the peak of the 11-year solar ture park in South America, my path programme was full and very diff erent, maximum. crossed that of the true American including a number of fi rsts. Dr Ian Glass, ASSA President, who spoke Indian people. I vaguely remembered on 40 years of Infrared Astronomy - how then that there is a constella� on refer- The ac� vi� es consisted of the usual wide infrared astronomy diff ers from visible- ring to them in the starry skies, but range of lectures, telescopes, workshops, region astronomy. never thought that I would someday sundials, gadgets, Experilab Science Shows, Dr Adrian Tiplady spoke on the Square be able to write an ar� cle on the now stalls and displays. But the programme Kilometre Array SKA – humankind’s well-known Indus constella� on. also included a number of presenta� ons quest to build the largest,