The current gate closure time is 7 p.m. After that time, a code is needed for park entry (& access to the astronomy field).



Category: Astronomy

Next Meeting and web update

31 August, 2008 (20:01) | Astronomy, Events | By: tramakers

The website has been updated. You will find agenda information for the September Meeting on the Home page.

Please take notice, this will be a Pot Luck Dinner Meeting and Jim Honeycutt will present “The Life of the Stars”.

Also the Presentations page and Events pages have been updated with the latest information. Check these pages for links to Dr. Schmude’s presentation as well as the Current Events if you were not able to attend.

I don’t know if you have noticed it, but we have been updating Jack Horkheimers link on a weekly basis.

For those of you who have not closely looked at the website, you will find information on events and alerts on the “blog” or Alert page. So if you need to check on something other than the next meeting, you will probably find it here.

Hope to see you soon.
Clear Skies,
Theo Ramakers

Charlie Elliott WC Summer Camp – Week 2

24 July, 2008 (09:53) | Astronomy, Events, Observing | By: tramakers

Thanks to our members Stephen Ramsden, Jon Wood and Theo Ramakers for finishing the 2nd week’s presentations and observing sessions for the Summer Camp participants at Charlie Elliott!

The weather did not cooperate much. For the morning solar observing we had to wait several times for up to 45 minutes to catch a break in the clouds. However the wait was well worth it. The kids were able to see three good sized filaments on the surface of the sun, one of them a big arc.

The evening presentations went well with a trip though the inner and outer solar system, the Phoenix landing, and some not so common images of the Moon and Jupiter.

Outside the clouds had moved in, except for a small opening around Jupiter, so everyone was able to see Jupiter with three moons and a little later 4 moons, when Io’s transit ended. The clouds kept us busy trying to find the best spots to see. A faint M57 could be seen once in a while, and a faint coming and going Alberio also. Despite the adverse cloud conditions, the observing session was well accepted by all!

For pictures of yesterday’s event click here.

Thanks again to everyone who was able to contribute time , including the staff at Charlie Elliott and especially Julie Duncan, to make this another successful astronomy event.

Theo Ramakers

A nice pairing and another one

10 July, 2008 (18:14) | Astronomy | By: tramakers

Step outside when the sun sets this week for a nice pairing of Mars and Saturn. Then turn yourself around and watch bright Jupiter rising low in the southeast. You wont need a telescope to see these three planets. You just need good horizons, clear skies, and the ambition to step outside.
Here is a little feature I wrote for the JPL website explaining whats going on this week: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/scitech/display.cfm?ST_ID=2198 . I hope youll share it with your friends, neighbors and astronomy clubs. Most of you have been observing Saturn and Mars close in on one another over the past few weeks. Tonight they are really close in appearance. I hope you get a look!

Recently, Saturn Observation Campaign member Derek Breit asked me if I wanted some images of the two planets, and so I asked him to image the two planets as they drew closer to one another. Derek sent me 6 days of images on Monday. Then we took his images and created the composite shown in the feature article. Thanks Derek!

Jane

Jane Houston Jones
Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program
JPL – 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205
Pasadena, CA 91109
Phone – 818-393-6435
Fax – 818-393-4495
jane.h.jones@jpl.nasa.gov

http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov

Possible loss of funding to Arecibo telescope

5 July, 2008 (10:38) | Astronomy | By: tramakers

Dale Harrison participates in SETI@home received this email and asked me to post!
Here it is!
Thanks
Theo

Arecibo Observatory, the world’s largest radio telescope and the source for
the SETI@home data that your computer analyzes, faces massive budget cuts that
will END its ability to continue the search for life beyond Earth. The decision
to ensure full funding currently rests upon votes in Congress on Senate Bill S.
2862 and House Resolution H.R. 3737. These bills desperately need more support.

Please take a moment to help us SAVE ARECIBO.

Clicking the link below will direct you to a web page that allows you to print
out letters prepared for your Senators and Congressional Representative urging
them to support Arecibo. Printing and mailing the letters is really easy, too!
You will also have the chance to add a few personal thoughts, if you wish, to
let your Senators and Representative know why this funding is important to you!
And if you’re really feeling passionate about saving Arecibo, please use these
letters as the basis for letters you write yourself, urging your congressmen
and women to vote to save Arecibo.

Because our representatives in Congress rarely give much attention to all the
email they receive, printing out and MAILING these letters via standard U.S.
Postal mail remains our best option for contacting them and our best hope for
saving Arecibo (The second best option is to call your representatives). Your
42 cent stamps on these letters could help us get the millions of dollars
needed to save Arecibo.

Our search cannot continue without the necessary support. Your work, as
SETI@home participants, represents an indispensable resource for conducting the
search. Now, we need your help to ensure that our other most valuable resource
- our eyes and ears to the cosmos – can continue to probe the universe as we
seek to answer the question: Is there anybody out there?

http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/arecibo_letter.php

Thank you for your help,

The SETI@home Team

Mars, Saturn & The Moon! WOW!

5 July, 2008 (09:10) | Astronomy | By: cjones

Greenings, greetings fellow stargazers – Please take a look at the latest Jack Horkheimer Stargazer video on the website.  There will be an amazing grouping of the Moon, Regulus, Mars and Saturn over the next 2 nights, and more fireworks next week!

Don’t miss it, and Keep Looking Up!

http://ceastronomy.org

Larry

“Stargazer” June 2 – 8

1 June, 2008 (22:11) | Astronomy | By: cjones

Hi everybody,

I just posted the latest Jack Horkheimer “Stargazer” video.

This week it’s called “Bootes And The Bright Star That Opened The World’s Fair Of 1933″.  Have a look!  http://ceastronomy.org

Keep Looking UP!

Larry

Link to latest Phoenix images

26 May, 2008 (00:31) | Astronomy | By: cjones

For the latest Phoenix images, click – - – -> HERE < – - – - and hopefull that will work.

Clevis

Can you ID the object in this Phoenix photo?

25 May, 2008 (23:34) | Astronomy | By: cjones

After Phoenix’, near perfect landing on Mars at approximately Lat 66.18N, Lon 233.35E (those will be modified by the 7 second delay in parachute deployment), Phoenix took this image (among others):

http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/images/gallery/lg_364.jpg

I wonder what the object is just blow the horizon and halfway to the right? Perhaps it is the protective cone Phoenix was in until the lander released it at 3200 feet.  Maybe that cone stuck in the ground on edge – but the chute should still be attached to the top of the cone and, I think would have prevented an on edge and had landing by the cone – SO, it has me stumped.

Clevis