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Astronomy Night
Friday, Sep. 3, 2010,
Sunset (7:00 p.m.)
Junk Bond Observatory (JBO)
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The Huachuca Astronomy Club invites
the public to an Astronomy Night event at the Junk
Bond Observatory, owned by Dave Healy,
on Friday evening, Sep. 3, 2010. View
the wonders of the night sky through the 32-inch JBO telescope,
as well as telescopes of the Huachuca Astronomy Club. Planets
Saturn, Jupiter, and (dim) Mars, as well as star clusters and
galaxies will be observed through telescopes, and there will
be astronomers present to answer any questions about the night
sky. Please join us at 7:00 p.m. (sunset is at 6:42 p.m.) or
later, weather permitting, to enjoy the wonders of the night
sky. Call Glen Sanner at (520) 803-0576 for more information. For maps
and directions, click
here.
Astronomy Night
at the Patterson Observatory
Thursday, Sep. 9, 2010, 6:30 p.m.
The University South Foundation's Patterson
Observatory, located on the University of Arizona South's campus in Sierra
Vista, will join the Huachuca Astronomy Club on Thursday evening, Sep. 9,
2010, for an Astronomy Night.
Starting at about 6:30 pm (sunset is at 6:34 p.m.) and weather permitting,
view the wonders of the night sky through the 20-inch telescope at the Patterson
Observatory. Among other astronomical targets, the crescent moon (almost new,
barely visible, sets at 7:14 p.m.) and distant galaxies will be observed. Everyone
is invited to this free event. The University of Arizona South campus is located
at 1140 N. Colombo, Sierra Vista.
 A
driving map and a campus map can be found here.
Moon Data, Sep. 9, 2010
Phase: One day after New Moon. 1% illuminated.
Sep. 19 Moonrise: 07:26, Azimuth = 96.9°
Sep. 20 Moonset: 19:14, Azimuth = 259.6°
More Details: NASA
Night Sky Network
Sidewalk
Astronomy Event
Hastings / Ace Hardware Parking Lot
Thuirsday, Sep. 16, 2010
7:00 to 9:00 p.m
The next Sidewalk Astronomy Event is at Hastings / Ace Hardware, Sierra Vista,
and will occur on Thursday, Sep. 16, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., in the parking lot. There
will be an area marked with safety cones. (Sunset at 6:25 p.m.)
HAC Members: Help requested. Bring
your telescopes and/or binoculars. Set-up at 6:30 p.m.
Moon Data, Sep. 16, 2010
Phase: Waxing gibbous, one day past First Quarter. 55% illuminated.
Sep. 16 Moonrise: 14:34, Azimuth = 116.8°
Sep. 17 Moonset: 00:59, Azimuth = 244.5°
Artist's conception of the
Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, atop Cerro Pachón,
an 8,700-foot (2,650-meter) mountain peak in northern
Chile. Anyone with a computer will be able to fly through
the Universe, zooming past objects a hundred million times
fainter than can be observed with the unaided eye. The
LSST project will provide analysis tools to enable both
students and the public to participate in the process
of scientific discovery.
HAC Meeting,
Friday, Sep. 17, 2010, 7 p.m.
Speaker: Dr. Philip A. Pinto,
Steward
Observatory,
University
of Arizona
Topic: The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope
—A
New Way to Observe
The Huachuca Astronomy Club (HAC) of Southeastern Arizona will hold its monthly public meeting on
Friday, Sep. 17, at 7:00 p.m., at Cochise College, Sierra Vista Campus, Room 305
A/B. Dr. Philip A.
Pinto will speak on the topic of the "Large Synoptic Survey Telescope—A New Way to
Observe." Non-members are welcome, and attendance is free.
Refreshments are provided, and you coud win a fabulous door prize.
Please come. For additional information, call Glen Sanner at 520-803-0576.
Synopsis: Dr. Pinto will speak about the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) which was just ranked by the National Academy of Sciences as the top priority for ground-based astronomy for the next decade. This 8.4-meter robotic telescope will rapidly scan the sky a couple times a week from a mountain top in Chile with a wide field of view and 3000 megapixel camera, accumulating catalogs and images into an enormous public database. The LSST’s six-band optical survey will address over 100 new explorations of our universe, including studies of Dark Matter, Dark Energy, the Formation of Galaxies, and Potentially Hazardous Asteroids. The LSST is being built by a consortium of (currently) 34 institutions including Tucson-based Research Corporation for Science Advancement, the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, and the University of Arizona.
First Motion Picture of Our Universe
Q: What does “Synoptic” mean?
A: The use of the word in the phrase "Synoptic Survey" derives from
the greek word “Synopsis” and refers to looking at all aspects of something. The LSST is a
synoptic survey in several ways: billions of objects will be imaged in six colors in an unprecedented
large volume of our universe. This survey across half the sky also records the time evolution of these
sources: the first motion picture of our universe.
Astronomy Nights 2010
Dave Healy will host Astronomy Nights at the JBO on the following dates for 2010,
all Fridays. Each following Saturday will be a possible rain date.
Fri., September 3
Fri., October 1
Fri., November 5
Fri., December 3
Monsoon Season
Summer rain moves into southeastern Arizona usually during the months of July and August, and sometimes even into early September. We had some beautiful clear skies at the beginning of July, though, as witnessed in the following images.
Summer Milky Way Image taken on July 6, 2010 by Glen Sanner, with Canon 30D and Sigma 8mm fisheye lens. The exposure was at f/6.3, ISO 1250, 150 seconds,
piggybacked on C5 telescope. [Click on image for larger version.] © 2010 Glen Sanner
The Center of the Millky Way Galaxy rises over the Huachuca Mountains, framed by Sagittarius and the stinger of Scorpius. Image taken by Del Gordon on July 5, 2010 with Canon 50D, 28-135mm lens set to 28mm, ISO 3200, f/3.5, 44 second exposure. © 2010 Del Gordon
HAC Meeting News, May 28, 2010
The Excitement of Discovery
Speaker: Wayne Johnson, HAC President
Topic: Mr. Galaxy’s Six Supernova Discoveries
On May 28, 2010, at Cochise College, SIerra Vista, Arizona, Wayne Johnson (also known as "Mr. Galaxy") gave an inspiring talk about the excitement of discovery that the pursuit of astronomy can provide. The subject of the talk was "Mr. Galaxy’s Six Supernova Discoveries."
The Night I Found...
Wayne Johnson talked about his six supernova discoveries. Two discoveries actually occurred in one night! Wayne explained that we are all here because of supernovae explosions, the breeding ground for elements heavier than iron. Supernovae are also used as "standard candles," a method in which our expanding universe was determined to be accelerating.
...Two Supernovae
Galaxies do not change much, at least from the perspective of human lifetimes. However, stars explode all the time. It is estimated that a star explodes somewhere in the universe about once every second. Put another way, a supernova will occur about once every fifty years in a galaxy the size of the Milky Way. However, if a supernova were to occur in our own galaxy, we still might not be able to see it, due to all the intervening dust that obscures our view. In fact, if all of the obscuring dust were removed, the center of the Milky Way would be brighter than the sun.
Wayne also covered the different types of supernovae. He went on to discuss various resources that are available on the Web to help with verifying possible discoveries. Knowing how to use these resources effectively can play a crucial role when a new discovery needs to be verified and reported. The PowerPoint slide show is available for download in PDF format (see the link, below). It contains many details on how to discover supernovae and how to report a supernova discovery.
The Big Three: M31, M33, and The M.W.
A supernovae-hunting tip: Keep an eye on M31 and M33, and even our own Milky Way for the next big one! Maybe you can discover three supernovae in a single night?
 Mr. Galaxy’s Supernova Discoveries (PDF, 586 KB)
 Mr. Galaxy’s Supernova Pages
Calvin Hoyt Receives Award
Planetary Nebula Club Advanced Award
Dave Healy (above, right), our Astronomical League Correspondent (ALCor), was pleased to deliver the Planetary Nebula Club Advanced Award to Calvin Hoyt (above, left), at the May 28, 2010 meeting of the Huachuca Astronomy Club at Cochise College, Sierra Vista, Arizona (see picture, above).
This award is difficult to achieve. Calvin stated, "Ten inches don't get it!" He also expressed his appreciation for all the people in the Huachuca Astronomy Club who are so eager to help you reach your goals.
There are two levels of award for this club, basic and advanced. The basic program awards a certificate only. To earn a certificate for the basic visual program you must observe at least 60 of the objects on the list. Completion of the advanced program earns a certificate and award pin. The pin sports a colorful image of the Dumbbell Nebula, M27. To earn the certificate and pin for the advanced program, you must attempt to observe all 110 objects on the list.
New Website:
Help With Astronomy League Observing Clubs
Dave mentioned that there is a new website that is available for help with working on the Astronomy League clubs. The link is provided below.
 astronomylogs.com
Here you can get booklets, astronomy logs, log pages, a lunar field atlas, and finder charts. This is truly a valuable resource for anyone who is attempting to achieve one of the Astronomical League's awards. Definitely bookmark-worthy!
Deep Sky Report: Needles of Stars
Bob Kepple gave the Deep Sky Report for May, 2010. The talk was entitled, "Needles of Stars,"
because it focused on edge-on galaxies. These objects are bright enough to be seen with small telescopes. The entire article is
available in the May Nightfall newsletter, which can be found here:
Needles of Stars, Nightfall Newsletter, May 2010
It was also reported that there is a new Astronomical League observing club available: the Flat Galaxies Club.
Astronomical League Flat Galaxies Club
A subclass of edge-on galaxies are flat galaxies which are defined as having a diameter larger than 40 arc-seconds and a major to minor axis ratio of >= 7.
The Nightfall newsletter returns! Read the April 2010 edition online:
May 2010 Nightfall newsletter.
April 2010 Nightfall newsletter.
Join the HAC-List
The HAC-List
is the Huachuca Astronomy Club's online forum. Read the HAC-List to stay updated with all of the news from the HAC and the local astronomy community.
HAC-List: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/haclist/
To join the HAC-List, send an email to:
[Click here to reveal email].
The Inspiration of Outreach
The HAC website
thanks Keith Mullen for sharing the following drawing. The artist is Isaac Moe of Everett, Washington, 8 years old.
Isaac is one of many worldwide visitors to the RGO. There are many official tourist brochures and other literature
that list HAC observatories as possible destinations and things to do when visiting Cochise County and the Sierra
Vista area. Astronomical tourism is yet another reason to preserve our dark skies—they are an
increasingly-rare and precious resource. Furthermore, the rewards of performing public outreach are evident in
this drawing by Isaac. The value of providing celestial inspiration to the young through astronomical observations
is inestimable. We can all help to spark another generation with an eagerness to explore the heavens and catalyze
their curiosity with the wonders of the sky.
A drawing of the night sky
by Isaac Moe, 8 years old.
[Click on image for larger version.]
Project DeepSkyMap
1,176 revolutionary sky maps for observers who enjoy knowing the heavens and locating objects for themselves. This website may help you find those Messier Objects:
DeepSkyMap (deepskymap.org)
Where Have All the Fireballs Gone?
HAC Member Tom Kaye, Robert Crawford, and Michael Schwartz, aim to find out. Read more... >>
HAC Web Exclusive!
Get the "Needles of Stars" Deep Sky Report here, written by our Deep Sky Guys: Bob Kepple and Glen Sanner, in the May 2010 Nightfall available here.
Get the Deep Sky Report here, written by our lovable and essential
Deep Sky Guys: Bob Kepple and Glen Sanner.
Astronomical League Observing Clubs
The Astronomical League (AL) provides many different observing programs (clubs). These programs are designed to provide a direction for your observations and to provide a goal. The programs have certificates and pins to recognize the observers’ accomplishments and for demonstrating their observing skills with a variety of instruments and objects.
How to Buy a Telescope
Travel to Deep Space from your Back Yard
Members of the the Huachuca Astronomy Club presented talks on "How to Buy a Telescope" on Oct. 2, 2009, at
Cochise College, Sierra Vista Campus. Many different types of telescopes were on display. The advantages and disadvantages
of each type were explained. Attendees were able to get a first-hand look at all types of telescopes.
Have a Blast Probing the Heavens
You can order a Galileoscope for $25
at galileoscope.org.
The telescope changed
everything: Galileo's discoveries revolutionized our perception of the universe and Earth's place in it.
Library Finds a New Home on Strawberry Street
As of August 2009, the HAC Library will be maintained at member Howard Day's house. Howard's address is 5842 Calle de la Fresa, Hereford, Arizona. His telephone number is: 803-7909. Thank you, Howard, for helping to support the Huachuca Astronomy Club. Your efforts are much appreciated!
HAC Library periodicals include issues of Sky & Telescope, Astronomy, Deep Sky, Telescope Making, WEBB Society, JRASC, Astronomy Canada, Griffith Observer, and Mercury. There is also a selection of books, including authors such as Kaku, Ferris, Sagan, and Levy, and there are even some videos.
HAC members are welcome to use, borrow, or donate materials to, our club assets. In the case of duplicate monthly periodicals, members are welcome to acquire those that they desire. Read more... >>
WMO
Connecting to the Universe
The Windy Mountain Observatory (WMO) web site,
by Rich Swanson. 
Remote Observatories: Innovative Bubble Dome
See Tom Kaye's Bubble Dome Construction Page!
The Chandra Deep Field South Image
Scott Schneeweis presented the Chandra Deep Field South image, from the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The image
represents a 40-hour stare, observed in the U-, B-, and R-bands. The U-band VIsible MultiObject Spectrograph (VIMOS)
observations were made over a period of 40 hours and constitute the deepest image ever taken from the ground in the
U-band. The image covers a spot in the sky 14 x 21 arc minutes—a third of a degree—which is about one-third
the size of your finger held at arm’s length. What you see are tens of thousands of galaxies. There are even
merging galaxies that appear to be doing the tango. The deeply red-shifted objects are probably about 11.5 billion
light years, so that’s about 85 or 90 percent of the age of the known universe.
The Chandra Deep Field South Image
European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Nine Years in the Making!
The third volume of the three-volume Night Sky Observer’s Guide is now available. Huachuca Astronomy Club (HAC) member Bob Kepple is one of the authors. Subtitled The Southern Skies, Volume 3 has taken nine years to complete. This volume covers the skies of the southern hemisphere. The chapters are organized by constellation, and include the following: Apus, Ara, Caelum, Carina, Centaurus, Chamaeleon, Circinus, Crux, Dorado, Grus, Horologium, Hydrus, Indus, Mensa, Musca, Norma, Octans, Pavo, Phoenix, Pictor, Reticulum, Telescopium, Triangulum Australe, Tucana, Vela, and Volans; plus extensive coverage of The Large Magellanic and Small Magellanic Clouds. A detailed description of the book can be found on Bob Kepple's web site: http://astronomy-mall.com/astrocards.
Order the Night Sky Observer's Guide books here!
Note that Bob is offering signed versions of the book to HAC members for $34.95 (no sales tax). These books are essential astronomer's tools.
In Memory of Jeff Medkeff,
1968 - 2008
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The 2010 Sky Calendar for Arizona by Doug Snyder.
Get the "Needles of Stars" Deep Sky Report here, written by our Deep Sky Guys: Bob Kepple and Glen Sanner, in the May 2010 Nightfall available here.
HAC Meeting Dates for 2010
Outreach Star Parties
Would you like to have an educational "Star Party" for your
school, youth group, or organization? Please contact Rich Swanson at:
(520) 803-7298, or send email to:
[Click here to reveal email]
Event Guidelines and Polices
HAC Sponsors
 
Starizona and Farpoint: Sponsors and door prize donors.
Upcoming Events
See the list in the sidebar at upper left, or view
the HAC Calendar.
Did you know?
As of July 2010, the Large
Binocular Telescope (LBT) on Mount Graham, Arizona,
is the world's largest optical
telescope. The LBT has taken celestial images using its twin
side-by-side, 8.4-meter (27.6-foot) primary mirrors together,
achieving first "binocular" light.
The LBT has a light-collecting area equivalent to a single 11.7-meter (39-foot,
or 464.5-inch) surface and will combine light to produce the
image sharpness equivalent to a single 22.8-meter
(75-foot) telescope (900 inches). It is located on 3194-meter
(10,480-foot) Mount Graham in southeastern Arizona. Using adaptive
optics, its images are more than three times sharper than the
Hubble Space Telescope.
U.S., Italian and German partners in the LBT, have released new images. First
binocular light is a milestone not only for the LBT—now the world's most
powerful telescope —but for astronomy itself.
The world's largest segmented telescope is
the Gran Telescopio
Canarias (meaning "Great Canaries Telescope"), also known as GranTeCan or GTC. It is a 10.4-meter (410-inch) reflecting telescope undertaking commissioning observations at the Roque de los
Muchachos Observatory on the island of La Palma, in the Canary Islands of Spain, as of July 2009.
"Amateur astronomers today are exceptionally fortunate to be living in an era when high quality,
and very large, optics are so affordable."
Night Sky Observer's Guide, Kepple and Sanner 
Light Pollution Monitoring with Google Earth, click here.
Light Pollution info.
Photometry of M57 Field Stars by Brian Skiff, click here.
Mr. Galaxy's Supernovae pages.
The HAC Brochure is available here. Download, print, and distribute.
That's Cool Wire
That's Cool Wire
Due to many requests, here is a link to the web site that sells the electroluminescent wire: thatscoolwire.com
Some pictures can be found here.
Specifically, the product similar to that you may have seen at HAC events can be found by clicking here.
The above link is the medium width wire. For wrapping around telescope tripods, the thinnest wire may work best, as it may be slightly dimmer.
For comparison, the model number purchased was: WY-PPL-N2, (2.2mm), EL Wire Kit 4, 15 feet, 3VDC, $17.61. This model was used to wrap around the handle of a step-stool for visibility.
Longer lengths, such as 26 feet, might be better for other applications, such as tables or signs. Measure for your application and order accordingly. The wire can be powered by two AA batteries, or with an AC adapter.
What is the Temperature of Deep Space?
Glenn Minuth gave a follow-up report to his prior talk in April on “Earth’s Energy Balance.” James Taylor had asked about why his infrared thermometer read -127° C when he pointed it into space. This leads to the question, “What is the temperature of Deep Space?” This is like asking, “What is the temperature of Earth?” How would you describe the temperature of Earth, would you use a range, or an average, or would it depend on your particular location? It turns out that as a result of the Big Bang, we can observe what is known as the Cosmic Background Radiation. Wherever you go in the Universe, if you are not close to a planet, that is, that temperature turns out to be 2.7° K (-455° F, or -270° C). If you are in the area of our solar system’s outer planets, the temperature is around 40° K (-388° F, or -233° C), and increasingly warmer the nearer to the Sun that you get. The temperature of absolute zero is 0° K, and nothing that we know of can get any colder than that, because at that temperature all molecular activity stops.
Schedule for 2009 Member and Public Star Parties.
Support the HAC:
Buy from Amazon.com
Amazon Links Page
"Watch the stars, and learn from them." — Albert Einstein
Big Star: "I am the brightest star in the sky."
Little Star: "Are you joking?"
Big Star: "No, I am Sirius."
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