Wednesday 30 December 2009

Eclipse, Decadal change, NY Party, Perihelion, Quadrantids, Next IAA lecture‏

Hi all,

1. PARTIAL LUNAR ECLIPSE, New Year's Eve: The last day of the Noughties (but see below) will be marked by a partial eclipse of the Moon. But don't get too excited, as it's only a small partial, with a mere 8.2% of the Southern edge of the Moon entering into the Northern edge of the Earth's main shadow, or Umbra.
The barely noticeable penumbral phase will start at 17.15, and the umbral phase begins at 18.52. Maximum eclipse occurs 19h 22m 41s. The umbral phase ends at 19.53, and the Moon will leave the penumbra at 21.30. The 'penumbra' is the Earth's outer, partial, shadow, caused by the fact that the Sun is a disc, not a point source of light.
The Moon will have almost exactly the same apparent diameter as the width of the ring of the Earth's penumbral shadow, so the umbral phase will begin just as the entire moon enters the penumbra.
The Moon will be in Gemini, just S of 3rd mag Epsilon Gem.
N.B. In spite of what you might have read in an email from another source, the shadowed portion of the Moon will not appear "black", let alone "absolutely black"!
In fact, even during mid eclipse, the shadowed portion of the Moon will not appear very dark at all - it is most likely to be a reddish or orangey grey. This is because the Earth's atmosphere refracts or bends an appreciable amount of sunlight onto the eclipsed portion of the Moon. In fact, even during the very deepest and longest of Total Lunar Eclipses, the Moon does not disappear completely, because of this refraction effect.
You can watch out for this at the next Total Lunar Eclipse visible from here, which will mark the next winter solstice: 21 December 2012!
And BTW, please help to counter the false idea circulating that this will be a 'Blue Moon' because it's the second Full Moon in a month! That erroneous description started when Sky & Telescope wrongly interpreted an old New England Farmer's Almanac as calling the 2nd FM in a month a 'Blue Moon'. They later admitted that they had got it wrong, and published a correction, but not everyone saw the retraction. A 'Blue Moon' means a very rare and unpredictable event, and it arose after the great Krakatoa eruption in 1883 blew so much fine volcanic ash into the upper atmosphere that for a while the moon did sometimes appear blue. But that was almost a one-off, and so the term means 'hardly ever'. Whereas there are actually two full moons in the same month every few years or so!

2. END OF DECADE; NAME FOR NEW DECADE. When I referred in my last email (and above) to the eclipse on New Year's Eve being on the last day of the 'Noughties', I wasn't being strictly correct. At least not if one takes the correct definition of a decade, as Brian Beesley reminded me.
Déjà vu all over again! As I pointed out ad nauseum at the time, but to no avail, the last millennium did not end on 31 December 1999, but on 31 December 2000. But I, and Brian, and a few other purists, were 'lone voices crying in the wilderness', so I more or less gave up, and gave in to all the hype, and celebrated the end of 1999 and start of 2000 along with everyone else.
So if one counts that as the start of the current decade, as almost everyone did even if incorrectly, then the end of this year will be the end of that 10 year period, or decade. But strictly speaking, counting from year 1 CE, the current decade does indeed last until 31/12/2010.
But anyway, I was referring to 'The Noughties', i.e. the years which can be said as 'Two Nought Nought Nought' through to 'Two Nought Nought Nine'. (I claim to have been the first to have suggested that term, back in 1996, and no-one has ever told me otherwise!)
So as next year will not be a 'Noughtie', what will we call the next decade? I suggested 'The Teenies', since most of the years will end in 'teen, e.g. Two Thousand and Thirteen etc. But that term does not encompass 2010, 2011, or 2012, because of the vagaries of our enumeration terminology! So I asked for alternatives for this period.
Seamus Bonner suggested 'The Tenners' for the whole period, which is very good for the first year, but only by extension can it cover the rest of the period.
Alan Watson suggested that while the Teenies is OK for the rest of the period, we simply call the next 3 years 'the Pre-Teens'. Simple, apt and accurate. But the "Pre-Teenies" doesn't roll off the tongue so easily as the best suggestion I've had yet -
It's from Donald Ferguson, who suggests the "Tweenies" (in between the Noughties and the Teenies)

So unless anyone comes up with a better idea, I'll go for The 'Tweenies' followed by the 'Teenies' from 2013. You read it here first!

3. IAA NEW YEAR PARTY: Don't forget: The Galaxy's social event of the year will take place on Saturday 2 January, with the highlight being the special private showing of "Star Trek 2009" in the Tudor Private Cinema, Comber.
Thanks once again to George Brannan, for making all the arrangements.
We will meet first for eats in McBrides, in The Square, Comber, at 5.30 (to be ready to eat at 6 p.m.), then move on to the Tudor Cinema, Drumhirk Road, just outside Comber on the A22 Comber to Killyleagh Road, at 7.30 p.m. More details of venues with full directions later.
The programme includes the meal at McBrides, plus the film, plus at the cinema you can warm up with my famous hot punch and mulled wine, reputedly the best in this arm of the galaxy. Soft drinks + tea & coffee also available, all included in the price!
The film will be followed by George's diabolical quiz (and then there's his singing in the musical round too.....), with the usual amazing selection of prizes for almost everybody! The quiz is free to enter too!
Bookings have now closed, so if you haven't already done so, you'll have to wait until 2011.

4. PERIHELION: The Earth will be at its closest point to the Sun on 3 January, at 00.09, at a distance of 147,086,033km, or 0.9832904 AU. Here in Ireland we'll be a bit further away, which must explain why it's so flippin cold!
OK, just in case any of you don't realise that I'm joking - our Northern winter is entirely due to the seasonal tilt of the Earth's axis, and nothing to do with the fairly slight changes in our distance from the Sun, from perihelion to aphelion!

5. QUADRANTIDS. The first meteor shower of 2010 is the Quadrantids, which peak at 18h on 3 January. This shower is brief, but intense, with a maximum ZHR of around 80. The ZHR, or Zenithal Hourly Rate, is the number of meteors which would be seen by an experienced observer, with the radiant in the zenith, in a perfectly clear very dark sky. In practice, observed rates are usually a good bit less than this. This year, the main problem will be an 18day old waning gibbous Moon, which will rise about 20.30. Nevertheless, it will be worth having a look, especially in the few hours between onset of darkness and moonrise. Some Quadrantids can be seen from about Jan 2 through to Jan 4-5.
The radiant lies roughly halfway between the end of the handle of the Plough, and the head of Draco, or just above a point 2/3 of the way from Vega to the end of the Plough handle.
The radiant is circumpolar from Ireland, so it never sets, and as darkness falls it will be lowish in the NNW, then it sinks a bit lower as it passes beneath the Pole, before starting to rise again in the NE.
The further North you are, the better, as the radiant will be higher in the sky at any given time during the night.

6. NEXT IAA LECTURE, 13 January: The first of the Irish Astronomical Association's public lectures of 2010 will be given by Dr Jorick Vink, of Armagh Observatory.
His talk is entitled "The Most Massive Stars in The Universe", and promises to be a fascinating subject. After all, the Sun is 328,935 times more massive than the Earth, and yet we know that there are stars maybe 50-60 times more massive than the Sun. But are there even more massive ones? And is there an upper limit? And how to these stellar heavyweights live their lives? Their lives seem to be relatively brief, but very spectacular!
It's on WEDNESDAY 13 JANUARY, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome! Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

Finally, HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL, and welcome to the 'Tweenies'.

NB: If you wish to have your name removed from this mailing list, please just email me back saying so.

Clear skies,

Terry Moseley

Friday 25 December 2009

Season's Greetings, New Year's Eve Lunar Eclipse, IAA NY Party‏

Hi all,

1. I'd like to wish you all the very best of the Season's Greetings, and a very Happy and Successful New Year.

2. PARTIAL LUNAR ECLIPSE: The last day of the Noughties will be marked by a partial eclipse of the Moon. But don't get too excited, as it's only a small partial, with a mere 8-9% of the Southern edge of the Moon entering into the Northern edge of the Earth's shadow, or Umbra.
The barely noticeable penumbral phases will start at 17.15, and the umbral phase begins at 18.52. Maximum eclipse occurs 19h 22m 41s. The umbral phase ends at 19.53, and the Moon will leave the penumbra at 21.30.
N.B. In spite of what you might have read in an email from another source, the shadowed portion of the Moon will not appear "black", let alone "absolutely black"!
In fact, even during mid eclipse, the shadowed portion of the Moon will not appear very dark at all - it is most likely to be a reddish or orangey grey. This is because the Earth's atmosphere refracts or bends an appreciable amount of sunlight onto the eclipsed portion of the Moon. In fact, even during the very deepest and longest of Total Lunar Eclipses, the Moon does not disappear completely, because of this refraction effect.

3. IAA NEW YEAR PARTY: The Galaxy's social event of the year will take place on Saturday 2 January, with the highlight being the special private showing of "Star Trek 2009" in the Tudor Private Cinema, Comber.
Thanks once again to George Brannan, for making all the arrangements.
We will meet first for eats in McBrides, in The Square, Comber, at 6 p.m., then move on to the Tudor Cinema, Drumhirk Road, just outside Comber on the A22 Comber to Killyleagh Road, at 7.30 p.m. More details with full directions later.
Book now at the amazingly good value of £12 for adults, £6 for children, which includes the meal at McBrides, plus the film, plus at the cinema you can warm up with my famous hot punch and mulled wine, reputedly the best in this arm of the galaxy. Soft drinks + tea & coffee also available, all included in the price!
The film will be followed by the usual quiz, with the usual amazing selection of prizes for almost everybody! And yes, the quiz is free to enter too!
Book now by sending a sterling cheque, payable to the IAA, to Mr Pat O'Neill, 55 Cranmore Park, Belfast BT9 6JG.

NB: If you wish to have your name removed from this mailing list, please just email me back saying so.

Best wishes to all for 2010 - the first year of the ??? I'll be calling the next decade the 'Teenies', even though the first year with that appellation will be 2013. Or has anyone a better name for the years 2010 - 2012?

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

Wednesday 9 December 2009

Major Celestial Fireworks Display‏

Irish Astronomical Association: Press Release

AMAZING FREE CELESTIAL FIREWORKS DISPLAY THIS WEEKEND!

This weekend Ireland (and to a lesser extent the rest of W Europe) will have the best display of meteors, or 'shooting stars' for many years.

The GEMINID METEOR SHOWER will be at its best on Saturday and Sunday nights, and this year provides excellent conditions to see it, and Ireland is one of the best places on Earth to view it! So let's hope for clear skies!

Meteors, often popularly known as 'shooting stars', are tiny bits of comets (or sometimes bits of minor planets or asteroids) which collide with the Earth's upper atmosphere at high speed and get burned away, usually in a second or less, giving the flash of light we call a meteor.

There are several major 'showers' of meteors each year, when the Earth passes through a particular stream of such particles. The best of these occurs in mid-December, and is called the GEMINIDS, because the meteors appear to come from the constellation Gemini.

While this shower occurs every year, sometimes the maximum occurs during daylight in Ireland, or there is a bright moon to spoil the show.

This weekend the Earth will be passing through the densest part of the stream of particles late on Sunday night in Ireland, and there will be no moonlight at all, making for ideal viewing conditions here.

So observers viewing from a really dark site could see up to 120 meteors per hour, or an average of about two per minute! Some of them will be quite faint, but others will be brighter than the brightest stars, and some will even be brighter than the brilliant planet Jupiter, which will be visible low in the SW part of the sky during the early evening.

AVOID ARTIFICIAL LIGHT.
It is important to observe well away from artificial lights and the glow of the light pollution from our cities and bigger towns, which will seriously affect the number of meteors seen. Also, allow plenty of time for your eyes to become dark adapted - you probably won't see any if you walk straight out from a brightly lit room! Allow at least 10 minutes to have a good chance of seeing some. And wrap up really warm, from head to toe!

Although a few other random meteors may be seen, most will appear to come from the direction of the constellation Gemini. However, they can be seen in any part of the sky! But if you trace their paths backwards, they should lead to Gemini, with its two fairly bright stars, Castor and Pollux. The radiant, or point from which they appear to come, will be just above and right of Castor, the uppermost of these two stars.

While the peak occurs late on Sunday night, lots of meteors can also be seen in the nights leading up to Sunday, and for a day or two afterwards; and Saturday night in particular should also provide plenty of meteors.

TIME:
The shower will start to become visible from Ireland from about 7 p.m. each evening as Gemini rises in the East, but you won't see many meteors until after about 9 p.m., and best rates will occur after midnight each night. And if you are REALLY keen, the best time of all will be about 5 a.m. on Monday morning!

(To find Gemini, follow the diagonal line across the 'bowl' of the Plough or Big Dipper, i.e. from the top left star in the bowl to the bottom right star, and continue this line until you come to a pair of brightish stars, Castor and Pollux, the Heavenly Twins.)

The Geminid meters are unusual in that they appear to be associated with a 'dead' comet, called Phaethon. They are slower than most meteors, and so can often be seen for a full second or so.

CAPTURE THEM ON CAMERA:
Their relatively slow speed also makes them an ideal target for astrophotographers. Just put your camera on a tripod, switch off the flash, point the camera fairly high up in the sky, and give as long exposures as you can until the image gets too bright from the background light. Experiment - try exposures from about 20 seconds to a few minutes if your camera will allow. If you see a bright meteor flash through the field of view of the camera, stop the exposure and check it. Or if you like, keep exposing and hope for another one!
Send your best photos, or even just your notes of how many you saw, to the IAA website: www.irishastro.org.

Monday 30 November 2009

Lecture, Competition, BCO, OU Courses, Martian Life? STEREO‏

Hi all,

1. DECEMBER 2: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's season will be given by Dr Pedro Lacerda of QUB.
His talk is entitled "The Small Bodies of the Outer Solar System" and will describe some of the intruguing objects and mysteries of that region, such as the comets, the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt Objects, TNOs, Plutinos, etc. It's on WEDNESDAY 2 DECEMBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome! Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

2. IYA 2009 FREE TO ENTER COMPETITION: Deadline Extended: Due to a late surge of interest, the closing date for this competition has been given one FINAL extension - to 15 December 2009. Great Prizes available for all categories and age groups Full details on www.irishastro.org.

3. Blackrock Castle Observatory: Cosmic Christmas Launch & Flood Relief Benefit: First Fridays at the Castle, December 4th.
Blackrock Castle Observatory is launching Cosmic Christmas in association with RSVP Red Sandstone Varied Productions at the popular First Fridays at the Castle event on Friday December 4th at 6pm. All proceeds on the night are donated to the Cork St.Vincent de Paul flood relief efforts.
Come and enjoy Cosmic Christmas activities for visitors of all ages!

* Star crafting workshops on the half hour with fun astronomy facts from Frances. Make your own Christmas star for the tree at home! Parents welcome with younger children.
* Meet Steve Roche from the Deise Astronomy Club who will talk about his journey with Astro-photography and give tips for Christmas telescope purchases. (Deise Astronomy Club).
* The award-winning interactive astronomy exhibit Cosmos at the Castle is open until 9.30pm and free to the public.
* Join us in the Courtyard for a look through the Observatory’s telescopes while helping a great cause. Meet Santa and his cosmic crew whose comet has landed on Blackrock Castle Observatory!!

Visit Santa on his Christmas Comet from Dec 4th to Sunday Jan 3rd.
* Children's astro gift bag and photograph
* Easy grow cosmic seeds for small hands to tend their own life forms
* "Santa's Christmas Comet" Family Shows
* Traditional Christmas Market
* Transmit your letter to Santa through the radio telescope to the North Pole
* Design your own Christmas Star workshops
* Castle Bar and Trattoria serving delicious food
* Festive Carol singing
* Evening Stargazing guided by astronomers
* Observatory gift vouchers and telescope advice







The Cosmic Christmas Experience includes a 30 minute workshop, Santa visit and exhibit admission.
Family Ticket (2 adults 2 children) €40.00
Adult and Child €20.00

Be entertained, educated and mesmerized at Blackrock Castle Observatory.
Contact us.Phone: +353-(0)21-4357917; Restaurant: +353-(0)21-4357911.
Fax: +353-(0)21-4357924; Email: info@bco.ie; Web: www.bco.ie.

4. Open University Observing Course.
Thanks to Arnold Stewart for the following information:
The Observing Course is a bit expensive at £745 (£835 for those in the south) but I gather that it’s well worth it. There’s comments from others who’ve done it that you can see via http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/course/SXR208.htm (which gives full details of the course) but on the internal OU forum relating to it the students that have just finished it have even more glowing reports about it.
However, if anyone wants to go on it they will need to do it either in 2010 or 2011 as it’s being dropped after that due to financial problems that the OU are experiencing. It’s probably still possible to enrol for the 2010 presentation of it (held in March/April or September), enrolments for the 2011 presentation open mid-October 2010. In theory you should do the astronomy course (http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/course/S282.htm) and/or the planetary science course (http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/course/S283.htm) before it (both £360 or £795 for those in the south) but I imagine that a lot of people in the IAA would have more than enough knowledge about matters astronomical already; if not, enrolments for those are open to mid-December with the courses starting February 2010 (and November 2010 as well for the planetary science one).

5. MARTIAN METEORITE SURRENDERS NEW SECRETS OF POSSIBLE LIFE.
Compelling new data that chemical and fossil evidence of ancient microbial life on Mars was carried to Earth in a Martian meteorite is being elevated to a higher plane by the same NASA team which made the initial discovery 13 years ago. See:
http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0911/24marslife/.

I have a personal interest, as I was lucky enough to actually handle and examine the famous Allen Hills Martian meteorite 'ALH 84001' during a private visit to Prof Monica Grady and her world-famous meteorite collection at the Natural History Museum in London a few years ago. And I didn't even have to wear gloves! It's kind of scary to think that I may have held a piece of primitive Martian life in my own hands. (Of course, the case is still very far from being proved, and many scientists are still sceptical.)

6. STEREO Workshop: Advance notice: The solar research group at Trinity College Dublin is glad to invite the UK solar and heliospheric community to the 21st STEREO Science Working Group (SWG) to be held in Dublin, Ireland. This will be part of a series of STEREO meetings during the week of March 22-26, 2010. As part of this week of STEREO science we will also be hosting individual meetings for each instrument onboard STEREO.

We strongly encourage the Irish solar and heliospheric community to attend and present their STEREO science results. We also encourage a strong degree of participation by PhD students and young scientists to present their STEREO related results as oral presentations. As part of the meeting we intend to hold a tutorial session on STEREO data analysis software. This is a great opportunity to pose questions on STEREO data, discuss your projects and needs with the STEREO team, and help strengthen the mission as the spacecraft separate from Earth and we look forward to a new solar cycle. Details of the meeting are available on grian.phy.tcd.ie/stereo

The website contains information on travel, local hotels and transport, and meeting details and will be updated regularly. There may be a small conference fee payable on arrival to cover some expenses. This will kept as low as possible so as to encourage maximum attendance. Registration is via the meeting website and the local organising committee greatly appreciate early registration.

Hope to see everyone in Dublin, James McAteer, STEREO Scientist, Trinity College Dublin. James.mcateer@tcd.ie:

LOC: James McAteer (chair), Peter Gallagher, Shane Maloney (website), Jason Byrne, David Long.

...............................................................................

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

Thursday 19 November 2009

IYA at Limavady, ISS + Shuttle, DIAS, CfDS Petition, FETTU Launch in Armagh‏

Hi all,

1. International Year of Astronomy 2009: Astronomy Evening, with Observing and a Mobile Planetarium; Roe Valley Country Park, Limavady, FRIDAY 20 NOVEMBER. The Irish Astronomical Association (www.irishastro.org) are holding a PUBLIC ASTRONOMY EVENT AT THE ROE VALLEY COUNTRY PARK, near LIMAVADY, to mark International Year of Astronomy 2009. If the sky is clear we will show members of the public the wonders of the night sky, including mighty Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System, with its four big Galilean Moons, and lovely double stars, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies from far across the universe. We may even get a quick view of Mars, although not until late in the evening. We will also have an exhibition, meteorites, and starshows in a mobile planetarium, so there will be plenty to enjoy, even if it's cloudy. Wrap up warm in any case, especially if the sky is clear. There is a cafe on site, where light meals, hot snacks and drinks are available, and it will be open for the evening. The Country Park is well signposted off either of the roads joining Limavady and Dungiven, the B68 and the B192. It's about 3-4 miles South of Limavady, with nice dark skies for viewing the heavens. Time: 8 p.m until about 11 p.m. No admission charge. All welcome

2. ISS + Space Shuttle. Space Shuttle Atlantis has now joined the ISS in orbit, and in clear skies the joined pair can be seen flying over Ireland for the next week or so. See www.heavens-above.com for predictions for your location.

3. De Valera, Einstein, and the future of advanced research. Lecture: Saturday, November 21, 8pm, Trinity College, Dublin. What use is advanced research? Especially during a recession? Why has Barack Obama promised to spend more than 3% of GDP on research and development, and to treble the number of science research fellowships? And can advanced research help to re-position Ireland as a ‘smart economy’? It was during the depressed 1930s that a mathematician-turned-politician, Éamon de Valera, established the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS). The DIAS was modelled on another institute born during another depression: Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), established in 1930 in the aftermath of the great Wall Street crash. Funded by philanthropists, it was designed to help the US kickstart its 3rd-level programme for education and research, by generating ideas that would ‘change how we think’. (DIAS remains exchequer-funded, but the founding legislation left open the possibility of an endowment.) Fundamental to the vision behind both institutes was the belief that you change the world, not by following pre-set conventional lines, but in ‘the pursuit of interesting things’. It helps if your first faculty member is Albert Einstein – and Princeton tempted the Nobel physicist from Germany in 1932. Similarly, Dublin’s first appointment was another big name Nobel physicist: Austrian emigré Erwin Schrödinger, who remained a professor at DIAS from 1939 until his return to Austria in 1956. Significantly, the two institutes embraced both the sciences and the humanities from the outset. Princeton now has four schools – historical studies, mathematics and physics, natural sciences, and social science – and Dublin has three: theoretical physics, cosmic physics and Celtic studies. Combining theoretical physics and Celtic studies reflected de Valera’s interests and vision for a modern Ireland – ‘Hamilton’s country’, after the great Irish mathematical physicist of the 19th century – but also clearly reflects something more profound in human enquiry. But what of the Princeton and Dublin institutes today, and other institutes like them around the world? And what is their role in modern research and education. Noted English physicist Prof Peter Goddard, one of the founding figures of ‘string theory’ and current director of Princeton’s IAS, will talk about the relevance of institutes for advanced studies on Saturday, November 20. His lecture is entitled: "There are no excuses in paradise: the past, present and future of institutes for advanced studies." This is part of de Valera’s legacy: one of the institute’s “statutory public lectures”, as required under the 1940 Act which established DIAS, and part of the institute’s ongoing programme of public engagement.
Goddard’s mentor as a young scientist was Paul Dirac, another Nobel physicist. Dirac shared the 1933 Nobel prize with Schrödinger and was a frequent visitor to DIAS. Saturday’s lecture comes at a time when research funding is under intense scrutiny. But also in a year when US President Barack Obama reaffirmed his belief in fundamental research as “scientific capital”. Addressing the US National Academies of Science in April, Obama said: “ . . . scientific discovery takes far more than the occasional flash of brilliance – as important as that can be. Usually, it takes time and hard work and patience; it takes training; it requires the support of a nation. But it holds a promise like no other area of human endeavour.” In another parallel with historic developments, two months ago, Taoiseach Brian Cowen, the current incumbent of de Valera’s position, again looked to Ireland’s rich tradition of cultural and scientific innovation when, addressing the Global Irish Economic Forum at Farmleigh, he spoke of the need to reposition Ireland for the future as a smart economy. Ireland as an innovation nation must, he said, “think smarter, work smarter and be smarter”. We need, not just to predict the future, but to invent it. All are welcome to Saturday’s lecture, and admission is free, however >

4. CfDS Petition. Please see the attached petition. While it applies only to Wales, it would help to set a useful precedent for all of us in Ireland, N & S. Incidentally, Scotland has just achieved International recognition for its first dark sky park, in Galloway, with a rating of 23 out of 24!

5. FETTU LAUNCH IN ARMAGH: Armagh County Museum is holding an informal reception at 8.00pm on Monday 30th November, to mark the opening of the exhibition "From Earth To The Universe" (FETTU) featuring 16 images capturing astonishing views of outer space. The exhibition, which is being held in conjunction with the Irish Astronomical
Association, the Armagh Observatory and Dr Miruna Popescu, is marking the
International Year of Astronomy, which is now near its end. I would be delighted if you could attend.
Light refreshments and mince pies will be provided. If you plan to attend, please contact the Secretary of the Museum, Sarah Millsopp, at acm.info@nmni.com or by telephone at telephone: 028-3752-3070.
Dr Greer Ramsey, Acting Curator, Armagh County Museum, The Mall East, Armagh, BT61 9BE Clear Skies, Terry Moseley

Wednesday 11 November 2009

Email probs, Astro Event, Lectures, Exhib, Shuttle, ISS, Astroarchaeology, GA/F

Hi all,

It appears that quite a few people did not receive my last email bulletin, containing 9 items, sent on 4 November, even though it showed up as 'Sent' on my account.

The following contains some of those items, even though they are now already started, plus some new items.

To give me some idea of whether this one is getting to you, I would be very grateful if any of you whose email address begins with a vowel (A,E,I,O or U) would reply just letting me know if you get this one, and also if you got the earlier one on 4 November. (Nothing significant in the letters - it's just an easy semi-random selection.)

1. NOV 18: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Dr Simon Jeffery of Armagh Observatory.

His talk is entitled "Smoking Stars". (And it's not about Marlene Dietrich etc......) It's on WEDNESDAY 18 NOVEMBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome! Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

2. IYA 2009 Astro-Event, Roe Valley Country Park, Limavady, Co L'derry, on FRIDAY 20 NOVEMBER. THE NEXT IAA PUBLIC ASTRONOMY EVENT FOR IYA2009 WILL BE AT THE ROE VALLEY COUNTRY PARK, near LIMAVADY, to mark International Year of Astronomy 2009. The Country Park is well signposted off either of the roads joining Limavady and Dungiven, the B68 and the B192. It's about 3-4 miles South of Limavady, with only a little light pollution from that town.

We will show members of the public the wonders of the night sky, including mighty Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System, with its four big Galilean Moons, and lovely double stars, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies from far across the universe. We may even get a quick view of Mars, although not until late in the evening.

We will also have an exhibition, meteorites, and starshows in a mobile planetarium, so there will be plenty to enjoy, even if it's cloudy. Wrap up warm in any case, especially if the sky is clear.

There is a cafe on site, where light meals, hot snacks and drinks are available, and it will be open at least for the first part of the evening.

Time: 8 p.m until about 11 p.m.

No admission charge. All welcome

3. EXHIBITION, ARMAGH: An interdisciplinary exhibition bringing together science, education and art, named "Over us All is the SElfsame Sky" (OASES) opened on Monday 9 November in the Rotunda Gallery, St Patrick's Trian, Armagh. The exhibition is part of a series of Astro-Art events held to celebrate the UN International Year of Astronomy 2009 and it will be launched with a performance of music, poetry and dance by pupils from Mount St. Catherine's Primary School, Armagh and the Armagh Rhymers.

The astronomy-themed exhibition contains paintings by astronomer Miruna Popescu of Armagh Observatory and artist Dara Vallely of the Armagh Rhymers, as well as work done in Astro-Art Fun workshops by children from schools as far apart as Omagh, Armagh and Dublin. The launch is open to the public and everyone is welcome to attend.

See http://astronomy2009.ie/official_press_releases/oases_exhibition_launch.html

Contact: Dr Miruna Popescu, Armagh Observatory, IYA2009-Ireland Coordinator

http://astronomy2009.ie, http://twitter.com/astronomy2009ie

4. EXHIBITION, CRAWFORD OBSERVATORY, UCC: A special exhibition for IYA 2009 entitled "Exploring the Universe: Our Next Steps", will open at the historic Crawford Observatory, University College Cork, from 9 to 11 November. Admission is free, and everyone is welcome.

See: http://astro.ucc.ie/obs/index.html and www.physics.ucc.ie/location.html and http://astro.ucc.ie/

For further details contact Dr Paul Callanan, paulcat signmiranda.ucc.ie

5. PORTRAITS OF ASTRONOMERS EXHIBITION: The National Museums Northern Ireland and the Armagh Observatory announce the launch of the exhibition "Portraits of Astronomers", at 8.00pm on Thursday 19th November at Armagh County Museum.

This stunning exhibition consists of 38 black and white photographic portraits featuring some of the UK's leading astronomers including household names like Sir Patrick Moore, the first Director of the Armagh Planetarium. Other local astronomers include Professor Mark Bailey, Director of the Observatory and Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, the first woman to hold the title of the President of the Institute of Physics. Each photograph is accompanied by a short explanation of what it was that

inspired them to study the stars.

Among the invited guests will be Lucinda Douglas-Menzies who took the images

and whose book and exhibition is a fitting tribute to the United Nations International Year of Astronomy 2009.

The organsisers would be delighted if you could join them for the launch of this very

special exhibition.

If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Sarah Millsopp, Secretary, Armagh

County Museum, The Mall East, Armagh, BT61 9BE. Tel: 028-3752-3070;

E-mail: acm.infoat signnmni.com

Mark E. Bailey, Armagh Observatory, Greer Ramsey, Armagh County Museum


6. SHUTTLE LAUNCH: ATLANTIS TARGETING LAUNCH DATE OF NOV. 16

NASA managers tentatively cleared the shuttle Atlantis for launch Nov. 16 on a three-spacewalk mission to deliver nearly 15 tons of spare parts and supplies to the

International Space Station. See: http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts129/091029frr/

7. The ISS will start another series of evening passes over Ireland on 11 November, so depending on the launch time of the Shuttle, it may be possible to see both passing over together, as the Shuttle closes in on the ISS for docking. More on that later.


8. ASTROARCHAEOLOGY: Martin Brennan to return to Ireland after a quarter of a century. PIONEERING AUTHOR TO HEADLINE WINTER SOLSTICE CONFERENCE (Adapted from Anthony Murphy)

Pioneering author Martin Brennan, whose work changed the way the world looked at Newgrange and the Boyne Valley monuments, is set to return to Ireland for the first time in a quarter of a century.

Brennan wrote "The Boyne Valley Vision" and "The Stones of Time", two books which radically altered thinking about Stone Age monuments and which challenged the widely-held academic view that Newgrange and its sister sites were just tombs. The author, who is living in Mexico where he is currently working on concluding his next book, will headline a conference at Newgrange on Sunday, December 20th, the eve of Winter Solstice. He will reveal fascinating new data from Mexico relating to ancient alignments and the Mayan calendar, and will reveal the resonance and the synchronicity between his discoveries in Mexico and those he made in Ireland in the 1980s.

The conference will be titled "The Boyne Valley Revision" in honour of his first ground-breaking book, The Boyne Valley Vision, and will outline how the theories he advanced over a quarter of a century ago have matured, and how new data from other parts of the world is supporting the idea that the ancient monuments were inspired by the Cosmos.

He will be joined at the conference, being held at The Newgrange Lodge in the heart of the Boyne Valley by Toby Hall and Jack Roberts, two members of his research team who helped him with his major discoveries, and Anthony Murphy.

His next book will be called 'Days of Power', to be published some time early in 2010. He has discovered fascinating alignments in Mexico, and his work also looks at the correlation between the beginning of the Mayan Long Count Calendar and the construction of Newgrange.

"The Boyne Valley Revision" will take place on Sunday, December 20th, at The Newgrange Lodge. Tickets are on sale now at 65 euro for the day, and can be booked by emailing saraat signebc.ie or by phoning The Newgrange Lodge on +353 41 988 2478.* To celebrate Martin Brennan's return to Ireland, a celebratory dinner will be held at the Lodge on the evening of the event. Spaces for this dinner will be limited. The dinner, which will be attended by Martin Brennan, will cost an additional 35 euro. Enquiries to the same email address and phone number as above.

It is hoped that on the morning of Winter Solstice, Monday 21st, Martin Brennan will be accompanied to Newgrange to watch the sunrise.

9. GALWAY ASTROFEST: Advance Notice. Latest programme:

Friday Feb 12th 7.30pm, two talks (free admission)
Philip Walsh: “The Drake Equation” (Probabaility of Extraterrestrial Life: T.M)
Professor Paul Mohr: “Cassini, Meridani nodding Ecliptic”. This will be an extensive account of astronomical work based on meridian instruments constructed in five European cathedrals, Santa Maria Novella and the Duomo in Florence, San Petronio in Bologna, Santa Maria degli Angeli in Rome, and Saint Sulplice in Paris. Measurements of the resulting solar images were useful to Cassini in enabling him to distinguish between the Ptolemaic and Keplerian systems. An additional bonus was the detection and accurate quantification of secular decline in the obliquity of the ecliptic
Observing afterwards at our Dark sky site 12 miles north of Hotel, Brigits Garden Park see www.galwaygarden.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday February 13th
1. Dr Aaron Golden NUI Galway: “Has Earth Contaminated the Solar System? – the Case for Life on Mars”
2. Brian Harvey: “The Asian Space Race”
3. Alastair Mc Kinstry NUI Galway: "Extra Solar Planets: Climates and Atmospheres"
4. Dr Deidre Coffey DIAS: “Investigating Protostellar Jets with the Hubble Space Telescope after Service Mission 4”
5. Dr Vitaly Neustroev NUI Galway: "Amateur Astronomers and Cataclysmic Variables"
6. Dr Neal Trappe NUI Maynooth: "ALMA: Exploring the Cool Universe" Title TBC
7. Professor Alan Smith, Director of Mullard Space Science Lab, University College London UK : “Space Science: The Next 20 Years”
8. After Dinner talk presented by Terry Moseley IAA: "Adventures with Heavenly Bodies"
Observing again at Brigits Garden and tour of NUI Galway Observatory and facilities
See: http://galwayastronomyclub.ie/, http://galwayastronomyclub.blogspot.com/

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

Friday 30 October 2009

Lectures, Sky Guide, Asteroid Impact, Flight Test, New Sunspot, Most distant GRB

Hi all,

1. NOV 4: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by well-known space author and lecturer Brian Harvey.

His talk is entitled "The Chinese Space Programme". Will they launch their own 'Space Station'? Will they land men and/or women on the Moon before the Americans do so again? It's on WEDNESDAY 4 NOVEMBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome! Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

2. RIA LECTURE IN DUBLIN AND BELFAST. The Royal Irish Academy has organised two lectures by former president of the RAS Prof Sir Michael Rowan Robinson, entitled "The cosmology of Distant and Dusty Galaxies". These will be held in DUBLIN in the RIA in Dawson St at 6.00 on 2 November, and in BELFAST at 6.00 on 3 November in the O'Connor Lecture Theatre, University of Ulster, Belfast campus, York St. Admission is free, but by ticket only, from www.ria.ie, although for the Belfast lecture at least you would probably be OK just turning up in time and asking for a ticket.

3. Blackrock Castle Observatory: November newsletter. There is limited availibility for Halloween's Movie by Moonlight and children's midterm workshops 'Planets of our Solar System'. The Vampire Ball is sold out. We are pleased to introduce a new theatrical programme from RSVP - History in Action. We hope you can enjoy some of the exciting events on offer! Regards and Clear Skies from all at Blackrock Castle Observatory. Please see for the online version

4. MAC LECTURE: Tuesday November 3rd. Mr. Seanie Morris, MAC Secretary, will present a talk entitled "Is that the Moon? How did that get there?" It will take place in the Presbyterian Church, High Street, Tullamore at 8:00pm. All things scientific and astronomical will be explored. All are welcome and admission is €2,.00.

5. FREE SKY GUIDE: John Flannery writes: "I'm pleased to report that the sky guide for 2010 is now available for you to download. This is your FREE 36-page guide to what's up in the skies over Ireland for the year ahead. The monthly notes in this year's booklet have been changed to a much handier calendar format which you can stick up somewhere as a reminder of what is happening in the current month. More comprehensive detail about astronomical phenomena can be found in the other pages. Feel free to get in touch if you would like to know more about a particular event or if you spot errors that need to be corrected. Enjoy!

I will be adding a second file soon which will contain the daily rise and set times for the Sun, Moon, and major planets, along with their solar elongation, brightness, and other ephemerides. I'll update everyone as soon as that is available.

Sky Guide 2010 is hosted on the file sharing web site Mediafire and can be downloaded by pasting the link below into your web browser. Click on the sky_guide_2010.pdf file name in Mediafire and then the "Click here to download" on the left-hand side of the next displayed page. A pop-up might appear but hopefully I'll soon get the file hosted on another web site which will be astronomy-related. http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=aa0aaa03bf1b2d470c814df2efeadc50e04e75f6e8ebb871



6. ASTEROID IMPACT/EXPLOSION: A 10-metre wide near-Earth asteroid impacted the atmosphere and exploded over Indonesia archepeligo in early October. The event received very little coverage in the Western press but astronomers have analysed details gathered from eye-witnesses and local media coverage. Scientists estimate that the explosion was two or three times more powerful than the WW 2 atom bombs. More details are at http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news165.html

7. ARES 1 FLIGHT TEST. The flight-test of Nasa's new Ares rocket (this one is Ares I-X) took place successfully today, October 28th. See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/flighttests/aresIx/index.html. It reached a height of 40 kilometres and carried numerous instruments to measure many aspects of this newly developed rocket. The test was crucial for the next stage of the Constellation programme which is part of Nasa's goal to develop a rocket and crew vehicle for future spaceflight. The programme is under scrutiny however because of its expense and may even be cancelled at a future date. Nasa recently released a report that recommends closer cooperation with private space ventures in developing vehicles for low-Earth orbit operations. Read more about Ares X-I at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ares_I-X

8. BIG NEW SUNSPOT: The sun is showing signs of life. Sunspot 1029 emerged over the weekend, and it is crackling with B- and C-class solar flares. The active region's magnetic polarity identifies it as a member of new Solar Cycle 24. If its growth continues apace, sunspot 1029 could soon become the biggest sunspot of 2009. Check http://spaceweather.com for animations and updates.

9. MOST DISTANT OBJECT EVER OBSERVED: Astronomers have just reported observation of the most distant object and event ever seen - a Gamma Ray Burst, at a distance of 13.1 billion Light Years. Detected by the SWIFT satellite, the event took place only 600 million years after the estimated date of the Big Bang, and the gamma rays from it have been travelling for the last 13.1 billion years to reach Earth!

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

Tuesday 20 October 2009

Correction, Orionids, Lectures, Galilean Nights, BCO, ISS

From: TerryMoselat signaol.com

Date: 20 October 2009 01:34:43 GMT+01:00

Subject: Correction, Orionids, Lectures, Galilean Nights, BCO, ISS


Hi all,

1. Correction: Sorry - I somehow gave out the wrong date for the IAS lecture at Dunsink. That lecture was tonight (19th), NOT on the 21st! Apologies to all, and to the IAS in particular. So to be clear, there will NOT be a lecture at Dunsink on 21 October.

2. ORIONID METEORS - ENHANCED ACTIVITY THIS WEEK?

(The following is adapted and edited from an E/M by Dr John Mason).

The Orionid meteor shower will be active throughout the coming week. One of two annual showers associated with Comet 1P/Halley the Orionids usually produce observed rates in excess of 10 meteors/hr around their maximum.

In the years 2006-2008, some observers reported higher-than-normal Orionid meteor rates, and there is chance that enhanced activity may be observed again this year. New Moon is on October 18, and First Quarter on October 26, so moonlight will not interfere this year.

Peter Jenniskens reports that the strong Orionid meteor shower activity may well repeat this year, according to M. Sato and J.-I. Watanabe. They ascribed the enhanced activity in the period 2006-2008 activity to dust trails of comet 1P/Halley that were formed by meteoroids ejected in the years -1400 and -11. The orbital evolution of the dust trails is affected by the 1:5 to 1:8 mean-motion resonances with Jupiter. This so-called "filament" component is expected to be in the Earth's path again around Oct. 18-24 in 2009, giving rise to a higher-than-normal Orionid-shower activity that is relatively rich in bright meteors. Thanks to the filamentary nature of the debris stream laid down by the parent comet, activity can vary markedly from one year to another: good rates can be experienced if Earth encounters a rich meteoroid filament, but at other times activity might seem disappointing.

Several sub-peaks are usually seen between October 20-22, and intervals of slightly increased activity can be found even as late as October 27-28. These meteoroids have a retrograde orbit around the Sun, meaning that they enter the upper atmosphere 'head on' at the high velocity of 66 km/sec, so Orionid meteors are very swift, and the brighter ones often leave behind brief persistent ionisation trains.

Having been laid down over numerous returns of 1P/Halley, the Orionid meteor stream is quite spread out, and this is reflected in the shower's diffuse (probably multiple) radiant. Orionid meteors emanate from a region of sky midway between Betelgeuse (Orion's eastern 'shoulder') and the second-magnitude star Gamma Geminorum. The radiant doesn't rise until 22h local time, and best rates are generally found in the early morning hours once it has gained somewhat in altitude.

Observations of the Orionid meteor shower should be made according to the standard methods of the BAA Meteor Section which are available on the Section's website at http://www.britastro.org/meteor

Please submit your observations to the BAA Meteor Section as soon as possible after you have made them, and at any rate within one month at the most. Observations should be sent to the Acting Director: Dr John Mason, 51 Orchard Way, Barnham, West Sussex PO22 0HX. Tel: 01243 814307. email docjohnat signdircon.co.uk

3. Oct 21: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Dr Carla Gil. Carla has done some pioneering research work with the world's most powerful telescope, the European Southern Observatory's VLT in Chile, specifically using it in Interferometer mode, when it can function with an effective aperture of 100 metres. Yes, that's one hundred metres! She is now a visiting ESO Research Fellow at Armagh Observatory.

Her talk is entitled "Observing with a 100-metre virtual telescope, the VLTI". It's on WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome; particularly ladies - come along and see what women are doing at the leading edge of astronomical research: astronomy is not just a topic for men! Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

N.B. The Belfast Festival at Queen's is on that week, so come early if you want to get parked on the QUB site, or indeed anywhere in that area. There are no events at that time in QUB itself, but there's one at the Elmwood Hall which is not too far away, so parking spaces will soon fill up. I suggest you try to get there no later than 7.0.

4. Public Lecture, Armagh: "Why Are We Here?", 8.00 pm Thursday 22 October 2009

The Armagh Observatory and the Armagh Natural History and Philosophical Society are co-hosting a free public lecture on Thursday 22 October 2009 in the Rotunda Lecture Theatre, St. Patrick's Trian, Armagh. The Lecture will be delivered by Dr Martin Hendry of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Glasgow. The lecture will begin at 8.00 pm and is scheduled to end at 9.00 pm with questions, followed by tea and coffee.

The title and summary of the lecture are: "Why Are We Here?

Since the dawn of civilisation human cultures have sought to understand our place in the universe, asking "Big questions" about our cosmic origins. Modern cosmology provides some startling answers to these questions: not only is the universe expanding, but we believe the expansion to be accelerating -- driven by a mysterious "dark energy" that challenges our

ideas about gravity and the very nature of space and time. Moreover our runaway universe appears to be rather delicately balanced, in the sense that small changes in the laws of nature would result in a very different cosmos -- most likely unsuitable for life like us. What does all of this mean for our cosmic origins? Is our universe unique, or do we belong to a

"multiverse" -- a vast ensemble of universes, each with its own laws of nature? In his lecture, Dr Hendry will explore these, and other, questions posed by the latest cosmological discoveries, and discuss what implications they might have for the existence of life in the universe."

For free tickets to this public lecture, please contact Aileen McKee at the Armagh Observatory; Tel: 028-3752-2928; Fax: 028-3752-7174; e-mail: ambnat signarm.ac.uk.

5. IAA "GALILEAN NIGHTS" OBSERVING, Sat 24 October, Delamont Country Park, near Killyleagh, Co Down. See the attached poster for details of this event. If you are attending bring a 'scope or binocs if you can. It is of course subject to the weather and you will need to check the forum on the IAA website www.irishastro.org between 6.00 and 6.30pm that evening for confirmation that it is going ahead.

6. Blackrock Castle Observatory Events: BCO in Cork has an excellent series of ongoing events: See www.bco.ie.

Director Clair McSweeney also sent me this: "In addition, CIT / Blackrock Castle Observatory has taken on the role of communications point of contact within Ireland for ESON. ESON is the European Southern Observatory Outreach Network. http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/ This has a wide brief but entails being a link into any relevant amateur and professional body for ESON press and media releases and also hopefully to be the same for all and any such relevant bodies within Ireland back to ESON. The ESON brief is that such communications are ESO/ESON related.

Tom Bonner of Cork Astronomy Club and CIT, and I are looking to create communication links that would go directly between us and the Irish astronomy community. Our brief is to promote knowledge and awareness of ESON, pass on their releases and when appropriate act as the link for the Irish astronomy community back to ESON to raise the profile of events and activities that would be deemed relevant. Galilean Nights is a good example. See www.galileannights.org

BCO will officially launch Ireland ESON at Discovery, Cork’s interactive science exhibit, on Sat Nov 14. For more details see http://www.bco.ie/October_09_Newsletter.html"

7. ISS IN MORNINGS: The International Space Station is making a series of morning passes at the moment - see www.heavens-above.com Look out for it when it passes close to.....

8. BRILLIANT MORNING STAR VENUS: Venus is still the brightest object in the morning sky. It currently rises in morning twilight, preceded by much fainter Saturrn, and followed by Mercury, which is about midway in brightness between Saturn and Venus. But both Mercury and then Venus will soon move too close to the Sun to be seen, so look in the next few mornings before they go.

If you see the ISS pass nearby on a good bright pass, compare its brightness with Venus - from Belfast it will be noticeably fainter than Venus, more comparable with Jupiter which is visible earlier in the night. From Dublin it can be almost as bright as Venus. And from Cork, where it can pass nearly overhead, it can equal Venus in brightness!

9. IAA's Castle Espie Event a Great Success: A combination of good publicity and a clear sky resulted in a huge turnout at the IAA's IYA2009 Stargazing + Mobile Planetarium evening last Saturday. It was the largest turnout at any event they have had since the newly refurbished VC was opened, and all were delighted with the evening. Except maybe poor Andy McCrea, who had to do 4 planetarium starshows in quick succession! Thanks Andy. We got lovely telescopic views of giant planet Jupiter with its cloud belts and 4 bright Galilean moons, plus of course all the usual deepsky wonders. Thanks to all who helped.

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

IYA 2009 at WWT, Lectures, BCO Prog, ISS, Venus

From: TerryMoselat signaol.com

Date: 16 October 2009 23:20:59 GMT+01:00

Subject: IYA 2009 at WWT, Lectures, BCO Prog, ISS, Venus


Hi all,

1. IAA / IYA PUBLIC ASTRONOMY EVENT AT CASTLE ESPIE, 17 October.

To mark International Year of Astronomy 2009, the Irish Astronomical Association will be holding a special public astronomy event at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Castle Espie, near Comber, Co Down.

We will show members of the public the wonders of the night sky, including mighty Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System, with its four big Galilean Moons, and lovely double stars, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies from far across the universe.

We will also have an exhibition, meteorites, and starshows in a mobile planetarium, so there will be plenty to enjoy, even if it's cloudy.

Wrap up warm in any case, especially if the sky is clear.

Date: 17 October

Time: 8 p.m until about 11 p.m.

No extra charge, but WWT normal admission charges apply.

2. IAS Talk in Dunsink Observatory, Dublin, 21 October, at 8 p.m. "The Herschel Space Observatory: The Golden Age of Space-Based IR Astronomy Continues". Speaker: Dr. Brian O'Halloran, Research Associate at Imperial College London. He is a member of the Herschel SPIRE Instrument Control Centre team, and a member of the Herschel Specialist Astronomy Group 2 consortium.

The Herschel Space Observatory carries the largest, most powerful infrared telescope ever flown in space, and is the first space observatory to observe from the far-infrared to the submillimetre waveband, unveiling the mysterious hidden cold Universe to us for the first time.

They have reserved 4 places in total for IAA members. Please let John Murphy know if you wish to attend so he can put you on the list (Insurance limits the amount of attendees in Dunsink, hence the limits). E: murphymeat signvodafone.ie, orjohnmurphy474at signgmail.com

3. Oct 21: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Dr Carla Gil. Carla has done some pioneering research work with the world's most powerful telescope, the European Southern Observatory's VLT in Chile, specifically using it in Interferometer mode, when it can function with an effective aperture of 100 metres. Yes, that's one hundred metres! She is now a visiting ESO Research Fellow at Armagh Observatory.

Her talk is entitled "Observing with a 100-metre virtual telescope, the VLTI". It's on WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome; particularly ladies - come along and see what women are doing at the leading edge of astronomical research: astronomy is not just a topic for men! Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

N.B. The Belfast Festival at Queen's is on that week, so come early if you want to get parked on the QUB site, or indeed anywhere in that area. There are no events at that time in QUB itself, but there's one at the Elmwood Hall which is not too far away, so parking spaces will soon fill up. I suggest you try to get there no later than 7.0.

4. Public Lecture, Armagh: "Why Are We Here?", 8.00 pm Thursday 22 October 2009

The Armagh Observatory and the Armagh Natural History and Philosophical Society are co-hosting a free public lecture on Thursday 22 October 2009 in the Rotunda Lecture Theatre, St. Patrick's Trian, Armagh. The Lecture will be delivered by Dr Martin Hendry of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Glasgow. The lecture will begin at 8.00 pm and is scheduled to end at 9.00 pm with questions, followed by tea and coffee.

The title and summary of the lecture are: "Why Are We Here?

Since the dawn of civilisation human cultures have sought to understand our place in the universe, asking "Big questions" about our cosmic origins. Modern cosmology provides some startling answers to these questions: not only is the universe expanding, but we believe the expansion to be accelerating -- driven by a mysterious "dark energy" that challenges our

ideas about gravity and the very nature of space and time. Moreover our runaway universe appears to be rather delicately balanced, in the sense that small changes in the laws of nature would result in a very different cosmos -- most likely unsuitable for life like us. What does all of this mean for our cosmic origins? Is our universe unique, or do we belong to a

"multiverse" -- a vast ensemble of universes, each with its own laws of nature? In his lecture, Dr Hendry will explore these, and other, questions posed by the latest cosmological discoveries, and discuss what implications they might have for the existence of life in the universe."

For free tickets to this public lecture, please contact Aileen McKee at the Armagh Observatory; Tel: 028-3752-2928; Fax: 028-3752-7174; e-mail: ambnat signarm.ac.uk.

5. Blackrock Castle Observatory Events: BCO in Cork has an excellent series of ongoing events: See www.bco.ie.

Director Clair McSweeney also sent me this: "In addition, CIT / Blackrock Castle Observatory has taken on the role of communications point of contact within Ireland for ESON. ESON is the European Southern Observatory Outreach Network. http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/ This has a wide brief but entails being a link into any relevant amateur and professional body for ESON press and media releases and also hopefully to be the same for all and any such relevant bodies within Ireland back to ESON. The ESON brief is that such communications are ESO/ESON related.

Tom Bonner of Cork Astronomy Club and CIT, and I are looking to create communication links that would go directly between us and the Irish astronomy community. Our brief is to promote knowledge and awareness of ESON, pass on their releases and when appropriate act as the link for the Irish astronomy community back to ESON to raise the profile of events and activities that would be deemed relevant. Galilean Nights is a good example. See www.galileannights.org

BCO will officially launch Ireland ESON at Discovery, Cork’s interactive science exhibit, on Sat Nov 14. For more details see http://www.bco.ie/October_09_Newsletter.html"

6. ISS IN MORNINGS: The International Space Station is making a series of morning passes at the moment - see www.heavens-above.com Look out for it when it passes close to.....

7. BRILLIANT MORNING STAR VENUS: Venus is still the brightest object in the morning sky. It currently rises in morning twilight, preceded by much fainter Saturrn, and followed by Mercury, which is about midway in brightness between Saturn and Venus. But both Mercury and then Venus will soon move too close to the Sun to be seen, so look in the next few mornings before they go.

If you see the ISS pass nearby on a good bright pass, compare its brightness with Venus - from Belfast it will be noticeably fainter than Venus, more comparable with Jupiter which is visible earlier in the night. From Dublin it can be almost as bright as Venus. And from Cork, where it can pass nearly overhead, it can equal Venus in brightness!

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

Lectures, Science Cafe, IYA @ WWT, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, etc

From: TerryMoselat signaol.com

Date: 13 October 2009 00:06:23 GMT+01:00

Subject: Lectures, Science Cafe, IYA @ WWT, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, etc


Hi all,

1. 14 October: Science NI presents Prof Alan Fitzsimmons @ the Science Café, 7.30 p.m. (doors open at 7.0) Admission free. Topic "Astromomy: What is our place in the Universe?"

(The Science Cafe, a monthly event where different topics of science are being discussed. You have a chance to listen to and to question experts on the topic

discussed, and share your opinions.) Venue: McHugh's Bar, Belfast.

2. IYA PUBLIC ASTRONOMY EVENT AT CASTLE ESPIE, 17 October.

To mark International Year of Astronomy 2009, the Irish Astronomical Association will be holding a special public astronomy event at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Castle Espie, near Comber, Co Down.

We will show members of the public the wonders of the night sky, including mighty Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System, with its four big Galilean Moons, and lovely double stars, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies from far across the universe.

We will also have an exhibition, meteorites, and starshows in a mobile planetarium, so there will be plenty to enjoy, even if it's cloudy.

Wrap up warm in any case, especially if the sky is clear.

Date: 17 October

Time: 8 p.m until about 11 p.m.

No extra charge, but WWT normal admission charges apply.

3. Public Lecture, Armagh: "Why Are We Here?", 8.00 pm Thursday 22 October 2009

The Armagh Observatory and the Armagh Natural History and Philosophical Society are co-hosting a free public lecture on Thursday 22 October 2009 in the Rotunda Lecture Theatre, St. Patrick's Trian, Armagh. The Lecture will be delivered by Dr Martin Hendry of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Glasgow. The lecture will begin at 8.00 pm and is scheduled to end at 9.00 pm with questions, followed by tea and coffee.

The title and summary of the lecture are: "Why Are We Here?

Since the dawn of civilisation human cultures have sought to understand our place in the universe, asking "Big questions" about our cosmic origins. Modern cosmology provides some startling answers to these questions: not only is the universe expanding, but we believe the expansion to be accelerating -- driven by a mysterious "dark energy" that challenges our

ideas about gravity and the very nature of space and time. Moreover our runaway universe appears to be rather delicately balanced, in the sense that small changes in the laws of nature would result in a very different cosmos -- most likely unsuitable for life like us. What does all of this mean for our cosmic origins? Is our universe unique, or do we belong to a

"multiverse" -- a vast ensemble of universes, each with its own laws of nature? In his lecture, Dr Hendry will explore these, and other, questions posed by the latest cosmological discoveries, and discuss what implications they might have for the existence of life in the universe."

For free tickets to this public lecture, please contact Aileen McKee at the Armagh Observatory; Tel: 028-3752-2928; Fax: 028-3752-7174; e-mail: ambnat signarm.ac.uk.


4. Mercury, Venus, Saturn

All this week the planet Mercury will be visible in the Eastern morning sky just after dawn (around 7am), and it will be close to brilliant Venus, and intriguing Saturn. Mercury will appear about 20 times dimmer than Venus, but will still be as bright as the brightest stars in the sky, and Saturn will be a bit fainter than Mercury.

(Saturn is just reappearing from its passage behind the Sun, when both the Earth and the Sun passed through the Ring-Plane.)

On the morning of Oct 13 Saturn will be only 0.5 degree (a lunar diameter) E of brilliant Venus.

5. NUIG Events: the Centre for Astronomy NUI, Galway is running a series of open nights on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. We also have free public lectures on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month – they are aimed at 2nd level students and interested members of the public. Details can be found on http://dartagnan.nuigalway.ie/outreach.php. The first lecture is on the 14th October.

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

Meteorites talk, Lunar Impacts, Cassini Comp, BCO, Sir P.M., ISS, Astron course

From: TerryMoselat signaol.com

Date: 6 October 2009 01:43:23 GMT+01:00

Subject: Meteorites talk, Lunar Impacts, Cassini Comp, BCO, Sir P.M., ISS, Astron course


Hi all,

1. Oct 07: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Dr Mike Simms of the Ulster Museum. It is entitled "To Here From Eternity: The story of the Bovedy, Sprucefield and Crumlin Meteorites". Mike is eminently qualified to talk on this topic, as he is the recognized expert on meteorites at the Ulster Museum. He is also currently President of the Belfast Geologists Society. We have had several excellent lectures from Mike before, and we are delighted to welcome him back again. It's on WEDNESDAY 7 OCTOBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome. Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

2. SEE LUNAR IMPACTS: On Friday morning, Oct. 9th, you can watch a pair of spacecraft crash into the Moon with your own eyes. The purposeful impacts are the climax of NASA's LCROSS mission to unearth signs of water in lunar soil. Here's how and where to look. FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2009/05oct_lcrossvg.htm?list724598

3. CASSINI COMPETITION: Be a Cassini Scientist for a day! Contact l.f.thomasat signqmul.ac.uk for more details.

4. Blackrock Castle Observatory Events: For details of the latest forthcoming events at BCO, Cork, covering the period up to Xmas, see: www.bco.ie

5. SIR PATRICK MOORE, FRS, AT THE ROYAL INSTITUTION. A special event has been organised to mark Sir Patrick Moore's 75 years membership of the British Astronomical Assopciation. It will be held in the Faraday Lecture Theatre, Royal Institution, 21 Albemarle St, London W1, on Sat 21 November. The title is: "DEVELOPMENTS IN AMATEUR ASTRONOMY, PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE".

Organised by Dr John Mason MBE, (who gave a superb keynote lecture at the recent European Light Polluition Conference in Armagh), it will run from 10.00 to 17.00. Speakers include Sir Patrick himself along with Dr Peter Cattermole, well known lunar gelogy expert, on "The Craters of the Moon: From Pre-Apollo to Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter". Others include many well-known professional and amateur astronomers. The full programme can be found on the BAA website: www.britastro.org, or email officeat signbritastro.org. The cost is a mere £10 for BAA member or £15 for non-members, including tea & coffee.

Further details & booking form from: Jean Felles, Office Manager, The British Astronomical Association, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0DU, Tel: 020 7734 4145, Fax: 020 7439 4629, E-mail: officeat signbritastro.org, Website: www.britastro.org

6. ISS MORNING PASSES: The International Space Station will start another series of morning passes on 12/13 October. You can generate predictions for your location via www.heavens-above.com

7. STARGAZING FOR PLEASURE. In Association with the Bangor Spectator

Bangor, Hamilton House

Tuesday evenings 7pm to 9pm

November to December 2009

A series of eight illustrated evening lectures and practical demonstrations all aimed at beginners or those with a background interest. The lectures will cover;

1. The Night Sky Constellations – an introduction to the night sky and the basic principles – how to find your way around the night sky!

2. The History of Astronomy – how did our understanding of the universe and our place in it develop from Plato to Copernicus?

3. Our Nearest Star, the Sun – all our light and heat comes from our star, the Sun!

4. Planets of our Solar System – a romp through the planets, moons and dwarf planets of our Sun’s family

5. Meteors, Comets and Asteroids – a look at the ‘left overs’ from the solar system’s creation

6. The Milky Way and other Galaxies – our star city and its relationship to the others

7. Cosmology and the Universe – latest thinking on our place in the universe

8. Telescopes and Binoculars – will cover the purchase and setting up of astronomical equipment.

The series will be conducted by well known local amateur astronomer and monthly ‘Heavens Above’ columnist with the Bangor Spectator, Dr Andy McCrea, past President of the Irish Astronomical Association. Each evening session will be in two halves with a short break at 7.45. There will be an introduction with a description of what is visible in the night sky and there will be observing through telescopes and binoculars if weather conditions permit.

Special introductory cost for the complete series will be £90 per person

If you would be interested in attending this lecture series, please contact 91 273584 after 6 pm as soon as possible. Once numbers have been established, bookings and commencement dates will be confirmed.

Clear skies,

Terry Moseley

Lecture, Donegal & Patrick Moore Events, ISS, Astronomy Course

From: TerryMoselat signaol.com

Date: 1 October 2009 21:40:54 GMT+01:00

Subject: Lecture, Donegal & Patrick Moore Events, ISS, Astronomy Course


Hi all,

1. Oct 07: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The next lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Dr Mike Simms of the Ulster Museum. It is entitled "To Here From Eternity". Mike is eminently qualified to talk on this topic, as he is the recognized expert on meteorites at the Ulster Museum. He is also currently President of the Belfast Geologists Society. We have had several excellent lectures from Mike before, and we are delighted to welcome him back again. It's on WEDNESDAY 7 OCTOBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome. Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

2. Donegal Bay & Blue Stacks Festival 09 has, among other things, an astronomical theme, to mark IYA 2009.
This is our Community Arts festival and many groups have worked hard on creating productions & offering a variety of shows, exhibitions and events for this yr . I ask that you all support the arts and celebrate tha talent we have here in Donegal by supporting this unique and wide spread rural festival So Please………. Spread the word through your contacts.
Please note that carnival Ballyshannon CONSTELLATIONS will take place on Oct 3rd at 7.30pm.
There will be road closures in place from 6.30pm to 9pm so if coming or going through ballyshannon on this night please take by pass routes or better still park up on outskirts of town and join us for this magical nightitme parade.
Flirting with the Queen of Sciences in ballyshannon !
We honour Astronomy this year.
We have the privilage of launching World Space Week in Ireland on the 3rd Oct and we honour Astronomy ( working closely with International Yr of Astronomy 2009, Armagh Planetarium and Robert Hill from the NI Space Office) as our Carnival theme on the night.
This Science meets Arts education initiative is funded by Discover Science & Engineering
Thanking you
Maura logue, Community arts & arts education officer south & south west Donegal
0871255048, mauraflogueat signgmail.com, or MAURA.LOGUEat signdonegalcoco.ie
P.S.Centre, Donegal Town, Cultural Services Sector.
Further information from: Robert Hill, Northern Ireland Space Office, Armagh Planetarium, College Hill, Armagh, Tel: +44(0)7929278501, Fax: +44(0)2837526187, www.armaghplanet.com, www.spaceconnections.net

3. SIR PATRICK MOORE, FRS, AT THE ROYAL INSTITUTION. A special event has been organised to mark Sir Patrick Moore's 75 years membership of the British Astronomical Assopciation. It will be held in the Faraday Lecture Theatre, Royal Institution, 21 Albemarle St, London W1, on Sat 21 November. The title is: "DEVELOPMENTS IN AMATEUR ASTRONOMY, PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE".

Organised by Dr John Mason MBE, (who gave a superb keynote lecture at the recent European Light Polluition Conference in Armagh), it will run from 10.00 to 17.00. Speakers include Sir Patrick himself along with Dr Peter Cattermole, well known lunar gelogy expert, on "The Craters of the Moon: From Pre-Apollo to Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter". Others include many well-known professional and amateur astronomers. The full programme can be found on the BAA website: www.britastro.org, or email officeat signbritastro.org. The cost is a mere £10 for BAA member or £15 for non-members, including tea & coffee.

Further details from: Jean Felles, Office Manager, The British Astronomical Association, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0DU, Tel: 020 7734 4145, Fax: 020 7439 4629, E-mail: officeat signbritastro.org, Website: www.britastro.org

4. ISS MORNING PASSES: The International Space Station will start another series of morning passes on 12/13 October. You can generate predictions for your location via www.heavens-above.com

5. STARGAZING FOR PLEASURE. In Association with the Bangor Spectator

Bangor, Hamilton House

Tuesday evenings 7pm to 9pm

November to December 2009

A series of eight illustrated evening lectures and practical demonstrations all aimed at beginners or those with a background interest. The lectures will cover;

1. The Night Sky Constellations – an introduction to the night sky and the basic principles – how to find your way around the night sky!

2. The History of Astronomy – how did our understanding of the universe and our place in it develop from Plato to Copernicus?

3. Our Nearest Star, the Sun – all our light and heat comes from our star, the Sun!

4. Planets of our Solar System – a romp through the planets, moons and dwarf planets of our Sun’s family

5. Meteors, Comets and Asteroids – a look at the ‘left overs’ from the solar system’s creation

6. The Milky Way and other Galaxies – our star city and its relationship to the others

7. Cosmology and the Universe – latest thinking on our place in the universe

8. Telescopes and Binoculars – will cover the purchase and setting up of astronomical equipment.

The series will be conducted by well known local amateur astronomer and monthly ‘Heavens Above’ columnist with the Bangor Spectator, Dr Andy McCrea, past President of the Irish Astronomical Association. Each evening session will be in two halves with a short break at 7.45. There will be an introduction with a description of what is visible in the night sky and there will be observing through telescopes and binoculars if weather conditions permit.

Special introductory cost for the complete series will be £90 per person

If you would be interested in attending this lecture series, please contact 91 273584 after 6 pm as soon as possible. Once numbers have been established, bookings and commencement dates will be confirmed.

Clear skies,

Terry Moseley

LP Conf, Lectures, Star Party, Comp Winners, Art, ISS, HST, Astronomy Course...

Hi all,



A FINAL reminder of the EUROPEAN LIGHT POLLUTION CONFERENCE IN ARMAGH this week. It will be launched IN DUBLIN as follows:

SEPT. 16, 19.00: The Royal Irish Academy will host a public lecture to launch the 9th European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky. Well-known broadcaster and science populariser Leo Enright will give a talk titled "What is Light?" at the RIA on Dawson Street. More details at http://ria.ie/committees/astronomy/new.html


MAIN CONFERENCE:

SEPT. 17-19: European Light Pollution Symposium in Armagh.ILPAC, the Irish Light Pollution Awareness Campaign, and Armagh Observatory jointly host this year's European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky. This is an annual event held in a different country each year and is the main gathering of light pollution experts from around Europe with some speakers also coming from the USA and Japan.

With sponsorship from Discover Science and Engineering and Armagh Observatory we have put together a great programme of talks that we are sure you'll find interesting. And in addition to the main event there are public lectures by Leo Enright in Dublin and Armagh. (You need to register for these free talks by the way - details on the website www.lightpollution2009.eu. There will also be excursions to the archaeoastronomy site at Beaghmore stone circles for some dark sky observing if clear, and a free buffet meal at the nearby An Creagan visitor center.

You can see the symposium program, biographies of the speakers and other details on the website. Also pass this on to your colleagues. And if any of you have had dealings with elected council officials or county lighting engineers please tell them to come along. We will have experts in lighting and campaigners who have worked to get better lighting policies implemented with local town councils to EU and USA federal level who will be happy to help councillors see the benefits of better lighting policy.

Please register as soon as possible so that we know how many to arrange catering and transport for. €30 for the weekend, €20 for either the Friday or Saturday. See http://www.lightpollution2009.eu


SEPT. 18: Art Exhibition: A major exhibition collated by Deirdre Kelleghan will launch at Birr Castle, County Offaly. Entitled "In the Footsteps of Galileo", it will feature drawings and sketches of the Moon created by Irish, American, and many more children along with lunar, solar, planetary, and deep sky sketches made by well known observers and artists such as Sir Patrick Moore, Sally Russell, Jeremy Perez, Sue French, Dan Davis, Jeff Young and many more. More details on http://www.deirdrekelleghan.com/

SEPT. 23: IAA FREE PUBLIC LECTURE, BELFAST: The opening lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Prof Tom Ray of the Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies and the Royal Irish Academy. It is entitled "Planning Hubble's Successor, the James Webb Space Telescope". Prof Ray is eminently qualified to talk on this topic, as he is involved in the design of some of the instrumentation which will be going on the telescope! We have had several excellent lectures from Tom before, and we are delighted to welcome him back again. It's on WEDNESDAY 23 SEPTEMBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome. Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org

SEPT. 26: The Burren Star Party organised by the Shannonside Astronomy Club, will be held on 26 September at the Burren Coast Hotel, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare. More details on http://www.shannonsideastronomyclub.com/sac_burren_starparty.htm

IRISH ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY WINNER 1: Congratulations to Michael O'Connell of the Midlands Astronomy Club, who recently won an astrophotography exhibition organised by the Royal Greenwich Observatory. Michael's photo won the "Our Solar System" category and features the Moon in the daytime sky. You can see the photo at http://www.nmm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/astronomy-photographer-of-the-year/winners/our-solar-system/ or visit www.astroshot.com to see more of Michael's images of the day- and night-time sky.

IRISH ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY WINNER 2: Another Irish amateur astronomer, Paul Smith, also won the "Young Astrophotographer" category and Paul's photo is on view at http://www.nmm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/astronomy-photographer-of-the-year/winners/young-astronomy-photographer-of-the-year-2009/

ISS EVENING PASSES: The International Space Station is making a series of evening passes this week. You can generate predictions for your location via www.heavens-above.com

NEW HST PICTURES: Stunning pictures from the refurbished Hubble Space Telescope have been released by NASA. They really have to be seen as they highlight the advanced capabilities of the new instrumentation installed on the recent servicing mission. Check out the images at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/multimedia/ero/index.html and read the latest on HST at http://www.hubblesite.org/newscenter/

ASTRONOMY COURSE in BANGOR:

STARGAZING FOR PLEASURE, In Association with the Bangor Spectator

Bangor, Hamilton House

Tuesday evenings 7pm to 9pm

November to December 2009



A series of eight illustrated evening lectures and practical demonstrations all aimed at beginners or those with a background interest. The lectures will cover;



1. The Night Sky Constellations – an introduction to the night sky and the basic principles – how to find your way around the night sky!

2. The History of Astronomy – how did our understanding of the universe and our place in it develop from Plato to Copernicus?

3. Our Nearest Star, the Sun – all our light and heat comes from our star, the Sun!

4. Planets of our Solar System – a romp through the planets, moons and dwarf planets of our Sun’s family

5. Meteors, Comets and Asteroids – a look at the ‘left overs’ from the solar system’s creation

6. The Milky Way and other Galaxies – our star city and its relationship to the others

7. Cosmology and the Universe – latest thinking on our place in the universe

8. Telescopes and Binoculars – will cover the purchase and setting up of astronomical equipment.



The series will be conducted by well known local amateur astronomer and monthly ‘Heavens Above’ columnist with the Bangor Spectator, Dr Andy McCrea, past President of the Irish Astronomical Association. Each evening session will be in two halves with a short break at 7.45. There will be an introduction with a description of what is visible in the night sky and there will be observing through telescopes and binoculars if weather conditions permit.



Special introductory cost for the complete series will be £90 per person



If you would be interested in attending this lecture series, please contact 91 273584 after 6 pm as soon as possible. Once numbers have been established, bookings and commencement dates will be confirmed.





Clear skies,



Terry Moseley

Monday 7 September 2009

Symposium, Lectures, Mutual Jovian satellite event, Open Day, Art, BSP.

Hi all,



1. EUROPEAN LIGHT POLLUTION SYMPOSIUM.

Another reminder about the major European Light Pollution Symposium in Armagh on 17-19 September. (I've sometimes referred to it as a conference - it's the same event!)



There are some excellent speakers, on all aspects of the subject, as well as the latest information on what we can do to reduce the problem.



I'm sure many of you are planning to go, even if only on the Saturday, and/or for the trip to the Beaghmore Stone Circles & Alignments on Friday evening, which includes a meal at the An Creagan Centre, and, if clear, observing in one of the darkest sites in N.I.



But we need to know how many will be attending on each day, so that we can plan catering, transport, etc, so if you have not already done so, PLEASE REGISTER NOW on http://www.lightpollution2009.eu



2. PUBLIC LECTURES:

As part of the symposium, well known science broadcaster & journalist, Leo Enright, will give two free keynote public lectures, entitled "What is Light?" He will explore the history of Ireland's sometimes tenuous connection with luminosity, while naming and shaming some modern big wicks. Leo adds: "Expect some terrible puns and some spectacular new images of Ireland from outer space".


The first of these free public lectures is in Dublin at the Royal Irish Academy (see http://shop.ria.ie/shop/events.asp) at 7.00pm on Wednesday 16th September.

The second (a repeat of the first) is at the Market Place Theatre, Armagh, at 7.30pm on Thursday 17th September. If you wish to register for the Armagh public lecture, please contact Aileen McKee at the Armagh Observatory (E-mail: ambnat signarm.ac.uk; Tel: 028-3752-2928).



Here are the details again about the main part of the conference itself:



3. EUROPEAN LIGHT POLLUTION SYMPOSIUM, ARMAGH, 17-19 SEPTEMBER.

ILPAC, the Irish Light Pollution Awareness Campaign, was asked to host this year's

European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky. This is an annual event held in a different country each year and is the main gathering of light pollution experts from around Europe with some speakers also coming from the USA and Japan.

Thanks to the help of Discover Science and Engineering and Armagh Observatory we have put together a great programme of talks that I'm sure you'll find interesting. And in addition to the main event we have free public lectures by Leo Enright in Dublin and Armagh. (You

need to register for these free talks by the way - details on the website www.lightpollution2009.eu . There will also be excursions to Armagh Planetarium, An Creagan visitor center and the archaeoastronomy site at Beaghmore stone circles for some dark sky observing if clear.

You can see the symposium program, biographies of the speakers and other details on the website. Also pass this on to your colleagues. And if any of you have had dealings with elected council officials or county lighting engineers please tell them to come along. We will have experts in lighting and campaigners who have worked to get better lighting policies

implemented with local town councils to EU and USA federal level who will be happy to help councillors see the benefits of better lighting policy.

Please register as soon as possible so that we know how many to arrange catering and transport for. €30 for the weekend, €20 for either the Friday or Saturday. See

http://www.lightpollution2009.eu



4. IAS LECTURE. September 7, 20.00: The first talk of their new lecture season will be held in Dunsink Observatory, Castleknock, Dublin, at 8pm. John O'Neill will recount his trip to China to view the total solar eclipse of 22 July.



5. MUTUAL JUPITER SATELLITE EVENTS: There are two mutual events involving Io and Europa on the night of 8 Sep (Tue-Wed). First, Europa will be occulted by Io between 23:22 and 23:32 BST, and this will be followed by Io eclipsing Europa between 00:38 and 00:47 BST. Jupiter will be reasonably well placed low in the southern part of the sky as seen from Ireland.

The occultation is partial, with 55% of Europa (magnitude 5.3) being covered by Io (magnitude 5.0). With smallish telescopes, and/or poor seeing, the two satellites will just seem to get closer together until they appear to merge into one brighter satellite (like an unresolved double star), with a combined magnitude of 4.4. With medium sized telescopes, and/or middling seeing, you might see the two moons as a single but elongated object. Then as the occultation begins, the magnitude will begin to drop fairly quickly, as over half of Europa's bright surface is hidden by Io. And in a powerful telescope, with good seeing, you can watch as one disc passes partly in front of the other. But for most of us, what we'll see is the convergence of the two moons, their apparent merger into one body, perhaps elongated, with the corresponding increase in brightness, then the decrease as one body partly hides the other one, then all that will happen again in reverse.

The nominal magnitude decrease will be about 1.0 magnitudes, i.e. to 6.3, but that applies to the magnitude of Europa alone - if the seeing is so poor that you have only been able to see them as a single unresolved object, then the magnitude drop will be from 4m.4 (the combined magnitude). In other words, in mid-occultation you'll be seeing all the light from Io, plus about half the light from Europa.

The eclipse is also a partial, with 53% of Europa being eclipsed, resulting in a flux drop of 63%, which is equivalent to a drop of 1.07 magnitudes. This is enough to be noticeable by eye by careful comparison with the brightness of the other satellites.

During both these events, all four Galilean Moons will lie on the East side of the planet, with Ganymede (mag 4.6) and Callisto (mag 5.6) further out in that order. At the time of the eclipse Io will be closest to the planet, then Europa, then Ganymede & Callisto. The separation between Io and Europa will be 16" (arcseconds) at the start of the eclipse.



6. Astronomy Ireland Lecture: September 14: "Searching for exoplanets: modern methods and future prospects" by Dr. Christopher Allan Watson, Astrophysics Research Centre, Queen's University Belfast. More details at http://www.astronomy.ie/lecture200909.html



7. Art Exhibition: September 18th: A major exhibition collated by Deirdre Kelleghan will launch at Birr Castle, County Offaly. Entitled "In the Footsteps of Galileo", it will feature drawings and sketches of the Moon created by Irish, American, and many more children along with lunar, solar, planetary, and deep sky sketches made by well known observers and artists such as Sir Patrick Moore, Sally Russell, Jeremy Perez, Sue French, Dan Davis, Jeff Young and many more. More details on http://www.deirdrekelleghan.com/


8. IAA PUBLIC LECTURE: 23 September. The opening lecture of the Irish Astronomical Association's new season will be given by Prof Tom Ray of the Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies and the Royal Irish Academy. It is entitled "Planning Hubble's Successor, the James Webb Space Telescope". Prof Ray is eminently qualified to talk on this topic, as he is involved in the design of some of the instrumentation which will be going on the telescope! We have had several excellent lectures from Tom before, and we are delighted to welcome him back again. It's on WEDNESDAY 23 SEPTEMBER, at 7.30 p.m., in the Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast. ADMISSION IS FREE, as always, and includes light refreshments. Everyone is welcome. Full details of the rest of the programme are on the website: www.irishastro.org



9. ARMAGH OBSERVATORY OPEN DAY: As part of the Heritage week events, Armagh Observatory will be open free to the public on Saturday 12 September, with tours planned for 11.00, 12.00, 14.00, 15.00 and 16.00. See www.arm.ac.uk for further details.



10. The BURREN STAR PARTY organised by the Shannonside Astronomy Club (replacing the Whirlpool Star Party, at least for this year), will be held on 26 September at the Burren Coast Hotel, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare. More details on http://www.shannonsideastronomyclub.com/sac_burren_starparty.htm



Clear Skies,



Terry Moseley