Siding Spring Observatory

Astronomy Society of Coonabarabran Monthly Meeting with Special Guest Speaker

2010-10-14T11:25:00.001+11:00

Next Wednesday (October 20th) we will have Mr Chris Wyatt, the president of UNE & Northern Tablelands Astronomical Society, (Armidale) to speak to the local Astronomical Society of Coonabarabran at our monthly meeting. Chris, who lives in beautiful Walcha, has been interested in Astronomy since he was 7 when Halley's Comet made its most recent visit in 1986. Since then he has had a keen interest in Astronomy, with a particular interest in Comets but also in other facets of astronomy including Variable star observing and Asteroid & Lunar Occultations. It is this latter area of asteroid and lunar occultations he is going to come and talk to us about. All welcome - Rotary Room in the new improved Imperial Hotel Dining Room at Coonabarabran at 7.30 pm this coming Wednesday - we will be meeting for dinner from 6.30pm before hand and sampling the new menu!

Chris is a keen astro-photographer of comets and other wonders of the night sky and some of his pictures can be seen here - http://www.unentas.armidale.com/chris_photos.htm

Please do not hesitate to contact me for more information and everyone is welcome and the meetings are free and suitable to all ages.

Astronomy Events in Coonabarabran October 1st – 2nd 2010.

2010-08-27T14:50:00.001+10:00

Annual Science in the Pub

This entertaining event starts the weekend off on Friday October 1st, 2010 from 6.30pm.

This annual debate is definitely entertaining and can be thoroughly outrageous at times as a group of astronomers from various backgrounds debate a topic of astronomical interest at the Royal Hotel, John Street Coonabarabran. This event has an entry fee of $5 and provides entry into the drawer for a variety of prizes on the night. A buffet salad with steak meal will be available for $18 and bookings would be appreciated. Vegetarian meals are also available. The topic is “Climate Change: Can Astronomers shed any light?”

Siding Spring Open Day
On Saturday October 2nd, the Annual Siding Spring Open Day will be held here at Siding Spring Observatory - where we open a number of the telescopes during the day to the public - there will be a BBQ lunch available, a shuttle bus on site to help you move around and see all there is to see - solar viewing, a chance to talk to astronomers and learn about what we do here. Solar observing will also be available and there will be talks in the Exploratory lecture theatre throughout the day. The Exploratory cafe will be opened for a well deserved cuppa or Devonshire tea and entry to the event is free. The Open Day will start at 10 am and run until 4pm. Visit the various telescopes and listen to astronomers talk about the research they do.

Annual Bok Lecture
Saturday evening will culminate with the annual BOK lecture. This is a free lecture, held at the Coonabarabran Primary School in George Street, Coonabarabran. This year’s speaker is Professor Ray Norris, an astrophysicist at the CSIRO Australia Telescope National Facility (ATNF). Educated at Cambridge and Manchester, he has been Head of Astrophysics and Deputy Director of the ATNF, before returning to full-time research to study the formation and evolution of galaxies. He also researches the astronomy of Aboriginal Australians, for which he has been appointed as Adjunct Professor in the Dept. of Indigenous Studies at Macquarie University.He is a very entertaining speaker and will be sharing some of his knowledge on Indigenous Astronomy with us at this event. This night is open to everyone and is free. The event starts at 7pm.

For more information on all these events or to make a booking please contact Donna Burton at Siding Spring Observatory on 02 6842 6255 or by email donna@mso.anu.edu.au or check out http://sidingspring.blogspot.com.

School Holiday Activities at Siding Spring Observatory

2010-08-27T14:48:00.001+10:00

The Siding Spring Observatory and Café will be open over the School holidays from 9.30 am to 4 pm Monday to Friday and 10 am to 4pm on Saturday, Sundays and Public Holidays.

Walking Tours of the Mountain:
Take a closer look around Siding Spring Observatory. Join our Guide and explore this special astronomy site and learn about the importance of this area to astronomy research and the natural environment. Enjoy a walk with breathtaking views of the Warrumbungle volcano.

Tours usually take about 1½ hours. Prices include entry to the Exhibition area. Please allow additional time to fully enjoy this experience. If the weather is inclement, you will still have a guided look at the Visitor Exhibition area and Anglo Australian Telescope viewing gallery.

Costs are:
$10.00 for adults, $7.50 for children and Seniors, and $30.00 for a family (2A,2C)

The dates and times for the School Holiday Period tours are as follows:

September 11.00 am on Tuesday 21st. Thursday 23rd, Saturday 25th, Tuesday 28th, Thursday 30th

October 11.00am on Tuesday 5th, Thursday 7th,Saturday 9th,

If you have a group of more than 15 people coming on another day and wish a tour – please contact the Visitors Centre to see if it can be arranged.

Please note it the weather here is quite variable, it can be quite warm or at the other extreme quite cool. Sunscreen, a hat, water and a warm coat/jacket are advisable. The walk takes place on some hilly and uneven ground so sensible and closed in foot wear is essential. Bookings are recommended as numbers are limited per tour and can be made on 6842 6211 or 6842 6399

Delta-Aquarids Meteor Shower

2010-07-13T09:33:00.000+10:00

The delta-Aquarids meteor shower will start to appear from 12 July and they continue through to 19th August with their being on July 28th. At 10 pm, on July 28th , go outside and face east, and look 4 hand spans and two finger widths above the horizon. One finger width right will be the fourth magnitude star delta  Aquarius. The radiant or origin of the meteor shower will be just above this star. This meteor shower should be visible from 10.00pm until dawn, with better meteor rates after midnight. The expected rate is around 20 meteors per hour. However, the full light of the Moon's may significantly interfere with how many meteors you may see.

A nice Sunset Scene

2010-07-13T09:32:00.000+10:00

This week take a look west as the Sun sets. Venus is passing by the first magnitude star Regulus which is in Leo. They're only a little more than a degree apart. Bright Venus catches the eye first well above the horizon. Watch as the glow of sunset fades and Regulus pops out of the twilight a little below Venus. The view through binoculars is superb. Not far above them and slightly east are both Mars and Saturn. Regulus is the bright star and the end of the upside question mark which is Leo.

The Planets this Month

2010-07-13T09:31:00.000+10:00

Mercury has returned to the evening sky in the latter half of this month and can be seem about a hand span above the north-west horizon an half and hour after sunset. On the 15th, Mercury is nearly one and with the crescent Moon close to Mars and Saturn, this will be a very nice view. By the 27th and 28th, Mercury will be two hand spans above the horizon, an hour after sunset, and only half a finger width from bright Regulus. The close massing of Venus, Mars and Saturn above Mercury will make for a lovely viewing of the planets.

Venus is hard to miss as the “evening star” as it can be seen blazing in the early evening sky throughout this month. On July 15 Venus, Mars and the thin crescent Moon form a triangle about two hands pans across. Venus is just under five hand spans above the north-western horizon an hour after Sunset at this time. On July 31 Venus is over five hand pans above the north-western horizon an hour after sunset. By then Venus forms a nice triangular line-up with Mars and Saturn, and Mercury is not far below.

Mars is still fading rapidly. Mars will not be more than a smallish disk in small to medium telescopes; it is still worth a look. Currently in the constellation of Leo it can be found two hand spans from bright star Regulus, and almost exactly half-way between Regulus and Saturn. On the 30th, Mars and Saturn are just a finger width apart, with Venus forming a triangle with them, and Mercury below.

Jupiter is prominent as the “morning star” in our sky this month. By the 15th Jupiter will be nine hand spans above the northern horizon an hour and a half before sunrise. On July 31 Jupiter is eight hand spans above the north-western horizon an hour and a half before sunrise. Jupiter is also a hand span above the Moon.

Jupiter is still within a binocular field of Uranus, making the seventh planet a bit easier to find as a greenish blue disk. However during the month Jupiter is drawing further away from Uranus.

ATNF - Australia Telescope NARRABRI - Open Day!

2010-06-24T20:57:00.000+10:00

This is a rare opportunity to tour the Australia Telescope Compact Array, the largest and most powerful radio telescope array in the Southern Hemisphere. Come along and learn about the cutting edge science and how the telescope works.

Activities
•• Telescope tours (flat enclosed shoes MUST be worn)
•• Astronomy talks
•• Displays & expert advice
•• Hands on science activities with CSIRO Education
•• Jumping castle and bbq lunch

Saturday July 17th

Time :10:00 am – 4:00 pm (Telescope tours)

Paul Wild Observatory
1828 Yarrie Lake Road
20km west of Narrabri NSW

Reminder: OPen Day at Siding Spring and Sidewalk Astronomy in Coonabarabran! this Saturday July 26th!

2010-06-24T20:45:00.002+10:00

Don't forget Open Day on Saturday at Siding Spring - come along with lots of warm clothes and ride a vintage bus between telescopes - enjoy a coffee or hot chocolate in the Cafe and talk to astronomers and best of all it is free!!!! Then come down to the Visitor Information Centre in town and join us with the guys with... the Obsessions from Three Rivers Foundation! From 5.30pm

New Horizons Spacecraft Wakes up for Checkup at the Midway Point of its Journey

2010-06-21T00:03:00.000+10:00

New Horizons is a NASA robotic spacecraft mission currently en route to the dwarf planet Pluto and then onto the Kuiper Belt. It was launched in January 2006 It will study Pluto and its 3 moons, Charon, Nix and Hydra. It passed Jupiter in February 2007 and crossed Saturn’s orbit in June 2008. In March 18 2011, it will pass through Uranus’s orbit. The spacecraft, which is about the size of a grand piano and is nuclear powered.

It is traveling through space at nearly a million miles per day, NASA’s New Horizons probe and is now halfway to Pluto and just woke up for the first time in months to look around.
As New Horizons passes into Pluto’s shadow in 2015, a UV imaging spectrometer named “Alice” will look back toward the sun through Pluto’s atmosphere. This should reveal how molecules in Pluto’s atmosphere absorb sunlight, and thus what the atmosphere is made of.
Cameras and spectrometers won’t be the only busy instruments. REX, New Horizon’s Radio Science EXperiment, will detect and observe radio signals coming all the way from NASA’s Deep Space Network on Earth.

This wake up period is the perfect opportunity to test New Horizon’s instruments before the probe reaches Pluto in 2015. IT is important to check things out and ensure all is working order well before it gets to Pluto.

The 9 weeks of testing commenced on May 25th. Mission controllers plan a thorough checkout and recalibration of all seven science of the instruments onboard.
First up is LORRI, the Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager, one of the largest interplanetary telescopes ever flown.

The plan is that on July 14, 2015, the date of closest approach, to the little planet, it should be able to distinguish objects on Pluto as small as a football field, which is about 300 times better resolution than anything that exists at present.
LORRI will be working together with “Ralph,” a spectrometer designed to probe the surface of Pluto at visible and infrared wavelengths. Ralph will reveal Pluto’s temperature, color, and chemical composition.

During the current tests, both LORRI and Ralph will be pointed at something in the sky to make sure they can be operated together with full sensitivity. Since New Horizons is far from any large bodies right now, they will aim the cameras at a star field to test them.

WInter Solstice

2010-06-20T23:59:00.001+10:00

This solstice occurred on Monday, June 21, 2010 at 11:28 Universal Time or 21:28 AEST. It is the shortest day of the Southern Hemisphere’s year, while in the Northern Hemisphere it the longest day and the start of their summer.

The earliest humans knew that the sun’s path across the sky, the length of daylight, and the location of the sunrise and sunset all shifted in a regular way throughout the year. They built monuments, such as Stonehenge, to follow the sun’s yearly progress.
Today, we know that the solstice is an astronomical event, caused by Earth’s tilt on its axis, and its motion in orbit around the sun. You may recall that the Earth is tilted on its axis by 23.5 degrees, so that Earth’s northern and southern hemispheres trade places in receiving the sun’s light and warmth most directly.

At the June solstice, Earth is positioned in its orbit so that the North Pole is leaning 23.5 degrees toward the sun. As seen from Earth, the sun is directly overhead at noon 23.5 north of the equator, at an imaginary line encircling the globe known as the Tropic of Cancer. This is as far north as the sun ever appears to be.

This means that all locations north of the equator have day lengths greater than 12 hours at the June solstice. Meanwhile, all locations south of the equator have day lengths less than 12 hours.

Partial Lunar Eclipse - Sidewalk Asronomy Saturday June 26 2010

2010-06-20T23:56:00.001+10:00

There is a partial eclipse of the Moon on Juen 26th. It is the first one this year.

The eclipse will be visible from much of the Americas, the Pacific and eastern Asia. New England and eastern Canada will miss the entire eclipse since the event begins after moonset from those regions.

When will the Eclipse Occur?

The penumbral eclipse begins at 08:57:21 Universal Time (UT) and the partial eclipse begins at 10:16:57 UT. The greatest eclipse occurs at 11:38:27 UT when the northern half of the lunar disk will be immersed in the umbra. The moon will be in the constellation Sagittarius, near the top of the familiar Teapot star pattern. The umbral eclipse magnitude will be 0.5368 at the instant of greatest eclipse. The moon will be at the zenith for observers in the South Pacific at that time. The partial eclipse ends at 12:59:50 and the penumbral eclipse ends at 14:19:34.

This greatly placed for us down under as it starts at 18:55 in the evening and peaks just before 10pm.

Hence why we are having a sidewalk astronomy night in Coonabarabran that night to check it out!

Reminder of some Great Free Astronomy Wvents in Coona this week!

2010-06-20T23:54:00.000+10:00

Just a reminder – lots of good things on this week in Coonabarabran – Tuesdsay 7.30 hear David Malin at the Shire Hall; Friday here Prof Malcolm Longair at 7.30pm as the Hall as well. Open Day at Siding Spring on Saturday and Sidewalk Astronomy on Saturday night

"A panoramic view of the Universe" - A Free Public Astronomy Lecture

2010-06-03T16:05:00.001+10:00

Come along and hear Professor Malcolm Longair give a free public lecture on the topic – "A panoramic view of the Universe".

On July 1st 2010, the Anglo-Australian Observatory will see both its 36th anniversary and its transition from a joint UK and Australian facility to a wholly Australian entity, the Australian Astronomical Observatory.

To celebrate the past successes and the exciting future of the AAO, they are holding a Symposium with the theme "Celebrating the AAO: Past, Present and Future".

As a part of that celebration is the opportunity to attend this free public talk on the Universe by Prof Longair.

The talk will be based on the concept that we now have access to views of the Universe in many wavebands. Complete panoramas of the sky have now been made in the radio, millimetre, infrared, optical, ultraviolet, X-ray and gamma-ray wavebands, each of them contributing unique information about the Universe we live in. Observations of the Universe in the optical waveband have supported all these new types of observation. In particular, the central role of the Anglo-Australian Telescope and the Schmidt Telescope in developing this new understanding will be highlighted.

The lecture will be profusely illustrated by many recent images of the Universe from ground and space-based observatories, as well as by videos and animations. The lecture will be delivered at the non-technical level and will be accessible by young people."

Prof. Malcolm Longair is the Jacksonian Professor of Natural Philosophy at the Cavendish Laboratory of the University of Cambridge. From 1997 to 2005, he was Head of the Laboratory and is currently its Director of Development. Professor Longair has held many highly respected positions within the field of astronomy. He was appointed the ninth Astronomer Royal of Scotland in 1980, as well as the Regius Professor of Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, and the director of the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh. He has served on and chaired many international committees, boards and panels, working with NASA, the European Space Agency, the Anglo-Australian Telescope and the Australia Telescope National Facility. His research interests are in high energy astrophysics and astrophysical cosmology.

This free public event takes place at 7.30pm on Friday June 25th at the Coonabarabran Shire Hall, John Street, Coonabarabran

School Holiday Activities at Siding Spring Observatory in July.

2010-06-03T15:51:00.000+10:00

The Siding Spring Observatory and Café will be open all July from 9.30 am to 4 pm on Mondays and Fridays and 10am to 4pm on week ends.

There will be behind the scene walking tours on the dates listed below.

A guided tour will include a site tour which focuses on astronomy and the environment and admission to the Exploratory.

Costs will be:

• $10.00 for adults,

• $7.50 for children and Seniors, and

• $30.00 for a family (2A,2C)

The dates and times for the July School Holiday Period tours are as follows:

11 am on Tuesdays: June 29th, July 6th and 13th.
11 am on Thursdays: July 1st, 8th and 15th.
11 am on Saturdays 3rd, 10th and 17th.

Please note it is quite cold here in July so warm clothes and closed in shoes are essential. The walk takes place on uneven ground in places, so sensible foot wear is essential. Bookings are recommended as numbers are limited. Book by calling 6842 6211 or 6842 6399.

“Pioneering Astronomical Imaging at the Anglo-Australian Observatory.”

2010-06-03T15:11:00.001+10:00

Come along and hear David Malin speak on the topic – “Pioneering Astronomical Imaging at the Anglo-Australian Observatory.”

On July 1st 2010, the Anglo-Australian Observatory will see both its 36th anniversary and its transition from a joint UK and Australian facility to a wholly Australian entity, the Australian Astronomical Observatory.

To celebrate the past successes and the exciting future of the AAO, they are holding a Symposium with the theme "Celebrating the AAO: Past, Present and Future".

David Malin has been involved in scientific imaging all his working life. He joined the Anglo-Australian Observatory (AAO) as its Photographic Scientist and astronomer in August 1975, shortly after scheduled observations began on the then-new, 3.9m Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) in June 1975. He worked there for 26 years. He is also now Adjunct Professor of Scientific Photography at RMIT University in Melbourne.

While at the AAO he developed hypersensitising processes which can give enormous gains in speed to the photographic materials that were used in astronomy. He also invented new ways of revealing information on astronomical plates, a speciality which has given him an international reputation.

The Anglo-Australian and UK Schmidt Telescopes were designed as photographic telescopes. They were both were equipped with superb optics and located under dark and largely unexplored southern skies.

This non-technical talk describes how these characteristics and then-new photographic ideas were exploited to produce the first true-colour images of faint galaxies, stars and spectacular star-forming regions, as well as interesting scientific discoveries.

These pictures also uncovered cosmic landscapes of surprising beauty and provided new insights into many astronomical phenomena. They were widely used to promote science, astronomy -- and the Anglo-Australian Observatory itself.

This free public event takes place at 7.30pm on Tuesday June 22 at the Coonabarabran Shire Hall at John Street, Coonabarabran

Where are the Planets and Moon at present

2010-05-24T11:27:00.002+10:00

The Moon is moving through Virgo, with its disc is 81% illuminated (waxing gibbous). It will be visible in the sky after sunset, 129 degrees from the Sun, 32.0 arcmin in diameter.

Mercury is currently iin Aries and is visible in the eastern sky jsut before before sunrise.

Venus, looking awesome as the "evening star" is in Gemini and visible as the brightest feature in the western sky after sunset.

Mars is in Leo and visible as an orange/reddish object in the sky after sunset.

Jupiter is currently in Piscesand like Mercury is visible in the sky before sunrise and can be used to help find Uranus which is close to in the sky at present.

Saturn looks awesome through a telescope at present is in Virgo and visible in the sky after sunset for the whole of the night.

Uranus is also in Pisces and is visible in the sky before sunrise, appears close to Jupiter. At magnitude 5.9 it is a bit difficult for nmaked eye viewing but appears as a small greenish blue disc near Jupiter in binoculars or a samll telescope.

Neptune is in Aquarius and again is visible in the sky before sunrise and at magnitude 7.9 efinitely requires binoculars or a samll telescope to see it blusih disc.

Jupiter Loses one of it Belts!

2010-05-24T11:25:00.000+10:00

A giant cloud belt in the southern half of Jupiter has apparently disappeared it would seem if the new photos of the planet taken by amateur astronomers are anything to go by. It was first reported on May 9 by Australian amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley from down near Canberra. Recent photos of Jupiter reveal that the huge reddish band of clouds that make up the planet's Southern Equatorial Belt has faded from view.

This is a spectacular phenomenon for observers of Jupiter observers which does happen on a semi-regular basis. The time it happened was in the early 1990s. The disappearance and return of the belt made Jupiter watching quite an interesting hobby at the time. The ready availability of good CCD cameras and quality telescopes at reasonable prices has meant that the ability to undertake great planetary imaging is no longer the sole domain of the professional astronomer.

This fading and revival of the belts happens on a cycle between approximately three and thirty years. The Great Red Spot should become quite intense now during this apparition. If this cycle follows previous cycles then the return of the belt will begin with the appearance of a thin dark streak where the Southern Equatorial Belt is usually located. Over time dark spots will begin swirling out from this thin line with some retrograde motion of various features. The Great Red Spot will then fade a bit and the Southern Equatorial Belt will come back to life.

Although scientists are not positive why this fading and renewing of the belts happen, it is believed that the temperature of the weather pattern may have dropped a few degrees causing it to get cooler. As you know, warm air rises, and cold air sinks. So the ring may still be there, just decreased in temperature and sunk lower into the planet, causing it to be no longer visible. This also means that temperature will eventually increase again causing the ring to once again become visible.

To better understand the phenomena you need to remember that what you are seeing are the weather patterns on Jupiter and just as on Earth - they change over time.

Late last year (2009) it was seen to be likely that the planet was going into one of these South Equatorial Belt fading cycles. The planet was lost to view then for some months as it passed behind the sun for several months. As Jupiter moves away from the sun, from our perspective now astro-photographers will be able to obtain even better images and later this year or early next year - photographs of the re-emergence of the Belt will be captured as well. The timing of this revival is not known, but historically this is a very dynamic event with planet-wide outbreaks of violent storms around the South Equatorial Belt latitude and eventually clearing away the obscuring clouds to reveal the dark South Equatorial Belt once more.

In a simple comparison it is like when the views of Earth’s Oceans are obscured from space by high clouds - that is the most likely cause of this. But it is also, in my personal opinion - an example how better technology has meant that the amateur astronomer with a modest set up can be observing and discovering these events before the professionals, who can then follow up and gain a better understanding.
Changes in Jupiter's weather are not uncommon. Only, last year, astronomers announced that Jupiter's Great Red Spot – which has raged for at least 300 years – appeared to be shrinking. In 2008, other red spot-like storms (smaller than Great Red) showed changes as well, while activity in the Southern Equatorial Belt also appeared to slow down. Then, earlier this year, astronomers announced that the gas giant likely has helium rain showers from time to time. Jupiter has also tended to grow a variety of new storms, or spots, with some even changing colour between white and red during dramatic climate changes on the gas giant.

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and is the largest planet in the solar system. If Jupiter were hollow, more than one thousand Earths could fit inside. It also contains two and a half times the mass of all the other planets combined. It has a mass of 1.9 x 1027 kg and is 142,800 kilometres (88,736 miles) across the equator. It possesses 62 known satellites. The four largest are Callisto, Europa, Ganymede and Io. These were named the Galilean moons, after Galileo Galilei who observed them as long ago as 1610. The German astronomer Simon Marius claimed to have seen the moons around the same time, but he did not publish his observations and so Galileo is given the credit for their discovery. It is about 778,330,000 kilometres from the Sun, which is just over five times the distance of the Earth from the Sun. A year on Jupiter is equivalent to 4332.71 earth days or close to 12 Earth years.

Jupiter has a very faint ring system, but is totally invisible from the Earth. The rings were discovered in 1979 by the Voyager 1 spacecraft. The atmosphere is very deep, perhaps comprising the whole planet, and is somewhat like the Sun. It is composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, with small amounts of methane, ammonia, water vapour and other compounds. At great depths within Jupiter, the pressure is so great that the hydrogen atoms are broken up and the electrons are freed so that the resulting atoms consist of bare protons. This produces a state in which the hydrogen becomes metallic.

It is currently visible in the early-morning eastern sky.

STS132 – Space Shuttle Atlantis – Final Mission

2010-05-17T12:12:00.000+10:00

Saturday May 15th at 0420 Australian EST the Space Shuttle Atlantis took off in a picture perfect lauch on its final 12 day mission. After almost 25 years and more than 185 million kilometres Atlantis will be going out on a high note. Delivered to NASA in 1985, it was the fourth of the shuttles after Enterprise, Columbia and Challenger.

STS-132 will deliver the Russian Rassvet Mini-Research Module-1, only the second Russian module to ever be carried into space by a space shuttle to the international Space Station. It’s a fitting final payload for the obiter that not only launched the first into space, but also was the first shuttle to dock to the Russian Space Station Mir – in fact, Atlantis was the shuttle behind seven of the 11 shuttle missions to Mir.

Atlantis has certainly carried some amazing payloads in its time. Besides the visits to Mir and ten previous visits to the ISS, Atlantis carried the Magellan Spacecraft into orbit in 1989, sending it on its way to Venus, where it mapped 98 percent of the planet from orbit. The same year it also deployed the Galileo Spacecraft to Jupiter, where it collected data on the planet and its moons for eight years. It also carried the Compton Gamma Ray observatory into orbit and last year it made the final flight to the Hubble Space Telescope, bringing upgrades that should allow the telescope to see further into the universe than ever for years to come.

But Atlantis is not finished making history just yet – there are still a few firsts in store.

For instance, in relation to the installation of Rassvet usually when a new piece of the space station is installed, all the work is done from the space station side of the equation. This method will not be possible to use this time, so instead, the Atlantis crew will use the space station’s robotic arm to attach it. The arm will be extended to just about its full 58 feet to reach Rassvet’s home on the Zarya module, which will make it difficult to push with much force.

Atlantis will also deliver additional station hardware stored inside a cargo carrier. There are three space walks planned so stage spare components including batteries a Ku band antenna and spare parts for the Canadian Dextre robotic arm. These components will be stored outside the Station. Atlantis is due to touchdown at Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on May 26 at 10.44pm our time – 0844 am US EDT.

Finding Scorpio and the Southern Cross

2010-05-10T15:38:00.002+10:00

Had a great day and night at armidale on Saturday. In response to some questions that night - I wrote this weeks Heaven's Above column on how to find both these wonderful constellations.

This month let us look to the East and South. Firstly, let us look East and see the Scorpion. This is one of the easiest constellations to pick out, as it is actually looks what it is supposed to represent. It covers about 30 degrees in the sky. To work out how much that is, just hold your arm out towards the sky and makes a fist. From one side of your fist to the other, this is 10 degrees. Hold your other arm out and spread your hand out as wide as you comfortably can (so the opposite of a fist), from your little finger to your thumb is 20 degrees. Put them next to each other and you now have 30 degrees. Remember, these rules work for everyone because your arm length is proportional to your hand size.

Next, we look and find the heart of the Scorpion. Named Antares, it is a red supergiant 400 times greater in diameter than our Sun. It means ‘rival of Mars’, and when they are close together in the sky they certainly do look very similar.

If you have a pair of binoculars, then near Antares is a small globular star cluster, M4, which is a group of old stars that lies about 7,000 light years away, making it one of the closest globular clusters to us. Below the sting of the Scorpion are two open star clusters, M7 and M6, which are worth a look in your binoculars – they look like fuzzy patches to the naked eye in a dark sky. See if you can see the butterfly in M6.

The M is these names stands for Messier and is named after Charles Messier, an 18th century French comet hunter. He made a catalog of 103 fuzzy objects that were not comets so that he did not waste his time looking at them. Other astronomers later added a few more objects to the catalog bringing the total to 110. It is ironic, that he is better known for his catalog rather than for his comet hunting!

Now let us turn our eyes to the South, where high in the southern sky is our very own Southern Cross. Like the Scorpion, this is another constellation that looks like what it is supposed to represent. It is surrounded on three sides by the constellation Centaurus, and the two brightest stars in Centaurus make up the Pointers, which point to the Southern Cross. During May, the Pointers are to the east and slightly south of the Southern Cross.

The second brightest star in Crux is a marker for a wonderful binocular and telescope object. To find the second brightest star, whose name is Mimosa, look for the star in Crux closest to the Pointers. Now just nearby – at about 7 o’clock if you imagine a clock face over Mimosa, is a wonderful open star cluster called the Jewel Box. It looks like a sideways ‘A’. In a telescope, wonderful colours can be seen with white stars and a red supergiant. The famous 18th century astronomer John Herschel gave the cluster its name as he likened it to a piece of multi-coloured jewellery.

The Southern Cross sits within one of the arms of our Milky Way and on a dark night, you will see this arm and notice a dark patch between the brightest and second brightest stars of this constellation. This dark patch is called the Coalsack and is a dark nebula – lots of gas and dust that are blocking out the background stars.

In Aboriginal mythology, the Coalsack formed the head of the Emu and if you follow the dark dust lanes of the Milky Way east towards the Scorpion, you will see the Emu’s body and legs. There are many stories about Crux and the Pointers. Some say that the Cross is the Eagle’s foot and the Pointers are his nulla nulla while the Coal Sack is his eyrie.

Public Events as a aprt of Celebrating the AAO: Past, Present, and Future

2010-05-07T15:18:00.000+10:00

On July 1st 2010, the Anglo-Australian Observatory will see both its 36th anniversary and its transition from a joint UK and Australian facility to a wholly Australian entity, the Australian Astronomical Observatory. This transition will occur on 1 July 2010.

To celebrate the past successes and the exciting future of the AAO, they are holding a Symposium with the theme "Celebrating the AAO: Past, Present and Future". There will three free public events as follows:

Tuesday 22 June 2010: 7.30 pm
A public talk by well known astro-photographer David Malin on why Siding Spring is a great place to take photographs of the sky.

Friday 25 June 2010: 7.30 pm
A public talk by Prof Malcolm Longair from the University of Cambridge UK. He is a past Astronomer Royal for Scotland and Board Member for the AAO and current board member of Astronomy Australia Ltd.

Saturday June 26th
Join us for an open day at Siding Spring Observatory. A chance to see the behind the scenes at Australia’s premier Optical Observatory.

The Public talks will be held at the Coonabarabran Shire Hall on John Street Coonabarabran. Everyone is welcome and entry is free.

Contest to name a world likePluto

2010-05-04T11:29:00.001+10:00

Children are being given the chance to name their own minor planet in a competition to mark the 80th anniversary of the discovery of Pluto. Space scientists' ruling body the International Astronomical Union has promised to consider the winning entries for real worlds now being discovered. Pluto became the ninth planet when it was spotted in 1930.

The new competition called Naming X is being launched today, on the anniversary of Venetia's death, to find names for the new second division of planets being discovered out in Pluto's neighbourhood.

The global contest, launched by Space Renaissance Education Chapter, in collaboration with Father Films, is being promoted in the UK by Ginita Jimenez who made a short film, Naming Pluto, about how Venetia got to see "her" planet at last in the last years of her life.

Ginita said: "The idea is very simple, we're asking children what name they'd give a minor planet and why. All submissions can only be made by email and our world class judging panel will select the winning names which will be presented to the official body responsible for giving minor planets names."

Judges will be Canadian comet discoverer David Levy, Jodrell Bank astronomer Professor Ian Morison and NASA space scientist Marc Buie whose New Horizons probe is currently on its way to Pluto.

Winning names will be presented to the IAU's Committee for Small Body Nomenclature (CSBN), the body responsible for the naming of minor planets and comets, which is supporting the contest. Individuals and school groups can enter and full details are available here.

An Obscure Astronomer and the Constellations he named

2010-05-03T14:38:00.001+10:00

Have you ever wondered how some of the less well known constellations got their names? A French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the mid 18th century catalogued more stars than all other astronomers of his era combined, and assigned names and places for southern constellations still in use today. He was a pioneer of Southern Astronomy.

Born in 1713, he completed theological studies, but his interest was consumed by science, so he obtained work as a geographer and cartographer. He surveyed the French coast and made precise measurements of longitude. He secured a position as mathematics professor at Mazarin College, with a small observatory at his disposal.

Though he made many celestial measurements from northern France, the other half of the sky beckoned. In 1750, He set sail for South Africa and set up his observatory near the slopes of Table Mountain. In just one year, using only a small 1/2-inch refractor, he measured the positions of 9,766 stars and logged 42 deep sky objects including some of the most famous and beautiful being 47 Tucanae, omega Centauri, and the eta Carinae nebula.

He also named 14 obscure southern constellations that have left many stargazers scratching their heads.

Tools of science and reason were admired in his time so hence the names: Antlia Pneumatica, the Air Pump, Caelum, the Engraving Tool, Circinus, the Geometer’s Compasses, Fornax Chemica, the Chemist’s Furnace, Horologium Oscillatorium, the Pendulum Clock, Mons Mensae, Table Mountain, Microscopium, the Microscope, Norma and Regula, the Level and Square, Octans, the Octant, Pictor, the Painter’s Easel, Pyxis Nautica, the Ship’s Compass, Reticulum Rhomboidalis, the eyepiece reticle, and, Sculptor, the Sculptor’s workshops.

Unfortunately, he died at the age of 49, before he saw his southern catalogue published. According to his biographer David Evans, Lacaille “lived for science and nothing else”. He had few friends and displayed fewer emotions, and left no record of a private life or ambition or the search for recognition. He lived and died for the stars and his work stands as his memorial.

where are the planets tonight?

2010-05-01T17:27:00.002+10:00

Mercury: in Aries, probably too close to the Sun to be seen, magnitude 4.4, 4 degrees from the Sun, 12.0 arcsec in diameter.

Venus: in Taurus, visible in the western sky after sunset, magnitude -4.4, 26 degrees from the Sun, 11.6 arcsec in diameter.

Mars: in Cancer, visible in the sky after sunset, magnitude 0.3, 91 degrees from the Sun, 7.2 arcsec in diameter.

Jupiter: in Aquarius, visible in the eastern sky before sunrise, appears close to

Uranus, magnitude -2.2, 46 degrees from the Sun, 35.1 arcsec in diameter.

Saturn: in Virgo, visible in the sky after sunset and for most of the night, magnitude 0.7, 137 degrees from the Sun, 18.9 arcsec in diameter.

Uranus: in Pisces, visible in the eastern sky before sunrise, appears close to Jupiter, magnitude 5.9, 41 degrees from the Sun, 3.2 arcsec in diameter.

Neptune: in Aquarius, visible in the sky before sunrise, magnitude 7.9, 72 degrees from the Sun, 2.1 arcsec in diameter.

About Meteor Showers

2010-04-27T00:48:00.002+10:00

A meteor shower occurs when there is an increase in the number of meteors at a particular time of year.

As Comets travel on their journey around the Sun they shed the debris that causes most meteor showers. As comets orbit the Sun, they shed an icy, dusty debris stream along their orbit. If the atmosphere of the Earth travels through this stream, it causes what we call a meteor shower. Depending on where the Earth and stream meet, meteors will appear to fall from a particular place in the sky and we can usually place that in the vicinity of a recognised maybe constellation.

Therefore, meteor showers are named by the constellation from which the meteors appear to fall. This spot in the is called the radiant. For instance, the radiant for the Leonid meteor shower is located in the constellation Leo. The eta Aquarids are so called as they appear to radiate from a spot near the star eta Aquarius..

"Shooting stars" and "falling stars" are both names by which people have for hundreds of years used to describe meteors . These intense streaks of light across the night sky are caused by small bits of interplanetary rock and debris called meteoroids crashing through and burning high in Earth's upper atmosphere. They travel at many times the speed of sound and quickly ignite in searing friction of the atmosphere some 50 to 150 kilometres above the ground. Almost all are destroyed in this process; the rare few that survive and hit the ground are known as meteorites.

When a meteor appears, it seems to "shoot" quickly across the sky, and its small size and intense brightness might make you think it is a star. If you're lucky enough to spot a meteorite (a meteor that makes it all the way to the ground), and if you are close enough to her the sonic boom then see where it hits, it's easy to think that you may have seen a star "fall."

To observe meteor showers you need to be away from the glow of city lights and facing towards the constellation from which the meteors will appear to radiate. You need to ensure that the constellation you are looking for is not itself going to be affected by the light glow. Ensure that the place you have found is dark and not facing a road where oncoming car headlights will periodically ruin your night vision.

Once you have settled at your observing spot, lie back or position yourself so the horizon appears at the edge of your peripheral vision, with the stars and sky filling your field of view. Meteors will instantly grab your attention as they streak by. Set up a comfortable chair, bug spray, food and drinks, warm clothes, a blanket, plus a red-filtered flashlight for reading maps and charts without ruining your night vision. Binoculars are not necessary. Your eyes will do just fine.

Did anyone see any meteors on the morning of the 22nd for the Lyrids Shower? We were clouded out – I would be interested in feedback.

The next meteor shower that is visible to us is the Eta Aquarids from midnight to dawn of May 5-6. The almost-last-quarter Moon rises not far from the centre of the shower on the morning of May 6, obliterating the view of many meteors. For the best views look away from Aquarius, where the effect of the Moon will be less of a problem. This is not expected to be a very significant event with only 10-15 meteors per hour.

The Eta Aquarids are dust particles left behind from comet Halley as it passes through our inner Solar System every 76 years. Earth crosses the orbital path of Halley’s comet every May and October. Over the centuries Halley’s dust particles have spread out along its orbit. The meteors we see now days aren't from Halley's last passage to Earth in 1986 the meteors we now are remnants of dust deposited centuries ago. (when we intersect Halley's orbit again in October this, the meteors we see are called the Orionids).

Hubble Images Pluto – Finds Mysterious Molasses Markings on the surface

2010-04-18T23:58:00.001+10:00

Lonely dwarf planet Pluto floats in the darkness at the edge of our solar system. It's so far away even the Hubble Space Telescope has trouble making out the details. Nevertheless, Pluto is so interesting, and popular with people, that even fuzzy images of the dwarf planet are compelling.

The data Hubble has provided reveals an icy molasses-coloured world with a surprising amount of activity. When compared earlier Hubble images taken in 1994 against those taken in 2003 it was discovered that Pluto's northern hemisphere has brightened while the southern hemisphere has dimmed. Ground-based observations suggest that Pluto's atmosphere doubled in mass during approximately the same time period. And no one is certain what's causing the molasses-coloured splotches on Pluto's surface.

"It's baffling," says dwarf planet expert Mike Brown of Caltech. "For now, we can only guess. Although these images are the best we have to date, they just aren't clear enough to answer all the questions they raise."

For instance, what's happening to Pluto's atmosphere?

Pluto can get so cold, researchers believe, that its atmosphere can actually freeze and fall to the ground. If Earth's atmosphere did that, it would make layer 10 metres thick, but Pluto has less to work with. When it’s on the ground, Pluto's entire blanket of air is no more than a frosty film of nitrogen and methane.

"Pluto, right now, has the best atmosphere it's had in our lifetime," says Brown.

Now about that molasses…

Researchers think that the dark areas may be primordial organic matter.

"We know there's methane on Pluto," says Brown. "Here's what we think happens: Sunlight hits the methane and breaks it apart into its chemical components -- hydrocarbons. Over millions of years this process makes a dark reddish-brown oil or tar like substance that sticks to the ground. These darker areas spread larger as they absorb more sunlight and cause additional frost to sublimate."

NASA's New Horizons probe is en route to investigate. The spacecraft left Earth in January 2006 and has been racing toward Pluto for an encounter in July 2015, hopefully before the atmosphere refreezes.

New Horizons will map the entire sunlit portion of Pluto and as it swings closer, it will get very detailed images, maybe as good as 50-100 metre resolution."

Meanwhile - Winter on Mars

2010-04-18T23:56:00.000+10:00

The bogged rover, Spirit remains silent at her location called "Troy" on the west side of Home Plate. No communication has been received from the rover since March 22nd 2010.

It is likely that Spirit has experienced a low-power fault and has turned off all sub-systems, including communication. The rover will use the available solar-array energy to recharge her batteries. When the batteries recover to a sufficient state of charge, Spirit will hopefully wake up and begin to communicate once again.

Unfortunately, it is not known when the rover will wake up again, so the project has been listening for any X-band signal from Spirit through the Deep Space Network every day. The Mars Odyssey orbiter is also listening out on the UHF band for any communication as it passes over the surface. The Martian winter solstice is still about a month away.

Opportunity ,on the other hand is still busy, it has now surpassed 20 kilometres of total driving since it landed on Mars 75 months ago. It is now on its way to Endeavour Crater, which was its long term destination.

The team that operates NASA's Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity will receive the 2010 International Space Ops Award for Outstanding Achievement, for remarkable success in meeting unique and varied challenges of operating a rover on Mars and establishing a model for future in-situ operations.

The Mars Exploration Rover Project landed the twin rovers on the Red Planet in January 2004 for missions that were initially planned to last for three months. The team has operated the rovers for more than six years, making major science discoveries, driving a combined total of more than 27.5 kilometres (17 miles) over often-challenging terrain, and tending them through three Martian winters and potentially mission-ending dust storms.

Lyrid Meteor Shower – April 22nd.

2010-04-11T22:58:00.003+10:00

Every year in late April Earth passes through the dusty tail of Comet Thatcher (C/1861 G1), and the encounter causes a meteor shower-the Lyrids. This year the shower peaks on Wednesday morning, April 22nd. The best time to look, matter where you live, is during the dark hours before dawn. Forecasters expect 10 to 20 meteors per hour visible from dark-sky sites.

Although the Lyrids are a predominantly northern meteor shower, but they can be observed by most of us in the country. The best time, however, to observe the Lyrids is in the morning between 2.00-5.00 am. However, the Lyrids have very low rates and when combined with their closeness to the horizon does mean that few meteors are likely to be seen. Probably not worth the effort of getting up for specifically, But if you are already awake, look towards the northern horizon early in the morning sky. About two hand spans above the northern horizon will be the bright, blue-white star Vega. It is the brightest star you can see near the northern horizon.

Experienced meteor watchers suggest the following viewing strategy: Dress warmly. Bring a reclining chair, or spread a thick blanket over a flat spot of ground. Lie down and look up somewhat toward the east. Meteors can appear in any part of the sky, although their trails will tend to point back toward the radiant--i.e., toward Vega.

Vega is a brilliant blue-white star about three times wider than our Sun and 25 light years away. About 14,000 years ago Vega was the North Star. Earth's spin axis wanders: Now it points at Polaris, then it pointed at Vega.

Moon Occults Seven Sisters on April 17th.

2010-04-11T22:57:00.000+10:00

The Moon will be a useful signpost for locating and identifying other interesting objects in the night sky for the rest of this month. On the early evening of Saturday April 17th – you can find the thin waxing crescent Moon close to the planet Venus – the brightest object in the area and you will also be able to see it occult some of the Pleiades cluster in the Western Sky. Pleiades is also known as the Seven Sisters or Subaru Cluster.

Unfortunately, the best views are at or shortly after civil twilight, half an hour after sunset, it will be best to watch this event with binoculars. In our area we should see a graze of bright star Taygeta at 6:06 pm EST. However, as the sky darkens, the sight of the thin crescent Moon just above the Pleiades, with bright Venus nearby, will be truly stunning sight and for those who are good with cameras – a great photo opportunity.

Then on the evening of the 22nd, Mars is close to the Moon, while the next night the waning moon will be close to Regulus, which is the brightest star in Leo. Leo looks like an upside question mark. On the night of Anzac Day (25th) you can use the Moon to find Saturn.

Global Astronomy Month 2010 "Saturn Watch"

2010-04-07T22:55:00.002+10:00

Global Astronomy Month 2010 "Saturn Watch" is a special GAM Global Program dedicated to the "Lord of the Rings - Saturn”.

Saturn is back and demands all eyes on him. He will strut his stuff for us as we gaze upon this most popular planet in our Solar System. The public loves and can’t get enough of Saturn and his rings of glory.

"Saturn Watch" ...will start on April 11th and continue nightly until the 16th when we have another Beauty Without Borders observing event. We are promoting naked eye, telescopic, and photographic observing and activities as well as remote observing sessions.

Date: 11 - 16 April

More information about "Saturn Watch" and activity suggestions:
http://www.astronomerswithoutborders.org/index.php/projects/global-astronomy-month/programs/global-programs/global-programs-types/118/235.html

Register your events at:
http://www.astronomerswithoutborders.org/index.php/projects/global-astronomy-month/events.html

Saturn Resources:
http://www.astronomerswithoutborders.org/index.php/projects/global-astronomy-month/resources.html#Saturn%20Resources

Locally - I will down at the WarrumbungleNational park on Thursday 16th from 7pm if you want to know more about the night sky.

Successful Space Shuttle Discovery Launch

2010-04-06T04:18:00.000+10:00

Space shuttle Discovery and a crew of seven astronauts headed to space in the predawn darkness of April 5, beginning a 13-day mission to the International Space Station. Discovery's two solid rocket boosters ignited right on schedule at 6:21 a.m. EDT, sending the shuttle soaring past the launch tower at NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.

At the post launch news conference, Mike Moses, chair of the Mission Management Team, called it, "a spectacular launch and picture-perfect countdown."

The seven-member crew will deliver the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with supplies, a new crew sleeping quarters and science racks that will be transferred to the International Space Station's laboratories.

There are only three more planned shuttle flights before the program ends this year – each will be aimed at supplying the International Space Station.

International Dark Sky Week (IDSW)

2010-04-06T04:17:00.000+10:00

This week is an International event to celebrate the natural night sky for International Dark Sky Week. But it is a message that should be considered all year around. Join in to help maintain dark skies – by changing one light at a time.

Light pollution is the greatest risk to the science we do at Siding Spring and it is not just a problem in the immediate area but over greater and greater distances. Across the world dark skies are becoming more rare. Each year, I go to Sydney to attend the Royal Easter Show and am astounded but how few stars I can see in the sky each year. We are so fortunate here in the

Ideas for participating in International Dark Sky Week and changing the night skies one light at a time!

1. Take a good look at your own lighting needs and extinguish all unnecessary lighting in or around your property. If lights are necessary (i.e. for safety and security) do not turn them off but consider shielding them. A fringe benefit is reducing both your carbon footprint and your electricity bill.

2. Check out the change by going outside and seeing the difference you create in your own environment but just turning off or even dimming even one exterior light. Find a large constellation such as Orion or Scorpio and before the moon comes up count how many stars you can see with the lights on and then with the lights off. Give yourself about 10 minutes to become adjusted to the dark.

3.Think about ways you could permanently reduce the use of non-essential lighting, and encourage your friends and neighbours to do the same.

4. If you're a teacher take the opportunity to teach your students about the night sky and light pollution. Encourage young people to find ways to minimise the problem by participating in activities and maybe conducting a home audit.

5. Have a poster design contest in your area to encourage people to turn off their unnecessary lights, or switch an unshielded light to a shielded one.

6. Consider hosting an event to observe the night sky, such as a family backyard stargazing BBQ or visit a Starry, Starry Night event at your local National Park or look out for the next sidewalk astronomy event in your area or visit an observatory which shows off the night sky to the general public at night. There are a number throughout the Central West and North West Plains.

Where are the Planets, Sun and Moon tonight

2010-03-28T01:23:00.001+11:00

Where are the planets tonight from the land downunder

Sun: in Pisces, 32.1 arcmin in diameter.

Moon: moving through Leo, disc is 91% illuminated (waxing gibbous), visible in the sky after sunset and for most of the night, 145 degrees from the Sun, 33.0 arcmin in diameter.

Mercury: in Pisces, visible in the western sky after sunset, appears close to Venus, magnitude -1.2, 12 degrees from the Sun, 5.7 arcsec in diameter.

Venus: in Pisces, visible in the western sky after sunset, appears close to Mercury, magnitude -4.6, 18 degrees from the Sun, 10.6 arcsec in diameter.

Mars: in Cancer, visible in the sky after sunset, magnitude -0.4, 115 degrees from the Sun, 9.6 arcsec in diameter.

Jupiter: in Aquarius, visible in the eastern sky before sunrise, magnitude -2.1, 20 degrees from the Sun, 33.3 arcsec in diameter.

Saturn: in Virgo, visible in the sky after sunset and for most of the night, magnitude 0.7, 173 degrees from the Sun, 19.5 arcsec in diameter.

Uranus: in Pisces, probably too close to the Sun to be seen, magnitude 5.9, 9 degrees from the Sun, 3.1 arcsec in diameter.

Neptune: in Aquarius, visible in the eastern sky before sunrise, magnitude 8.0, 39 degrees from the Sun, 2.0 arcsec in diameter.

Saturn is looking good at present!

2010-03-24T19:49:00.000+11:00

The planet Saturn reached opposition this past weekend, rising as the sun sets and making its closest approach to Earth this year. The planet saunters across Virgo over the next few weeks: it’s the brightest object between the stars Porrima in Virgo and Denebola in Leo. Take a look if you can. Saturn is truly one of the prettiest sights you can see with a telescope.

As a gas giant and the second largest planet in the solar system, Saturn is much like Jupiter. It has no solid surface. It’s made of cold hydrogen and helium gas in its outer layers, with no solid surface. Like Jupiter, it likely has a solid rocky core that’s 10x Earth’s mass. And it has a strong magnetic field and a huge collection of 60 moons, almost as many as Jupiter.

But Saturn differs from Jupiter and the other gas giants is ways that make it especially fascinating.

Its rings, for example. While Jupiter and Uranus have faint rings, Saturn has the brightest and most complex ring system in the solar system. No one knows for sure how or when the rings were formed. They might have assembled with the planet 4.5 billion years ago. Or they may have formed just 100 million years ago when a small moon or comet came too close to the planet and was ripped to pieces by tidal forces. In any case, Saturn’s rings are made mostly from tiny ice particles that extend from 6,600 km to 120,000 km directly above the equator of the planet. The whole set of rings, despite their extent, are just 10-20 metres thick.

International Sidewalk Astronomy Night

2010-03-17T14:58:00.002+11:00

If the weather is fine come and join me and my telescope outside the Post Office John Street Coonabarabran NSW from 7pm on Saturday 20th March 2010 and discover the Universe better!

Australian Gemini School Astronomy Contest.

2010-03-17T14:51:00.001+11:00

Secondary science classes are encouraged to enter the AustralianGemini School Astronomy Contest.This year, high school students in Australia have a chance to use anhour of observing time on one of the world's largest opticaltelescopes, the 8-metre Gemini South telescope in the... Andes Mountains of Chile.

How?

By picking an object in the Southern sky and writing a winningexplanation of why it would be scientifically interesting and visuallyappealing to digitally photograph.The professionally processed picture will then be presented to theschool by astronomers who will explain what the image reveals aboutthe target.Last year, the winning entry made it onto the cover of Australian Sky& Telescope magazine.

You can read more on their website,http://ausgo.aao.gov.au/contest/

The classes for the top three entries will be eligible to participatein a “Live from Gemini” program, an introduction to the Geminitelescopes provided via a video link to experts in one of the Geminicontrol rooms.Entry forms are available at the above website and must be lodged by Friday 7 May.

For more information contact:Dr. Christopher Onken; (02) 6125 0233

Easter School Holiday Activities at Siding Spring Observatory

2010-02-19T11:41:00.000+11:00

(A part of Global Astronomy Month 2010)

The Siding Spring Observatory and Café will be open over the School holidays from 9.30 am to 4 pm Monday to Friday and 10 am to 4pm on Saturday, Sundays and Public Holidays with the exception of Good Friday (April 2nd) on which we will be closed.

Behind the Scenes Tours:

Take a closer look around Siding Spring Observatory. Join our Astronomer Guide and explore this special astronomy site and learn about the importance of this area to astronomy research and the natural environment. Enjoy a walk to breathtaking views of the Warrumbungle volcano. If the weather is inclement – we will still have a talk and questions and answer session with an Astronomer and guided look at the Visitor Exhibition area and Anglo Australian Telescope viewing area. Sunscreen, a hat, water and closed in shoes are essential. Price includes entry to Exhibition area. Please allow additional time to fully enjoy this experience.

Costs are:

•$16.50 for adults, $12.50 for children and Seniors, and $37.50 for a family (2A,2C)

The dates and times for the Summer School Holiday Period tours are as follows:

12.30 pm on Saturdays April 3, 10 and 17th.
12.30 pm on Mondays April 5, 12th.
12.30 pm on Wednesdays April 7 and 14th.

If you have a group of more than 15 people coming on another day and wish a tour – please contact me to see if I can arrange it.

Please note it the weather here is quite variable, it can be quite warm or at the other extreme quite cool. Sunscreen, a hat, water and long sleeves are recommended as is a light jacket if the weather turns cool. The walk takes place on some hilly and uneven ground so sensible and closed in foot wear is essential. Bookings are recommended and can be made on 6842 6255 or 6842 6211.

NASA images ‘Australian’ comet

2010-02-18T14:50:00.002+11:00

A news release from the Anglo Asutralian Observatory - but hey I couldn't resist posting it!

NASA images ‘Australian’ comet

NASA has released an infrared image of a comet found in Australia in 2007, as part of the first set of images from its new WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) satellite.

The image and animation of Comet Siding Spring and other first images from WISE are at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/features.cfm?feature=2485 . (The animation is at the bottom of the page.)

Comet Siding Spring (also called C/2007 Q3) was discovered on 25 August 2007 by Donna M. Burton, using the Uppsala Schmidt telescope at Siding Spring Observatory in northwest NSW.

The comet was found as part of a survey for these objects, the Siding Spring survey, and it takes its name from that.

The WISE mission will image many kinds of cosmic objects, from comets to galaxies, and WISE data will feed into another Australian-led project now being run at Siding Spring.

“We’re making observations to understand how galaxies form,” said Associate Professor Andrew Hopkins, Head of Science with the Anglo-Australian Telescope, the largest telescope at Siding Spring Observatory.

“Infrared observations reveal warm, glowing dust. We want to know how much dust there is in the galaxies we’re studying, and what temperature it is,” he said.

“WISE will give us that information.”

Siding Spring Observatory is owned and operated by the Australian National University, but is home to telescopes from several institutions.

A binocular Challenge for the rest of the month – See an Asteroid

2010-02-15T12:32:00.001+11:00

The asteroid Vesta has been just below visibility to the unaided eye but is quite easily visible in binoculars but between February 15-21 Vesta will be visible to the unaided eye at dark sky sites.

Vesta was the fourth asteroid to be discovered and is either the second or third largest: it competes for that honor with Pallas. (They are very similar in diameter, but Vesta contains more mass than Pallas.) Vesta is very different from the largest asteroid, Ceres (which is actually considered to be a dwarf planet). Ceres is icy, but Vesta's surface is silicate rock, indicating that Vesta may have had a geologic history similar to the terrestrial planets: after it coalesced from the solar nebula, it heated to the melting point of silicate rocks, separating into a nickel-iron core and a rocky mantle. This history is very different from Ceres, and suggests that either Vesta never accreted very much water or somehow lost its water very early in its formation.

To find Vesta look just above the eastern horizon, at around 10pm in the constellation of Leo, this looks a bit like a question mark lying on its side. Vesta will be very easy to spot, as it is within a binocular filed of Gamma Leonis (Algieba, the bright star below Regulus, the brightest star in Leo. On February 16 and 17, Vesta will pass between the close pair Gamma (Algieba) and 40 Leonis.

You may be uncertain about which faint dot is Vesta, but if you observe the area over several nights you will see Vesta move in relation to other stars.

If you then move further to the east you will see the planet Saturn rising

This month 80 years ago

2010-02-15T12:31:00.001+11:00

An anniversary this month: 80 years ago, the young astronomer Clyde Tombaugh discovered the former planet Pluto at Lowell Observatory after a year of grinding, diligent work.

Through most of 1929 and early 1930, Tombaugh photographed and analysed hundreds of star fields along the ecliptic from Cancer to Gemini in search of “Planet X”. Tombaugh planned to start his search in Gemini, but the full moon was in the way. So he started just next door, in the constellation Cancer, and worked his way all the way around the sky back to Gemini a year later.

As it turned out Pluto was in Gemini after all.

STS-130 Endeavour lift off

2010-02-15T12:29:00.002+11:00

Credit: NASA
An exhaust cloud forms under space shuttle Endeavour as it begins its climb to orbit from Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. Launch of the STS-130 mission to the International Space Station was at 8.14pm local time Monday February 8 2010. This was the second launch attempt for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-130 crew and the final scheduled space shuttle night launch.

The first attempt on Feb. 7 was scrubbed due to unfavourable weather. The primary payload for the STS-130 mission to the International Space Station is the Tranquillity node, a pressurized module that will provide additional room for crew members and many of the station's life support and environmental control systems. Attached to one end of Tranquillity is a cupola, a unique work area with six windows on its sides and one on top. The cupola resembles a circular bay window and will provide a vastly improved view of the station's exterior.

The multi-directional view will allow the crew to monitor spacewalks and docking operations, as well as provide a spectacular view of Earth and other celestial objects. The module was built in Turin, Italy, by Thales Alenia Space for the European Space Agency.

The shuttle is scheduled to land at approximately 2.24pm o n Monday February 22nd AEDT or 10.24pm in Florida USA on the Sunday night.

This weeks astro column

2010-02-08T00:15:00.001+11:00

Space Shuttle Endeavour Launch Scrubbed for February 7th date due to weather.

Endeavour's launch attempt for Sunday night, our time, has been scrubbed due to a low cloud ceiling over Kennedy Space Centre. NASA initially plan for a 24-hour turnaround, but will evaluate tomorrow's weather before making a final decision. Next possible launch attempt is Monday February 7th at 8:14 pm local AEDST.

Meanwhile back on Mars….

Given that Mars is looking lovely and bright in our skies (when you can see them through the clouds at present), I thought we should go and check up on what Spirit and Opportunity are up to as they head into another Martian winter.

Mars has always held a place of interest and romance in the hearts of mankind but it is definitely no place for the faint-hearted. It has an arid, rocky, cold and apparently lifeless surface environment. It is home to the largest volcano in the solar system, the deepest canyon and some really crazy weather and temperature patterns. Mars looms as the ultimate lonely planet destination yet there are few who wouldn’t jump at the chance to be the first person to step on another planet.

The Rovers, however have been roving around for just over 6 years now. Poor old Spirit is still embedded in the area called "Troy" on the west side of Home Plate.
Energy levels for Spirit have been decreasing rapidly as winter approaches. To increase energy production and to prepare for winter, the rover mobility system is being driven to improve northerly tilt so that it can collect more of the Sun’s light and also gather less dust from the wind storms to come.

On January 31st, Spirit attempted to drive her wheels backwards, employing several autonomous recovery techniques to prevent early termination of the drive from mobility faults. These autonomous recovery techniques have been effective in permitting the driving to continue much further than otherwise. Several centimetres of backward progress were made by the rover without further sinkage and the all critical northerly tilt improved by about a degree. Every degree in improvement in northerly tilt enhances daily energy production by about 5 watt-hours.

On February 4th, another drive was sequenced. This drive however did not achieve as much progress with only a modest improvement in tilt. The next drive plan is to cause the rover suspension to lift one side of the rover, improving northerly tilt. This is likely to be the last rover motion before winter, as energy levels are dropping below levels able to sustain driving. The project is configuring the rover's communication settings and fault parameters in preparation for the winter.

Opportunity on the other hand has travelled just over 19.3km in its time on the Red Planet. It has now arrived at "Concepción," a very young 10-meter (33-foot) diameter crater.

On 28th January, it completed a 12-metre approach to the crater. After a few day spent carefully imaging in and around the crater, it then about 9 metres around the crater to approach some ejecta blocks that might be suitable for further investigation by all the instruments on the end of the robotic arm. Some of the rocks exhibit a dark crust which may be potentially impact melts.

In case you missed out on instructions how to find Mars this month – it is rises in the east just after sunset in the constellation of Cancer. It will spend some time close to a lovely cluster of stars called the Beehive cluster and if you have a pair of binoculars these are well worth having a look at. They will appear as a fuzzy group of stars near a bright orange red object (which is Mars) to the naked eye but in the binoculars you can see quite a number of stars and if you use your imagination you will be able to see it as a beehive! It will then move towards the constellation of Gemini.

Wednesday 16th 7.30pm at the Imperial Hotel Coonabarabran – learn more about the new Telescopes on Siding Spring

Come along to the Rotary Room of the Imperial Hotel John Street, Coonabarabran on Wednesday nights 16th February to hear Dr Daniel Bayliss from the Australian National University talk about the HAT South Telescope Network and Skymapper. This month sees the deployment and commissioning of the Skymapper Telescope and HAT South has been collecting data for a couple of months. All welcome – so come along and get an update on these exciting projects.

Global Astronomy Month April 2010 - Call for action

2010-02-06T18:20:00.003+11:00

The unprecedented success of 100 Hours of Astronomy (100HA) in April 2009 showed what could be accomplished by a highly motivated and energized international community of passionate people, creating even greater enthusiasm for a follow-up experience. As challenging as it may be to follow the historic success of 100HA, Astronomers Without Borders (AWB) has set the bar even higher, inviting astronomy enthusiasts worldwide to celebrate the Universe for an entire month!

Taking place during April 2010, Global Astronomy Month (GAM2010) is a community-based effort aiming to achieve international collaboration and more interaction between participants than ever before. The primary idea of GAM2010 is to share ideas, experiences and successes, allowing communities that organize their own events to carry their ideas and inspiration forward.

GAM2010 includes the most popular events for both astronomers and the public: telescopes will be available for the viewing of the Moon, Saturn and other objects, not only at observatories and planetariums, but also in public locations; dark sky observing of distant objects, Messier marathon, Lyrid Meteor Shower observing parties and events for the annual celebration of Astronomy Day (April, 24) are just some of the activities planned; special events by IYA2009-created global programs, observing with telescopes controlled over the Internet, webcasts and podcasts of special presentations, exhibitions, public competitions, astrophotography contests and workshops and much more will ensure that there is something for everyone.

Watch out for local events and let me know if you are running an event in Australia so I can promote it for you!

March 20 - Sun Earth Day

2010-02-06T18:11:00.002+11:00

Join us for solar observing through personal telescopes and learn more about the Sun at Siding Spring Exploratory from 11 am to 2pm on Saturday 20th March 2010. More info later!

4th International Sidewalk Astronomy Night (ISAN)

2010-02-06T17:55:00.003+11:00

Come and join us to gaze at the night sky and celebrate Interntional Sidewalk astronomy Night in Astronomy capital of Australia.

Never has there been a man and his movement so profound and embraced internationally than the efforts of John Dobson. Generations of astronomy enthusiasts and budding astronomers have been touched by bringing the cosmos closer to everyone.As with every movement, many caught this vision and joined forces to continue this dynamic mission to the four corners of the earth. These efforts birthed International Sidewalk Astronomy Night (ISAN). Starting with 300 clubs and countless individuals with ISAN 1, it is estimated that well over 20,000 individuals looked through a scope. Last year for ISAN 3, and the 100 Hours of Astronomy, partnered with International Year of Astronomy - a massive influx of events took place. At last count our numbers show 2,370 events, however, those were only ones posted and we suspect there were many more world wide. This new surge of participation has sent waves of enthusiasm around the world several times over.

Join us on March 20th for the biggest ISAN yet! As John always says, "Billions of eyes are waiting!"

This week Astro Column

2010-02-01T10:53:00.001+11:00

Upcoming Space Shuttle Endeavour Launch February 7th

Six NASA astronauts are ready to rocket into space on the shuttle Endeavour in just under a week. The mission is to deliver a new room to the $US100 billion orbiting lab that will leave it nearly complete.

The shuttle is scheduled to blast off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Fla., before dawn US on Feb. 7 at 4:39 a.m. US time which is 2039 in the evening local time in Australia, making it the last planned night launch of Endeavour or any other Shuttle.

The five-man, one-woman crew is about to embark on the first of NASA’s five final shuttle missions before the agency retires its three-orbiter fleet later this year. The planned 13-day mission will deliver a brand-new room – the Tranquility module – and a long-awaited observation portal for the International Space Station.

Named after the first moon base established by Apollo 11 astronauts in 1969, Tranquility is the last large piece of NASA’s section of the space station to fly. Its arrival will leave the outpost 90 percent complete after more than 11 years of space construction.

NASA has been flying space shuttle missions since April 1981. Endeavour's flight will be the 130th shuttle mission when it launches.

Hubble looks back in time 13 billion years!

It is still less than a year since it received it final major overhaul, and now NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has snapped panoramic, full-colour images that let astronomers peer more than 13 billion years back into cosmic history.

The newly souped-up Hubble telescope is acting as something of a time machine that allows scientists to see galaxies as they were billions of years ago. Hubble captured images last September and October that have been stitched together to show 7,500 galaxies stretching back through most of the universe's history.

"With the rejuvenated Hubble and its new instruments, we are now entering unchartered territory that is ripe for new discoveries," said Garth Illingworth of the University of California and leader of the survey team. "The deepest-ever, near-infrared view of the universe has now been combined with the deepest-ever optical image to push back the frontiers of the searches for the first galaxies and to explore their nature."

Where are the Planets this Month?

Jupiter is lost this month from our evening skies. But beautiful orange-red Mars is visible early in the evening after sunset in the north-eastern sky in the constellation of Cancer. It is very close to the large open cluster M44, commonly referred to as the Beehive Cluster. The cluster is easily visible to the unaided eye in dark skies. On the 25th and 26th the waxing gibbous Moon is close to Mars.

From the middle of the month, Venus makes a return to our evening skies just after sunset. You can find it low on the horizon in the early evening twilight this month and will remain the evening star until late October.

Saturn starts the month rising in the eastern sky about 10:30pm however by the end of the month it rises at about 8:40pm.

For all of you early birds amongst us Mercury begins the month in the constellation Sagittarius in the pre dawn eastern sky. On the 12th the thin waning crescent of the 27-day old Moon will be just above Mercury in the pre-dawn sky. Over February, Mercury starts to move closer to the horizon and this month provides the last opportunity for good views of Mercury until late July and combined with the crescent Moon on the 12th, it is well worth getting out of bed for!

No Full Moon In February

February this year is also unusual as no full moon occurs during the calendar month. This only occurs once every 30 years.
Both January and March this year have two full moons in the calendar month, and the 2nd fjavascript:void(0)ull moon is known as a ‘blue moon’. However, this is just a name given to the second full moon and the Moon itself does not turn blue on these nights. A ‘blue moon’ occurs once every two and half years, but this year we have two blue moons, an phenomenon that will not occur for another 19 years.

This week in the Sky

2010-01-25T09:36:00.006+11:00

A Late Evening Stroll through the Sky…

Let us off start off our stroll with Orion or the Saucepan which we find by facing towards the North.

Orion is quite unmistakable and is high up and almost due north in the evening, it can be recognised with four stars in a rectangle and three stars in the middle in a row. These three stars are Orion’s belt. On the lower right is a reddish star called Betelgeuse which is a giant star, hundreds of times larger than our own Sun.
Diagonally opposite Orion is another bright bluish white star called Rigel. This is also giant star – and is the third brightest star in the sky. Rigel is a long way from our Sun, in fact it is 775 light years from us. That means that light from the star takes 775 years to reach us. It is worth remembering that light from our sun which is only 150 million kilometres away takes 8 minutes to reach us here on earth.

Orion is a very useful constellation as we can use it as a signpost to find other stars and constellations. So if we extend a line through the three stars of Orion’s belt towards the left – the west – we find another bright reddish-orange star, called Aldebaran and it is known as is the brightest star in the constellation of Taurus and it is known as the eye of the Bull

Again, Aldebaran is a giant star, about 40 times larger as our own Sun and it shine 350 times brighter. It is a bit closer than Rigel at only 65 light years.
Aldebaran is in a group of stars that forms an upside-down V in the sky. And looking for those stars is the easiest way to find the constellation of Taurus the Bull and Aldebaran.

If we continue along our extended line from Orion’s Belt, past Alderban, we can see another group of stars called the Pleiades. That is the most famous star-cluster in the sky. This group of stars provides a very good test of eyesight. Most people can see six stars, but those with very good eyes can also see a fainter, seventh one.

This cluster of stars is also commonly called the little dipper or seven sisters. In Japan, they call it Subaru and if you look at the car emblem on the Subaru you will see the seven main stars of this cluster.

Now back to Orion and let us extend Orion’s Belt in the opposite direction until we reach Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. Sirius is also the brightest star of the constellation of Canis Major, the Great Dog. Sirius is sometimes referred to as the Dog Star.

We can’t finish our tour of the sky without a quick look to the South and so you will turn around and face south and there in the south eastern sky is our Southern Cross laying over on its side. The simplest way to recognise the Southern Cross is to find the two pointer stars, Alpha and Beta Centauri directly below it. Alpha Centauri is the fourth brightest star in our sky, it is also called Rigel Kent. It’s important to look for Alpha and Beta Centauri because the Southern Cross can be easily confused with another group of stars a little higher up in the sky which are referred to as the False Cross or Vela.

Using the Southern Cross now as a signpost and taking a line from the star on the left of the cross, and the top star of the cross, and following that line upwards, you find a very bright star almost overhead, a star called Canopus. That is the second brightest star in the sky, almost as bright as the star Sirius. So on this little tour we have seen the 4 brightest stars in the Southern Sky and they are well worth remembering as they will help you as you learn more about the wonders of the southern sky!

Astro Column January 18th

2010-01-17T23:25:00.001+11:00

My Favourite Spaceships Voyager 1 & 2

Anyone who has heard me speak or been in a conversation about space and the stars with me will know that my favourite space ships are the two Voyager craft currently way out past Pluto. I grew up with these spacecraft.

The twin Voyager spacecraft which were launched in 1977 with the purpose of travelling and exploring Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, have made many intriguing discoveries, including a possible ocean of liquid water on one of Jupiter's moons.

Nature magazine recently provided details of Voyager 2's latest finding. This finding is that the 'bubble' formed around the Solar System by supersonic solar wind is asymmetrical and dynamic. Project Scientist Edward Stone from California Institute of Technology reports that the Voyager crafts will deliver more 'firsts' when they reach interstellar space.

NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) has been in partnership with Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 since 1977, providing daily communications support to the two very distant spacecraft. The excellent partnership continues as the Voyager twin spacecraft explore the regions of our universe near the area where the solar wind meets the interstellar winds – areas never before explored by human-made objects.

Since radio waves travel at the speed of light, it takes nearly 15 hours for a signal from Voyager 1, which was about 107 AU away from the Sun, to reach one of the giant antennas of the DSN, and about 12 hours for Voyager 2, which was nearly 87 AU away from the Sun. An AU or astronomical unit is the distance between earth and the Sun – 150 million km or 96 million miles.

Because of the enormous distances and the resultant weak signals from the spacecraft, the large antennas and the very sensitive receivers of the DSN are required to provide the necessary communications capabilities. The DSN is the world's largest and most sensitive spacecraft communications network. It consists of three deep space communications complexes located approximately 120 degrees of longitude apart around the world: at Goldstone, California; near Madrid, Spain; and near Canberra, Australia. This placement permits continuous communication with a spacecraft.

Mars Rover Spirit Faces an Uncertain Future as we move into 2010I
At the end of end of 2009 NASA's Mars rover Spirit marked six years of unprecedented exploration of the Red Planet. However, the upcoming Martian winter could end the roving career of the beloved, scrappy robot.

Spirit landed on Mars on January 3, 2004, and its twin Opportunity arrived on January 24, 2004. They began missions initially planned for a period of only three months but which have instead gone on for six Earth years, or 3.2 Mars years. During this time, Spirit has found evidence of a steamy and violent environment on ancient Mars that was quite different from the wet and acidic past documented by Opportunity, which has been operating successfully halfway around the planet.

A sand trap and sinking wheels have proved to be a major challenge to Spirit's mobility and this could prevent NASA's rover team from using a key winter-survival strategy. The team might not be able to position the robot's solar panels to tilt toward the sun to collect power for heat to survive the severe Martian winter.

Spirit has been bogged for the past 9 months and all attempts to free it have failed. Because Spirit is located in the southern hemisphere of Mars, it is autumn, and the amount of daily sunshine available for the solar-powered rover is declining. This could result in ceasing extraction activities as early as this month. It I in an unfavourable tilt as the winter Sun on Mars passes in the Northern Sky and there are strong winds blowing up a lot of dust in the area . So unless the tilt can be improved or winds lessen the gradual build up of dust on the solar panels, the amount of sunshine available will continue to decline until May 2010. During May, or perhaps even earlier, Spirit may not have enough power to remain in operation.

Occultation of the Pleiades by the Moon January 25.

On the evening of Monday January 25 the waxing Moon will pass in front of the beautiful Pleiades star cluster. Pleiades is more commonly known as the seven sisters or the little dipper and in Japan is called Suburu and if you check out the logo for Suburu cars you will see that it is this star cluster. Because the Moon is so bright, it will be best to watch this event with binoculars or a small telescope. You should see the first bright star disappear behind the limb of the Moon at 2127 AEDST.

Astro Column for January 11th

2010-01-11T11:22:00.001+11:00

Blue Moons

A blue moon is the "extra" full moon in years that have thirteen full moons. Most years have twelve full moons which occur approximately monthly, but in addition to those twelve full lunar cycles, each solar calendar year contains an excess of roughly eleven days compared to the lunar year. The extra days accumulate, so every two or three years (7 times in the 19-year Metonic cycle), there is an extra full moon.

Meton of Athens (ca. 440 BC) noticed that 235 lunar months made up almost exactly 19 solar years. Using modern measurements, where a year equals 365.2425 days and a lunar month = 29.53059 days – that comes to a total of 234 .997 lunar months which means Meton’s math was pretty good.

The extra moon has come to be called a "blue moon." Since the moon orbits the earth every 29.53059 days so this means some months there can be two full moons – in fact that happens this month – January – the first full moon having been on New Years Day and the next on the 30th. This year not being a leap year means that February only has 28 days so there is actually no full moon in February but in fact there will again be two full moons in March.

Where are the planets this month?

Late this month sees Mercury return to morning sky. By January 14, Mercury can be seen a hand span above the eastern horizon around 30 minutes prior to sunrise so is one for the early risers with a clear eastern horizon. It will be easier to find at that time because it will be quite close less than half a hand span from the thin crescent Moon. By the end of the month it will have increased to around 2.5 hand spans from the eastern horizon half an hour before Sunrise and in Sagittarius.

Venus is lost in the twilight this month and won’t return to the evening sky until February.

Mars looks good in the evening sky this month about be two hand spans above the north-eastern horizon at around 11:00 pm local daylight saving time. By the end of the month it will be a bit over three hand spans above the northern horizon at the same time. On the 30th when Mars is at its brightest it will be about a hand span from the Full Moon.

Jupiter is still the brightest object in the sky and is very low in the western sky and mid month finds it just over a hand span above the western horizon an hour before sunset and just a hand span from the crescent moon on the 18th. Jupiter is a hand span above the western horizon half an hour before sunset. Jupiter’s satellites are easily visible in binoculars or small telescopes, and watching their ever changing movement is quite interesting even when Jupiter is close to the horizon.

Saturn rises higher in the morning sky this month and by the end of the month it is visible before midnight. By January 15 Saturn is eight hand spans above the north-eastern horizon, an hour and a half before Sunrise. On January 30th, Saturn is nine hand spans above the northern horizon an hour and a half before Sunrise. From mid month Saturn is well placed for telescopic observation in the early morning. The ring system is gradually opening, so the rings will be looking more dramatic.

Summer School Holiday Activities at Siding Spring Observaoty

2009-12-08T19:01:00.002+11:00

School Holiday Activities at Siding Spring Observatory in December/January

The Siding Spring Observatory and Café will be open from 9.30 am to 4 pm each day with the exception of Christmas Day on which we will be closed.

Behind the Scenes Tours:

Take a closer look at Siding Spring Observatory.. Join our Astronomer Guide and explore this special astronomy site and learn about the importance of this area to astronomy research and the natural environment. Enjoy a walk to breathtaking views of the Warrumbungle volcano. If the weather is inclement – we will still have a talk and questions and answer session with an Astronomer and guided look at the Visitor Exhibition area and Anglo Australian Telescope viewing area. Sunscreen, a hat, water and closed in shoes are essential. Price includes entry to Exhibition area. Please allow additional time to fully enjoy this experience.

Costs are:

•$16.50 for adults, • $12.50 for children and Seniors, and • $37.50 for a family (2A,2C)

The dates and times for the Summer School Holiday Period tours are as follows:

10.30 am on Sunday December 27th.
10.30 am eacjavascript:void(0)h Saturday in January 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd and 30th
10.30 am on each Monday in January 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th.
10.30 am on each Wednesday in January 6th, 13th, 20th and 27th.

If you have a group of more than 15 people coming on another day and wish a tour – please contact me to see if I can arrange it.

Please note it is quite hot here in summer, sunscreen, a hat, water and long sleeves are recommended. The walk takes place on some hilly and uneven ground so sensible and closed in foot wear is essential. Bookings are recommended and can be made on 6842 6255 or 6842 6211.

DECEMBER SKIES

2009-12-07T00:37:00.004+11:00

Where are the Planets in the Sky this month?

Mercury is easy to see in evening sky late this Month. By December 10, Mercury will be two hand spans from the western horizonabout 30 minutes after sunset, while on the 18th it will be a mere finger width from the thin crescent Moon. After this Mercury drops towards the horizon and by the end of the month will be lost in twilight.

Venus is no longer visible until February next year.

Mars enters the late evening sky, this month but is still prominent in the morning sky in the constellation of Leo. It is getting noticeably brighter as it approaches opposition in January 2010. On the 15th, you can find the red planet about six hand spans above the north-eastern horizon an hour and a half before Sunrise. At this time Mars is just peaking over the eastern horizon at 11:00 pm (daylight saving time), while Jupiter is just above the western horizon.

Jupiter can be seen nicely in the evening sky above the western horizon. On December 15 Jupiter is a little over four hand-spans above the western horizon at 10:00 pm and on the 21st the crescent Moon is only a hand-span away. By the 31st, Jupiter can be found only 2 hand-spans above the western horizon at 10:00pm.

Saturn rises higher in the morning sky this month and is readily visible before dawn. On the 10th the Crescent Moon will be quite close to it and by the 15th Saturn will be six hand-spans above the eastern horizon, just an hour before Sunrise. On December 31st, it iwll have increased to being seven hand-spans above the north-eastern horizon around the same time.

More on the Geminids

2009-12-07T00:29:00.003+11:00

Geminid Meteor Shower
The Geminids are a fairly reliable meteor shower, with rates of about a meteor per minute at their best. This should be a good year for Geminids, with no moonlight to interfere. The radiant doesn't rise until just before midnight (daylight saving time) in most of Australia, so you will still have to disturb your sleep for this one. At 1.00 am in the morning AEDST (midnight, AEST) Castor is about two hand spans above the horizon and 10 hand spans to the left of due north. Pollux, the other twin, is less than a hand span to the left again. The radiant is just below Castor. Unlike the Leonids, where there is a very narrow peak of high activity, the Geminids have a broad peak and will show good activity well before and after the peak, and on the day before and after. The peak is predicted to be around 3.00 pm (AEST) on the 14th, during daylight. However, Australians should see a meteor every two minutes under dark skies in the early morning of the 14th, between 2:00 am and 4:00 am.

Please email me or let me know how many you do see if you manage to get up in time!

Geminids Meteor Shower Dec 2009

2009-11-10T11:01:00.004+11:00

In response to a question about the Geminids today - this is what I have been able to find.

These are usually one of the finest and probably the most reliable, of the major annual showers presently observable, whose peak this year is virtually coincident with new Moon. The shower occurs between Dec 7 and 17 with the peak expected on Dec 14th. The Geminid radiant culminates around 1600 local time but Gemini does not rise until around midnight so the radiant won't appear until then. However, even though we will mix the peak it is worth the effort of going outside after midnight on 13th , 14th and 15th to see what can be seen - you will need a decent eastern horizon. This is a decent shower of often bright, medium-speed meteors, a rewarding sight for all watchers, whatever method they employ.

This week in the Sky

2009-11-10T09:30:00.002+11:00

Where are the Planets in the Sky this month?

Mercury returns to the evening sky late this Month. By November 30th, Mercury will be a hand span above the western horizon, half an hour after Sunset.

Venus will be lost in twilight and won’t return to the evening sky until February next year.

Mars is really easy to see in the morning sky and is getting noticeably brighter as it approaches opposition in January 2010. On the 15th, Mars is still four hand spans above the north-eastern horizon an hour and a half before Sunrise. On the 31st Mars is just over five hand spans above the north-eastern horizon an hour and a half before Sunrise.

Jupiter is still can be easily observed in the evening sky above the northern horizon. It is the brightest object in the sky at this time. On November 15 Jupiter will be a little over seven hand spans above the western horizon at 10:00 pm local daylight saving time. On the 23rd and 24th the waxing Moon will be only a hand span from Jupiter. On the 30th, Jupiter is six hand spans above the western horizon at 10:00 pm local daylight saving time.

Saturn rises higher in the morning sky this month. On the 13th you will be able to see the Crescent Moon near Saturn. By November 15 Saturn will be two hand spans above the horizon, an hour before Sunrise.

Space Shuttle Atlantis Update

The STS-129 Mission will launch at 6.28am on the 17th November. Atlantis and its crew will deliver two control moment gyroscopes, equipment and EXPRESS Logistics Carrier 1 and 2 to the International Space Station. The mission will feature three spacewalks. It will also return station crew member Nicole Stott to Earth and is slated to be the final space shuttle crew rotation flight.

Don’t forget the Leonid Meteor Shower next week.

The best time to observe in Australia is the morning of the 18th between 3 and 4 am daylight saving time. Sadly, a number of peaks will most likely occur just before Leo rises, and the best of the predictions for over 200 meters in an hour is predicted to occur after the Sun rise. Nevertheless, the possibility of seeing a quite reasonable number of meteors is good, and the meteor peak may come early. There is also a small peak predicted for around 2 am on the morning of the 19th that may be worth watching for, despite Leo being low on the horizon. The Radiant, which is where the meteors appear to come from is in the Sickle of Leo, which looks a bit like an upside question mark. Orion and the Pleiades (Seven sisters) will also be visible, so it will be a quite nice morning, with Mars not far from the Beehive cluster, even if there are not as many meteors as predicted. Please email me or let me know how many you do see if you manage to get up in time!

Leonids

2009-10-26T15:26:00.002+11:00

Last week’s Orioids brought reports of only around 35 meteors per hour over the main three nights and counts of between 10 and 20 over nights either side so were not as spectacular as predicted and no reports of fireballs. But we have anther opportunity to see what is predicted to be a pretty good display in November.

The Leonids is one of the better meteor showers to observe. It can produce an average of 40 meteors per hour at peak. The shower itself has a cyclic peak year every 33 years where hundreds of meteors can be seen each hour. The last of these events occurred in 2001. The shower peaks this year after sunrise on November 18 in Australia, but you can usually see some meteors from November 13 - 20. The moon will be totally out of the way this year, providing an exceptional viewing experience for the Leonids. Look for the shower radiating from the constellation Leo from around 3.30am as it is rising.

On the morning of November 18 our time it has been predicted that the Leonid meteor shower could produce upwards of 500 meteors per hour which would make for a very strong display if we were able to see it.

Last November, the Earth passed through a stream of debris from comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. The gritty, dusty debris stream was laid down by the Leonids' parent comet more than five hundred years ago in 1466. Almost no one expected the old stream to produce a very strong shower, but it did with observers in some areas reporting up to 100 meteors per hour.

This outburst proved that the 1466 stream is rich in meteor-producing debris which provides a higher possibilty for an even better display in 2009.

This year on November 18th teh Earth will pass through the 1466 stream again, but this time it will pass closer to the centre. Based on the number of meteors observed in 2008, it has been predicted that there could be a peak of around 500 meteors an hour – now for us the peak time occurs around 8.30 in the morning – however, it may well be worth the effort of getting up around 4 am and watching teh North East part of the sky as Leo rises through to when the Sun rises.

Some folk may remember the great Leonid showers of 1998-2002. The best years produced storms of up to 3000 Leonids per hour. The 2009 display won’t be so intense. Instead, if predictions are correct, this year's shower could resemble the 1998 Leonids, a "half-storm"-level event caused by a stream dating from 1333. That old stream turned out to be rich in nugget-sized debris that produced an abundance of fireballs.

So, could 2009 be similarto the 1998 display? Observers expect a similar number of meteors but fewer fireballs. If the models are correct, the 1466 stream in Earth’s path contains plenty of dust but not so many nuggets, thus reducing the fireball count.

What you’ll need to view this amazing meteor shower is a dark sky, away from town lights, warm clothes, hot drink and a reclining chair will ensure you are confortable as well. You do not need a telescope or binoculars.

Warrumbungle Festival of the Stars Astrophotography Contest

2009-09-25T11:57:00.003+10:00

Warrumbungle Festival of the Stars Astrophotography Contest in conjunction with Warrumbungle Arts & Crafts Annual Exhibition and ART EXPO

All you astrophotographers out there - please enter our Astrophotography
being held as part of Coonabarabran IYA2009 activities and in conjunction
with our Annual Festival of the Stars. The entries will be displayed as part
of the the Warrumbungle Arts & Crafts Annual Exhibition and ART EXPO then at
Siding Spirng Observatory Open Day. Entry is free but a stamped address
envelope for return of entries woudl be appreciated. Entries should be no
more than A4 in size and will be mounted on card backgrounds using
photograph mounts. For more info please contact me. Entries need to be sent
to Donna Burton Siding Spring Observatory Coonabarabran NSW 2357 by October
19th 2009.

The exhibition starts on: Wednesday, 21 October 2009 at 19:30 and ends
Saturday, 24 October 2009 at 17:00.

Location: Warrumbungle Arts & Crafts Annual Exhibition and ART EXPO
Coonabarabran Shire Hall, John Street
Coonabarabran, Australia
Phone: 0268426255
Email: donna@mso.anu.edu.au

Looking at the Big Picture – an astronomy and environment tour

2009-09-23T11:05:00.001+10:00

Siding Spring Observatory – Coonabarabran
Looking at the Big Picture – an astronomy and environment tour

Dates & Times: Saturday 3rd October 2009 11.00am
Monday 5th October 2009 10.30am
Thursday 8th October 2009 1.30pm
Saturday 10th October 2009 1.30pm
Tuesday 13th October 2009 10.30am
Thursday 15th October 2009 10.30am
Saturday 17th October 2009 10.30am

Take a closer look at Siding Spring – join A NPWS Discovery Ranger to explore some of the astronomy site and learn about the importance of this special area to the world of astronomy and the natural environment.
A walking tour to a special lookout will show breathtaking views of the Warrumbungles and tell you of the history of the mighty Warrumbungle Volcano.

Grade: Easy to medium walk will take 2 hours.
Meet: Siding Spring Exploratory Car park
Cost: Adults: $15.00; Concession: $10.00; Children: $8.00; Family:$40.00
What to bring: your binoculars, camera, carry a sweater – its colder on the tops!

Bookings essential – minimum numbers required for tour to operate. Payment must be made at time of booking. Credit card facilities available for phone bookings – contact Warrumbungle National Park Visitor Centre 6825 4364
Bookings through Warrumbungle Visitor Centre – call 6825 4364 or
Siding Spring Exploratory 6842 6255

Astro Events in Coonabarabran October!

2009-09-23T09:41:00.001+10:00

Astro Events in Coonabarabran October 23 – 25th 2009

Annual Science in the Pub

This entertaining event starts the weekend off on Friday October 23rd from 6.30pm.

This annual debate is definitely entertaining and can be thoroughly outrageous at times as a group of astronomers from various backgrounds debate a topic of astronomical interest at the Royal Hotel, John Street Coonabarabran. This event has an entry fee of $5 and provides entry into the drawer for a variety of prizes on the night. A buffet salad with steak meal will be available for $18 and bookings would be appreciated. Vegetarian meals are also available.

Sidewalk Astronomy

On Saturday 24th October, we will be holding a Sidewalk Astronomy event in conjunction with the Festival of the Stars and the International Year of Astronomy 2009 Cornerstone Project called Galilean Nights. This worldwide project will see amateur and professional astronomers around the globe taking to the streets, pointing their telescopes to the wonders that Galileo observed 400 years ago.
The focus of the project is sidewalk observations of gas giant Jupiter and its moons, as well as allowing members of the public to observe the Sun, our own Moon and many more celestial marvels.

This free family event will be held outside the Visitor Information Centre on John Street Coonabarabran from around 7pm.

Siding Spring Open Day

On Sunday October 25th, is the Annual Siding Spring Open Day here at Siding Spring Observatory - where we open a number of the telescopes during the day to the public - there will be a BBQ lunch available, a shuttle bus on site to help you move around and see all there is to see - solar viewing, a chance to talk to astronomers and learn about what we do here. The exploratory cafe will be opened for a well deserved cuppa or Devonshire tea and entry to the event is free.

Annual Bok Lecture

Sunday evening will culminate with the annual BOK lecture. This is a free lecture, held at the local primary school and this year’s speaker is Professor Bryan Gaensler from the University of Sydney. Bryan was Young Australian of the Year in 1999, was a delegate to Australia 2020 summit in 2008 as well as Young Tall Poppy, Australian Institute of Physics 2008 amongst a host of other awards and accolades. He is also a very entertaining speaker and will be sharing some of his knowledge with us at this event. This night is open to everyone and is free.

For more information on all these events or booking please contact Donna Burton at Siding Spring Observatory on 02 6842 6255 or by email donna@mso.anu.edu.au or check out http://sidingspring.blogspot.com

David Malin Astrophotography Winning Entries on Display

2009-08-22T13:28:00.006+10:00

From Monday August 24th until Sunday September 13th you can see teh award winning entries in the 2009 David Malin Astrophotography Awards.

In July 2009, the Central West Astronomical Society's astrophotography exhibition and competition was held as part of the CWAS AstroFest. Amateur astronomers and photographers from around Australia were invited to take part in the exhibition and to submit their astrophotographs for consideration in the prestigious "David Malin Awards". The exhibited photographs represent the very best of those received.
This year's competition had five sections - Amateur, Semi-Professional, Open, Junior and the Innovation Award. In addition, the Amateur section had three categories of entry: Wide-field (camera shots), Deep Sky (telescope shots) and Solar System.

The photographs were judged by world-renowned astrophotographer, Dr David Malin, without David being aware of the identity of the photographers. The winners were presented with the "David Malin Awards" in the presence of invited dignitaries, during the CWAS AstroFest conference dinner on 18 July 2009.

It was not just technical skill that was awarded. The prizes went to pictures that captured the beauty of the sky and the intrinsic interest of astronomy in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Canon Australia supported the competition with prizes to the value of over $8,000.

We are fortunate in this the International Year of Astronomy, to be able to exhibit these prestigious awards.

THis weeks Astro Column

2009-08-05T09:55:00.000+10:00

What is Happening On Mars this Month.

Well as previously mentioned in this column – Mars will not be as big as the Full Moon appears to be in our skies this month but there is a lot happening in relation to the red planet anyway. Spirit, on of the two NASA rovers got bogged back in April when it entered an area composed of three or more layers of soil with differing pastel hues hiding beneath a darker sand blanket. Scientists dubbed the site "Troy." Spirit's rotating wheels dug themselves more than hub deep at the site. The rover team has spent weeks studying Spirit's situation and preparing a simulation of this Martian driving dilemma to test escape manoeuvres using an engineering test rover at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

A rock seen beneath Spirit in images from the camera on the end of the rover's arm may be touching Spirit's belly. Scientists believe it appears to be a loose rock not bearing the rover's weight. While Spirit awaits extraction instructions, the rover is keeping busy examining Troy, which is next to a low plateau called Home Plate, approximately 3.2 kilometres southeast of where it landed in January 2004.

"By serendipity, Troy is one of the most interesting places Spirit has been," said Ray Arvidson of Washington University in St. Louis. Arvidson is deputy principal investigator for the science payloads on Spirit and its twin rover, Opportunity. "We are able here to study each layer, each different colour of the interesting soils exposed by the wheels." So,e ven while it is bogged it is still working.

Meanwhile Opportunity the other Rover has also been busy. It had spied a dark, metre-scale piece of rock about 210 metres away in the opposite direction to which it had been travelling. On July 23, 2009, the rover headed back toward this area, called "Block Island," arriving there on July 28th.
Contact analysis using the robotic arm has now began on this 70-centimeter-size cobble. The miniature thermal emission spectrometer (Mini-TES) shroud continues to be left open on scheduled sols to allow the environment to clean minor dust contamination from the elevation mirror. No improvement in Mini-TES performance has been observed so far, but the rover has seen no wind events. Just a bit of trivia the total distance travelled by Opportunity since it landed has been 17,224.82 metres.

Mercury is back in our evening skies this month
Mercury is in the evening sky this Month. On the 2 and 3rd, Mercury, is close to Regulus, the brightest star in the constellation of Leo. Mercury is one and a half hand spans above the western horizon half an hour after sunset. Mercury climbs in the sky, heading for a meeting with Saturn. On the 17th Mercury and Saturn are 3 finger widths apart, and two hand spans above the western horizon an hour after Sunset. By the end of the month Mercury is just over two hand spans from the western horizon an hour after sunset.

Endeavour Touches Down Safely

Space shuttle Endeavour and its crew of seven astronauts are safely on the ground at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, wrapping up the 16-day STS-127 mission to the International Space Station. Endeavour touched down on time at 20:48 AEST August 1st on the mission's first landing opportunity.

Endeavour launched on time at 4:03 am AEST on Wednesday, July 15 from Kennedy's Launch Pad 39A.

Meteor Shower
Don’t forget to keep having a look for the delta-Aquarids meteor shower if you are out after 10pm at night. This meteor shower should be visible from 10.00pm until dawn, with better meteor rates after midnight. So rug up and go outside with a hot drink and have a look around you could see up to 20 meteors an hour.

If you have any questions about what you see in the sky or want more information on what is on in this International Year of Astronomy, please feel free to contact me – Donna Burton, Australian National University, Siding Spring Observatory, Coonabarabran email donna@mso.anu.edu.au.

In the Sky...

2009-08-05T09:53:00.001+10:00

Moon: moving through Capricornus, disc is 99% illuminated (full), visible in the sky after sunset and for most of the night, 168 degrees from the Sun, 29.5 arcmin in diameter.

Mercury: in Leo, visible in the western sky after sunset, magnitude -0.3, 20 degrees from the Sun, 5.6 arcsec in diameter.

Venus: in Gemini, visible in the eastern sky before sunrise, magnitude -4.3, 38 degrees from the Sun, 14.6 arcsec in diameter.

Mars: in Taurus, visible in the sky before sunrise, magnitude 0.6, 56 degrees from the Sun, 5.4 arcsec in diameter.

Jupiter: in Capricornus, visible in the sky before sunrise and for most of the night, appears close to Neptune, magnitude -2.9, 169 degrees from the Sun, 48.6 arcsec in diameter.

Saturn: in Leo, visible in the western sky after sunset, magnitude 1.0, 37 degrees from the Sun, 16.2 arcsec in diameter.

Uranus: in Pisces, visible in the sky before sunrise and for most of the night, magnitude 5.8, 136 degrees from the Sun, 3.4 arcsec in diameter.

Neptune: in Capricornus, visible in the sky before sunrise and for most of the night, appears close to Jupiter, magnitude 7.8, 167 degrees from the Sun, 2.1 arcsec in diameter.

Why Mars will NOT be as big as the Full Moon in August.

2009-07-29T08:18:00.002+10:00

Well, the "great Mars hoax" email is back. Since 2003, the email seems to make rounds at least once a year, claiming Mars will appear as large as the full moon in late August.

Sorry to say, that's not going to happen.

The email started circulating in 2003. In August of that year, Mars did indeed come within 56 million km of Earth, the closest approach it has made in 60,000 years. It was an impressive event. But even then, when the planet was a breathtaking magnitude -2.9, Mars measured about 25 arc-seconds across which is only approximately 75x smaller than the full moon.

The original email about the close approach of Mars correctly mentioned this fact.

It said:

"The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles (55,763,108 km) of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye."

This was true... in a telescope at 75x, Mars would subtend an angle of about 1/2 degree, the same as the full moon.

I suspect when the email was forwarded, eventually the words "At a modest 75-power magnification..." were left out. That's when the confusion began. And on some versions of the email, the year in which the event took place was left out, which is why the email seems to get most traffic just before August.

To be fair, I think the email going around today isn't really a hoax, but a misunderstanding. But if it appears in your inbox, remember, its claims are completely bogus, although they was founded in fact back in 2003.

Right now, Mars is about 250 million kilometers away and appears almost 5x smaller than it was in August 2003. At a puny 6 arc-seconds across, it's putting on a middling show in the early morning sky. You can see it between Venus and the Pleiades (Seven sistes), near Orion. Even in a powerful scope, you won't see much surface detail on Mars.

The best planet for viewing this month is Jupiter, visible in the southeast sky after 9 p.m. local time. It's the brightest object in that part of the sky (except for the moon).

What's in the Sky?

2009-07-14T09:34:00.001+10:00

What is in the Sky

Winter sees our night skies dominated by the Southern Cross, sprawling Scorpio and Sagittarius, in which the heart of our galaxy hides, so it's well worth stepping out into the chill for an astronomical thrill.

So what is where?

The Sun is in Gemini – the Moon is moving through Pisces and is waning gibbous.

Planets

Mercury is also in Gemini, near superior conjunction quite bright and close to the Sun so can be seen low in the western sky just after sunset from July 14. Venus is in Taurus and remains as a very bright “morning star” visible in the eastern sky before sunrise. Mars is also in Taurus and again is visible in the sky before sunrise not as bright as either Venus or Mercury but its orange colour makes it look really spectacular on a clear frosty morning.

Jupiter is in Capricorn and is visible for most of the night and is actually quite close in sky position to Neptune. You will need binoculars at least and you can see it as a pale blue non twinkling object. Both can be seen in the south eastern part of the sky about midnight. Saturn is visible most of the night in Leo still and looks good in small telescope or goo pair of binoculars.

Did Galileo discover Neptune 234 years earlier than Galle did?

Then felt I like some watcher of the skies
When a new planet swims into his ken

These are the words of the poet John Keats which he wrote when referring to William Herschel's discovery of the planet Uranus in 1781. Measurements taken at the time of the position of Uranus soon showed that it was under the gravitational influence of another planet, farther out in the solar system.

Predictions of the position of this new planet were made by John Couch Adams in 1843 and Urbain Le Verrier in 1845-1846, but both mathematicians had great difficulty in persuading any astronomer to actually look for the planet. Finally on September 23, 1846, a German astronomer, Johann Gottfried Galle, used Le Verrier's chart to actually locate and observe Neptune. This led to a major controversy as to which country should be credited with the discovery; ultimately the honour was shared. This controversy continue to this day.

Ironically, Galle however, was not the first person to observe Neptune. It was actually observed twice by Galileo in 1612 and 1613, but he mistook it for a fixed star. At the time Galileo made this observation, Neptune was in conjunction with the planet Jupiter, meaning that both planets appeared very close together in the sky.

This week, Neptune is again in conjunction with Jupiter, and with some preparation, you can spot it anytime now through next week. Remember unless you have a reasonable size telescope Neptune will appear as a small blueish pinpoint of light in the sky. Normally finding Neptune amongst the stars is like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack. It requires detailed star charts and a great deal of patience. However, this week Jupiter will do all the hard work for you, and will make it really easy to spot Neptune. If you put your binoculars with Jupiter at the top you will see the star µ Capricorn halfway between the two. There are no brighter objects in the vicinity,

New IYA Cornerstone Project - Galilean Nights

2009-07-09T12:02:00.003+10:00

If you thought the 100 hours of astronomy in April was really cool then look out for the new series of telescope outreach and viewing events being planned for 23-25 October 2009. This new IYA2009 Cornerstone Project is called Galilean Nights and will see amateur and professional astronomers around the globe taking to the streets and pointing their telescopes to the wonders that Galileo observed 400 years ago. The focus of the project is sidewalk observations of the gas giant Jupiter and its moons, as well as allowing members of the public to observe the Sun, our own Moon and many more celestial marvels.

Stand by for more details but we will certainly be a part of it all with Sidewalk Astronomy in the Main Street and solar viewing outside the Exploratory.

What's in the Sky

2009-07-06T10:39:00.001+10:00

un:	in Gemini, 31.5 arcmin in diameter.
Moon:	moving through Sagittarius, disc is 98% illuminated (full), visible in the sky after sunset and for most of the night, 164 degrees from the Sun, 29.5 arcmin in diameter.
Mercury:	in Gemini, probably too close to the Sun to be seen, magnitude -1.3, 9 degrees from the Sun, 5.4 arcsec in diameter.
Venus:	in Taurus, visible in the eastern sky before sunrise, appears close to Mars, magnitude -4.2, 43 degrees from the Sun, 18.1 arcsec in diameter.
Mars:	in Taurus, visible in the sky before sunrise, appears close to Venus, magnitude 0.7, 48 degrees from the Sun, 5.0 arcsec in diameter.
Jupiter:	in Capricornus, visible in the sky before sunrise and for most of the night, appears close to Neptune, magnitude -2.7, 137 degrees from the Sun, 46.2 arcsec in diameter.
Saturn:	in Leo, visible in the sky after sunset, magnitude 1.0, 62 degrees from the Sun, 16.8 arcsec in diameter.
Uranus:	in Pisces, visible in the sky before sunrise, magnitude 5.8, 107 degrees from the Sun, 3.3 arcsec in diameter.
Neptune:	in Capricornus, visible in the sky before sunrise and for most of the night, appears close to Jupiter, magnitude 7.9, 137 degrees from the Sun, 2.1 arcsec in diameter.

Bingara July 18 celebrates the 40th Anniversary of the Moon Landing

2009-06-29T13:09:00.002+10:00

I have been invited to speak at an event in Bingara being organised by Bingara and District VISION 20/20. The event is called “When the Moon got trod on!” and is celebrates the 40^th Anniversary of the first moon landing. Details and tickets for the event, on the evening of Saturday July 18 at the Roxy Theatre, are available through the Bingara Tourist Information Office on 6724 0066. It should be a lot of fun!

CWA Manilla International Day

2009-06-29T13:06:00.003+10:00

Last Friday I had a lovely time with the CWA ladies from Manilla, Gunnedah and Tamworth. It was the occasion of their International Day and I had been invited to talk about International Year of Astronomy – and one of the cornerstone projects which is “She is an Astronomer”. The ladies were a wonderful audience as I shared stories about the adventures of working at Siding Spring and answered their very interesting questions. The sky started out too overcast for solar viewing but after lunch cleared up for a time so that we could see the sun, which has been pretty quiet as far as activity for some days, but decided to put on a show for the lovely ladies with a lovely group of prominences which we could see quite clearly.

This week in the Sky

2009-06-29T13:05:00.001+10:00

If you have been up early you will have seen the beautiful and bright Venus with the smaller orange Mars nearby to the crescent moon in the ENE and mighty Jupiter just west of overhead. Taurus the bull is rising just before sunrise and the Pleiades (seven sisters) look magnificent on a clear morning. You can also see Mercury just below near to the red star Alderban which is know as the eye of the bull. Scorpio rise in the evening spread across the eastern sky and the Southern Cross is high in the South.

There are some good opportunities to see the International Space Station this week. July 1 at 1911 low in the WSW, July 2 at 1937 low in the WSW, July 3 1825 low in the WSW, July 4 1851 low in the WNW and July 5 1739 low in the WSW.

HAT South Telescope Network one step closer

2009-06-22T14:01:00.005+10:00

Less than a month after the opening of the SkyMapper Telescope a new telescope building has appeared at Siding Spring Observatory.

HAT-South is a network of six identical, fully automated wide field telescopes, which are planned to be located at three sites (Chile: Las Campanas, Australia: Siding Springs, and Namibia: HESS site) in the Southern hemisphere.

The primary purpose of the telescope network is to detect and characterize a large number of extra-solar planets transiting nearby bright stars, and to explore their diversity.

Each site will host two "TH4" units. These TH4 units consist of four 0.18m Takahashi astrographs fitted with Apogee 4Kx4K CCDs. Each TH4 unit monitors 64 square degrees of sky at a time, so each site will be capable of monitoring 128 square degrees of sky.

Operation of HAT-South is a collaboration among the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics (CfA), Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) and the Australian National University (ANU).

The network is expected to be ready for initial science operations in late 2009.

The use of the three sites will permit near round-the-clock monitoring of selected fields, and the continuous data-stream will greatly enhance recovery of transits. It will use a network of wide-field telescopes to monitor hundreds of thousands of bright stars, searching for the characteristic dip in light that occurs when a planet passes in front of its host star. With follow-up observations, the planets discovered in this project will be studied extensively to determine their density, temperature, and even atmospheric composition.

The project anticipates a yearly detection rate of approximately 25 planets transiting bright stars.

Upcoming School Holiday Tours

2009-06-18T12:23:00.003+10:00

Just a reminder for everyone we have school holiday tours in conjunction with the National Park. Dates and times are in the calendar. A guided tour will include a site tour which focuses on astronomy and the environment and admission to the Exploratory. Costs are: $16.50 for adults,$12.50 for children and Seniors, and $37.50for a family (2A,2C). Bookings need to be made with the National Park but if there is room we will take extras on the day but since the group size is limted pelase book at teh Warrumbungle National Park Visitor Centre on 6825 4364.

The Exploratory Centre has a great exhibition with information and activities relating to the work undertaken at Siding Spring and how it links with other telescope sites across the world. The Cafeteria provides light meals, soft drinks, tea and coffee and a range of astronomy publications and gifts to take away as a reminder of your visit the Australia’s largest optical astronomy research centre.

Visitors can then go on to the 3.9 metre telescope of the Anglo Australian Observatory. At the AAO there is a visitor’s gallery which provides a closer look at the instrumentation used and the bird’s eye view of the Warrumbungle Mountains from the lookout is worth the visit.

Siding Spring Observatory is not open to the public at night as it is a research instrument with working telescopes and visiting astronomers; light pollution from visitors driving to and from the mountain at night would impact adversely on the work of astronomers.

Siding Spring Open Day a Great Success

2009-05-27T08:25:00.001+10:00

In spite of early blustery and cool conditions, Sunday’s Open Day at Siding Spring was a resounding success. We had over 250 plus people come through and visit the Mountain. A shuttle bus delivered folk to each of the open telescopes.

There were a series of talks throughout the day by students and astronomers which were attended by many and were popular. Visitors took the opportunity to question the speakers on all manner of subjects and were delighted with the opportunity to talk to astronomers about they do.

There were a number of telescopes open to the Public and astronomers from the Australian National University were on hand to answer questions and talk about the new SkyMapper Telescope.

Open Days at Siding Spring are usually held in October, as organiser I was interested in seeing how many people would actually appear – given the weather conditions. The feedback from visitors was incredible; some like the Waite family had travelled from Toowoomba for the event. There were folk from the local areas which were encouraging as well as families from Sydney, Newcastle who had driven to Coonabarabran for the weekend to attend.

The purpose for the Open day was to show visitors the new SkyMapper telescope which is being opened by Prof Marie Bashir, Governor New South Wales at 10.30 am Monday May 25th.

Just after the turn of this century, Australian astronomers were convinced of the need for a new accurate census of the southern sky, a census much deeper than any previously undertaken to allow them to address the big questions of our time:
The origin of stars, galaxies and black holes in the early universe, the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy, which make up most of the Universe, the origin of our Solar System and other planetary systems.

Initial plans for this survey were well underway when the telescopes on Mt Stromlo were destroyed in the Jan 2003 bushfire.

The University reacted quickly, and for astronomers in a very fortunate way, making the decision quickly to develop a new, optimised telescope, one unlike previous instruments, fully automatic in operation and making use of the most advanced technologies, a telescope that was to become SkyMapper.

Six years later, the telescope is ready to go into operation, and the spectacularly high tech camera with which it will survey the sky is in the final stages of fine tuning and being made ready for installation.

100 hours of Astronomy Events went well!

2009-04-16T08:44:00.003+10:00

Well we all had a great time over the 100 Hours weekend and things went really well - skies cleared wherever we had events - Sidewalk astronomy in Coonabarabran township was fun and the Baradine event went well and all who attended had a great time.

The school holidays are in full swing and unfortunately with weather a few of the tours over the weekend needed to be cancelled for which there was nothing we could do but those that went ahead were well attended. If you get a chance to join one - please do and hear about what happens up here. The new WiFeS instrument is going well and the clearer weather after Easter has meant observing has been carried out at least for parts of the night at the various telescopes.

Open Day At Siding Spring Sunday May 24th 2009

2009-03-30T20:48:00.000+11:00

To celebrate the opening of the ANU Skymapper telescope and the International Year of Astronomy there will be an additional Open Day at Siding Spring this year. Come along and see behind the scenes at the largest optical telescopes in Australia. Ask an astronomer the hard questions - wander around the facility and get up close and personal with the telescopes and astronomers. Find out all about the newest research telescope in Asutralia which will be able to map the sky every 2-3 days.

The day will run from 11am to 4pm with a shuttle bus, local scouts catering a BBQ, free entry to the Exploratory.

Upcoming Events for 100 hours of Astronomy

2009-03-30T20:27:00.001+11:00

It is four hundred years since Galileo first trained his telescope upon the heavens and now this historic event is about to be celebrated globally.

Thursday April 2nd: 1pm Media Lunch with Professor Mike Dopita Siding Spring Exploratory - Find out about the new WiFES instrument for the ANU 2.3M telescope. Contact Donna for details on 6842 6255.

Evening: April 2nd: Coonabarabran - Outside the Post Office on John Street from about 7pm - 9pm weather permitting - come along and join in sidewalk astronomy and see the wonders of the night sky. No bookings required. Wear warm clothes.

Friday April 3rd: Morning Web Casts to St Brigidine School 9am and 11am

Friday Afternoon:

Baradine Village Astrofest: A starry, starry night will be held to celebrate IYA and 2009 Youth Week. Astronomers will be at the Baradine Central School oval with telescopes to give observation advice and guidance. If you are there before sunset you will be lucky enough to take part in a solar viewing. School Sessions from 1pm. Solar Viewing and telescope Information Sessions from 3.30pm on the school oval. Followed by a BBQ and telescope viewing from 6.30pm.

Friday April 3 - Coonabarabran High School 7.00 pm Soup and Slice supper – $15 per head. This comes with a really unique experience – the opportunity to see through a replica of Galileo’s telescope – see if you can Saturn as a planet with ears as he did!
also
Gulargambone also on April 3rd – two eight two eight will be running telescope viewing fro 8 – 11pm. Contact two eight two eight for details.

On Saturday 4 April, there will be a Starry, Starry Night at the Warrumbungle National Park. The event which will have supper included will start at 6.30 and will include stories, information about the effects of light pollution and telescope and binocular viewing. Bookings via the WNP Visitor Centre.

Worldwide telescopes
As well as public star-watching events, ‘Around the World in 80 Telescopes’ is predicted to be one of the featured programs of the 100 Hours of Astronomy weekend.
“This is a live webcast from almost 80 professional observatories from Arizona to Shanghai, the Hubble Space Telescope to the Vatican during a 24-hour period,” says Donna.
“Astronomers all over the globe will take viewers inside their telescope domes and control rooms in some of the most advanced observatories on and off the planet.
“Australian observatories will be participating in the web cast, including the Anglo-Australian Observatory at Siding Spring near Coonabarabran.
“So make a date in your diary and get ready to discover during 100 hours of astronomy.”

Welcome

2009-03-30T17:46:00.000+11:00

This blog is being set up to keep people up to date on events and happenings at Siding Spring Observatory and about astronomy events in general in the district.