Thursday, April 22, 2010
Virtual Telescope - Walking on the Moon!
I'm attending another Virtual Telescope experience, "Walking on the Moon". Part of Global Astronomy Month, Like the Messier Marathon and the Exoplanet Observation, this is pretty cool. Even after years of Astronomy, images of the Moon still are wonderful and enthralling.
Sadly, my experience was not optimal. As MiddleOne got a flight simulator program for his birthday, he's rigged up headphones to the computer for it. Headphones with a cord that reach his ears but not mine. So I now have tiny headphones on the desk, trying to listen to Gianluca narrate what's going on. Can't hear much. Anyway, here's some images from the session to enjoy.
As always, click on the image to embiggen (you won't be disappointed)
Sadly, my experience was not optimal. As MiddleOne got a flight simulator program for his birthday, he's rigged up headphones to the computer for it. Headphones with a cord that reach his ears but not mine. So I now have tiny headphones on the desk, trying to listen to Gianluca narrate what's going on. Can't hear much. Anyway, here's some images from the session to enjoy.
As always, click on the image to embiggen (you won't be disappointed)
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy, telescope, virtual telescope
Friday, April 09, 2010
Control the Virtual Telescope Yourself!
During Global Astronomy Month, the folks at the Virtual Telescope as letting people control it themselves, day or night, until April 30th. Naturally, as a freebie there will be a lot of interest, so they are restricting people to 30 minutes time on the scope, and between 5 -10 users from any given country a night (so everyone gets a go). No previous astronomical experience is necessary.
Educators, this would be a great chance to get your students exposed to astronomy in a way they will be unlikely to experience easily (Australian Educators have the best opportunity, our daytime is early morning at the scope, when most Europeans will be in bed).
I've applied for time to see a rare alignment of Saturn's satellites. If this works out I can set up something for my kids primary school hopefully).
My previous Virtual Telescope adventures are here and here
Educators, this would be a great chance to get your students exposed to astronomy in a way they will be unlikely to experience easily (Australian Educators have the best opportunity, our daytime is early morning at the scope, when most Europeans will be in bed).
I've applied for time to see a rare alignment of Saturn's satellites. If this works out I can set up something for my kids primary school hopefully).
My previous Virtual Telescope adventures are here and here
Labels: education, International Year of Astronomy, telescope
Thursday, April 08, 2010
Virtual Telescope - Watching TrES-3's exoplanet
I've just had another Virtual Telescope experience, this one at a more reasonable hour. The Virtual Telescope had a world first, a live webcast of an exoplanet transiting its star. The exoplanet being TrES-3b. (click on any image to embiggen)
Located ( from our point of view anyway) in Hercules (see second image) TrES-3 is a world that is nearly twice the size of Jupiter orbiting its sun in just 31 hours (see first image for a Celestia simulation). It will probably crash into its sun in the "near" future.
The lefthand image shows TrES-3, the parent sun of TrES-3b in the CCD window of the virtual telescope (its the one to the left of the blue bar). The righthand image shows the growing light curve as the transit went on. It was pretty exciting to watch a real-time exoplanet transit, listening to Gianluca Masi's narration.
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The lefthand image is the completed graph of the transit, showing the full dip of the stars light as the exoplanet passed in front of it, and the last image is my participation certificate.
Located ( from our point of view anyway) in Hercules (see second image) TrES-3 is a world that is nearly twice the size of Jupiter orbiting its sun in just 31 hours (see first image for a Celestia simulation). It will probably crash into its sun in the "near" future.
The lefthand image shows TrES-3, the parent sun of TrES-3b in the CCD window of the virtual telescope (its the one to the left of the blue bar). The righthand image shows the growing light curve as the transit went on. It was pretty exciting to watch a real-time exoplanet transit, listening to Gianluca Masi's narration.
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The lefthand image is the completed graph of the transit, showing the full dip of the stars light as the exoplanet passed in front of it, and the last image is my participation certificate.
Labels: astrophotography, International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy, telescope
Monday, April 05, 2010
Global Astronomy Month
Being the well connected, on-top-of-it all guy that I an, I've totally missed out on the fact that it's Global Astronomy Month. See the Astronomers without Borders page for more information, there's the Global Astronomy Month Picture of the Day, a Messier Marathon, and "Revenge of the Merds" meets "American Idol" as well as more events. Now is not too late to join in.
Labels: Astronomy, International Year of Astronomy
Monday, February 22, 2010
Astropoetry for the International Year of Astronomy
I missed this back in December, but the Cosmopoetry group has a special series of poems (and images) dedicated to the International Year of Astronomy. Pop on over and have a read.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Poetry
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Cosmic Diary - Magnetic fields
Cosmic Diary has a new feature article on Magnetic Fields by Thomas Dall of the European Southern Observatory
From the blurb:
From the blurb:
From fusion energy to life: magnetic fields, exoplanets, and the Earth
Magnetic fields within stars and extrasolar planets may seem like two totally separate topics, but as is often the case with astronomy, there are many surprising links. Join astronomer Thomas Dall as he explains how these two subjects help with his research.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy
Monday, August 24, 2009
Big Aussie Starthunt Extended.
The Big Aussie Starhunt has been extended to August 30, due to the inclement weather that has plagued us. Just a reminder, The Big Aussie Starhunt is a Australia wide event to get people more familiar with our wonderful night sky, and to raise awareness of light pollution so it's well worth participating. All you have to do is count how many stars you can see in Scorpius using very simple star-charts! Use SkippySky to get cloud cover predictions so you can choose a clear night.
As well as the starhunt, there is a wealth of information and resources on our skies and how to observe them.
As well as the starhunt, there is a wealth of information and resources on our skies and how to observe them.
Labels: Astronomy, International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy, science, science matters
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
I've Done My Starhunt, Have You?
The Big Aussie Starhunt is well underway! I did my survey tonight, the first chance I've had with the cloud and kids. The Big Aussie Starhunt is a Australia wide event to get people more familiar with our wonderful night sky, and to raise awareness of light pollution so it's well worth participating . All you have to do is count how many stars you can see in Scorpius during Science Week (15 – 23 August 2009). The 23rd is coming up fast, so get out and have a go! Use SkippySky to get cloud cover predictions.
Labels: Astronomy, International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy, science, science matters
Friday, August 14, 2009
The Big Aussie Starhunt Starts This Saturday!
The Big Aussie Starhunt starts this Saturday (August 15)! The Big Aussie Starhunt is a Australia wide event to get people more familiar with our wonderful night sky, and to raise awareness of light pollution. All you have to do is count how many stars you can see in Scorpius during Science Week (15 – 23 August 2009). There is even a competition you can enter and win. As well, with with Jupiter at opposition it's a great time to do some star gazing anyway (maybe hold an impromptu Star Party).
As well as the starhunt, there is a wealth of information and resources on our skies and how to observe them.
As well as the starhunt, there is a wealth of information and resources on our skies and how to observe them.
Labels: Astronomy, International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy, science, science matters
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Where were You When People First Walked on the Moon?
Shortly before 12:56pm AEST on July 21, 1969 we were gathered into a classroom at my high school to watch Neil Armstrong become the first human to walk on the Moon.Which classroom? Who was there with me? I don't remember (I do have a vague impression it was the Great Hall, and there were lots of us there), I was completely focussed on the grainy black and white images beamed back from the Moon.
If you have memories of the Lunar landing you can share them at the Australian ABC website "Footprints on the Moon" (and watch the video there).
There are more stories about the Moon on the ABC Space page. You can check the International Year of Astronomy diary to see what celebrations are on in your state today.
Internationally, Echos of Apollo also celebrates todays 40th anniversary with time lines, stories, podcasts and videos. Over on The Pandas Thumb Richard B. Hoppe shares his memories of being involved with the engineering of the Apollo 11 module.
Labels: Apollo, International Year of Astronomy, Moon
Monday, July 20, 2009
The LRO photographs the Apollo Landers
In time for the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has taken stunning images of the Apollo landing sites. You can even see the astronauts tracks to the instruments at the Apollo 14 site. Here's the Bad Astronomer's take on these pictures, and Tom's.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Moon, science matters
Friday, July 03, 2009
Cosmic Diary - Black Holes
Cosmic Diary is now 6 months old and has a new feature article Black Holes by Nadine Neumayer of the European Southern Observatory (ESO), Munich, Germany. From the blurb:
Few scientific topics capture people's imaginations as well as black holes. The mere mention is often enough to interest and captivate an audience. But how much do scientists actually know about these astronomical anomalies? How are they related to quasars, x-rays, and galaxies? And of course, if they swallow light, how can we see them? This article will help put many pieces of the puzzle together, resulting in a clear image explaining all about the nature of black holes.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Cosmic Diary - The Origin Of Elements
Cosmic Diary has a new feature article on the origin of the elements that make up the Universe by Tijana Prodanovic of the University of Novi Sad, Department of Physics Novi Sad, Serbia. From the blurb:
Making chemicals in the Universe is almost like following a recipe, which is the theme of this feature. Condensing quarks, getting the right temperature for protons and then cooking up elements are all studied. Everything has to be just right to get high quality results and the timings have to be spot on, otherwise you may end up with some very unexpected results...
Labels: International Year of Astronomy
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Cosmic Diary - Other Planets in Our Galaxy
Cosmic Diary has a new feature article on Extra-solar planets (exoplanets) by Aude Alapini from the University of Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom. From the blurb:
"Are we alone in the Universe?" is a question we all wonder. We now know that there are no other planets like the Earth in our Solar System, so astronomers have extended their search to stars other than the Sun. These planets are called exoplanets.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Cosmic Diary - Why Star Formation?
Cosmic Diary has a new feature article on star formation by David Barrado y Navascués from the Laboratorio de Astrofisica Estelar y Exoplanetas. It's a very nice overview of the lifecycle of stars. From the blurb:
Like humans and other animals, stars have a life cycle. But how are they "born"? Why do they form in the way that they do, and how does this influence their lives? How important is gravity, or what they are made of, or where they are created? Until relatively recently these were questions it seemed we had little hope of answering, but thanks to modern scientific technology and techniques, the secrets of stars can be revealed to all.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy
Sunday, April 05, 2009
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 4
How was your day 3 of the 100 hours of Astronomy? Mine was largely clouded out. In the spirit of Galileo's 400th anniversary of looking through a telescope, and in the sprit of doing alittle more than just looking up, why not do some sketching? The Moon is bright and is showing plenty of craters, so this is a good time to sketch the Moon.
All you need is a paper some pencils and, say a pair of binoculars. Galileo's scope wasn't much more powerful than this. It can be a bit difficult to hold binoculars and sketch at the same time, so use the back of a chair or table to stabilise the binoculars. Have a go, you will see how much fun it can be!
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 1
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 2
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 3
All you need is a paper some pencils and, say a pair of binoculars. Galileo's scope wasn't much more powerful than this. It can be a bit difficult to hold binoculars and sketch at the same time, so use the back of a chair or table to stabilise the binoculars. Have a go, you will see how much fun it can be!
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 1
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 2
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 3
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Moon, sketch
Saturday, April 04, 2009
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 3
Why not hold an impromptu star party! The 24 hour Global Star Party (note, this site is currently down while Around the World in 80 telescopes is running, due to high server load, it will be back later) is on Saturday 4th April, all you need is a patch of sky and some friends and neighbours. If you are having a barbie with friends, just look up. Over invite the neighbours over into your back yard for a while. We will have a thousand screaming kids over for MiddleOnes birthday.Dust off that old telescope that has been lurking around in a cupboard gathering dust. What about recreating Galileo's adventures and explore the sky with binoculars or the old kids telescopes lying in the toybox.
You don't even really need telescopes or binoculars, just navigate your way around the sky and look for meteors or satellites. In Adelaide, at around 8:07 pm the Hubble Space telescope will glide through Gemini and underneath the Moon.
The Moon is in First Quarter phase, ideal for pointing telescopes at, and Saturn is high in the sky and is a big hit with everyone. Tonight (Saturday night) the Moon will be near the Beehive star cluster,which will make for nice viewing. You can even try and measure the movement of the Moon through the sky with reference to the Beehive.
Want to go out and do something special? Go to the Australian IYA site and look at the Calendar of Events. Check out your local astronomical societies or planetariums events. For example the Astronomical Society of South Australia is holding public viewings on Saturday. A planetarium Session at Uni SA, Mawsons Lakes, Saturday 4 April, 3pm, Admission: Adults $5, Children $3.50 and a public Viewing Night at the Grassed area, Black Forest, Forest Ave Saturday 4 April, 8:30pm, Admission: Adults $4, Children $1.
If you are up early in the morning, the moons of Jupiter are easily visible in binoculars (I was just looking at them before, and a satellite swept underneath Jupiter while I looked). And Venus returns to the morning sky, its dramatic crescent should be visible in binoculars.
So much to see! Have a great 100 hours of Astronomy.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy
Friday, April 03, 2009
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 2
What to do on day 2? Well, you could watch for satellites, there's a few going around at the moment. Sadly, iridium flares are few and far between, and the International Space Station doesn't pass by until Sunday, but you might juts see the Hubble Space Telescope.
If the skies are cloudy, at around 7:00 pm AEST the around the world in 80 telescopes webcast begins, so you can tune in to that.
UPDATE: The links at 100 hours of astronomy appear buggy. I've edited the link so it works now. Also, the live USTREAM video doesn't work for me, but the saved videos do. Pity the popup ads on the video are so annoying.
If the skies are cloudy, at around 7:00 pm AEST the around the world in 80 telescopes webcast begins, so you can tune in to that.
UPDATE: The links at 100 hours of astronomy appear buggy. I've edited the link so it works now. Also, the live USTREAM video doesn't work for me, but the saved videos do. Pity the popup ads on the video are so annoying.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy, Satellite
Thursday, April 02, 2009
100 Hours of Astronomy - Day 1
This is the first night of the 100 hours of astronomy, so make sure you go outside and look up. Even if it is cloudy, the glow of the Moon through the cloud will be interesting.But why just look? This also being the celebration of Galileo looking through a telescope, why not do some measurements?
Not complex measurements to be sure, but something simple. Like, how fast does the Moon move? All you need for this is a stick (a broom handle will do fine, or a camera tripod if you have one) and a ruler or protractor. Tape the ruler or protractor to one end of the stick and you are ready to go.
Go out and look at the Moon, and find a relatively bright star close by. Tonight this will be epsilon Geminorum, tomorrow kappa Geminourm and Saturday night delta Canceri and the beautiful Beehive cluster (see image above). Using the Ruler/ protractor measure the distance between the Moon and the star. You may need a torch with red cellophane wrapped around the business end to not destroy your eyesight and read the markings. Do this again every half hour for a couple of hours. How far does the Moon move?
We are also using a straight ruler, and the sky is curved (or rather the Moons path is a curve). How does this affect your measurements? Does the Moon move the same distance each night?
Update: If you have rubbish eyesight like mine make a home-made ruler with division in thick black texta. My attempt was foiled by cloud after my very first measurement.
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Moon, Observational Astronomy
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Astronomical Society of South Australia 100 hours of Astronomy events
For you South Australian's out there in the bloggosphere, you might be interested in the ASSA's public lectures coming up.
Public Lecture: Planetary Moons & Asteroids
Wednesday 1 April, 7pm, Kerr Grant Theatre, University of Adelaide
Public Lecture: Binocular Astronomy
Wednesday 1 April, 8pm, Kerr Grant Theatre, University of Adelaide
Public Viewing Night at The Heights Observatory
Friday 3 April, 8:30pm, Admission: Adults $4, Children $1
Planetarium Session
Saturday 4 April, 3pm, Admission: Adults $5, Children $3.50
Public Viewing Night at Black Forest
Grassed area, Black Forest, Forest Ave
Saturday 4 April, 8:30pm, Admission: Adults $4, Children $1
http://www.assa.org.au/
http://www.assa.org.au/calendar/?month=4
Public Lecture: Planetary Moons & Asteroids
Wednesday 1 April, 7pm, Kerr Grant Theatre, University of Adelaide
Public Lecture: Binocular Astronomy
Wednesday 1 April, 8pm, Kerr Grant Theatre, University of Adelaide
Public Viewing Night at The Heights Observatory
Friday 3 April, 8:30pm, Admission: Adults $4, Children $1
Planetarium Session
Saturday 4 April, 3pm, Admission: Adults $5, Children $3.50
Public Viewing Night at Black Forest
Grassed area, Black Forest, Forest Ave
Saturday 4 April, 8:30pm, Admission: Adults $4, Children $1
http://www.assa.org.au/
http://www.assa.org.au/
Labels: International Year of Astronomy, Observational Astronomy
Click to read about or order
Click to read about or order
Click to read about or order
Click to read about or order
