January 2003 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

FW: Thanks for your support
by Paul Witte 30 Jan '03

30 Jan '03

Just thought I would forward this message from Anthony at Utah Skies to the list: ---------- From: Anthony Arrigo Sent: Thursday, January 30, 2003 2:05 PM Subject: Thanks for your support http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,455028330,00.html Hi... Just wanted to let you know that Utah's first ever Light Pollution Control Resolution (SCR001) was shot down in the Senate Natural Resources & Envirionment Standing Committee Tuesday afternoon. We had roughly 15 supporters on hand... opposed by about 10 from the Signs and Outdoor Lighting and Advertising Industry. It seems that our well articulated pleas fell on mostly deaf ears. In the end we lost 2-3 (with 3 Senators out of the room when the vote occurred). Those in opposition argued that we need light to see... and that they didn't want the corner street lights turned off... and that highway signs were attractive... and......etc... Wwe went out of our way to assure them we did not want to take away their lights. You know the argument... good, directed lighting saves money... improves visibility...and protects the night sky. Unfortunately, our opponents and our senators didn't quite get it. So... This issue is NOT over... We are not throwing in the towel. We just need to regroup... continue to spread the word... and educate those around us (especially our elected officials :) Again... thanks very much for your support. APA P.S. I've attached a Deseret News article covering our effort.

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Bowling ball experiment spoof
by David L Bennett 30 Jan '03

30 Jan '03

...for those who missed Tuesday's SLAS meeting (or are just plain curious) my silly little spoof I created for my presentation is available on my Mac homepage: http://homepage.mac.com/dlbennett/ Just click on the Meteorites & Spoof picture or link. My deepest apologies to Kim Hyatt and Patrick Wiggins...(that sounded sincere didn't it? ;-) Dave Bennett President Salt Lake Astronomical Society

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Fwd: Fw: old celestrons
by David L Bennett 30 Jan '03

30 Jan '03

Hey Folks, would anyone know the best place for this fellow to find one of these scopes? He already has an ad on Astromart (which I thought would be his best bet) at: http://www.astromart.com/viewad.asp?cid=169524 Thanks, Dave Bennett Forwarded by Lowell Lyon > > > Dear Sir, > I am writing this letter in hopes that you might be > able to help me locate two items. I'm searching for an > old, blue and white Celestron C6 SCT with the fork > mount, and an old Blue and white Celestron C12 SCT, > whole or in pieces. Either scope could be "dead or > alive." They were made in the late 60s through early > 70s, and while they are out there, they seem to be > collecting dust in many observatories or attics as > people of course favor the new, modern SCTs with > electronics, light weight mounts, etc. Somebody out > there MUST know of one of these scopes, or know of > someone who has seen one, perhaps in a university, > friend's house, or perhaps belonging to a club long > ago. If you could help me find one, I would be willing > to pay you a finder's fee or something for your > efforts. If you don't know of any scopes like these > right off the bat, perhaps you could forward this > request to a friend, collegue, or anyone who might > know of one. Thank you very much, > > Robert Piekiel 18 Wilson Dr. Box 64, Marcellus, NY > 13108. phone 315-673-3093. email: piekielrl(a)yahoo.com > > >

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Eyepiece seminar
by Dale Hooper 30 Jan '03

30 Jan '03

I'd be very interested. Also, if you offer kits of both types - I'd be interested in one of each. I would like the speakers to address if there is any freeware/shareware that might be helpful in eyepiece design - also perhaps what books might be good references - and books to not waste money on. Thanks, Dale. > -----Original Message----- > From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] > Sent: Wednesday, January 29, 2003 1:30 PM > To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Eyepiece seminar > > > > I'll start seeing what optics are available, and > gathering materials. To keep costs down, we'll > probably build a Plossl or true symmetrical. If I can > find some inexpensive triplets, the ortho can be > explored. I may be able to offer kits of both > designs, wait and see. > > These "kits" will cost me about $15 each; is everyone > who wants to participate able to pony-up fifteen > bucks? I will make no profit on this endeavor, but > must cover costs. > > Although we probably will NOT use wood for a housing, > optically we will be building something similar to the > "Homemade eyepieces" I described in S&T a couple of > years ago (Feb. 00). > > Let me know if there are any particular questions you > would like the speaker(s) to address. > > Thanks! > > C. > > __________________________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. > http://mailplus.yahoo.com > > _______________________________________________ > Utah-Astronomy mailing list > Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com > http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy >

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Shuttle reentry update
by Patrick Wiggins 29 Jan '03

29 Jan '03

I just received a map showing STS-107's predicted reentry ground track across Utah. Find a small version at http://planet.state.ut.us/files/107ENTRYSM.JPG And a larger version at http://planet.state.ut.us/files/107ENTRYLG.JPG The black line represents the track as plotted by my contact at JSC. I've added red, blue and green lines showing how high the orbiter will reach above the horizon. Green = 20 degrees Blue = 45 degrees Red = 70 degrees As you may have seen posted here, Brent Watson is looking for folks to fly down with him. I'm undecided about my mode of transport but if I do decide to drive down I-15 is there anyone out there that would care to caravan with me? Patrick paw(a)trilobyte.net

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desperate for interplanetary glory
by David L Bennett 29 Jan '03

29 Jan '03

http://www.observer.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,882516,00.html

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Re: desperate for interplanetary glory
by Kim Hyatt 29 Jan '03

29 Jan '03

I received a call from a reporter at the BBC (yes, that's British Broadcasting Corporation) today. He wants to call me tonight for an on-the-air interview. Some stories just won't die... -----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, January 29, 2003 2:08 PM To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Re: desperate for interplanetary glory Anyone who is genuinely offended by this is thin-skinned and takes their hobby too seriously. Astronomy is not now, never was, and never will be a pastime for the masses. No worries, Patrick. I take crap for the episode myself, but it's been entertaining and I've also had some fun & interesting discussions because of it. If anyone on this list thinks that the general public takes the hobby or it's practitioners seriously, it's time for a wake-up call. Eye-rolls, blank stares and incomprehension from one's fellow human go with the territory. I've been experiencing it for 35 years. We are indeed fortunate to have Joe-but not all journalists own Celestrons! C. --- Patrick Wiggins <paw(a)trilobyte.net> wrote: > Hi, > > Since I've heard about this off list too, I probably > ought to say publicly: > > The reporter did call me, and as with the reporter > with New Scientist magazine I > said they needed to talk to the event organizer Kim > Hyatt, that the event is not > being sponsored by any club or group and I > specifically asked they not mention SLAS. > > If only all reporters were as good as Joe Bauman... > > My apologies to those who were offended by the > story. > > Patrick __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Where is power needed?
by Brent Watson 29 Jan '03

29 Jan '03

Jim, High power above the maximum can sometimes compensate for resolving power difficulties of a person's eye. There will not be more detail there, but sometimes the high power will make it big enough to see. Also, the seeing on vrareeare occasions will allow a "peek" at higher resolution than you might otherwise think. One word of caution. High power also brings out the defects in the eyeball. You have to be very careful about what you see, and whether it is an artifact or not. Please look up Hershel's use of high power, and his reports of moon creatures. (A famous hoax) Brent --- Jim Gibson <xajax99(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > Question for Rich Tenny (or anyone else) > > I saw the new Televue products (41mm eyepiece etc) > you mentioned last night at SLAS at: > http://www.televue.com/WSP2003/NewProdsJan2003/New_at_WSP2003.htm > > I dont currently have any hi-power stuff like the > 3.5mm or the 2.5mm Nagler. I ran this little program > at: http://www.csgnetwork.com/telescopemagcalc.html > for a 12 mirror with an f7 focal length and a 2.5mm > eyepiece. One of the calculations states that for > this setup the Maximum Useful Magnification is > 600x; however, the 2.5mm would provide 853x. I also > recall from a previous conversation we had that > someone told you in reference to the Mars opposition > that it could take all of the power you could crank. > How does all this square? Does the Maximum Useful > Magnification mean that everything over 600x (in > this case) will go soft? If (big if) I bought a > 2.5mm Nagler, could I use it for anything else? I am > thinking that such power would only be good for > bright planets. > > > > Jim Gibson > > > > --------------------------------- > Do you Yahoo!? > Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Where is power needed?
by David Dunn 29 Jan '03

29 Jan '03

I am interested. I have wanted to do this for a couple of years but didn't want to venture into it alone. -----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, January 29, 2003 11:31 AM To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Where is power needed? If there is sufficient interest, I am willing to hold an "eyepiece seminar" sometime this summer, when my workload eases a bit. I envision a couple of speakers, perhaps, on subjects like lens configurations, field-of-view, terminology, eyepiece history & mythology, etc., then a workshop where everyone gets to assemble their own eyepiece from surplus optics. I will choose the speakers. Then a star-party in the evening to compare commercial products and try-out everyone's home-made eyepiece from the workshop. If I can't procure the eyepiece parts free, there may be a small charge to cover those costs only. Any interest? Chuck __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Where is power needed?
by UTAHDEB＠aol.com 29 Jan '03

29 Jan '03

I use high power for high surface brightness planetary nebulae like the Blue Snowball. These bright planetary nebulae take magnification well. High power eyepieces are also useful for splitting close double stars when seeing permits. Gamma Virginis or Zeta Cancri (triple star) would be a good candidate for the new NagIers. I use my 4mm Radian on objects like the Blue Snowball, Ring Nebula, Saturn Nebula, and Eskimo Nebula. On my 15" Obsession f/4.5 this gives me about 430X . The 3mm Radian would put me at 571X. This is close to that 600X magnification limit you were talking about. I haven't tried the 4mm on planets yet because the seeing hasn't allowed it yet. The new 3.5mm Nagler would give me 490X on my Obsession. This would help me see some of the Minkowski planetaries better. These objects also require high power. Hope this helps. Debbie

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