June 2007 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Obs. Rep. Jordan River Sun Party 6-2
by Kurt Fisher 03 Jun '07

03 Jun '07

8 or 9 scopes showed up for this sun party, including Roger Butz with the SLAS H-alpha scope, several PST's, a SolarMax 90, a double-stack SolarMax and a Bader filmed 8" Dob. On today's Sun, sunspot 960 - a group of about 6 to 8 individual spots, is rising just south of the solar equator on the eastern rim. Sunspot group 960 now appears to qualify as a full-blown active region. A Cloudy-Nights H-alpha photo from 6/2 by "badsnoopy": http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/attachments/1639966-M006%20stack%20c… Today's Mauna Loa H-alpha pic: http://www.sec.noaa.gov/SWN/mlso_halpha.jpg Cai-Uso Wohler's image from Spaceweather.com: http://spaceweather.com/swpod2007/02jun07/Cai-Uso-Wohler-Ha2007-06-02--06h5… See other great images of this group at http://spaceweather.com/ In the 8" whitelight dob, the sunspot group was particularly striking. I recommend to everyone to take a quick white light peak at this group. One spot had a large penumbra with a second smaller spot inside the penumbra. This can be an indication of potentially flare proceeding area. In white-light, a dark filament could be seen south of the group (this is detail that could not be seen in the online images cited above). The dark filament marks the boundary between a polarity change on the surface of the Sun. (The Sun is polypoid - this is it has a north and a south magnetic poles, but is also has many large regions of its surface where polarity is either plus or minus. These are generated by large meso-sized convection plumes beneath the photosphere's surface. The dark filaments are an indicator of those polarity boundaries.) In H-alpha, the sunpots were ill-defined compared to the white-light view. But the associated bright active region zone to the east of the leading dark sunspot is particularly visible in the H-alpha view. Sunspot 960 and its associated active region illustrate two of the Sun's spot cycles. Sunspots tend to emerge in pairs of opposite polarity aligned in a roughly east-west line. The leading spot has the same polarity as that hemisphere. The solar hemispheres have opposite polarities that switch every eleven years. On one-half of the Sun's disk, dark sunspots _lead_ their associated active regions across the face of the disk and have the same polarity as north or south hemisphere. This situation is seen in Sunspot group 960 - the dark sunspots _lead_ the associated bright active region. In the opposite hemisphere of opposite polarity, the bright active regions _lead_ their associated dark sunspots across the face of the solar disk. The polarity of the sunspots and the active regions are reversed in each hemisphere. The leader spots have the same polarity as their hemisphere; follower spots have the opposite polarity of their hemisphere. As situation opposite to sunspot 960 - following dark spots and leading active regions, can be seen in British amateur Maurice Gavin's June 9, 2006 PST and PST-Ca images - http://www.cloudynights.com/photopost/data/500/11401prom060529.jpg In one model of the 11 year collapse of the Sun's magnetic fields, the follower-opposite polarity spots are preferentially swept to higher latitudes as a spot group disperses (because they are magnetically attracted to the opposite polarity poles). These opposite polarity spots cancel out part of the relatively weak polarity field at the north and south solar poles. As the number of spots increase towards the end of each eleven year half cycle, the opposite polarity spots eventually overwhelm polarity at the poles, triggering a field collapse. After the polarity reversal, the order of leaders and followers between active regions and dark sunspots reverses. Thus, a complete solar cycle is once every 22 years - not 11 years. Today, on the setting northwestern limb were two large prominences - a typical arch prominence and a nearby inverted Y shaped prominence/coronal streamer. A similar inverted Y shaped feature is shown in this April 6, 2005 image by Maurice Gavin - http://home.freeuk.com/m.gavin/prom050328_mg.jpg In these inverted Y features, some of the magnetic force lines connect in a circle where the "donut hole" of the Y is formed. Others move up of the Sun and meet higher in the low transition zone into the corona. Somehow, these lines trap and support relatively dense and cool 10,000 K photosphere gases higher up in the transition-coronal zone that may be 1,000,000 K in temperature. How this occurs is not completely understood. There is contradiction between a physical structure existing at 10,000 K in a 1,000,000 K bath for several hours. Its kinda like throwing an ice cube into a boiling pot of water and it takes a day for the ice cube to melt. How this occurs is a mystery. Roger Butz and Rodger Fry mentioned that while watching these prominences over 1 and a half hours, they could see physical changes in their appearance. Many thanks to Dan Turner, whose recommendation to read Jack Zirker's _Journey from the Center of the Sun_ (Cambridge Press 2000) has opened for me just what a wild, complicated our poorly understood Sun really is. I'm still learning, but I recommend this book as a good starting point on relatively current solar research and as a good general read for any cloudy night. - Kurt P.S. - Also of interest to PST owner's is Maurice's template for a PST sunscreen from cardstock. http://home.freeuk.com/m.gavin/solatrax.htm _______________________________________________ Sent via CSolutions - http://www.csolutions.net

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Unusual NASA release
by diveboss＠xmission.com 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

Frankly I hope it does get warmer. More nights to peer towards the skies with my telescope. And a big old hole in the ozone layer might be interesting to look through. I don't think anyone knows what's going on. So I'm just gonna sit back, pour a cold one and let life happen. I can adapt to any situation. If it gets too hot, I'll let my electric fridge make me some ice, if it gets too cold, I'll fire up my oil and gas chain saw, cut down a tree and burn it! Make that my neighbors tree, I will need mine for shade. ;) Quoting Michael Carnes <michaelcarnes(a)earthlink.net>: >> Did we not recently see an article regarding a report that Mars seems to be >> warming at the same rate as our planet? > > That question was asked of Matt Golumbeck (sp) when he spoke to SLAS > a few months ago. He said flatly that there is no global warming > on Mars. > > _______________________________________________ > Utah-Astronomy mailing list > Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com > http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy > Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.utahastronomy.com >

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Unusual NASA release
by Patrick Wiggins 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

The following just arrived from NASA Hq. I have not seen the NPR release it refers to. Anyone seen the NPR release in question or know what this is all about? pw May 30, 2007 David Mould Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1898 RELEASE: 07-125 STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO INQUIRIES RELATED TO NPR PRESS RELEASE NASA Administrator Michael Griffin responded Wednesday to inquiries related to a National Public Radio press release. The radio network's release contained excerpts from an interview that included comments on global climate change. "NASA is the world's preeminent organization in the study of Earth and the conditions that contribute to climate change and global warming. The agency is responsible for collecting data that is used by the science community and policy makers as part of an ongoing discussion regarding our planet's evolving systems. It is NASA's responsibility to collect, analyze and release information. It is not NASA's mission to make policy regarding possible climate change mitigation strategies. As I stated in the NPR interview, we are proud of our role and I believe we do it well." For additional information about NASA and its programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov -end-

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Re: Unusual NASA release
by Michael Carnes 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

>And then, of course, they followed it up with an equal amount of time by >global warming skeptics or others that may have understood his point. >Oh, they didn't??? Gee, I thought that National Subsidized Radio was >the "real" fair and balanced radio. You missed the point, Dale. Griffin didn't even quarrel with science on the issue of global warming. His statements would be bizarre whether global warming is anthropogenic or brought to us by the tooth fairy. Griffin said “I am not sure that it is fair to say that it is a problem we must wrestle with.” He then said "I guess I would ask which human beings, where and when, are to be accorded the privilege of deciding that this particular climate that we have right here today, right now, is the best climate for all other human beings." He accused those people actually concerned of being arrogant (the standard argument used by people without a leg to stand on). A rational person might say that since civilization arose in the sort of climate we have now, humans might prefer it. That same person might say that rapid climate change might not give you sufficient time to prepare for necessary changes in population distribution, medicine, agriculture and so on. That rational person might point out that those people who live on the coast might have something to say about rising sea levels, increased storm damage and so on. A person living in a temperate climate might not be too keen about malaria zones moving out from the equator. Increasing populations in a place like, uh, Utah might wonder where their food is going to be grown. I know you got great satisfaction from getting in a dig at NPR, but they gave Griffin plenty of time to respond to Gregg Easterbrook's article. They didn't editorialize--they just let Griffin have his say. He should have had the sense to keep his mouth shut. As the proverb says, "Better to let people think you a fool than to open your mouth and prove it".

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Re: Unusual NASA release
by Michael Carnes 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

>adopting the recomendations of the International Dark Sky Ass? Erik, what you say makes perfect sense. At the same time, your abbreviation makes me think of a very unusual eclipse.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Unusual NASA release
by Michael Carnes 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

>Did we not recently see an article regarding a report that Mars seems to be >warming at the same rate as our planet? That question was asked of Matt Golumbeck (sp) when he spoke to SLAS a few months ago. He said flatly that there is no global warming on Mars.

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Unusual NASA release
by Michael Carnes 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

This was in response to commentary by writer Gregg Easterbrook. I heard both sides of it over NPR, and I have to agree with Kim. I thought that Sean O'Keefe wasn't qualified, and I'd had high hopes for Griffin because of his engineering background. But he sure sounds like another stooge. >No surprise there. The emperor is not wearing any clothes, and neither, >apparently, are his minions. Griffin wouldn't have a job if he didn't tow >the administration's line that there's no problem. >

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Channel 2 at SPOC this evening
by Kurt Fisher 01 Jun '07

01 Jun '07

Way to go, Patrick! - Kurt _______________________________________________ Sent via CSolutions - http://www.csolutions.net

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Cementing of eyepiece lenses
by Tom Davies 31 May '07

31 May '07

I just recently bought an old telescope and the 25mm eyepiece has crackling that obscures most of the field, apparently caused by dried cement. I took the lenses out of the eyepiece housing and can remove the old cement with a solvent but am at a loss on to how to proceed further (i.e., obtaining Canada balsam, melting it, and recementing the lenses). Has anyone done this and able to give me some advice? Tom Davies

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Fwd: Looking for images for What's Up videos
by Kurt Fisher 31 May '07

31 May '07

Richard, I don't see a return address to Cassini outreach - so here's a list of Moon phase images. There's a good archive at the LPOD coppermine gallery of phase pics including the Moon with Venus and Mercury. http://lpod.org/coppermine/thumbnails.php?album=37 - Kurt ====================== Here's a list of the Moon phase shots in LPOD (Lunar Picture of the Day): New Moon Wood, C.A. 2/21/2005. Its Just a Phase. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/archive/LPOD-2005-02-21.htm Crescent Moon, Waxing Wood, C.A. 2/12/2005. Baby Moon. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/archive/LPOD-2005-02-12.htm 21:45 hour old Moon Wood, C.A. 3/15/2006. Almost nothing. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060315 Crescent Moon, Waxing Wood, C.A. 1/23/2004. Infant Moon. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/archive/archive/2004/01/LPOD-2004-01-23.htm 2.6 Day Old Moon Wood, C.A. 6/1/2006. Unrolling the Edge. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060601 Phase 3.1 day old Moon Wood, C.A. 5/21/2007. Two Worlds, One View. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070521 3.6 Day Old Moon Wood, C.A. 1/23/2007. Yesterday's News. LPOD (Saber's beads) http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070123 First Quarter Moon Wood, C.A. 12/02/2006. Partial Phase of Pinkness. LPOD (Colors of Moon) http://www.lpod.org/?m=20061202 First Quarter Moon Wood, C.A. 1/1/2004. First Quarter Moon. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/archive/archive/2004/01/LPOD-2004-01-01.htm Phase 6.1 day old Moon Wood, C.A. 5/23/2007. A Bullet through the Moon. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070523 6.8 day old Moon Wood, C.A. 5/26/2007. Parallax by Day. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070526 Last (Third) Quarter Moon Wood, C.A. 1/26/2006. Humble Topo. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060126 Moon Wood, C.A. 8/28/2006. To the Moon and Beyond. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060828 Moon Wood, C.A. 9/1/2006. Black and White and Color All Over. LPOD (10.6 day old Moon) http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060901 14.7 day old Moon Wood, C.A. 7/14/2006. Unrolling the Western Limb. LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060714 28.5 day old Moon Wood, C.A. 7/25/2006. The Thinest Moon? LPOD http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060725 ===================== Richard forwarded from Jane Jones of the Cassini outreach program: > Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 16:53:06 -0700 (PDT) > From: jane.h.jones@??? > To: retenney@??? > Subject: Looking for images for What's Up videos > --------------------------------- Hello Richard Tenney, I just recorded the June episode of What's Up this morning. For July, I'll be concentrating on the moon, so I'll be looking for some images at all lunar phases. _______________________________________________ Sent via CSolutions - http://www.csolutions.net

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