December 2008 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Computer monitor opinions
by Chuck Hards 27 Dec '08

27 Dec '08

Santa upgraded the Hards house to digital HDTV this year, so now just about every CRT display looks like a dung pile, including this computer monitor. The 32" plasma HDTV I mounted on the wall in the bedroom has a connector for using it as a computer input, so now I'm looking for a bigger screen for this box. I want at least a 22" screen; will entertain thoughts of up to a 32", and LCD instead of plasma, to avoid "burn" from toolbars, shortcuts, and such. I also don't want to pay a lot (it will NOT be a $2,000 high-tech Dell monitor approved by NASA for zero-g use) and with retailers and etailers discounting heavily right now, there must be some excellent prospects out there. A dedicated monitor would be cheaper but an LCD TV with computer port at the right price isn't a problem. To keep it on-topic somewhat, obviously my planetarium program would appear MUCH better visually, and I could read list postings easier, not to mention how much better astro-images and space-probe images will appear... *;o)* Anybody have any ideas/advice/leads?

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Woot-off -night vision monocular-
by Chuck Hards 26 Dec '08

26 Dec '08

Right now: http://www.woot.com/ Good for seeing what that stalking animal is in the darkness, while you're at your dark-sky site.

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Sheena's latest
by Patrick Wiggins 26 Dec '08

26 Dec '08

Evidence that Sheena's new blog wont keep her from writing science stories for the Trib: New space telescope: Utah to help astronomers see beginning of universe http://www.sltrib.com/News/ci_11305522 patrick

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Forget Kohoutek, do what you want.
by zaurak＠digis.net 25 Dec '08

25 Dec '08

Right, and with the internet we got people thinking Mars could appear the size of the moon. I must agree that expectations are hard to manage, but an Astro Club should try. Many people are not discouraged by not seeing what was expected, but many are, the result is distrust in the Astronomy Clubs. My most memorable comet was hyautaki, most prior to that where disappointments (I remember many people expressing disappointment over Halley's) . To me special astro events are just frosting on the cake to general star gazing. Spectacular northern light displays are among my favorites, the more you star gaze the more you see. Our public events are meant to spark interest. If we would have hyped McNaught in the north there would have been disappointment. Not to mean there should not be star parties for comets, but perhaps headlining specific events should be avoided. On clear nights there are always plenty of good things to be seen. Erik --- outwest112(a)yahoo.com wrote: From: daniel turner <outwest112(a)yahoo.com> To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Forget Kohoutek, do what you want. Date: Thu, 25 Dec 2008 13:14:20 -0800 (PST) Guys: So how long will we be doing pennace for the sins of Kokoutek? It has been awhile you know. The media landscape of today is vastly different from way back when you wore bell bottoms and sideburns. Today we have the internet. The "media" doesn't go to Hansen Planetarium for news anymore, they send email directly to Roger Sinot, Alan McRoberts, and Sue French. They have to do this because all of their few remaining customers are doing so. Over hype is now virtually impossible, but Underhype is a lasting legacy of the Kohoutek parable. When Comet McNaught came by the media was careful to not overhype it, so few in the north even bothered to look at it. When the comet reached the southern hemisphere, the media there was caught flat footed. They had believed that their northern media friends and assumed that the comet would be no big deal. I appreciate that Patrick went out and looked at comet West but many of today's amateur astronomers weren't alive back then. The world has moved on. Kohoutek is irrelevant. DT --- On Wed, 12/24/08, Chuck Hards <chuck.hards(a)gmail.com> wrote: > From: Chuck Hards <chuck.hards(a)gmail.com> > Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Forget Kohoutek, do what you want. > To: "Utah Astronomy" <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> > Date: Wednesday, December 24, 2008, 10:41 PM > I'm VERY happy to say that I did see comet West, and it > was absolutely > spectacular. I've never seen another comet to equal > it, or even approach > it, really. There have been technically brighter comets, > but they set while > still in a bright sky; and a longer comet- but it was > tenuously dim. What > about Hale-Bopp, you ask? Meh. Not even close. A cute > little thing, > though. > While there were "gatherings" at Little Mountain > to see West, none of them > ever could be considered "crowds", at least the > ones I was part of. And > Patrick is 100% correct in stating that the fizzle of > Kohoutek was to blame > for the lack of publicity for West. > > On Wed, Dec 24, 2008 at 11:21 PM, Patrick Wiggins > <paw(a)wirelessbeehive.com>wrote: > > > One of the best comets of the 20th century and few > people saw it. In > > fact, I know of a SLAS member or two (who may announce > themselves if > > they wish but I wont mention names <g>) who were > active amateur > > astronomers at the time but never saw West. > > > > > _______________________________________________ > 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://gallery.utahastronomy.com > Visit the Wiki: http://www.utahastronomy.com _______________________________________________ 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://gallery.utahastronomy.com Visit the Wiki: http://www.utahastronomy.com

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Forget Kohoutek, do what you want.
by daniel turner 25 Dec '08

25 Dec '08

I think every one interested in astronomy should get out and see a penumbral eclipse. It's about learning by doing. The subtle color change will require some effort but its not beyond anyone who is curious enough to look for themselves. Also you don't need to rely on the word of experts. You can go to Google and do your own research and end up knowing as much as they do about the subject in question. Don't be afraid of disappointing the public. They are much more intelligent and curious then they are given credit for. If you only go look at the events that are considered "great", you will only get out a couple of times in your entire life. DT

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Happy solstice
by Jay Eads 24 Dec '08

24 Dec '08

Happy Solstice returns to you Patrick and to everyone else! On 2008-12-21 12:04, Patrick Wiggins wrote: > It's 2008 December 21, 12:04 UT. > > Happy Solstice to all! > > patrick > 718 > >

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Powering your camera with an external battery
by Jerry Foote 24 Dec '08

24 Dec '08

Years ago when I was using a Fujica AX-1 camera with film I had the problem of the camera battery not producing enough power to work the shutter. This was especially bothersome at 4AM after carefully guiding a 30 minute exposure. My solution was to build a small "fake" battery that had two battery terminals which had soldered to each of them a wire. The camera battery was a 6V device so I fabricated a wood dowel the same length and diameter with thumb tacks on each end for the battery contacts. The other end of the wires I connected to a 6V lantern battery. When I would start a photography session I would simply remove the normal battery and replace it with the "fake" battery. The last exposure at early dawn still came out fine (guiding errors not withstanding). I'm sure glad CCD's came along as hypersensitizing Konica 3200 speed film and hand guiding for the long exposures was a real pain. Jerry Foote ScopeCraft, Inc. 4175 E. Red Cliffs Dr. Kanab, UT 84741 435-899-1255 jfoote(a)scopecraft.com

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Want feedback on my Orion Nebula picture flaws
by Gary Bulk 24 Dec '08

24 Dec '08

Thanks all for the responses, the help is great ! I will definitely try the "Hat trick". My Nikon doesn't quite have mirror-lockup, but it does have a mode to flip up the mirror 1/2 sec. before the shutter opens. I'm not sure that is long enough. Maybe I will try a few comparison shots between the Hat Trick and the semi-mirror lockup. I looked up the "star-drift" tracking method, and will try it on my next clear night. I'm very hopeful that will solve one part of the problem. It will definitely work better than the "Oops! The stars are still moving, let's try this position" method I was using the other night. I would really like to be able to get 2-5 minute exposures ... which I expect will make me want 15-30 minute exposures. For focusing, I will definitely prefocus on a brighter object. I did look at some the pictures on the small camera LCD after taking some of the shots, but obviously didn't look close enough. I was mostly thinking about the bad tracking at the time. I can magnify the pictures on the camera LCD, so I will be more diligent about reviewing the focus. I will have to save the after-market focusers until I get some more time into the basics. (and the family appropriations committee gets a little more softened up) I'm a little hesitant to culminate the scope because I don't know what the before and after differences should look like, and don't want to make anything worse. I guess I will do some more reading on it first. About the "piggyback" suggestion, I have an adapter/mount partially built to be able to piggyback my dSLR on the telescope. I am hoping to finish that today. I saw a picture of a pier (mentioned by Patrick) on a forum the other day, and that is definitely on my list. I can build one without a big $ outlay. I already have a concrete pad in my backyard, and I'm guesssing that a pier bolted to that would give me about the best foundation I could hope for. I took golf lessons a while back, and felt that I had to remember and pay attention to 8 different things simultaneously while I was swinging the club. Right now this feels similar. I am having great fun, although I could use a few more clear nights. Wednesday 3am-6am is showing possible clearing in SLC, but I'm not sure if I am quite that dedicated to stay up for a "maybe" on a cold winter's night. Clear skies, and Happy Holidays, Gary Logan.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Astronomy blog at www.sltrib.com coming soon
by Canopus56 23 Dec '08

23 Dec '08

Sheena, Welcome. When you came out to the August 2007 eclipse party at SLAS, we noted that the next Utah eclipse would be in Febuary 9, 2009. Cloud-outs are prevalent during this time of year. Details on the February 9 eclipse are: ================== NASA Feb. 9 Eclipse Graphic http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OHfigures/OH2009-Fig03.pdf NASA Feb. 9 Eclipse Narrative http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OH2009.html#2009Feb09N Penumbral Lunar Eclipse of February 09 The first lunar eclipse of 2009 is one of four such events during the year. The first three eclipses are penumbral while the last (on Dec. 31) is partial. The Feb 09 event is the deepest penumbral eclipse of the year with a penumbral magnitude of 0.899. It will be easily visible to the naked eye as a dusky shading in the northern half of the Moon. The times of the major phases are listed below. Penumbral Eclipse Begins: 12:38:46 UT Greatest Eclipse: 14:38:15 UT Penumbral Eclipse Ends: 16:37:40 UT Of course, the beginning and end of a penumbral eclipse are not visible to the eye. In fact, no shading can be detected until about 2/3 of the Moon's disk is immersed in the penumbra. This would put the period of eclipse visibility from approximately 14:00 to 15:20 UT. Keep in mind that this is only an estimate. Atmospheric conditions and the observer's visual acuity are important factors to consider. An interesting exercise is to note when penumbral shading is first and last seen. Figure 3 shows the path of the Moon through the penumbra as well as a map of Earth showing the regions of eclipse visibility. Eastern Canada and the USA will miss the eclipse entirely since the eclipse begins after moonset. Observers in western Canada and the USA will have the best views with moonset occurring sometime after mid-eclipse. To catch the entire event, one must be in Alaska, Hawaii, Australia, or East Asia. ================== This will be an early morning event with partial lunar eclipse beginning at 5:38 MST with the Moon at altitude of 19 degrees, due west. The Moon will set at about 7:20 MST, before the point of greatest eclipse at 7:38 MST. Based on the NASA eclipse note above, an early morning peek at around 6:00 to 6:30am feels like the best observing strategy. Saturn will also be visible about 30 degrees from the Moon. The Moon will be near the bright star alpha Leo. Astronomical Twilight Begins at 5:56 MST; civil sunrise is at 7:29 MST. I saw a similar early morning partial eclipse a few years ago, but in that eclipse, there was a partial umbral graze. The coloring was quite subtle and beautiful. But again, in February, only 18% of the time is the sky clear and the overnight lows average 23 degrees. So this is a good eclipse to be aware of, but because of the high-percent of cloudiness during February, it is not one I'll get excited about in advance. Clear Skies - Kurt

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Astronomy blog at www.sltrib.com coming soon
by zaurak＠digis.net 23 Dec '08

23 Dec '08

doesn't he get a monthly royality check? Seriously perhaps SLAS public events could be mentioned on the blog. --- chuck.hards(a)gmail.com wrote: From: "Chuck Hards" <chuck.hards(a)gmail.com> To: "Utah Astronomy" <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Astronomy blog at www.sltrib.com coming soon Date: Tue, 23 Dec 2008 13:35:48 -0700 You do realize that, as a journalist writing about astronomy in Utah, you are bound by the Unwritten Law that Patrick must be quoted at least quarterly. *NASA knows where you live. ;o) * > On Tue, Dec 23, 2008 at 10:10 AM, Sheena McFarland > <smcfarland(a)sltrib.com> wrote: > > > I am also looking for name ideas for the blog, and any ideas about > > where I can cull information about astronomical happenings. Obviously, > > this is a great forum, and I've signed up for NASA's mailings, but any > > other suggestions would be great. > _______________________________________________ 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://gallery.utahastronomy.com Visit the Wiki: http://www.utahastronomy.com

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