September 2009 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Over already
by Patrick Wiggins 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

I just went back out and saw Europa's shadow is now on the planet. Looks like Ganymede's shadow is to make it a double shadow show at 0642 UT. Now if the clouds will just away... patrick

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Going, going, gone... Jupiter satellites
by Patrick Wiggins 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

Just watched the last of the four Galilean satellites fade from view. Jupiter certainly looks weird with no satellites. patrick

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Meade ETX 125 counterweight
by Canopus56 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

A newly machined add-on to my gear: http://www.slas.us/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=2323 Clear Skies - Kurt

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ET movie
by Roger Butz 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

We might be well served to rethink offering up SPOC or SLAS equipment as a prop for what sounds like a low budget ET movie.We don't wear pointy aluminum foil hats to SLAS meetings and we haven't started chanting around the campfire at SPOC as yet.I'm not too enthused about the idea of having a facility I spent five years building being used as a backdrop in an oddball movie.but hey, that's just me.If members want to offer up their personal equipment , more power to them. sounds like Ms.Clemenza is looking for an oddball home made scope anyway.peace, good tunes and clear skies.R. Butz

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LCROSS Star Party List
by Canopus56 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

A list of LCROSS star party's across the nation as informally begun at: http://groups.google.com/group/lcross_observation/web/links Is it the SLAS club's preference to: 1) Have the SLAS party listed as tentative - public or members only private? 2) Not Have the SLAS party listed as tentative - public or members only private? - Kurt

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LCROSS - New Mexico State Apache Point south polar guide images
by Canopus56 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

Repost from LCROSS observation group. The referenced images are done with 60cm (24 inches) of apeture. New Mexico State University at Apache Point is one of the official LCROSS Team ground observatory collaborators. The image titled "Image date and time" has the local circumstances imaging data. Images titled "zoomed view" have arcsec size scaling labels. Note the source author's (apparently a grad student at NMSU) statement that "You are welcome to distribute these images freely." The images have good resolution but appear to contain a Y-axis distortion. - Clear Skies - Kurt ------------------ MoonThumper [aka Brian Day, LCROSS Team Public Outreach officer] Sep 1, 9:25 am Subject: Improved Maps of Lunar South Pole The following message is from Chas Miller at NMSU: Ryan Hamilton has create an improved composite image of the lunar south limb from Rob Suggs' IR video taken on August 11 (UT). Ryan has also put together a web site to distribute the images (rather than send big files over email). The images can be found at: http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/rthamilt/LCROSS/media.shtml There is actually one master composite image from which the others are derived. The main image is: http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/rthamilt/LCROSS/media/NMSU_LCROSS_SP_110809.png Other images are just cropped versions of that image, focussing closer on the Cabeus A, B region. We have also annotated the images with crater labeling and other relevant image info: Image date and time (taken from video spanning 4 minutes centered on 07:25 UT): http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/rthamilt/LCROSS/media/NMSU_LCROSS_wide_dates.png Full view composite with crater labeling: http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/rthamilt/LCROSS/media/NMSU_LCROSS_wide_scales.png Partially zoomed in view with crater labeling: http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/rthamilt/LCROSS/media/NMSU_LCROSS_medium.png Further zoomed in on Cabeus A, B region with crater labeling: http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/rthamilt/LCROSS/media/NMSU_LCROSS_narrow.png We are focussing on the Cabeus A, B region as those were mentioned as possible impact sites. We can label other target craters as needed. Cabeus A and B are not well defined at this angle. Ryan, Rob, and I spend some time with various pole projection maps and believe we have the right areas labeled. For reference, I have found values of 17 km diameter for Newton E, 48 km for Cabeus A, and 61 km for Cabeus B. You are welcome to distribute these images freely. In fact, you can just distribute the link to the web page if you like and other astronomers can download images directly from there. Be aware that the processing we did results in some visible artifacts (especially at close zoom) and so these are not science quality images. However, we think they are very useful for crater hopping. Let me know if you have any questions about the images. Chas Miller

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C.O.L.B.E.R.T.
by erikhansen＠TheBlueZone.net 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

If anyone cares the COLBERT was installed on the ISS. http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/on_demand_video.html?param=http://ano…

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Off list
by Chuck Hards 02 Sep '09

02 Sep '09

I've temporarily disabled list deliveries for a while, since there are currently some 326 unread messages in my IN box from utah-astronomy. I'm falling behind on this list daily, and not making any useful contributions. For the last ten years astronomy has been more of an interest than active hobby anyway, due to it's time demands. After work slows down I'll get back on here, hopefully in the fall. Contact me at my Yahoo address if you want to talk to me, or call my cell. This address is for the astronomy list exclusively so I won't be checking it for a while. Have fun at the eyepiece!

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Homemade Telescopes? Filmmaker looking for props
by Richard Tenney 01 Sep '09

01 Sep '09

My cell is 801~380~3331. The blue one in the photo was offered as available by a guy on the list, as was at least one other scope in the SLC area, and if you needed to use my larger one, I'm sure we could work out some kind of arrangement. Good luck with your film! /R --- On Tue, 9/1/09, Danielle Clemenza <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > From: Danielle Clemenza <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> > Subject: Re: Homemade Telescopes? Filmmaker looking for props > To: "Richard Tenney" <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > Date: Tuesday, September 1, 2009, 3:35 PM > Richard,Those are great!!! > That's exactly what we are looking for....We > will be be starting in Salt Lake on September > 8th....May I contact you when I get into town? > Would love to see any others if they come > your way. Please forward them on...Again, > THANK YOU so much for your help.Talk > soon,Danielle > --- On Mon, 8/31/09, Richard Tenney > <retenney(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > From: Richard Tenney <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > Subject: Re: Homemade Telescopes? Filmmaker looking for > props > To: "Danielle Clemenza" > <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> > Date: Monday, August 31, 2009, 9:30 PM > > Danielle, > > I've had a few > people respond in the Salt Lake area; you could probably > even use the Salt Lake Astronomical Society observatory, or > possibly one of the SLAS member's backyard observatory > to film if you don't want the expense of re-creating > one. Here's one example of a scope that was > volunteered: > http://homepage.mac.com/dlbennett/PhotoAlbum28.html > There are other, fancier alternatives. I just > can't seem to get any of them to reply to YOU! > They all seem to think I'm the go-between. Oh > well. I do also have two telescopes, but as I said > earlier, I live South of Salt Lake (about an hour's > drive), but would be willing to help you in a pinch. > Here' s a picture of my bigger telescope: > http://www.astroday.net/Images/RichTenney.jpg > Though I suspect you might want something > more "traditional" looking, or...? > > What dates are you planning on being here to film? > /R > > --- On Mon, 8/31/09, Danielle Clemenza <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > > From: Danielle Clemenza <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> > > Subject: Re: Homemade Telescopes? Filmmaker > looking for props > > To: "Richard Tenney" <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > > Date: Monday, August 31, 2009, 4:24 PM > > Thank > > you very much! The project is called AREA 51-- > > it's about a young man who is intrigued by > > extraterrestrial life, and breaks his way into Area > 51. > > The homemade telescopes would be used in > his at-home > > observatory. :) > > > > > > --- On Mon, 8/31/09, Richard Tenney > > <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > wrote: > > > > From: Richard Tenney <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > > Subject: Re: Homemade Telescopes? Filmmaker > looking for > > props > > To: "Danielle Clemenza" > > <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> > > Cc: "Utah-Astronomy" > > <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> > > Date: Monday, August 31, 2009, 3:17 PM > > > > Danielle, I'm CC'ing the > > Utah Astronomy mailing list for > takers (I actually live > > about an hour south of SLC). Hopefully > > there are plenty that might be interested; > I'll let > > them reply to all... > > > > What is the film, out of curiosity? > > Regards, > > /Rich > > > > --- On Mon, 8/31/09, Danielle Clemenza <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > > > > From: Danielle Clemenza <danielleclemenza(a)yahoo.com> > > > Subject: Homemade Telescopes? > > > To: > > > Date: Monday, August 31, 2009, 1:21 PM > > > Hi > > > there, My > > > name is Danielle, and I am a cinematic > > > art director from Los > > > Angeles.The > > > reason I am writing is because I > will be art > > directing > > > a feature > > > film in the Salt > > > Lake City area, and we are currently searching > for > > > unique looking astronomical props-- homemade > > telescopes in > > > particular. (any other sort of > astronomyhomemade > > gear as > > > well.)Does > > > your society happen to have any of these that we > may > > be able > > > to rent from you for a fee? If not, would > you happen > > to > > > have any recommendations of somewhere in the > area > > that > > > might?Thank > > > you so much for your time! I look forward > to hearing > > from > > > you soon.Best,Danielle > > > Clemenza > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

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Aerials of SPOC
by Patrick Wiggins 01 Sep '09

01 Sep '09

Here are a couple of shots I got of SPOC yesterday (Saturday) just before the star party: http://users.wirelessbeehive.com/~paw/temp/2009aug29/DSC_0112.jpg http://users.wirelessbeehive.com/~paw/temp/2009aug29/DSC_0115.jpg I know the white vehicle is Bill Cowles'. Who does the red one belong to? Cheers, patrick

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