July 2012 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Sunspots: 3 July 2012 ~ 13:00 MDT
by Dave Gary 03 Jul '12

03 Jul '12

http://www.flickr.com/photos/78046474@N06/7496353624/in/set-721576304079191…

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Seeking Detailed Star Charts or Finding Stars The Old Fashioned Way
by James Harvey 03 Jul '12

03 Jul '12

Greetings and Happy Monday... I am seeking a book/map/chart that I can use while stargazing with the scope. Here is what I would like in such a product: a. Star charts - a full two page spread of each constellation with plenty of detail. b. No, none, zero, zip, zilch explanations of types of stars, black holes, planets, etc., etc. etc. I have plenty of books on those topics. c. Loose leaf, spiral bound, or folded. Something that will lay flat without busting the binding. d. No batteries, no keyboards, no screens, no antennas, no buttons, just paper. I am new to astronomy but I expect my efforts will be along these lines: a. Zero, if any, scanning the skies hoping to find something (too much to find) b. Create an observation plan and work it. In other words, I expect to have specific targets in mind each night. The book/map/chart I've described above will be used to find the target objects. Now, while I am an engineer geek type, I am, also, a nostalgic old Geezer and I fancy myself hunting for objects the way they did before computers. To me, half the fun of looking at an object is finding it. Hey, I found M57 last night in nearly full moonlight. I did cheat a bit and used a green laser point mounted on my DOB. Smack dab dead on. I was impressed. Your mileage may vary. Jim Harvey, aka... -- Watch 'Yer Top Knot and Keep Your Powder Dry, James Richard Harvey - The Wyoming Geezer The Great Curmudgeon AKA El Gran Cascarrabias AKA J. Peter Fudpucker Hunkered down on Planet Earth "If they give you ruled paper, write the other way." *Juan Ramón Jiménez Mantecón (1881 - 1958), As quoted in the epigraph in **Fahrenheit 451* <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_451>* (1953) by **Ray Bradbury * <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ray_Bradbury>*;* I HEARTILY ACCEPT the motto, - "That government is best which governs least"; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe, - "That government is best which governs not at all"; *Henry David Thoreau - "Civil Disobedience"* *NOTE TO NSA and DHS: *Nothing in this email is, in any way, either by subtle reference or direct statement, intended to be taken out of context as a threat to Homeland Security or the Thought Police. I am not the Droid you are looking for. Please tell the Ministry of Truth and the Messiah President Barack Hussein Obama II that I am one of the good guys and pray for a helping hand. Send checks to my address on file.

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APOD
by D P Pierce 03 Jul '12

03 Jul '12

I can't get into APOD. Is anyone else having problems with it? Deloy

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Star Chart?
by Jay Eads 03 Jul '12

03 Jul '12

Yeah,stone things suck. Collimate this secondary. Dang spider vanes also. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NXPVCXKg10g/T8tp73iLbdI/AAAAAAAAEts/jOaj4Qkt7Fo/s… -- Jay Eads

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Star Chart?
by Dave Gary 02 Jul '12

02 Jul '12

What the hell is a star chart? I dug through my library and listed under the category, “Babylonian software”, I found a star chart. Looked as new as the day I got back the copy (they kept my original chart and gave me back a copy) from the Alexandrian library. Those boys made some fancy Xeroxes. Pity it burned down. Dave

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The Sun
by D P Pierce 01 Jul '12

01 Jul '12

It's pretty boring up there. http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/realtime-update.html Deloy

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Right Angle Finder Scopes
by James Harvey 01 Jul '12

01 Jul '12

Greetings and thanks to all for the comments. I thought I would follow up with a few thoughts based on comments I received. Funny, the night before my post, I had experimented with a green laser pointer laying alongside the DOB. Seemed to have possibilities. So, next day, I cobbled up a way to mount the pointer into the centering bracket on the DOB in place of the old finder scope. Well, it really, really, works well. Once I had it aimed, I am pretty sure to hit my target in the center of the eyepiece with magnifications of (around) 60x or less. With my 9mm (128x), I have to hunt a bit but I think I could improve it with more careful adjustment (aiming) of the laser pointer. Another cool thing is that the use of the laser pointer is simply cool if you have folks watching what you are doing. They like the green light. The downside is that, if you cannot see your target, the laser pointer is not a viable solution. Still, if you can find a guide star, you can always go from there. That said, I am still looking for the right solution (for me) that will give me relief from neck pain. I have found one at this link: http://agenaastro.com/gso-8x50mm-right-angle-correct-image-finder.html but have not pulled the trigger, yet. Again, thanks to all for the comments. They were most helpful. Jim Harvey -- Watch 'Yer Top Knot and Keep Your Powder Dry, James Richard Harvey - The Wyoming Geezer The Great Curmudgeon AKA El Gran Cascarrabias AKA J. Peter Fudpucker Hunkered down on Planet Earth "If they give you ruled paper, write the other way." *Juan Ramón Jiménez Mantecón (1881 - 1958), As quoted in the epigraph in **Fahrenheit 451* <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_451>* (1953) by **Ray Bradbury * <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ray_Bradbury>*;* I HEARTILY ACCEPT the motto, - "That government is best which governs least"; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe, - "That government is best which governs not at all"; *Henry David Thoreau - "Civil Disobedience"* *NOTE TO NSA and DHS: *Nothing in this email is, in any way, either by subtle reference or direct statement, intended to be taken out of context as a threat to Homeland Security or the Thought Police. I am not the Droid you are looking for. Please tell the Ministry of Truth and the Messiah President Barack Hussein Obama II that I am one of the good guys and pray for a helping hand. Send checks to my address on file.

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