June 2012

Monday, June 4, 2012

Bartlesville Public Library Meeting Room

6:45 p.m. Setup and Discussion

7:00 p.m. Club Business

7:15 p.m. Current Astronomy News

Object of the Month

7:00 p.m.

Informal Meeting

Open Discussion.

May 20th eclipse from Ochelata, OK

Our current sunspot maximum in the 11-year cycle is supposed to occur next year. We also have two significant solar events occurring over the next two months. On May 20, 2012 there will be an annular eclipse of the Sun the path of which crosses into the western US. Albuquerque, NM is directly in the path of maximum coverage which will occur shortly before sunset there. In an annular eclipse the Moon is far enough away in its orbit about the Earth that its silhouette won’t cover the entire face of the Sun. The second major event is the transit of the planet, Venus, across the face of the Sun. This will occur on June 5, 2012. Locally, if you have a clear view of the western horizon, the transit will begin about 3 hours before sunset and the Sun will set with Venus about 50% of the way across the face of the Sun.For those more adventurous people (and slightly more wealthy), you can see the complete transit from the summit of Haleakala volcano on the island of Maui in Hawaii.

In addition two great MUST SEE solar events are coming up soon. A partial Solar Eclipse on Sunday afternoon May 20, 2012 and the much anticipated transit of the planet Venus in front of the Sun on Tuesday June 5, 2012. And the BIG ONE – A TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE – Aug 21, 2017 across NE Kansas and the central Nebraska !!!

The Transit of Venus is coming up Tuesday June 5, 2012. Here in Midwest it starts about 5:04 PM and is still in progress at sunset. Sunset in Tulsa is 8:35 PM but will be later in OKC

It will require solar filters and at least filtered binoculars to observe

Since Venus is only 58”wide - the very limit of angular visibility without magnification.

Here is a link to several valuable information resources from the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.

www.astrosociety.org/tov/

Including a 2 page card resource, 8 page historical review, Universe in the Classroom with teacher activities.

Solar Filters for the upcoming eclipse and Venus transit.

Be sure to buy the Visual Density materialhttp://astro-physics.biz/index.htm?products/accessories/solar_acc/astrosolar

The instructions for making one are at http://astro-physics.biz/products/accessories/solar_acc/make_sol.pdf

John Land, Astronomy Club of Tulsa, astroclubbiz@windstream.net

Current News from Sky and Telescope

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news

What to Know before You Buy— May 16, 2012

Telescopes come in an overwhelming variety of sizes, shapes, and prices. To make sense of this embarrassment of riches, you need to ask yourself a few basic questions.

Superflares from Sun-like Stars— May 16, 2012

NASA's Kepler mission is finding solar-type stars that emit jaw-dropping explosions of high-energy particles and radiation. Now astronomers are looking into why some solar-type stars emit superflares — and why the Sun never will.

Europe's New Eye on the Sun— May 15, 2012

The just-completed Gregor telescope, situated on Tenerife in the Canary Islands, ranks as Europe's largest solar sentinel and the third largest in the world.

Millennial Calendar Found in Mayan Ruins— May 14, 2012

Never mind what the doomsayers tell you: Remarkable paintings in a room amid Guatemalan ruins prove that the ancient Maya knew more about celestial cycles than we thought — and that they didn't predict the world's end in December 2012.

Now is your chance to participate in an International effort to survey the effects of light pollution on our night skies. The project is to observe and count the number of stars you can see in the constellation of Orion then pinpoint your location on the world map and enter your results on the world wide web.

A great weekly online video of things you can see with the naked eye. These 5 minute video segments feature events that anyone can enjoy by merely going outside and “Looking Up”! Keep this one on your favorites list - http://www.stargazersonline.org/

Skyweek from Sky and Telescope Magazine also presents a variety of astronomical events for the naked eye as well as telescope viewing.http://www.skyandtelescope.com/videos/skyweek

Let’s Go Stargazing http://www.skyandtelescope.com/letsgo

Lots of activities and information for families and novice astronomers.

Courtesy of John Land, Astronomy Club of Tulsa. astroclubbiz@windstream.net

    • May 20 - New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 23:47 UTC.

    • May 20 - Annular Solar Eclipse. The path of annularity will begin in southern China and move east through Japan, the northern Pacific Ocean, and into the western United States. A partial eclipse will be visible throughout parts of eastern Asia and most of North America. (NASA Map and Eclipse Information)

    • June 4 - Full Moon. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 11:12 UTC.

    • June 4 - Partial Lunar Eclipse. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of Asia, Australia, the Pacific Ocean, and the Americas. (NASA Map and Eclipse Information)

    • June 5, 6 - Transit of Venus Across the Sun. This extremely rare event will be entirely visible throughout most of eastern Asia, eastern Australia, and Alaska. A partial transit can be seen in progress at sunrise throughout Europe, western Asia, and eastern Africa. A partial transit can be seen in progress at sunset throughout most of North America, Central America, and western South America. The next transit will not take place until the year 2117. (NASA Transit Information | NASA Transit Map)

    • June 19 - New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 15:02 UTC.

    • June 20 - June Solstice. The June solstice occurs at 23:09 UTC. The North Pole of the earth will be tilted toward the Sun, which will have reached its northernmost position in the sky and will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer at 23.44 degrees north latitude. This is the first day of summer (summer solstice) in the northern hemisphere and the first day of winter (winter solstice) in the southern hemisphere.

    • July 3 - Full Moon. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 18:52 UTC.

2012 Programs

Next Meeting

July 2, Monday. Bartlesville Public Library Meeting Room (tentative)

Newsletter Contributions Needed

Our club newsletter is reaching more people each month, and member contributions in the form of short articles, interesting news items, alerts of upcoming astronomical events or activities, descriptions of personal observations or useful equipment, and observing tips, are encouraged. Recurring columns or multipart articles are also welcome. Please submit your contributions to Mike Woods or to bvilleastro@gmail.com .

Bartlesville Astronomical Society - Membership

B.A.S. is an organization of people interested in Astronomy and related fields of science.

The current officers are:

The current board members are:

Additional club positions:

Membership is open to everyone interested in any aspects of astronomy.

Adult. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $20.00

Students (through 12th grade) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $10.00

Magazine Subscription (reduced rate for members)

Sky & Telescope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $32.95

Astronomy Technology Today Magazine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $14.00

Astronomy Magazine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $34.00/yr

If you want to have your email address removed from the Bartlesville Astronomical Society mailing list, please send an email requesting removal to bvilleastro@gmail.com