November 2012

Monday, November 5, 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.

What You See Is Not Necessarily What You Get

Our main program begins with a brief description of how our eyes/brain "sees", compensates for, and presents the external world under widely varying lighting conditions. How do modern digital cameras work and try to accomplish the same thing? Our cameras can come very close to emulating our vision and in fact extend it into wide and interesting realms.

REMINDER:

November is the yearly renewal dues date for all members.

A prorated dues amount will be asked from those whose renewal anniversary date is a month other than this November. Ask Treasurer for details and address at miltvend@sbcglobal.net or at the meeting.

Current News from Sky and Telescope

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news

Curiosity's Views of Gale Crater — October 31, 2012

Since its arrival in August, NASA's newest robotic rover has been taking snapshots of the flat Martian plain on which it landed and the tantalizing topography that looms in the distance.

Saturn’s Frankenstorm: The Aftermath — October 30, 2012

Though Saturn’s Great White Spot faded by the end of 2011, infrared telescopes have revealed the storm's long-lasting impact.

Fomalhaut b: An Exoplanet Redeemed — October 26, 2012

New analysis suggests that Fomalhaut b — an exoplanet discovered in 2008 and disputed ever since — really does exist.

Beads on a Galaxy-Scale String — October 24, 2012

A new image from the Australia Telescope Compact Array shows a series of brilliant knots along the jet shooting from a supermassive black hole. While not the first sighting of a string of pearls gracing a galaxy's jet, the new image is a striking look at a mysterious phenomenon.

The Flares from Milky Way’s Black Hole — October 24, 2012

Our galaxy’s central supermassive black hole emits regular, mysterious X-ray flares. For the first time, NASA’s newest sharp-eyed telescope has captured a high-energy view of the action.

Auroras Grace Stellar Skies — October 22, 2012

Stunning auroras play in Earth's upper atmosphere, and similar cascading curtains grace the skies of giant planets, brown dwarfs — and even small stars.

News From Across the Solar System — October 19, 2012

From new models of the Moon's formation to planets forming around distant stars, nearly 800 planetary scientists had plenty of new results to present this week when they met in Reno, Nevada.

A Problem with Pluto's Moons — October 17, 2012

The discovery of two tiny moons circling the most famous "dwarf planet" has raised concerns that the New Horizons spacecraft might be endangered when it flies by in July 2015.

Planet Found in Alpha Centauri System — October 17, 2012

Astronomers announced what might be the closest exoplanet to Earth, a roasted Earth-mass world whipping around the Sun-like star Alpha Centauri B.

Freshest Mars Rock Contains Evidence for Water — October 11, 2012

An international team of scientists has teased apart the secrets hidden inside a meteorite from Mars, including signs that the rock weathered acidic water while on the Red Planet.

Star Draws Spiral — October 10, 2012

ALMA observations have revealed a spiral buried inside a shell surrounding the star R Sculptoris. While not the first of its kind discovered, the spiral does show that the star is hiding something.

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

    • October 29 - 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 19:49 UTC.

    • November 13 - New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 22:08 UTC.

    • November 13 - Total Solar Eclipse. The path of totality will only be visible in parts of extreme northern Australia and the southern Pacific Ocean. A partial eclipse will be visible in most parts of eastern Australia and New Zealand.

    • (NASA Map and Eclipse Information)

    • November 17, 18 - Leonids Meteor Shower. The Leonids is one of the better meteor showers to observe, producing an average of 40 meteors per hour at their peak. The shower itself has a cyclic peak year every 33 years where hundreds of meteors can be seen each hour. The last of these occurred in 2001. The shower usually peaks on November 17 & 18, but you may see some meteors from November 13 - 20. The crescent moon will set early in the evening leaving dark skies for what should be an excellent show. Look for the shower radiating from the constellation Leo after midnight, and be sure to find a dark location for viewing.

    • November 27 - Conjunction of Venus and Saturn. These two bright planets will be within 1 degree of each other in the morning sky. Look to the east around sunrise.

    • November 28 - 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 14:46 UTC.

    • November 28 - Penumbral Lunar Eclipse. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of Europe, eastern Africa, Asia, Australia, the Pacific Ocean, and North America. (NASA Map and Eclipse Information)

    • December 3 - Jupiter at Opposition. The giant planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view and photograph Jupiter and its moons.

    • December 13 - New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 08:42 UTC.

Next Meeting

December 3, 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

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