February 2015
Monday, February 2
Bartlesville Public Library
6:45 p.m. Setup and Discussion
7:00 p.m. Club Business
7:15 p.m. Current Astronomy News
7:30 PM
Astrophotography 101
by Bob Young
What you can do with YOUR camera (or smart phone) and where you go from there. Please bring your camera.
Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2 (Photo by Rick Bryant on 1/17/15)
BAS 2015 Membership is due now. Please pay if you have not done so already to continue receiving the Astronomical League "Reflector" and to enjoy membership privileges. Treasurer may be contacted at miltvend@sbcglobal.net for BAS mailing address or any other questions concerning dues amounts.
Thank you.
Vicky
Hello BAS Members --
With so many people interested in AstroPhotography in the group, we have thought of having a "Astro Picture of the Month" competition each month at our meetings.
Entry Rules:
Send one picture of the night sky/ object of the current month with a description of the picture and the equipment used to take this.
Mail it to bvilleastro@gmail.com.
Best picture is chosen in the next meeting and uploaded to our Facebook/Twitter pages with your mention!
So let the entries pouring in for our next meeting on the Feb 2, 2015.
Thanks
The Winter sky has 8 of the 20 brightest stars and lots of hidden treasures to observe.
Download a PodCast Tour of the Winter Sky at
Jupiter will dominate the sky all spring as it comes to opposition on Feb 6th. Located in Leo it rises in the NE about 7:30 PM
You'll have to wait till about 9 PM for it to be high enough for good viewing in a telescope. Even a small telescope will reveal its 4 moons and cloud bands.
The tiny moons can even be seen in binoculars if you brace them against something to hold them steady.
It has a nice conjunction with the Full moon the evening of Feb 3rd.
Listen to a Five min video about observing Jupiter "All Hail the King" http://stargazersonline.org/episodes/1503.html
For images and more viewing tips - Read This Week's Sky at a Glance at
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/weeks-sky-glance-january-9-17/
SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST !!!
The Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2 is putting on it's best show the next 2 or 3 weeks. It can be seen with binoculars even in town with a bright moon nearby.
Estimated at 3.8 magnitude some have even sighted it naked eye in dark skies.
The cloud of gases ( COMA ) surrounding it is huge - exceeding 100,000 km. In my 15 x 70 binoculars it looks like a bright fuzzy sphere of light.
It appears brighter and larger than the Orion Nebula in the same binoculars. In photos its tail is more than 10 degrees long and reaches over 7 million miles long!
Pretty amazing show for a chunk of ices and dust the size of Mt Everest. In fact binoculars are probably the best way to locate it.
A typical pair of binoculars has a field of view of about 5 to 7 degrees. whereas your telescope is barely 1 degree.
The comet is high in the sky at 9:00 PM - 2/3's of the way up ( 66 deg ) in the constellation Aires
Since there are no bright stars nearby the best way to find it is to make slow systematic sweeps of the sky.
Start at the Pleiades cluster and sweep slowly down 3 or 4 fields of views - then move over 1/2 a field left and move up.
Take your time. Examine each area before moving on. Once you find it you'll definitely know it.!
Sky & Telescope has more details and images at
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/observing-news/spot-comet-lovejoy-tonight-122920141/
NOTE: You won't see it right greenish color or much of the tail visually in a telescope. the images are processed time lapse photos.
Daily images at http://spaceweather.com/
For orbit details and Ephemeris of accurate positions - go to http://scully.cfa.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/returnprepeph.cgi?d=c&o=CK14Q020
Brought to you by Astronomy Club of Tulsa www.Astrotulsa.com
John Land - author
Hello to all from your New BAS President.
I have noticed that our membership has fallen off and participation in club meeting has also fallen off. I realize that we all have other obligations. I would like to help restore some participation and interest in our meeting and events. Your thoughts and interest about club meetings and events would be very helpful. Please e-mail me at bvillepiper@sbcglobal.net with your thoughts on how you would like to improve our club meetings and events. Hope to see all of you at our December meeting.
Steve Plank
BAS President .The great tradition of dark sky observing continues with the 37th Annual
TEXAS STAR PARTY, May 10-17, 2015!
Staying on the Ranch in housing, RV, or camping? Staying off-site in other accommodations? Everyone needs to enter the TSP drawing, held in late January.
You should submit a Registration/Reservation Request Form to ENTER THE TSP DRAWING before January 21, 2015. This will provide you the highest possible chance of being selected as one of the 500 people who will be able to attend TSP this year.
Follow this link to get started!
https://texasstarparty.org/get-started/
SIGN UP NOW!
You can find out the status of your TSP Registration at any time by visiting
https://texasstarparty.org/account/
Get info on our new AstroLearn Workshop at
https://texasstarparty.org/astrolearn/
Need funds to help pay for your trip to TSP? You can find out about getting paid while at TSP at:
https://texasstarparty.org/paid-workers-needed/
Check out the latest news at:
https://texasstarparty.org/news/
Questions? Visit our web site for the latest and complete details!
https://texasstarparty.org/ or email TSPRooms@TexasStarParty.org
We look forward to seeing you next May!
Sincerely,
the volunteers for Texas Star Party
Take the Future of Amateur Astronomers Survey
The Night Sky Network is doing a new survey of amateur astronomers located in the United States. We are attempting to understand the landscape of educational outreach performed by astronomy clubs and assess the needs of the amateur astronomy community for the next 5 years. We want to hear your voice.
Please let us know what your needs are and how we can better help you and your clubs by taking our survey, located here: http://bit.ly/2014astrosurvey
Pass this announcement along to any other persons or organizations that would have an interest in this survey as well. Thank you all!
You can see daily images of the Sun on www.Spaceweather.com
See a Fantastic image comparing sunspot to size of earth
http://spaceweather.com/archive.php?view=1&day=18&month=10&year=2014
Sky and Telescope News http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news
Where To See Comet Lovejoy Tonight
By: Alan MacRobert | January 28, 2015 | Comments 36
The new Comet Lovejoy, C/2014 Q2, should brighten from 5th to 4th magnitude from late December through January as it climbs into excellent viewing position for the Northern Hemisphere, high in the dark winter sky.
Rosetta Reveals Much About Comet 67P
By: Kelly Beatty | January 27, 2015 | Comments 1
Once the Rosetta spacecraft arrived at Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko last August, European scientists used an array of instruments to assess every nook and cranny of the remarkable two-lobed nucleus. - See more at: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/#sthash.fM4Xsiz3.dpuf
Mountain-size Asteroid Glides Past Earth
By: Alan MacRobert | January 22, 2015 | Comments 7
With a small telescope and our sky charts, you can watch the sizable near-Earth asteroid 2004 BL86 race among the stars on the night of January 26–27.
Do Atmospheres Spin Worlds to Habitability?
By: Shannon Hall | January 22, 2015 | Comments 0
The best place to look for nearby Earth-size planets are around the smallest, coolest stars. New research shows that any exoplanets tightly circling their stars might have a better chance of being habitable than previously thought.
Rare Triple Shadow Transit Not to Miss!
By: Bob King | January 21, 2015 | Comments 2
Complete guide to Friday night's triple shadow transit of Jupiter's moons and a remarkable "pre-game" show of mutual events. Cross your fingers and hope that Friday January 23rd will be clear. That night observers from western Europe to the Americas will witness a rare triple shadow transit of three of Jupiter's moons — Io,...
Catch Comet Finlay’s Sudden Brightening
By: Kelly Beatty | January 20, 2015 | Comments 0
For the second time in as many months, the periodic comet 15P/Finlay has surged in brightness. Spot it soon — before the Moon interferes — using our exclusive sky charts.
By: Monica Young | January 20, 2015 | Comments 3
As the Kepler mission shifts into its new mode of operations, multiple new searches for exoplanets are in the works.
Hubble’s Long Look at Distant Galaxies
By: Ramin Skibba | January 19, 2015 | Comments 1
Hubble Space Telescope observations are enlightening astronomers about the evolution of galaxies in the distant universe.
Long-lost Beagle 2 Lander Found on Mars
By: Kelly Beatty | January 19, 2015 | Comments 0
It's been 11 years since the British-built Beagle 2 lander dropped to the Martian surface and disappeared without a trace. Now we know what happened to it.
By: Camille M. Carlisle | January 11, 2015 | Comments 4
The Hubble Space Telescope is commemorating its 25th anniversary with a second look at the Pillars of Creation — but there’s hard science behind these pretty pictures.
By: John Bochanski | January 8, 2015 | Comments 0
Astronomers have expanded their ability to date stars using the stars’ own spins.
BOSS: A Ruler to Measure Them All
By: Monica Young | January 8, 2015 | Comments 6
Amidst the release of a treasure trove of astronomical data, scientists announce the most precise “standard ruler” yet for cosmological distances.
By: Monica Young | January 6, 2015 | Comments 0
The Hubble Space Telescope has turned its ultraviolet, visible-light, and near-infrared eyes to the queen of galaxies, M31, capturing the biggest and sharpest image yet of our neighbor.
Give-and-Take Origin for Earth’s Water?
By: Kelly Beatty | January 2, 2015 | Comments 1
Where, exactly, did our oceans come from? New research suggests that asteroids might have both delivered and removed lots of water — and that Earth itself might have locked it away deep inside. Ours is the only planet with abundant liquid water on its surface, and life (as we know it) wouldn't be possible...
- See more at: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/#sthash.P44yQFId.dpuf
Curiosity Studies Mars Dry-out
By: Camille M. Carlisle | December 29, 2014 | Comments 0
Samples taken from two drill holes on Mars support the idea that Mars lost a whole lot of water fairly early in its history.
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
January 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 13:14 UTC. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.
February - Dawn at Ceres. NASA’s Dawn spacecraft will encounter the dwarf planet known as Ceres sometime in February 2015. Ceres is the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Because of its size and shape, it has officially been classified as a dwarf planet, which puts it in the same category as Pluto. Ceres is 590 miles (950 kilometers) in diameter and is large enough to have a round shape. Dawn will spend several months studying Ceres and will send back the first close-up images of a dwarf planet in our Solar System.
February 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 23:09 UTC. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Snow Moon because the heaviest snows usually fell during this time of the year. Since hunting is difficult, this moon has also been known by some tribes as the Full Hunger Moon.
February 6 - 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. A medium-sized telescope should be able to show you some of the details in Jupiter's cloud bands. A good pair of binoculars should allow you to see Jupiter's four largest moons, appearing as bright dots on either side of the planet.
February 18 - 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. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.
February 22 - Conjunction of Venus and Mars. Conjunctions are rare events where two or more objects will appear extremely close together in the night sky. The two bright planets will be visible within only half a degree of each other in the evening sky. Look to the west just after sunset.
March 5 - 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 18:05 UTC. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Worm Moon because this was the time of year when the ground would begin to soften and the earthworms would reappear. This moon has also been known as the Full Crow Moon, the Full Crust Moon, and the Full Sap Moon.
(Source: http://www.seasky.org/astronomy/astronomy-calendar-2015.html)
2015 BAS Programs
Next Meeting
March 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