Wednesday September 9, 7:00 p.m.

Bartlesville Public Library

7:15 p.m.

Planetary Imaging

by Daryl Doughty

You walk outside on a dark, clear night and look up at the sky and see thousands of stars twinkling and think "what a glorious sight!" But one or two brighter ones don't appear to twinkle. These are the planets you can see (Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, possibly Mercury.) Twinkling is artistic and poetic but it is nearly fatal to making high resolution images of the planets. Imaging planets will push your optical systems and cameras to their limits. I will talk about imaging equipment, techniques, and processing software that can allow you to take excellent pictures for yourselves.

Amateur Astronomers: Get ready for International Observe the Moon night this September 19th! Add your events to the NSN calendar and register yours on the official InOMN homepage at http://observethemoonnight.org/

1. International Observe the Moon Night: Information for Event Hosts

2. Telecon Wrapup: 50 Years of Exoplanet Science

3. Congratulations to our Quarterly Prizewinners!

4. Send Your Name to Mars!

5. Featured Arti cle: Kepler's Second Light: The K2 Mission

6. Featured Activity: The Search for Habitable Worlds in the Universe Discovery Guide

International Observe the Moon Night: Information and Training Telecon for Event Hosts

On September 19, 2015< /strong> the world will join together in an annual celebration of lunar and planetary science and exploration: International Observe the Moon Night (InOMN).

We invite you to be a part of it!

You celebrate InOMN by hosting or participating in an InOMN event.

Check out the map of registered events on observethemoonnight.org. If no one is hosting an InOMN event near you, you can host your own! Invite your patrons, friends, family, or neighbors to look at and learn about the Moon with you. As of August 10, there were no registered events in AL, CT, DE, IA, ID, KS, MS, NE, NH, NV, WA, or WV. Let’s fill in the map!

Hosting an InOMN Event

A guide that walks you through the process of planning an InOMN event of any size is available on the InOMN web site complete with advertising materials, suggested activities, an InOMN Moon map, evaluation materials, and more! There is also a training video now available to watch at this link: http://1.usa.gov/1WUT4By

Worried about cloudy weather obscuring your view of the Moon?

-The “Moon as Art” collection, chosen by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) team, showcases data and images from LRO – a spacecraft currently in orbit around the Moon – that reveals just how beautiful science can be! High-resolution images, with descriptions, are available here: http://lunar.gsfc.nasa.gov/moonartgallery.html

- Additional beautiful, high-resolution images of the Moon’s surface taken by LRO’s cameras are availa ble here: http://lroc.sese.asu.edu

Join the Conversation

You can also connect to fellow lunar enthusiasts through social media (@observethemoon and #moonnight on Twitter; International Observe the Moon Night on Facebook; and 2015 International Observe the Moon Night on Flickr).

Happy Moon viewing!

The International Observe the Moon Night Coordinating Committee

HOW BRIGHT IS The SUN from PLUTO?

Pluto is currently a bit more than 3 billion miles from the Sun. ( About 33 times farther than the Earth's distance from the Sun.)

At that distance the Sun will be 1083 X dimmer than the Sun and look like a very bright point of light less than 1/60 of degree wide. However it will still shine as bright as 370 Full Moons. You can experience NOON TIME sunlight on Pluto by going outside 6 or 7 mins after sunset or before sunrise.

To find the exact time go to http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/plutotime/

Scroll down the page and type in your city and it will give you the best time to experience Sunlight from Pluto.

For more Pluto news go to http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html

From John Land

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

BAS President .

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

Tour September’s Sky: A Lunar Eclipse!

By: Kelly Beatty | August 31, 2015 | Comments 0

This month's stargazing features pretty planetary treats in the eastern sky before dawn — and the last total lunar eclipse visible until 2018.

Insights from S&T‘s Family of Planet Globes

By: Kelly Beatty | August 28, 2015 | Comments 2

Pictures are great, but there's nothing like holding another world in your hands to appreciate its unique characteristics. True confession: even from childhood, I have always been a map junkie. Sure, I use GPS these days, but my car is still stuffed with road maps. The National Geographic Atlas of the World is not...

Planning for America’s 2017 Solar Eclipse

By: Richard Tresch Fienberg | August 26, 2015 | Comments 5

Dozens of solar specialists are coordinating outreach activities for a coast-to-coast total solar eclipse that's only two years away.

Dwarf Bull’s-eye Galaxy Discovered

By: Camille M. Carlisle | August 26, 2015 | Comments 0

Astronomers have discovered that one galaxy of a nearby double-galaxy system has a giant, star-studded ring.

Scientists Find Ancient Lake on Mars

By: Alex Green | August 25, 2015 | Comments 0

Scientists have discovered an ancient lakebed on Mars.

Is Dark Energy a Chameleon?

By: Monica Young | August 24, 2015 | Comments 7

A lab experiment has all but nixed one of the theories of dark energy, a mysterious force pushing the universe apart.- See more at: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/#sthash.vLKhQPdu.dpuf

Robotic Flyers: The Future of Space Exploration?

By: David Dickinson | August 18, 2015 | Comments 3

Quadcopters, the four-propellered drones that have become a familiar sight in terrestrial skies, may be the next big thing in space exploration.

Direct-Image Discovery of a Young Jupiter

By: Monica Young | August 17, 2015 | Comments 0

IAU: New Dwarf Galaxy Neighbors & Dark-Sky Sanctuaries

By: Babak Tafreshi | August 17, 2015 | Comments 0

The Gemini Planet Imager has discovered its first exoplanet, a young Jupiter still glowing with the heat of its formation.

At the As the IAU General Assembly in Hawaii'i draws to a close, the results were still coming in: a new bevy of dwarf galaxies discovered around the Milky Way, the celebration of the first Dark-Sky Sanctuary, and a new directly imaged exoplanet to boot.

Teeny Supermassive Black Hole

By: Camille M. Carlisle | August 14, 2015 | Comments 4

Astronomers have identified the smallest supermassive black hole ever detected in a galaxy’s center.

Former S&T Editor Wins Award

By: Sean Walker | August 12, 2015 | Comments 2

The North East Region of the Astronomical League (NERAL) announces the presentation of the prestigious 2015 NERAL Walter Scott Houston award to former Sky & Telescope editor Dennis di Cicco.

Sunspots and Climate Change, Naming Exoplanets, and More from the IAU

By: Babak Tafreshi | August 12, 2015 | Comments 2

Do sunspots affect climate change? How can you name an exoplanet? Here are the latest results from the world's largest astronomy conference.

“The Universe Is Dying” — So What?

By: Monica Young | August 11, 2015 | Comments 5

Recent headlines proclaim that the universe is dying, but we’ve actually known that for decades. Here’s what’s really interesting about recent research on the nearby universe.- See more at: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/#sthash.4HLlUrxM.dpuf

Brown Dwarfs Form Like Stars

By: John Bochanski | August 6, 2015 | Comments 2

Recent radio observations support the idea that brown dwarfs form like full-fledged stars do.

Gigantic Protogalaxy in the Cosmic Web

By: Camille M. Carlisle | August 5, 2015 | Comments 0

Astronomers have found that a massive filament of gas in the early universe actually seems to be a humongous, galaxy-forming disk.

Shedding New Light on Near-Earth Asteroids

By: David Dickinson | August 4, 2015 | Comments 2

Students captured some amazing videos of near-Earth asteroids this past month, demonstrating a powerful tool for learning about some of our nearest celestial neighbors.

Closest Rocky Exoplanet Discovered

By: Monica Young | August 3, 2015 | Comments 0

Super-Earth HD 219134b is just 21 light-years away, orbiting a nearby orange star that you can see from your backyard.

Alan Stern: What We Found at Pluto

By: Alan Stern | July 31, 2015 | Comments 12

It sounds like science fiction, but it's not: NASA's New Horizons mission explored the Pluto system this summer!

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

August 29 - Full Moon, Supermoon. The Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be will be fully illuminated. This phase occurs at 18:35 UTC. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Sturgeon Moon because the large sturgeon fish of the Great Lakes and other major lakes were more easily caught at this time of year. This moon has also been known as the Green Corn Moon and the Grain Moon. This is also the first of three supermoons for 2015. The Moon will be at its closest approach to the Earth and may look slightly larger and brighter than usual.

September 1 - Neptune at Opposition. The blue giant planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. It will be brighter than any other time of the year and will be visible all night long. This is the best time to view and photograph Neptune. Due to its extreme distance from Earth, it will only appear as a tiny blue dot in all but the most powerful telescopes.

September 4 - Mercury at Greatest Eastern Elongation. The planet Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation of 27 degrees from the Sun. This is the best time to view Mercury since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the evening sky. Look for the planet low in the western sky just after sunset.

September 13 - New Moon. The Moon will located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This phase occurs at 06:41 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.

September 13 - Partial Solar Eclipse. A partial solar eclipse occurs when the Moon covers only a part of the Sun, sometimes resembling a bite taken out of a cookie. A partial solar eclipse can only be safely observed with a special solar filter or by looking at the Sun's reflection. The partial eclipse will only be visible in southern Africa, Madagascar, and Antarctica. (NASA Map and Eclipse Information)

September 23 - September Equinox. The September equinox occurs at 08:21 UTC. The Sun will shine directly on the equator and there will be nearly equal amounts of day and night throughout the world. This is also the first day of fall (autumnal equinox) in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of spring (vernal equinox) in the Southern Hemisphere.

September 28 - Full Moon, Supermoon. The Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be will be fully illuminated. This phase occurs at 02:50 UTC. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Corn Moon because the corn is harvested around this time of year. This moon is also known as the Harvest Moon. The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the September equinox each year. This is also the second of three supermoons for 2015. The Moon will be at its closest approach to the Earth and may look slightly larger and brighter than usual. This will be the closest full moon of the year.

September 28 - Total Lunar Eclipse. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes completely through the Earth's dark shadow, or umbra. During this type of eclipse, the Moon will gradually get darker and then take on a rusty or blood red color. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of North and South America, Europe, Africa, and western Asia. (NASA Map and Eclipse Information)

October 1 - Comet C/2013 US10 Catalina. Newly discovered comet C/2013 US10 Catalina may reach naked eye visibility on October 1. The comet will continue to brighten and could reach magnitude 5 by November 6.

October 8 - Draconids Meteor Shower. The Draconids is a minor meteor shower producing only about 10 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner, which was first discovered in 1900. The Draconids is an unusual shower in that the best viewing is in the early evening instead of early morning like most other showers. The shower runs annually from October 6-10 and peaks this year on the the night of the 8th. The second quarter moon will block out all but the brightest meteors this year. If you are patient, you may be able to spot a few good ones. Best viewing will be in the early evening from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Draco, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

• • (Source: http://www.seasky.org/astronomy/astronomy-calendar-2015.html)

2015 BAS Programs

Next Meeting

October 5, 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.