{"id":645,"date":"2014-06-21T14:44:36","date_gmt":"2014-06-21T18:44:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.asnh.org\/ShootingStar\/?p=645"},"modified":"2019-01-17T08:07:44","modified_gmt":"2019-01-17T13:07:44","slug":"julyaugsep2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.asnh.org\/ShootingStar\/2014\/06\/21\/julyaugsep2014\/","title":{"rendered":"JulyAugSep2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summer Nights<\/strong><\/h1>\n

With the warm weather and some beautiful sights overhead, summer is a great time to observe the night sky, so go out and take a look as often as you can. Whether you have a large telescope, a pair of binoculars, or just your two eyes, there is something for everyone to enjoy.  Throughout the summer, the Milky Way stretches across the sky during the evening hours.  It is great naked-eye sight from a dark location away from city lights. If you have binoculars or a telescope of any size, the Milky Way contains numerous open clusters, globular clusters, and nebulae to track down. The annual Perseid meteor shower arrives in August, and several smaller showers occur both earlier and later in the summer, so if you sit back in a lawn chair and gaze upward on any clear, moonless night, with a little patience you are likely to catch a few meteors flashing across the sky.<\/p>\n

Features<\/strong><\/h1>\n

If you have not looked at the newsletter before, check out some of the regular features.  There are four useful links in the menu at the top of this page:<\/p>\n

Calendar <\/b> This is a monthly calendar that includes all the scheduled events of ASNH, other regional events of interest, plus the dates and times of noteworthy events in the night sky.<\/p>\n

SkyMap <\/b> This page has a chart of the sky as it appears over the New Haven area at the present date and time.  It is constantly updated, so you can go to this page on any clear night to see what is overhead.<\/p>\n

Space Place<\/strong>  Read the monthly article from Space Place.<\/p>\n

Directions  <\/b>This page gives directions to all the locations where regular activities of ASNH take place, including the monthly meeting, public observing sessions, and the annual Connecticut Star Party.<\/p>\n

Other regular features can be found within these pages:<\/p>\n

Upcoming Public Events  <\/strong>Many ASNH events are free and open to the public.  These include the monthly meetings, open houses at Bethany Observatory, and public observing sessions at Silver Sands State Park in Milford and Young’s Pond Park in Branford.  This section gives the dates, times, and descriptions of these events. <\/strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n

Upcoming Events for ASNH Members  <\/strong>These events are for ASNH members only.  Some of these are outreach events where volunteers are needed with the telescopes and equipment.<\/p>\n

Night Sky Highlights <\/strong> For those who are new to astronomy, this section lists some objects to observe in the sky during the next few months, whether you are using just your eyes, a pair of binoculars, or a telescope.<\/p>\n

Gallery <\/strong> This section will feature recent photographs of celestial targets taken by ASNH members and others.  If you have a picture you want to share with us, please submit it to newsletter@asnh.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Upcoming Public Events<\/strong><\/h1>\n

These events are free and open to the public. Our members will also point out the stars, planets, and constellations that you can see with the naked eye.  If you have your own telescope or binoculars, feel free to bring them.  If you have a telescope but don’t know how to operate it, our experienced observers can help you learn to use your equipment. If the weather looks questionable for an observing event, check the ASNH website<\/a> before you leave home.  There will be a scrolling message on the home page if an event has been cancelled.<\/p>\n

Saturday, August 9, beginning at sunset<\/strong>
\nAnsonia Nature Center, Ansonia, CT
\nPublic observing session<\/p>\n

Friday, September 19, beginning at sunset<\/strong>
\nBethany Observatory, Bethany, CT
\nOpen house and public observing session <\/strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n

Upcoming Event for ASNH members<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Saturday, September 13, beginning at sunset
\n<\/strong>Bauer Park Outreach, Madison, CT
\nObserving session<\/p>\n

Connecticut Star Party<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Friday, September 26 – Sunday, September 28<\/strong>
\nJune Norcross Webster Scout Reservation, Ashford, CT
\nRegister now for this event<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Recent ASNH Activities<\/strong><\/h1>\n

by Donna Pursley<\/h3>\n

Regional Water Company Private Event on Saturday, April 5<\/h2>\n

It had been windy that day but it was supposed to be less windy by nightfall. It was extremely windy where we usually set up right off the lake. Some members moved to a sheltered area behind the trees and the rest of us followed.  The viewing was better than we have seen in a long time at a public event.<\/p>\n

For planets, we were able to see Jupiter with two moons and bands and Mars.  The moon was very bright but we were still able to view many star clusters and nebula, even near the moon.  There was an enthusiastic crowd, even some who knew a little astronomy.<\/p>\n

We arrived around 7pm to have time to set up while it was still light out. Club members attending were Ray Kaville, Jim Mazur, Don Straka, Don Filer, Joe Trerotola, Greg Barker, Mike Zarick and Donna Pursley.<\/p>\n

\"As

As the sky darkens, ASNH members set up their telescopes at Lake Gaillard.<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/h2>\n

New Haven Science Fair 2014<\/h2>\n

The Astronomical Society of New Haven is one of the \u201cSpecial Awards\u201d presenters for the Science Fair. This year\u2019s Science Fair took place at the Yale Commons Hall on Monday May 12th through Wednesday May 14th.<\/p>\n

There were about 211 booths, each one representing a student entry. The ages of the students start with Kindergarten all the way up to 12th grade. They can enter as an individual, a team or a class. There is a good representation from many schools in New Haven.<\/p>\n

On Monday night, we looked at all the booths to evaluate the projects to see which were astronomy related. The students were not there during this time. This night was reserved for just the judges to review and narrow down their choices of possible winners. We narrowed it down to three.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, those that could make it showed up at 9 am. Then the students arrived by busload to stand by their projects. We discussed the projects with the students to determine how well they knew the subject and their understanding of what they had accomplished. Then we decided who deserved 1st, 2nd and 3rd.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday Night, our president, Greg Barker, handed out the awards and the checks to the winners.  The checks that were awarded were:<\/p>\n

\"First

First place winners<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

1st place – $200 plus Faces of the Moon <\/em>book and wheel chart authored by Bob Crelin.<\/p>\n

Davis Street Magnet School 3rd Grade class \u2013 teacher Waltrina Kirkland-Mullins.<\/p>\n

Project titled \u201cWhat\u2019s Phasing Us: A Fascinating Lunar Discovery!\u201d<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Second

Second place winners<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

2nd place – $175<\/p>\n

7th Grade team of Victor Cotto and William Arroyo from Fair Haven School.<\/p>\n

Project titled \u201cMighty Meteorites\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Third

Third place winners
(Photos by Paul Hyndman)<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

3rd place – $125<\/p>\n

7th Grade team of Elliot Faulkner and Robert Logan from Edgewood Magnet School.<\/p>\n

Project titled \u201cMelting Comets\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The judges this year were Leo Taylor, Paul Hyndman, Al Washburn, Greg Barker, Allan Sacharow, Mike Zarick and Donna Pursley. This is a fun event to see all the projects that the students come up with each year. It is great to see the excitement that the children have towards their projects. This is a very rewarding event.<\/p>\n

Bethany Open House on Friday, June 6<\/h2>\n

We haven\u2019t had many public events this year due to the weather so it was exciting to actually have an event at Bethany.<\/p>\n

The night started with two of the observatories opened up, the Clark and the Thomas Eustace scope. Ray Kaville was operating the Clark and Greg was operating the Thomas Eustace.   Al Washburn brought the meteorites and was showing them to the public in the main building.  Bob Carruthers and Gan were helping to park cars.  Donna Pursley had the club\u2019s iPAD set up between the two scope buildings and had a few free astronomy apps going. Other members that were there to help out were Don Straka, Jim Mazur, Laurie Averill, Mike Zarick and Joe Trerotola.<\/p>\n

A few families started arriving about 7:30. Since it wasn\u2019t dark yet, we kept them busy with the meteorites, the iPAD and the scopes pointed at the moon.  Even though it was still daylight, there were still many features to see on the lunar surface.<\/p>\n

As other families started to show up, Dave Johnson opened up the dome.  This is always to the delight of all the people there.  As soon as the scope\u2019s door was heard opening, everyone wanted to go look through the dome\u2019s scope.  Dave operated the dome scope for the rest of the night.<\/p>\n

For the night, the public was able to see the moon, Mars, Saturn (including the rings), M13 and a few other deep sky objects. The kids really enjoyed playing with the iPAD astronomy apps to see the constellations that were in the sky.  Many were surprised to learn that the big dipper was really a bear with a long tail.<\/p>\n

We had about 50 people there during the night. The last to leave was around 10:30pm. It was a successful night with clear skies and a decent crowd.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Night Sky Highlights for July, August, and September, 2014<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Solar System<\/b><\/h2>\n

Mars
\n<\/b>The red planet will be visible in the evening throughout the summer months, but it is moving away from Earth, and it will have a relatively small disk when viewed through a telescope.  Moving from west to east against the background stars, Mars will pass a few degrees south of Saturn on in late August.<\/p>\n

Saturn
\n<\/b>Saturn will be high in the evening sky throughout the summer.  With its rings now open wide from our vantage point, it will be a beautiful object to observe.<\/p>\n

Delta Aquarid and Alpha Capricornid Meteors
\n<\/b>Peaking on July 30
\nThe summer has many minor meteor showers, and the peaks of these two happen to coincide on July 30.  The radiants for the two showers are on opposite sides of Capricornus, and the best time to observe members of these showers will be after midnight, when Capricornus is high in the south.<\/p>\n

Perseid Meteors
\n<\/b>Peaking on the night of August 12-13
\nThis is probably the most popular meteor shower of the year, both because the meteors occur at a high rate and because the warm summer nights encourage many people to go out and look.  This year is less than optimal because there will be a bright gibbous Moon.  Nevertheless, the brighter meteors will be visible, and it will still be worthwhile to look for them.  Probably because of the way the media cover such astronomical events, many people seem to think they missed the shower if it happens to be cloudy on the night of August 12-13.   However, this is a long-lasting shower, and quite a few Perseids can be seen for a week or more before and after the peak night.  They are visible all night long, but the best times to look are after midnight.<\/p>\n

Neptune
\n<\/b>This year, Neptune is in Aquarius, and at about magnitude 7.8 it can be spotted in binoculars or a finder scope if you have a map showing where to look for it, such as this one from Sky & Telescope<\/i>:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/d366w3m5tf0813.cloudfront.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/WEB_Uranus_Neptune_2014.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

Its blue-green disk is 2.3\u201d in diameter and will show nicely with a medium-sized telescope at high power.<\/p>\n

Pluto
\n<\/b>If you want a challenge and have a fairly large telescope (ideally, with a 10-inch aperture or larger) you can try to track down Pluto.  It is now passing through the star-rich regions of Sagittarius, making it even trickier than usual to identify.  Here is a finder chart from in-the-sky.org:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/in-the-sky.org\/findercharts.php?obj=pluto&year=2014<\/a><\/p>\n

Venus
\n<\/b>Throughout the summer months, Venus will be the brightest object in the eastern sky before sunrise.<\/p>\n

Mercury
\n<\/b>The best opportunity to spot this fast-moving planet this summer will be in the eastern sky before dawn in mid-July.  It will be farthest from the Sun, and therefore easier to observe, on July 12.<\/p>\n

Deep Sky Objects<\/b><\/h2>\n

The summer sky is so full of wonderful deep-sky objects that it is hard to know where to start.  Listed here are just a few of the most famous and most interesting objects.  Several of them can be seen, at least dimly, with the naked eye.  All are great sights in binoculars or telescopes.<\/p>\n

Messier 6, the Butterfly Cluster
\n<\/b>Open cluster in Scorpius
\nThrough a telescope, this cluster really does look like the outstretched wings of a butterfly.<\/p>\n

Messier 7, Ptolemy\u2019s cluster<\/b>
\nOpen cluster in Scorpius
\nThe fact that this cluster was recorded by the ancient astronomer, Claudius Ptolemy, should tell you that it is a fairly easy naked-eye object.  Through binoculars, it has a rough \u201cX\u201d shape.  Through a telescope, it sparkles with blue-white stars.<\/p>\n

Messier 8, the Lagoon Nebula
\n<\/b>Diffuse nebula with open cluster in Sagittarius
\nThis nebula is also pretty easy to see with the naked eye as a fuzzy spot above the spout of the Sagittarius teapot.  Through binoculars or a telescope, it has a bright center that some see as an hourglass shape, surrounded by diffuse patches of nebula, and with the open cluster NGC 6530 on its eastern edge.<\/p>\n

Messier 17, the Swan Nebula
\n<\/b>Diffuse nebula in Sagittarius
\nThis high contrast emission nebula has the shape of a swan floating on a pond in profile.  Its shape can even be seen in binoculars (though it appears upside-down from the northern hemisphere).  It is also called the Omega Nebula or the Horseshoe Nebula.<\/p>\n

Messier 22
\n<\/b>Globular cluster in Sagittarius
\nThis is one of the most spectacular globular clusters in the sky.  It is relatively nearby, and with a telescope of moderate aperture, it can be resolved to the core, with countless stars streaming out in all directions.  The Milky Way background adds to the beauty of the scene.<\/p>\n

Messier 24, the Sagittarius Star Cloud
\n<\/b>Milky Way star cloud in Sagittarius
\nOn a clear dark night, look about 5 degrees above the lid of the Sagittarius teapot, and you should see a bright patch of the Milky Way, about 1.5 degrees in diameter.   M24 is a concentrated section of the Milky Way.  With a telescope, stars by the thousands can be seen by slowly panning through this region of sky.<\/b><\/p>\n

Albireo
\n<\/b>Double star in Cygnus
\nThe star that marks the head of Cygnus the Swan is a very colorful double star that can be seen nicely through even a small telescope.  The brighter component is yellow-orange, and the dimmer component is blue.<\/p>\n

NGC 6543, Cat\u2019s Eye Nebula
\n<\/b>Planetary Nebula in Draco
\nIn addition to the Ring Nebula, this is another fine planetary nebula that is high in the sky during the summer.  It is smaller in size than the Ring, but it is brighter and has a distinct green color.<\/p>\n

NGC 6503
\n<\/b>Spiral galaxy in Draco
\nJust a few degrees from the Cat\u2019s Eye Nebula is this dwarf spiral galaxy.  It is estimated to be about 17 million light years away, and only about one-third the diameter of our Milky Way Galaxy.  It is quite elongated, and has a high surface brightness that makes it a fairly easy telescopic object.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Etalon Demonstration<\/strong><\/h1>\n

by Barlow Bob Godfrey<\/h3>\n

Editor’s note:  Members of the Society were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Bob Godfrey in June.  Barlow Bob, as he was known to everyone, was an enthusiastic amateur astronomer and solar observer.  At CSP, you could always find him near a scope pointing at the Sun, happily sharing the view with whomever passed by.  We will miss his gracious presence.<\/em><\/p>\n

Earlier in the spring, Barlow Bob submitted this article for <\/em>The Shooting Star.  It nicely reflects his knowledge of the technical details of solar observing.<\/em><\/p>\n

For many years, amateur solar astronomy icon Alan Daroff has attended the solar observing at NEAF, the Northeast Astronomy Forum. He is the senior member of our NSSP NEAF Solar Star Party solar staff.<\/p>\n

Using a prism spectroscope, he demonstrated how the parts of a modern hydrogen-alpha solar filter create a breathtaking image of the Sun. He placed the H-alpha Fabry \u2013 P\u00e9rot etalon, plus blocker and trimmer filter parts, in front of the spectroscope slit. When sunlight passes through these instruments, you observe the red H-alpha spectral line at 656.28 nanometers. <\/b><\/p>\n

At NSSP, I use the Lhires Lite high resolution grating spectroscope to recreate Alan\u2019s impressive demonstration.<\/p>\n

\"The

The Lhires Lite spectroscope with one of the filters sitting on the gnomon.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Lhires Lite spectroscope produces an unforgettable image of the solar spectra. This new product is manufactured by Shelyak Instruments, a French NEAF exhibitor. It was designed as a simple user-friendly educational resource to demonstrate spectroscopy. By moving a side lever, you can observe different parts of the spectrum through an eyepiece.The instrument can be used to observe the bright emission spectra of street lights or Geisler spectrum tubes containing different elements in their gaseous state. The dark absorption spectra of the Sun can also be observed. You would have to use the more sophisticated Lhires III high resolution spectrograph to observe and image the absorption spectra of the other stars.<\/p>\n

The Lhires Lite has a 1\/2\u201d round short metal rod attached to the top near the slit that passes light into the device. The rod is called a gnomon.  The gnomon is used to align the slit with the Sun to ensure that sunlight enters the spectroscope. To align a Lhires Lite spectroscope on a photographic tripod with the Sun, you move the spectroscope until the gnomon faces the Sun. Then you move the spectroscope until the gnomon\u2019s shadow disappears and the sunlight is passing through the slit into the spectroscope.  When sunlight reflects off of the holographic grating, it is separated into the colors of the electromagnetic spectrum.<\/p>\n

When you observe the spectra of an incandescent light bulb, you see a rainbow of colors, from red to violet. However, when you observe the solar spectra of sunlight, you see the same rainbow of colors, with hundreds of thin vertical dark lines covering every color. These dark lines are the Fraunhoffer absorption spectral lines of the solar spectra, created when elements in the stellar atmosphere absorb at specific wavelengths. These Fraunhoffer lines are the fingerprints of stars, used by astronomers to analyze the physical properties of stars and other celestial objects.<\/p>\n

Instead of holding the parts of the H-alpha etalon parts in front of the spectroscope slit with my hand, I use a holder that I designed to position the filter parts over the slit. The holder consists of three parts. Each part is a 2 \u00bd X 7\u201d rectangular shaped piece of Masonite. A four inch long notch slightly wider than the width of the gnomon notch is cut into the center of the left side of the holder. A hole is drilled into the right side, centered to hold the filter part in position over the spectroscope slit. The middle part has a hole, slightly larger than the diameter of a filter part.  The top and bottom parts have a hole, smaller than the middle part.<\/p>\n

The middle holder part is placed over the bottom holder part. Blue painter\u2019s masking tape is placed over the right and left edges. A filter is placed in the middle hole. The top holder part is placed over the middle holder part. Masking tape is placed over the right and left edges and folded over covering the three holder parts. When the three filter holder parts are held together, the filter will be securely held in place between the holder parts. This prevents damage to the filter.<\/p>\n

When viewed through the Lhires Lite spectroscope, each filter shows a different image. The etalon shows a series of thin bright H-alpha red lines separated by thin black lines, similar to a picket fence.<\/p>\n

The Fabry \u2013 P\u00e9rot etalon creates peaks and valleys of only the bright red Hydrogen \u2013 alpha electromagnetic wavelengths. This etalon consists of two pieces of flat glass separated by mica. The glass is spaced a specific and exacting distance apart. When light passes through the etalon, only the wavelengths of the red H-alpha spectral line that fits between the two glass surfaces pass through. When you observe red solar prominences through an H-alpha solar filter, you observe only the bright peaks of this red wavelength.<\/p>\n

At the 2014 NSSP \u2013 NEAF Solar Star Party, I asked WAA President Larry Faltz to place his digital point-and-shoot camera over the spectroscope\u2019s TeleVue 24 mm Panoptic eyepiece to record the image produced by three different filters through the Lhires Lite high resolution spectroscope.<\/p>\n

\"Red

Red peaks and black valleys of an H-alpha Etalon filter<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Blue

Blue peaks and black valleys of a CaK Calcium Etalon filter.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"An

An H-alpha blocker filter. This blocks the wavelengths of light above and below the dark Hydrogen-Alpha absorption spectra line. This dark line is visible at the top of the red color.<\/p><\/div>\n

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 <\/p>\n

The blocker and trimmer filter parts allow only the wavelength of the red H-alpha spectra line to pass, blocking the other lines. You see the dark Fraunhoffer absorption line with only thin lines of bright red color on either side of this dark line, or no color over large areas.<\/p>\n

Please attend NEAF and experience this unique educational spectroscopy demonstration at NSSP.<\/p>\n

For further information, please visit<\/p>\n