Look Up! September 2008 HantsAstro.org
ISSN 1758-2210
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ancient light modern insight
news | reviews | views | what’s on | out there
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Butser Ancient Farm under a dark sky... Butser Ancient Farm is naturally shielded from the worst of the light pollution from three sides. It is ideal for deep sky observing and imaging and getting the best out of your telescope. Skies have been recorded here down (so far!) to Magnitude 20.7 per ArcSecond, and are as good as the West Country or the Norfolk Coast. For only £4 per session you can experience dark skies in a tranquil and safe setting. If it’s cold, a warm and welcoming fire awaits you in the ancient roundhouse.
Just off the A3, south of Butser Hill, and 10 miles north of Portsmouth it has easy access from all points of the compass, and is an hour and a half from London, and twenty minutes from the South Coast.
For further info and to book yourself a Pass, please contact HantsAstro on 023 9261 7092 or by e-mail: subscribe@hantsastro.org TM
Cover: Butser Ancient Farm - Night Imaging by Graham Green during 11th Sept 2008 the first meeting of HantsAstro using a Canon EOS 350 DLSR. LXD55 SNT setup owned by Martyn Casson.You lucky man!
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contents
Hampshire is our Playground
Look Up! September 2008 edition 05 News
Page 4
View - Pleiades & Moon
Page 8
HantsAstro - Hampshire is Our Playground? TM
First Type
A new member and a new talent
Review
Page 9
Meade LXD75 Range
News
Page 11-12
Butser Ancient Farm
Page 15
Ground Control....
Page 16-18
All the fun of the fairs...
Our First Meeting!
Observing with HantsAstro for the coming year
Out There
Page 19
Look Up in September
Page 20
Astronomy in Hampshire for September
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Contacts and Details David Woods - Editor & Publisher Look Up! eZine Editorial David Woods - david.woods@hantsastro.org Web Site: - www.hantsastro.org Tel: 023 9261 7092 Fax: 023 9257 0283 Skype: iodesign Post: HantsAstro.org 11 Drift Road, Clanfield, Hants PO8 0JJ Look Up! Electronic Magazine is published 1st of the month ISSN 1758-2210 This eZine is published on behalf of the HantsAstro.orgTM. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Editor, Publisher, Sponsors or Advertisers of HantsAstro,org. HantsAstroTM is a society member of the Federation of Astronomical Societies (www.fedastro.org.uk). Where Links take you to other sites, the Editor, Publisher and Webmaster cannot be held responsible for the content of those sites. HantsAstro.orgTM and Look Up! eZine and related devices are protected by registered copyright ©2008 All Rights Reserved. HantsAstroTM a trading name of I.O Design Limited. No reproduction of any material is permitted without express permission of the owners.
Ancient Light, Modern Insight. Welcome to the start of our very first season! It’s set out to be a very busy month, although August wasn’t exactly quiet. Last month’s magazine was well received and sets the standard, so in this issue we introduce a few new friends take a look at some free software and the range of LXD75 telescopes. Starting the 10th of September our programme commences right after our three-day visit to the Herstmonceux Astronomy Fair. Our first meeting on the 11th of August has given us some ideas on what to do and how to do it. We’re even taking a small foray into Radio Astronomy and have bought a Scanner and Antenna! Then there was our (damp) visit to The SouthWest Astronomy Fair in Sidmouth. Our aim is to cover every facet of astronomy and leave out the bits that are too heavy going. Think of us as astronomy lite; that’s the point, as astronomers we all deal with ancient sunlight, photons that have travelled millions of miles, and it’s what you do with it when it arrives here that counts. So turn up sometime at one of our observing sessions, and we’ll show you what you can do when it does.
David Woods: Founder HantsAstro.org
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NEWS
HantsAstro in September
A very busy month ahead. Hampshire is our playground? As we now enter our sixth month the group continues to go from strength to strength. At the time of writing we now have 60 members, with more joining weekly. We have also had 62 membership forms downloaded from our website. This truly is a fantastic response with over 2200 people visiting the website this month from 32 different countries worldwide and from over 80 towns and cities in the UK alone. To try and illustrate what we are about at the beginning, we said that ‘Hampshire is our playground’, this somehow seems a little obsolete as we now have members from all over the UK and Europe. It really has become an international experience. What’s in a name? We really have gone beyond Hampshire, although the vast majority of observing will be done here with our two observing sites at Winchester and Chalton. However, because we are the UK’s first web-based astronomy group, I think we need to reflect the cosmopolitan flavour of what we are achieving. With this in mind I’d like to propose a simple competition; to come up with a new strapline to go with our logo that identifies us as an astronomy
group without boundaries. Several of us have been scratching our heads over this and we thought it would be more fun to open up this challenge to everyone. As an extra incentive we are offering a brand new copy of Infocus Red Shift 6.0 Premium Edition Planetarium software worth £100 for the best strapline that reflects what we do as a group. Two Phillips Planispheres will also be given as runner-up prizes. The competition is open to anyone out there, and since it’s all free most definitely no purchase is necessary! Perseid Watch 11th of August 2008 This was done as a prelude to our observing programme which starts on the 10th of September 2008. Despite the threat of big fluffy clouds and possible rain everyone was amazed to see small holes appear in the cloud base, which revealed the night sky and several objects were seen. As usual Graham and his binoculars came up trumps by locating the Andromeda Nebula and several other objects, which prove that Butser Ancient Farm is the right choice for a dark skies site. Steve Dyer lit a welcoming fire in the giant Roundhouse for us and all the members walked round the site to familiarise themselves. On the night 14 members turned up for what turned out to be a great first evening, and we look forward to working with the Butser Ancient Farm team again soon.
As a group we will also be attending various public events at the farm, from time to time, to promote ourselves and to show how our group works. We can’t wait to go back there – and of course, we will be! Every month starting in September we will be utilising the site for deep sky observing and astronomy imaging. We have already started on the Butser Ancient Farm ‘list’ and have dropped off some tools and other implements that have been gratefully received. I have managed to secure two sources of horse manure but as yet have been unable to locate any trailers! I suppose in this case it really is - where there’s muck there’s brass... If anyone knows of any trailers that are suitable for this task could you please get in touch with me, as this is now an ideal time to arrange such things. My thanks also go out to Simon Tribe of the Horndean and District Amateur Radio Club (www.hdarc. co.uk) for his support and advice. A lot of information was also gathered from www.stargazerslounge.com and I thank everyone who participated on the ‘Perseid Radio’ thread. Radio Astronomy As a result of this, a scanner has been purchased for the group and we will be experimenting with recording meteor showers as well as other radio
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NEWS astronomy targets. This is one part of astronomy that has been overlooked by many people as it’s considered too technical, however, as I have discovered, the elemental parts of this amateur science are actually quite accessible. Without sounding too nerdy it really is quite fun! It’s possible to tune in to the International Space Station on 145.800 megahertz and listen to them if they are broadcasting. It’s also possible to detect various satellite transmissions and, with the right software, download weather maps from various weather satellites that are stationary overhead. This will help us with our clear skies campaign, and we will be able to post these graphics on our website on a regular basis starting in October. As part of our story we will also be attempting to build a small portable radio telescope which we can use to conduct various experiments. If anybody wants to get involved in forming a team to do this I would be only too happy to assist. HantsAstro Observer Last month saw the first edition of our Observer newsletter. Exclusively for full members, this newsletter will contain information on what we’ve done, what we are about to do and other astronomical information. So if you haven’t done so already, please fill in and return your membership form and we will add you to the mailing list! The ‘Futuregroup’ As you can see we now have several new sponsors for our group and hopefully this will explain to many people how we are able to do the things we do. As a group and as an individual, synergy is the most important aspect of how we can explore and grow. HantsAstro is very committed in creating partnerships and synergies with like-minded people and businesses so that we all may benefit from what we learn from astronomy. Astronomy is a multifaceted science which touches our daily lives in more ways than we
can imagine, and it is this viewpoint we are trying to explore and inform. Light Pollution Light pollution is very serious on the south coast of England, but rather than bleat about it, in December we intend to start imaging the county of Hampshire from the air for dark sky sites. As a by product of that, we will also be identifying areas of strong light pollution, some that are obvious and others less so. Instead of complaining about light pollution perhaps it’s better if we visually show people via the website exactly what is going on in their area. Education is the best tool in order to change things, 400 years ago there was little if any light pollution, which is why so many great discoveries were made with quite rudimentary instruments. Along with the British weather astronomers have much to contend with, but turning off the light is far easier and more controllable. With energy prices the way they’re going it looks like the time is right to tell people to turn it off! Perhaps dark skies will come sooner than you think, but not necessarily for the reasons we would like them to be. Christmas is coming Okay, so shoot me. Sorry to mention it, but not only do we have dark skies to enjoy but also the onslaught of the Christmas rush. To make things a little easier, over the next three issues we
will be running a series on what to look for in your next telescope. Whether it’s first time out or upgrading we will be covering a range of telescopes from the £120 to £1500 range. Please send in your requests for any telescopes or accessories you’d like reviewed, and we’ll see what we can do. International Year of Astronomy 2009 I would welcome some suggestions on what you would like to do for next year as we need to start planning for this now. Suggestions so far are a Star Party and some ‘sidewalk’ astronomy. Both things we are geared up to do as a group. As ever, I wish you Dark Skies.
David Woods HantsAstro.org
Herstmonceux
Special Festival offer!
Our Red LED Key Fob, usuallly £3.49 is avaliable at the show for £2.50! A saving of 99p! Amazed? Very nearly! All our Core Team members have them and they are ideal for keeping your eyes dark adapted while checking Star Maps and the like. Available from our stand.
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Advertisement
solar eclipse On 22nd July 2009 the world will witness the longest total solar eclipse in over a century - the likes
of which will not be seen again for another 100 years. Many Eclipse enthusiasts are planning to go to China to view the event and several China tours that include the Eclipse have recently appeared on the market. The most characteristic feature of your eclipse tour is viewing the eclipse in a private site, how did you manage to do that? Chartering private sites is not easy in China and we have made use of our extensive local networks to achieve this. After short-listing several locations along the Central-line between Shanghai and Hangzhou, finding our own site was an intricate process. In selecting the most suitable location, we worked with the Beijing’s Central Astronomy Department and drew from NASA research. Although the Umbral Shadow covers a vast area, many places are either unsuitable due to their proximity to large cities (thus pollution and tall buildings) or belong to the government and can not be used. Our site will be exclusive to our guests: Managed flat grassland, with available cover in case of rain and with the added beauty of a pond and traditional pavilion. As it is our own site, it is also possible to arrange refreshments while we wait for the eclipse. There are a few public spaces such as along the coastline, which other tour operators have chosen. We have avoided such locations as we expect tens of thousands of local people to flock them on the eclipse day, thus they will be very crowded.
Why are you featuring the Tidal Bore as well? Tidal Bores are a rare phenomena resulting from the gravitational pull of the sun and moon that are not yet fully explained by science and are found in only a few locations around the world. When deciding on the best viewing location for the Eclipse, our local researchers suggested the Qiantang Tidal Bore as an additional option. Both the Eclipse and the Tidal Bore happen to fall on the 15th day of Chinese lunar calendar, thus we developed the idea of combining the two natural phenonmum into one tour. Are other tour operators offering Eclipse packages? Due to the popularity of this event, other operators, who traditionally specialise either in astrology tours or China have constructed Eclipse packages. Many of them however are taking spectators to the public beaches so have probably not inspected the sites or studied the area. Since we introduced the Tidal Bore as an added feature, other tour operators have done the same. With some however, the location and timing is unsuitable – we have seen at least one operator arrange to take their guests to the Tidal Bore the day before the Eclipse. We know for a fact that the monthly tidal movement will not occur the day before, so they may have some disappointed customers! Oriental Travel is a China specialist. What is the company background? In addition to cultural travel and holidays, as a niche tour operator and China specialist for over 8 years, we have worked with many organisations including charities, schools and government departments and have pioneered specialist tour themes such as modern art, geography and traditional gardens. The 2009 Eclipse has provided us with a fantastic one-
off opportunity offer tours that show China in an exciting and vibrant way, along side the stunning natural events. Are you offering just one Eclipse itinerary? No. In addition to the Eclipse and Tidal Bore, which is available as a tour on it’s own, we are now operating several departures which also include the ancient capitals of Beijing and Xian, the Great Wall, UNESCO sites like the Summer Palace andTerracotta Warriors and other the famous locations like the Three Gorges. How is the market reaction? Much better than we expected – we originally planned to operate two tours only but due to demand from people wanting to see more of China as well as the Eclipse, we have extended this to 6. Numbers are limited due to using a private Eclipse location however and places on the tours are filling up quickly. The Total Solar Eclipse viewing takes place in July 2009. Interested Parties can visit Oriental Travel’s dedicated solar eclipse tour website: http://solar-eclipse.orientaltravel.co.uk or call on 0207 6324550 (Greg Stoneham) for a copy of their brochure.
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INTRO
Dorking now has on its high street an exciting new store
for all you astronomy people out there! It’s called Astronomia. In the same mould as an Apple store, it provides a funky vibrant and fresh atmosphere which perfectly reflects the sort of telescopes currently on sale there. As official stockists of Celestron, Meade and Orion Optics, Neil Philipson’s store pretty much covers most of the bases for anyone starting out in astronomy or looking to upgrade their existing kit. There aren’t that many places in the
How high is that?
South where you can walk in and get specialist advice, which is why we have teamed up with them. Astronomia will be assisting us by supplying telescopes and various accessories for review from time to time. A comprehensive range of telescopes is always on display in the store, as well as binoculars and interestingly, globes, which is a nice touch.
As a keen astronomer himself you may see Neil turning up at a few of our observing sessions with his current weapon of choice, which currently is a 12 inch Meade LightBridge or his own Meade ETX 90. Although, I did see Neil eyeing up the Skywatcher 12 inch FlexTube Dobsonian, recently delivered to the store that collapses down for portability.
If you get a chance pop into the store and prepare to be impressed!
Actually, we could do with one (or two) ourselves! - DW
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Pleiades (M45) and Moon Martin Saban-Smith LMPA Location: My Light Polluted back garden looking approx north west.
Moon: Date: 12th March 2008. Scope: 8” f/5 1000mm newtonian. Camera: Canon EOS 5D and 2X Barlow. Shutter Speed: 1/100 ISO: 1250. Processing: Photoshop CS2 for levels etc., Pleiades: Date: 9th March 2008. Camera: Canon EOS 5D mounted on motorised EQ mount.. Lens: 76300mm @ 250mm. Aperture: f/5.6. Shutter Speed: single 69 second exposure ISO: 1000. Processing: Levels etc in Photoshop CS2, exposure edited in 32bit for background stars. Image reprocessed in 32bit for nebula information. LP removed and star colour enhanced using Noel Carboni’s Photoshop actions. Used several different layers for nebulosity so not to ‘blow-out’ the main stars. Overall Processing: Seeing as the moon was heading for an occultation with the Pleiades on 12th March, I took the picture of the Pleiades a few days in advance of the event and the moon on the date and time of the event… processed the images as above and then blended the two resulting images together using the faint stars visible from the moon image as guides for accurante rotation and placement over the background image.The final image of the Pleiades shows more nebulosity, but slightly too much, so I toned it down a bit for the final presentation. Check out Martin’s other experiments into astrophotography on his web-site and astro-blog at http://www.m109.co.uk
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REVIEW Words: David Woods
Meade LXD75 Telescope Range £699 - £1159 SN6-SN8-SN10 AR5/6 & SC8-AT Overview The Meade LXD range got off to a bit of a bad start several years ago. Originally the 55 series suffered from a number of design faults which have now been addressed in the 75, but unfortunately the stigma of such mistakes remain. However, after much research I purchased one myself last year when I was at Herstmonceux and managed to pick up the tube assembly for £150 and the LXD mount with AutoStar for just over £400. StarGPS Since then I have added StarGPS so I can position the telescope to track more accurately. I also purchased a cheap Panasonic Tough Book (rugged laptop) via eBay to run the software for a Meade DSI colour camera. It really is that kind of a system (read addictive). The optics even through this most basic of tube were outstanding, and while I hankered after the more expensive models in the range, this was quite a revelation. The only thing I could criticise on it was the focuser, as it seems quite cheap. I have since been spoilt by William Optics focusers so I feel an upgrade coming on. These telescopes are designed for imaging as well as visual observation, and are an obvious step up from a start telescope.
LXD 75 N-6
A range of speeds The telescopes range from f/4- f/5 for the reflectors and f/8-f/9 for the refractors, which means they are great at deep sky observing, even with small apertures. The SCT version runs at f/10, due to its folded up light path. This can be corrected with a focal reducer which could take it down as low as f/6. AutoStar The ubiquitous AutoStar, once mastered, is quite easy to use if not intuitive. Once connected to a PC it becomes a very easy imaging platform to use. Although for a beginner I would shy away from a Meade DSI camera at present as it is somewhat frustrating to use! Astrophotography is great but as they say, your mileage will vary. I bought this telescope with a view to long-term ownership and so far it has not disappointed. The addition of StarGPS improves the tracking of objects, by instantly adding in time date and position data. Once set and the telescope properly aligned, you can settle down and enjoy a tour of the night sky. LXD75 Mount ant Tripod The ability of the mount to accept a different range of telescopes and calibrate them accordingly adds to this platform’s versatility. While it’s no
LXD 75 SN-6
Vixen Mount, it tracks accurately and is quieter than the Celestron CG-5 GT Mount, tested a couple of months back. A number of owners also have a small Meade ETX to complement this setup. What no one tells you with a GOTO mount, is that sometime setting up is a hit or miss affair. In this case with an Equatorial Mount, good polar alignment is necessary. On an ETX being an alt-azimuth design, it just requires alignment between certain stars to ascertain its position. Importantly because of its versatility it can be used often, which is ultimately what makes any scope either good or bad value. Next Year Next year, I will be planning to hyperdrive the Mount, which entails stripping it down and rebuilding it with new components for more precision tracking and quieter operation. I believe this mount is worth that kind of effort, and can only extend its performance and lifespan. Overall a solid purchase decision and one that can be built upon for several years to come. Cont’d
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Meade LXD75 Telescope Range £699 - £1159 SN6-SN8-SN10 AR5/6 & SC8-AT
Buying Advice:
LXD75 AR-5
LXD75 AR-6
This range of telescopes is often overlooked, probably as it sits pricewise, in middle-ground. However, as a platform for improving your astrophotography or visual observing, it offers a wide range of abilities. The Schmidt Newtonian telescope is not produced by any of the other mainstream manufacturers. The LXD75 Mount and tripod was substantially reworked from the 55 model as this was considered too flimsy. All other telescopes are supplied with the AutoStar controller and can be controlled by all major planetarium software packages. As standard, it has access to over 30,000 objects in the night sky. The refractor optics are truly excellent as far as achromatic refractors go, while the Newtonian’s surprise is their ability to perform in astrophotography. In fact the Schmidt Newtonian design is effectively a simpler version of a Schmidt-Cassegrain, so favoured by Astro photographers in general. The 10 inch version of this is rated at f/4 which means it’s extremely fast, a prerequisite for imaging. Unfortunately, the SN10 version of this telescope has earned a reputation for being a little too big for this LXD mount. The 8 inch SC8-AT and the SN8 proved popular as well as the AR-5 and AR-6 refractor. The earlier plain vanilla 6 inch Newtonian was quietly dropped from the range as it did not have AutoStar. The LX90 8 inch SCT is £400 more expensive than the 8 inch LXD75
LXD75 SN-10 SCT version, which is essentially similar optically bar a few subtle differences. The main difference being the LXD is a German mount and the fact that the new LX90 offers what is being touted as an advanced coma free optic design. For most people an 8 inch telescope is all you’ll ever need, and at £1159 it allows you to do pretty much all you need to.
LXD75 SC8-AT
NEXT MONTH Your next telescope. Exclusive HantsAstro buyers Guide series Oct-Nov-Dec issues
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Subscribe@hantsastro.org
Ever wondered what the ‘D’ in LXD means? It means Digital. And if you’re serious about getting into any form of astrophotography then an equatorial wedge or German equatorial mount is really the only way to go. The Meade LXD75 range allows you to pick the right setup for your kind of astronomy without breaking the bank, and allows you to develop your skills. I picked up a 6 inch OTA £150, and am now looking for a LXD75 refractor to match. This system allows you to explore, what more could you want? - DW
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NEWS
Herstmonceux Astronomy Festival 5-7th September 2008 This annual event is not to
be missed and is getting better every year. Based near Hailsham, East Sussex this observatory has a rich astronomical history and is close the Castle itself which is also worth a visit. I got a great bargain last year in the form of my LXD75 6” OTA, so there are deals to be had at the trade stalls before we get down to what is hopefully going to be a season of dark clear skies! HantsAstro will be attending the festival throughout and will be exhibiting there.
Come and meet some of the team and see some of our telescopes. We will be offering free advice on purchasing your next (or first!) telescope. If you haven’t signed up for our observing sessions then we will have the forms, of course. On Friday & Saturday nights we will be observing, if the weather permits. So hope to see you there for what promises to be a great event, and myself and the team look forward to meeting you! - DW
Special Festival offer!
Our Red LED Key Fob, usuallly £3.49 is avaliable at the show for £2.50! A saving of 99p! Amazed? Very nearly! All our Core Team members have them and they are ideal for keeping your eyes dark adapted while checking Star Maps and the like. Available from our stand.
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Review
South-West Astronomy Fair The Norman Lockyer Observatory just outside of Sidmouth has a rich historical past.
Every year their Astronomy Fair gives people a chance to visit the Observatory and attend many interesting talks. It gave HantsAstro an opportunity to meet Steve Graham from First Light Optics and some members of our favourite forum, stargazerslounge.com. Even though the weather was truly atrocious it did not put people off attending, as the car park was pretty full by the time we left. A tour of the Dome’s revealed some very interesting telescopes and the history to go with them. If you think their telescopes look impressive now imagine what they were like a century ago! Sidmouth is not the easiest place to get to, but the Norman Lockyer Observatory is certainly worth the trip in any weather. Steve Graham of First Light Optics showed me some of the latest
slick accessories to operate your telescope, in the form of a new series of moonlite focusers with their shiny anodised finishes. A review of these are planned for a later issue. A number of other exhibitors were also there and there were several interesting items that caught my eye. My credit card was twitching but is currently on life support so I decided against purchasing anything, for now.
9th
August 2008
What was interesting was the free planetarium show which took place several times during that day. It reminded me very much of the presentations that you can experience at the Sir Patrick Moore Planetarium in Chichester, West Sussex. The projection equipment there was older but no less effective in sharing the delights of the night sky and how it works. More information about them can be found on http://www. projects.ex.ac.co.uk
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Norman Lockyer Observatory Pictures: Graham Green
The NLO is a unique slice of 19th and early 20th Century technology that still works. The sheer scale of these instruments show how far small telescopes have come in the last 100 years. The NLO stopped scientific work in 1962. Since 1984, it has been run by East Devon District Council. Right: The 60-seat James Lockyer Planetarium was one the first of the buildings the Society commissioned In 2005 a larger and more elaborate American instrument was given to them by the Royal Observatory, Greenwich.
Above: The site has expanded over time to include four domes and the Planetarium. The main building now has several rooms for lectures, meetings and amatuer astronomical work such as radio astronomy, meteorolgy events, like the South West Astronomy Fair. Below: Built in 1885, this Kensington Telescope is a spectrograph and a ‘scope, so that stars could have their colur spectrum identified, this provides useful infomation such as temperature, compostition and speed. The very first form of astro-photography I guess as it used light sensitive glass plates to record the stars spectrum like a narrow strip.
Above: Dating from 1871, this Lockyer Telescope is a 6.25-inch refractor and is the oldest telescope on the site. It is the same instrument Lockyer used to discover and name the element Helium.
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Discover Astronomy Starting 10th September 2008, HantsAstro
will be offering the chance to get involved in astronomy for free, in the grounds of the INTECH Science Centre & Planetarium, every fortnight through to April 2009. TM
This unique collaboration is the first of its kind in the UK. With a choice of 6 telescopes from small refractors and reflectors to large Dobsonians, we can show you the beauty of the universe from within the grounds of one of the most exciting places in Hampshire. This offers you a chance to view the wonders of the night sky
completely free of charge. By registering for free
you will be able to join in and develop the experience of using telescopes to discover more about our solar system and the universe, and meet other people who share their interest in this rewarding amateur science pursuit. Numbers are strictly limited, so book your place now by registering for a free pass from
subscribe@hantsastro.org or by phoning 023 9261 7092 for more details.
Hands on.
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Hampshire is our Playground
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NEWS
A Meteor trail. As if.
11 Aug 2008 @Butser Our first night out nearly
didn’t happen. The weather report was forecasting rain that evening with the cloud getting thicker by the hour until about 6 p.m. I had already prepared an e-mail to send out to everyone calling the night off. Then thin patches of sky started to appear. Two hours later at the site the Core Team members gathered and set up the equipment. And we waited for the night sky to draw upon us. The thin patches of cloud started to break up and a few stars started to pop through the cloud. It looked promising and we were not disappointed! By 10pm it was getting quite dark and many objects were seen in the sky through small breaks in the cloud. It was originally intended to be a meteor watch, but this year the shower peak actually came unexpectedly a day later than was originally predicted, therefore due to the cloud and the bright moon we would not have seen much anyway. This lateness is similar to the event that happened in 1999. Could it be the Earth passes through parent comet (109P Swift-Tuttle) meteoroid tail later as it has changed it’s passage? I’m sure we’ll find out soon. We eventually wrapped things up at 11.40pm and by the time we finished unpacking back at base it started raining just an hour later. That was a close call indeed. The night was considered a success and enjoyed by everyone who attended. I’m glad it wasn’t called off and some important lessons in communication were learnt that night. One thing it proves is, it doesn’t matter how much you plan something the weather always has the final say... or does it? On the 12th it was a stunningly clear night and the meteor showers peaked, the next morning, allegedly. Doh! - DW
Setting up and keeping a weather eye
10” Dobsonian ignores the fluff... ...as does 100mm binoculars properly mounted
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ground control....
Butser Ancient Farm For Butser Ancient Farm the emphasis is for using your own equipment for DSO and CCD imaging work, in a safe and tranquil environment. It is an ideal place to develop your astronomy skills with others.
Access is from the A32, A272, A3 and the A27/M27. Postcode: PO8 0BG Our equipment for use is tailored to reflect the use of this site and is subject to change.
BUTSER Ancient Farm Only skyglow issue is mostly cloud dependant, but mainly shielded from Bascomb Copse/Windmill Hill, and Butser to the north. Low buildings, only small light source of note is from Red Lion Pub, Chalton 1 mile away, shielded by hillock. Excellent vistas. 19.520.5 mag/per arc second average, Mag 20.76 best in total darkness perfect for deep sky observing, CCD astrophotography and video-astrophotography. Toilets and Hot refreshments available. First Aid Kit + Fire Extinguisher. Large site, easy access and parking for 100 cars. Groups own light red LED safety markers. Site pass - ÂŁ4.00 per session. TimeShift available with notice once a month at present.
Site Equipment Vixen A70lf Refractor f/12.9 Solar/Planetary Skywatcher SkyMax102 Maksutov f/12.7 Solar/Planetary Skywatcher Explorer 130 Reflector with RA drive f/6.9 General / Nebula Skywatcher 150P Reflector f/5 Photo/DSO Revelation 10 250mm Dobsonian f/4.9 DSO/ Nebula/ Planetary/Afocal Meade DSI+ Laptop for imaging Binoculars 10x50mm 15x70mm
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ground control....
Observing @ INTECH For the INTECH site the emphasis is on hands on practical astronomy of all types and for all levels of astronomers. We plan to meet every tuesday/thursday on the 1st & 3rd week of every month The location offers easy access from major routes, A31, A32, A272, A34, M27 and the M3. Postcode: SO21 1HZ Our equipment for use is tailored to reflect the use of this site and is subject to change.
INTECH Science Centre Open ground near building, lowish light pollution with dark sky levels 17-19.2 mag/per arc second average Mag 20.07 best in total darkness. Ideal for general observing and some limited astrophotography and better than most suburban skies. Southampton Centre measures Mag 12-16 as you move out towards Winchester. Good views of North East to South. Sky Glow from Winchester in Western vista, building can also obstruct. No building access. NO toilets or facilities at present. Lights off in building by arrangement. First Aid Kit + Fire Extinguisher from HantsAstro. Groups own light red LED safety markers. Site pass – free. TimeShift available with notice, Tuesdays/Thursdays fortnightly.
Site Equipment Vixen A70lf Refractor f/12.9 Solar/Planetary Skywatcher SkyMax102 Maksutov f/12.7 Solar/Planetary Skywatcher Explorer 130 Reflector with RA drive f/6.9 General / Nebula Optrons 150/1400 Reflector with RA Drive General/Planetary 300mm INTECH Truss Dobsonian f/5.6 DSO/Nebula/Planetary Binoculars 10x50mm, 15x70mm
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ground control....
TimeShift
INTECH
BAF
Site III
September 08
9/23
11/25
1-4
22-30
1-4
22-30
October 08
7/21
9/23
1-5
20-31
1-5
20-31
November 08
4/18
6/20
1-4
20-30
1-4
20-30
December 08
2/16
4/18
1-4
19-31
1-4
19-31
January 09
6/20
8/22
1-4
17-31
1-4
17-31
February 09
3/17
5/19
1-4
16-28
1-4
16-28
March 09
3/17/31
5/19
1-4
17-31
1-4
17-31
April 09
14/28
16/28
1-4
16-30
1-4
16-30
The above table... Our plan is to run up to three sites with fortnightly observing sessions starting with INTECH on the 10th September 2008. Tuesdays/Thursdays are the planned days, the first two columns. Simple, one night gets called off go on to the next slot. The 1st & 3rd week of every month. Butser Ancient Farm observing sessions slide between those alternate weeks or are at the end of the month.The idea is only to meet and observe on clear nights. That’s why we put the dash from 1-4 or 22-30, it could be any day.... The key dates with this site are to observe when there is little or no Moon. In Blighty we have the weather gods that literally rain down upon us, so while HantsAstro might be able to claim we can avoid light pollution, clouds and bad weather are something else. But we do have one or two tricks up our sleeve. The timetable is flexible and hopefully you are too. We could offer a fixed timetable, but the weather isn’t fixed and who wants to go to a really cloudy or dew ridden site? Join our group and you will be added to a network of weather technologies that are designed to help you to predict as accurately as possible if the sky is clear. Not only that, because the sites are so close to us we can check right up to the day before, sometimes the weather is like a roll of the dice, cloud is not all bad as a good time can be had for some great views. It can be a close call. Our first meeting on the11th August proved that! It’s new, it’s tested but there is still margin for error. If you’re game, so are we.
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WHAT’S ON Talks & Seminars September 2008 Hampshire Interesting local Astronomy talks take place in the County nearly every month, so please check the relevant website for any updates and contact details. Southampton Astronomical Society September 11 AGM - See site for details www.southampton-astronomical-society.org.uk
Hampshire Astronomical Group September 12 AGM - See site for details www.hantsastro.org.uk
Basingstoke Astronomical Society Annual BBQ - See site for details www.basingstokeas.org.uk
Solent Amateur Astronomers Society September 16 - TBA Speaker - Derek Hasleden Oaklands Community Centre, Lordshill, Southampton - @ 20:00pm Cost £2 Non-members www.delscope.demon.co.uk/society/home.htm
Vectis Astronomical Society September 26 - The Tunguska Event Speaker - David Smith Oaklands Community Centre, Lordshill, Southampton - @ 20:00pm Cost £2 Non-members www.vectis-astro.org.uk
Border+ September 2008 Talks & Events across the county line. Please check relevant website for updates and contact details. INTECH Science Centre + Planetarium Winchester, Hants Cost £2 per show in addition to exhibition entry Cost - £6.95 Adults £4.65 under 14’s Check site for schedule www.intech-uk.com Southdowns Planetarium Chichester, West Sussex Various Monthly Shows Check site for details + times and booking Cost - £6 Adults £4 under 16’s www.southdowns.org.uk/sdpt Cody AS Farnborough, Hants www.codyastrosoc.co.uk Farnham AS Farnham, Surrey www.farnham-as.co.uk Guildford AS Guildford, Surrey www.guildfordas.org Newbury AS Newbury, Berkshire www.newburyas.org.uk Worthing AS Worthing, Sussex www.was.org.uk
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OUT THERE...
Planet+
Our Hampshire Sky - September 2008
September 2008
September Sky
Where the Planets are in our Solar System in September.
As summer bows down to autumn and the nights progressively become longer and darker we have the autumn equinox at 16h on the 22nd, day and night are of equal length everywhere in the world on this date. The Sun crosses the celestial equator and enters Libra at 17h on the 22nd.
Table Key RA - Right Ascension Dec - Declination Constell. - Constellation Elongation - Angle between Sun & Planet as seen from Earth Distance - From Earth in Astronomical Units (AU) = 149.598M Km Magnitude - Brightness Diameter - in ArcSeconds Phase - % Visibility of object disc
Venus now becomes visible in the evening sky. It will not be at its best until next year but its sheer brightness means that it will be a beacon in the western sky some 45 minutes after sunset.Venus and Mars lie 18 degrees away from each other on the 13th at 03h but both will be very close to the horizon and Mars will be faint – the conjunction will not be favourable. Mid-month Jupiter transits at around 20:30 and is still a jolly good object to observe. On the 9th Jupiter meets the gibbous Moon when at 22h the two will be only 3.5 degrees apart. Uranus is visible in the constellation of Aquarius and is easily seen with the aid of binoculars.
Meteors
All Data is based on 15th of the
The Piscids have a double maximum this month; on the 9th and 21st. With the Moon at 9 days old on the 9th and setting after midnight, and on the 21st a 21 day waning Moon rising at 21:47 will make viewing favourable. Expect to see 5 per hour on both dates.
month from Central Hampshire.
Next Month.
Occultation on the 20th at 03:00 – 04:19. The Moon occults several stars in the Pleiades cluster in Taurus. A good photographic opportunity.
Review of the Skywatcher SkyMax 102T Meade ETX90 Baader Hyperion EP range StarGPS GOTO upgrade News, Views and more info on our web site. www.hantsastro.org
Full Moon
The ‘Harvest Moon’ stays yellow, big and low near the horizon on the 15th giving farmers that extra hour to finish their harvest.
Solar System Data for September 2008 Objects
Sun
Mercury
Venus
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
The Moon
RA
11h32m32s
13h04m57s
13h10m26s
13h03m58s
18h54m55s
11h01m01s
23h10m29s
Dec
+02°57’51”
-10°13’46”
-06°51’30”
-06°25’43”
-23°09’05”
+08°07’26”
-03°17’41”
Leo
Virgo
Virgo
Virgo
Hercules
Leo
Aquarius
Constell. Elongation
-------
-26.5°
-26.3°
-24.7°
-110.1°
9.4°
-174.5°
1.006 AU
0.898 AU
1.472 AU
2.450 AU
4.721 AU
10.327 AU
0.376 MKm
Magnitude
-25.99
-0.34
-3.81
1.68
-2.27
0.72
-12.61
Diameter
31’48”
07”
11”
03”
41”
16”
31’46”
-------
49%
89%
98%
99%
99%
99%
Distance
Phase
Hampshire is our Playground. Now it’s yours...
If you have any suggestions for improving this star information then please e-mail: david.woods@hantsastro.org
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