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Desert Skies
Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association
Volume XLVII, Number 5, May, 2001
Contents
BEGINNERS LECTURE: May 4, 6:30 pm at the Steward Observatory Auditorium - Room N210. This month's topic is 2MASS Sky Survey by Alfredo Garcia.
GENERAL MEETING: May 4, 7:30 pm at the Steward Observatory Auditorium - Room N210. Topic is Near-Earth Objects (NEOs): The Threat & The Remedy by Greg Peisert.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING: Monday, May 14, 7:00 pm at Steward Observatory Conference room N305.
STAR PARTIES AND EVENTS:
Newsletter Schedule: Deadline for articles: Monday, May 14. Printing: Monday, May 21. Folding Party: Tuesday, May 22. Mailing: Wednesday, May23. The newsletter is scheduled to be in the mail at least one week prior to the following month's General Meeting.
Office Name Phone Email
------ ---- ----- -----
President John Kalas 620-6502 jckalas@aol.com
Vice-President Andy Cooper 795-3585 acooper@pobox.com
Secretary Jane Tongate 623-4056 triton@dakotacom.net
Treasurer Terri Lappin 579-0185 tklappin@earthlink.net
Member-at-Large Robert Callanan 818-1315 tucsonbac@aol.com
Member-at-Large Bill Lofquist 297-6653 wlofquist@aol.com
Member-at-Large Steve Peterson 326-5303 swpeterson@theriver.com
Chief Observer Wayne Johnson
Newsletter Editor George Barber 822-2392 barbergj@flash.net
Star Parties Maggie & Jeff Buzek 760-4578 jeffbuzek@aol.com
AL Correspondent Doug Smith 797-0663 Dsmith71@ix.netcom.com
Astrophoto SIG Dean Ketelsen 293-2855 ketelsen@as.arizona.edu
Computers SIG Rodger Tanner 574-3876 rtanner@seds.lpl.arizona.edu
TAAA Mission Statement
We are a resource for anyone interested in astronomy. It is our mission to nurture a person's natural curiosity about the night sky. By giving people a knowledge and understanding of astronomy, we enhance their enjoyment of the solar system and beyond. Through our public activities and school evening observing sessions, we bring astronomy to persons of all ages. Our regular meetings and observing sessions offer members a forum to meet others with similar interests and experiences and to learn from one another.
Membership in the TAAA
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Rates for membership are given above. Family Membership includes two adults plus minor children. Members may subscribe to Sky & Telescope or Astronomy magazine (or both) at the time of membership renewal, saving substantially over the regular subscription rates. To assure we understand what you are paying for, please identify which class of membership and what options you want. Send one check made payable to TAAA to cover membership dues, magazine subscription(s) and any contributions to:
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Call the Treasurer if you have any problems. Send address changes to the above address.
Desert Skies Publishing Guidelines
All articles, announcements, news, etc. must be submitted by the newsletter deadline noted above. Materials received after that date will appear in the next issue. All submissions are retained by the editor unless prior arrangements are made. Partial page article submissions should be submitted in Word compatible files via e-mail or on a floppy disk. Full page articles, artwork, and photos should be camera ready. We will not publish slanderous or libelous material! Send articles, announcements, etc. to:
or e-mail: barbergj@flash.net
Desert Skies is published monthly by the Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association, PO Box 41254, Tucson, Arizona 85717
Finally! They say the third time is the charm and it was. The third annual Telescopes for Telethon Public Star Party held on Friday, 3/30, at Sabino Canyon was extremely successful. The weather was fantastic and the public showed up in droves. As if the evening triumph was not enough, those who stayed late were treated to the most spectacular auroral display. This activity was a perfect example of how the amateur astronomy community, amateurs together with our local astronomy shops, worked side by side to support a worthwhile charity. Many thanks to those who volunteered. See the article and photos in the Club News section.
April was a fun month for the TAAA. The Kitt Peak Star-b-cue on 4/14 was a great success. The weather was terrific and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the activity. See the article and photos in the Club News section. A recap of the TAAA Annual Picnic at Vega-Bray Observatory in Benson on 4/21 will be presented in the June newsletter.
The TIMPA Project continues to move forward. For the fourth straight month, the work party to transfer the observatory support structure from Kitt Peak to TIMPA was postponed due to hazardous road conditions up on the mountain. But, like last month, volunteers went to the TIMPA Site to install the steel reinforcing bar in the footer trench for the big observatory in preparation for pouring concrete. The TIMPA Long Range Planning Sub-committee developed a nifty site layout incorporating everything that the club might want at TIMPA in the future. See the articles in the TIMPA Site News section.
As I approach the end of my tenure as president, I am very interested in finding volunteers for the last three positions that we have been seeking to fill over the last several months. The three very important tasks needing volunteers are: Holiday Party Coordinator, Beginners Lecture Coordinator and Newsletter Folding/Mailing Coordinator. Please consider helping the club. It is important to fill these three remaining positions before the new officers take office on June 1. See the article in the Club News section.
John Kalas
Beginners Lecture
2MASS Sky Survey
Alfredo Garcia
Nearly 30 years have passed since the last large-area near-infrared survey of the sky was carried out. The Two Micron Sky Survey (TMSS, 1969) scanned 70% of the sky and detected ~5,700 celestial sources of infrared radiation. Since that time, there has been a revolution in the development of infrared detector technology. New, large format, sensitive array detectors can now detect astronomical objects over 100 million times fainter than those detected in the TMSS.
The Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) project is designed to close the gap between our current technical capability and our knowledge of the near-infrared sky. In addition to providing a context for the interpretation of results obtained at infrared and other wavelengths, 2MASS will provide direct answers to immediate questions on the large-scale structure of the Milky Way and the Local Universe.
Alfredo Garcia will present this non-technical overview of the 2MASS Project and emphasize the results of the survey to date. Alfredo Garcia has been an amateur astronomer for over 39 years. A native of Texas, he now lives in Tucson and has been a TAAA member for about 4 years. In 1999, he retired from the air force after 25 years of service. He currently works at Raytheon. He holds a BS in Physics and an MS in Business Management.
Main Lecture
Near-Earth Objects (NEOs): The Threat & The Remedy
Greg Peisert
It is a strange and disquieting notion that one could be sitting quietly enjoying a sunny day, sipping tea or a lemonade at a sidewalk cafe, and at any time, an invader from space, with virtually no warning, could shatter our little portion of the world...or worse. Even a relatively small rock, 200 meters in diameter, minuscule really, on a cosmic scale, could plunge into our atmosphere completely without warning. It might never reach the ground, crushed by the aerodynamic pressure of its entry, but that would make little difference to those unfortunate enough to be anywhere near. Such an object would flatten a major city and everything around for a thousand square miles with over a thousand times the energy released in the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima. Worse, it could land in the ocean. Not only could it happen; it will. It is simply a matter of when, not if.
Our speaker for this lecture is Mr. Greg Peisert, who is visiting Tucson from Ohio. He has been involved in amateur astronomy since the age of 12, completing his first hand-ground and polished six-inch telescope at the age of 13. Mr. Peisert has degrees in Aero and Astronautical Engineering and has extensive research experience with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). He is a successful entrepreneur managing a rapidly growing information technology company, and for the past five years has been a trustee and treasurer of the Miami Valley Astronomical Society (MVAS), a 140-member society based in Dayton, OH (www.mvas.org). Mr. Peisert is also one of the founders and is Managing Director of the Near Earth Object Search Society (NEOSS, www.neoss.org), a non-profit charitable scientific and educational organization committed to raising public awareness and funding to support leading private professional and amateur initiatives to find and track all NEOs down to 150 meters in diameter, filling in the gaps in the associated search and follow-up as needed.
Election of TAAA Officers
By John Kalas
Annually, the May monthly meeting has special importance because it is when the club elects its next officers. At the April meeting, TAAA Member David Acklam offered to become a candidate for the previously open position of Vice-President. Due to the fact that David's name was not published in the April Newsletter (to meet the constitutional requirement of publicizing the slate of officers at least 30 before the elections, his name will not be preprinted on the voting ballot distributed at the May meeting. Instead, he will be considered a write-in candidate and members present will be asked to write his name on the ballot as the vice presidential candidate. The current slate of candidates is as follows:
President - Andrew Cooper
Vice President - David Acklam
Treasurer - Terri Lappin
Secretary - Jane Tongate
Members-at-Large (3)
Steve Peterson
Bill Lofquist
Robert Callanan
John Sosville
Additional nominations from the floor will be solicited at the May meeting prior to the election. Please support your club by attending the May meeting and voting for the next officers of the TAAA.
May Meeting Refreshment Coordinator Needed
Our dedicated Refreshment Coordinators, Mark and Susan Chambers, will be enjoying a well-deserved vacation during the May meeting and will not be able to bring the refreshments. We need a temporary (one month) volunteer to handle this worthy task which includes the purchase, set-up and clean up of the refreshment items; drinks and snacks. The club reimburses for the expense. Please consider helping with this task. Contact John Kalas at 620-6502 for volunteering.
June Meeting is Members Night
By John Kalas
In keeping with our tradition of setting aside every 4th club meeting for members, the June TAAA Monthly Meeting will be a Members Night. There will not be a main lecturer that month, but instead, starting at 7:30 pm, members will make short 15 to 20 minute astronomy-related presentations about projects they have been working on, topics of interest or astrophotos they may have taken. In preparation for the activity, there will be a sign-up sheet at the May meeting for members to request presentation time.
NOTE June Meeting - To Be Held in LPL Lecture Hall
The Steward Observatory Lecture Hall is slated for an upgrade next month with new projectors being installed. We have been asked to relocate our June 1st meeting since there is a possibility that the work will not be completed by the first of the month. We have arranged to use the lecture hall at the Lunar and Planetary Lab for this Members Night meeting. The LPL lecture hall is equipped with slide projectors and a computer image display. If your presentation requires other equipment, please contact Roger Tanner at rtanner@lpl.arizona.edu.
Member News
We welcome the most recent members who have joined the TAAA: John and Margaret Bianchi, Leslie "Pez" Owen, Anna Panka, Jeff Sandstrom, and Vernon B Watwood. Glad to have you join! If you haven't already, be sure to pick up a new members pack at a meeting. Hope you'll make it to our star parties or meetings so we can all get to know you.
Support Your Club
The following responsibilities are still in need of volunteers. Please consider helping the club out by offering to support the tasks. Descriptions of the tasks are as follows:
Astrophoto SIG Dinner
Thursday, 3 May, 7pm
China Rose, Rosemont/Speedway
The astrophoto special interest group will again meet the night before the May meeting. With warmer weather here and a little clear sky, I hope some of you have had the chance to get out and try taking some photos. We use these dinner opportunities to both show off our efforts and to learn from our mistakes, so show us what you've got!
Last month Steve Peterson was able to borrow a very excellent video projector from where he works and with it hooked up to a laptop was able to show some great images he had scanned. Roger Tanner used the same setup to show some of his CCD images too. It was great to see some of these electronic images for the first time at the SIG dinner and Steve hopes to be able to borrow the projector on a regular basis.
With our clearest time of the year approaching, I would like to have more hands-on activities under dark skies. Let me know what your suggestions might be, but in the meantime, I'd like to offer some demonstrations of using the ST-4 auto guider to guide telescopes. My setup will be working on my 11" Newtonian at Empire on the Saturdays of 12 and 19 May. Hope to see you out there!
Telescopes for Telethon Review
Photos and text by John Kalas
What do you get when you add hundreds of visitors, about 45 telescopes with enthusiastic operators, David and Wendee Levy, a fantastic location like Sabino Canyon and finally, a super evening weather-wise? Give up? How about a $1900 donation to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The outstanding cooperation and support from the Levy's, the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area staff, the TAAA, Starizona, Sky Works, Stellar Vision, the Flandrau Planetarium, the Planetary Sciences Institute and Coronado Instruments resulted in the kind of event that we all knew was possible. Thanks so much to all who participated.
The activity got started at about 2:30 pm in the afternoon with an impressive array of telescopes set up for solar viewing. Dean Koenig of Starizona had two refractors in operation: one with a sunspot filter and one with a Coronado Instruments H-Alpha filter. Frank Lopez from Stellar Vision had another Coronado Instruments H-Alpha telescope working and TAAA Member, Randy Quiroz, ran his 8" SCT with a sunspot filter. TAAA Members, George Barber and myself, had our scopes equipped with sunspot filters, as well. Demo Galanos, from Flandrau, shared his knowledge of the Sun with the visitors as they arrived and departed from the tram tours.
As the sun set, the telescope volunteers set up an impressive array of instruments in preparation for the evening viewing. The telescopes filled the tram loop and extended several hundred feet down the tram road toward the canyon. A terrific crowd of visitors responded to the television, radio and newspaper publicity and poured into the telescope field. David and Wendee Levy signed certificates allowing donors to unofficially rename a star of their choice. The telescope operators assisted the public in identifying the star and also signed the certificates. It was a fun way to have the visitors interact with the volunteers. The MDA, represented by Marguerite Brown, had several national MDA officers present for the event. The TAAA volunteers were joined by a large group from Sky Works who were coordinated by Steve and Sharon Koerber. Frank Lopez of Stellar Vision pulled his mobile observatory into the parking lot loop and Dean Koenig of Starizona brought out his huge 7" A/P refractor to support the evening observing. And, to top it off, Demo Galanos set up a nifty computer system with projector and sound system to show a variety of astronomy-related information to the visitors all night long.
The crowds thinned out by about 10:00 pm and many volunteers took down their equipment and headed home with the satisfaction of having contributed to a perfect activity. But wait, the show wasn't over yet. Even before the event started winding down, everyone noticed a strange red glow in the sky just above the Catalinas to the north. I remember someone saying that they thought it might be an aurora, but it wasn't very impressive. That was soon to change. At around 11:00 pm, when the last few volunteers were packing up, the northern sky exploded with an incredible auroral display. It was so sudden, that people began yelling out in their excitement. The previously unimpressive red glow over the mountaintops started stretching higher and higher into the sky. As the red glow grew, shafts of white light shot up from behind the mountains and reached as high as the red aurora. By 11:30 pm, the red glow was visible to the zenith and a full 180 degrees wide from due east to due west. The shafts of white light appeared and then disappeared at many positions in the aurora. The folks standing there watching this fantastic sight were dead tired and really wanted to go home, but were entranced by the event and could not leave. Since we were required to leave by midnight, the last few volunteers begrudgingly finished loading up their stuff as they watched the unusual sight before leaving. What an unbelievable ending to a successful and worthwhile activity.
A Telescopes for Telethon Thank-You
From David & Wendee Levy
To the members of the TAAA and T4T Volunteers,
A BIG THANK-YOU!!!!!!
Words cannot describe how much David and I appreciate all the efforts the club put into making the Annual Telescopes for Telethon fundraiser the success that it was. Third Time's the charm and this year everything came together. Mother Nature and Sabino Canyon bent over backwards to support the project, the media advertised the event beautifully, and we had hundreds of people come out to support MDA!
David said that the excitement in the air was so infectious that T4T 2001 was by far the best star party he has ever been to (That includes all the big ones like TSP). There were telescope operators representing Sky Works, Stellar Vision, Starizona, LPL, PSI, and the largest group from the TAAA. Without everyone pulling together as a team, we never could have done so well.
Congratulations! The official total for the evening was $1900!
Thank you,
Wendee & David Levy
P.S. Those of you who stayed a little longer at the Canyon got to see Mother Nature's ultimate reward for a job well done - the Aurora Borealis!
A Reward for the T4T Volunteers
By John Kalas
All of the volunteers who attended the Telescopes for Telethon activity should have received an invitation from David and Wendee Levy to celebrate the success of the event with a star party at their home in May. If you plan on attending, please RSVP to the Levy's so they can have an idea of how many will be coming. If you volunteered but did not receive an invitation, contact John Kalas at 620-6502 or jckalas@aol.com.
Kitt Peak Picnic Report
By Andrew Cooper
Good food and dark skies awaited those who climbed the mountain for the Kitt Peak Picnic. This special event is arranged so that club members can go enjoy the skies that are usually the exclusive domain of the professionals. Fears of a chilly, or even snowy, night were dispelled by a beautiful night that was only moderately cool and quite pleasant. Quite a difference from the snow covered picnic ground that was the result of the previous week's storm.
A picnic ground full of scopes waited for the sun to set. Several new members attended for their first star party, good choice! Not a cloud in the sky and most of the desert haze left behind in the valley below. As the twilight darkened Steve Ratts gave views of planets through his 7" mak-newt. Likewise, John Kalas used his refractor on Jupiter and Saturn. George Barber was there with a tax return worth of new eyepieces to try out. Dean Ketelsen explained for the millionth time how his 11" photographic scope worked. This scope does tend to draw a second take, but its innovation has been recognized by a merit award from the Riverside Telescope Makers Conference.
The night was a major milestone for myself as I celebrated first light for my 18" after a year and a half of effort. What a setting! The 18" set up for the first time under the sky with the domes of Kitt Peak behind. The first image focused was the core of the Orion Nebula. Tom Peck, who ground the mirror, and I enjoyed using it to show the sky to the crowd who gathered around every time we changed objects. The scope still needs work, but still it showed impressive detail in galaxies and nebulas as it demonstrated just what aperture can do, spiral arms and dust lanes drawing exclamations from viewers. Look for this scope at future club events!
In the end it was a shame to break down while such a beautiful sky was overhead, but those are the rules of our use of the mountain, and the moon was due to come up soon anyway. Our thanks to Richard Green and the staff at NOAO who allow us use of the facilities.
Members Participate in Judging Science Fair
By Bill Lofquist
This year the Southern Arizona Regional Science and Engineering Fair was held at the Tucson Community Center on March 20. Of the many dozens of projects entered in the Fair by Tucson area students from the elementary through high school grades, there were more than a dozen that focused on astronomy or astronomy related topics. All of the students did a very fine job of exploring their chosen subjects, and several of them were quite impressive in both their methodology and findings.
TAAA members Terri Lapin, John Polacheck and Bill Lofquist were present to review the projects and select four for special recognition through a prize. The prizes were contributed by Dr. Ed Vega of Skywatcher's Inn, Starizona and TAAA.
Those projects selected were as follows: TAAA member Rhiannon Scott, who attends Emily Gray Junior High School, presented her very thorough research entitled "Analyzing Astronomical Images in an Attempt to Locate and Identify Brown Dwarfs." "The purpose of this research was to search for brown dwarfs that might be companions to nearby stars. Using the Bok 2.3 meter telescope on Kitt Peak and the U of A Pices infrared camera, I collected infrared images of the stars GL 190 and LHS 1731." Rhiannon found an object near GL 190 that may be a brown dwarf, but concluded that further research is needed to confirm the identity of the object. The presentation of her methodology and the recording of the steps she used was thorough and impressive. Her teacher is Kathy Friedman.
A second project was presented by Zachary Muller, student at Salpointe Catholic High School. His project was entitled "Denting the Earth: Formation of Impact Craters." His project "attempts to discern the relationship between a falling object's mass and velocity to the depth and width of a crater it forms by dropping chrome ball bearings into sand from different heights." He related the results of his tests to Meteor Creator and was able to find and discuss discrepancies in them. His teacher is Tim Barry.
A third project was the work of Tom Carsten, a student at Catalina Foothills High School. His subject was "The Search for Extra-Solar Planetary Systems." The abstract of his project states "The search for extra-solar planetary systems is one of the most difficult observational problems in astronomy today. Currently there are two main methods for detecting extra-solar planets, the Doppler Shift Method and the Transit Method. Both methods work; however, which one is the better method?" Tom discussed each of these methods and gave his perspective on the strengths and weaknesses of each. His teacher is Ann Marie Condes.
These students and their teachers are to be congratulated for their fine work. We appreciate the generosity of Dr. Vega and Starizona for their contributions to the recognition of these students and their work.
Grand Canyon Star Party
16-23 June, 2001
This year's event is slowly growing nearer - only 6 weeks away. Hopefully, all of you who are attending have made your arrangements. For those of you who might not have considered coming, think hard about making the trip, perhaps making a long weekend of it. It is a great event and a chance to see amateurs from both the region and across the country. And if you've not heard John Dobson's twilight talk you really ought to - he might seem like he is going to be around forever, but as he is in his mid-80s, take advantage of the chance. Guaranteed the 6-hour drive is worth it!
For my regulars and newcomers alike, I'm organizing the twilight talks. As always, we need some entertainment to keep the public occupied while it gets dark enough to observe. Slide projector is supplied, talent is up to you! We need about 30-40 minutes (though the opportunity to combine several smaller talks exists) on an astronomical topic at an elementary level (literally - about 4th grade level). Let me know and I'll give you the spotlight!
Dean Ketelsen 293-2855
Websites: Trips on the Internet Super-Skyway
Rik Hill
Quick Astroimaging without a mortgage.
More and more amateur astronomers are exploiting the electronic revolution. Because of thrift and the ever-increasing cost of our telescope-toys, devices designed for totally different uses are now being put to good astronomical use. One of the most impressive examples of this I've seen lately is from Antonio Cidadao at: http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/5409/qc_index.html
He uses the golf ball-like little camera called QuickCam. With minor adaptations (detailed on his page and others I will list here) this little camera can be readily adapted for astronomical use. On the second half of his page are links to his images. His lunar images are very nice. He has been able to make a 3-D image of the full moon plus a nice montage of the full moon at apogee and perigee. Individual features are highlighted with his various telescopes are listed as you go down the page. They just get better and better. He is currently working on an interactive Atlas of Moon composed of images obtained with the B/W QuickCam. These are not the highest quality amateur images of the moon, probably not even for the aperture. But I'll bet they are for the cost!
The imaging of Antonio's that I found most interesting and hypnotic were images of his at: http://www.astrabio.demon.co.uk/QCUIAG/ac/lunat01.htm
This is an animation of an entire lunation (lunar day cycle) that he took with a 4" f/10 Schmidt-Cass. at f/6.3. The first thing you notice is the changing phases. While these are nice there are two other things going on. First there's the libration or wobbling of the moon as we see different portions of it as it goes around in its orbit. Then there's the more subtle change in size as we go from perigee to apogee and back. A very nice piece of work with modest equipment!
Other amateur astronomers have modified and used the QuickCam for astroimaging. There's the work done with a 4.5" reflector by one amateur at: http://www.vub.ac.be/STER/www.astro/AstroCCD/AstroQC.htm Unfortunately a large number of his links are no good so be prepared if you go searching.
The Lance Hill Observatory has been doing a lot of work with the QuickCam as well. You can see this at: http://www.geology.ewu.edu/jpb/lho/lho.htm
and browse their excellent list of links at: http://www.geology.ewu.edu/jpb/lho/links.htm
As always, if you know of a particularly good website you would like mentioned here, drop me a line at rhill@lpl.arizona.edu or visit my website at: http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/~rhill
Congratulations, Michael Magee!
Michael Magee, Director of the Flandrau Planetarium, has been honored for his two decades of service to public science education by having an asteroid named after him. An asteroid discovered in 1990 has been officially named "Mikemagee" by the International Astronomical Union's Committee for Small Body Nomenclature. Michael started his career at Flandrau in 1981 as a student employee. After graduating in 1983, he joined the planetarium staff permanently and served as a technician, production assistant, and operations manager and was named director last year. Congratulations, Michael, for the well-deserved recognition.
Messier Marathon Success!
By Andrew Cooper
This year's All Arizona Messier Marathon was a spectacular success. A beautiful night under the stars shared with our friends from around the state. A total of 25 marathoners scored a perfect 110. TAAA members who got all of them include: Jim & Delia Brix, Andrew Cooper, Dean Ketelsen, Sam Rua, and Doug Smith. For many of us this was not our first attempt and the practice of previous marathons paid off. Other high scores included Kevin Bays with 108, Steve Ratts with 107, Bill Lofquist with 105, Pat Heimann with 51. Impressive, as some of these guys were doing this for the first time and had never tried to locate many of the messier objects before. The awards and certificates will be presented at the May meeting. In total there were 91 observers with 79 scopes set up and waiting for the dark. Some came from far away to join us under Arizonan skies including places like Colorado, New Jersey, Oregon, Ohio and Ontario. Not all of these were crazy enough to join in the marathon, but came to enjoy a dark night in the company of fellow observers.
Thanks must go to AJ Crayon and the others from SAC who arranged all of the little details a major star party requires, up to and including the port-a-john. Even more thanks must go to Ray Farnsworth for allowing us use of his property and insuring the road in was passable. With the recent rains the observing field was not as dusty as years past and quite enjoyable.
For more details, including the official results, you can go to http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/results.html, or read AJ's report at http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/az01res.txt
A beautiful Arizonan night, good company and dark skies. Just what a star party should be.
DARK SKIES (no twilight, no moonlight) for Tucson in 24-hour MST: 18=6pm,20=8pm, 22=10pm, 0=12am
RISE, SET, VISIBILITY for sun and bright planets: rise for morning object, s=et for evening object
Mo/Tu 30/ 1 2:07 - 4:08 Fr/Sa 11/12 20:45 - 23:21 Mo/Tu 21/22 20:55 - 3:46
Tu/We 1/ 2 2:49 - 4:07 Sa/Su 12/13 20:46 - 0:08 Tu/We 22/23 20:56 - 3:45
We/Th 2/ 3 3:28 - 4:06 We/Th 23/24 20:57 - 3:45
Th/Fr 3/ 4 4:03 - 4:04 Su/Mo 13/14 20:47 - 0:49 Th/Fr 24/25 21:18 - 3:44
Fr/Sa 4/ 5 - - - Mo/Tu 14/15 20:48 - 1:26 Fr/Sa 25/26 22:20 - 3:43
Sa/Su 5/ 6 - - - Tu/We 15/16 20:49 - 2:00 Sa/Su 26/27 23:16 - 3:43
We/Th 16/17 20:50 - 2:32
Su/Mo 6/ 7 FULL MOON Th/Fr 17/18 20:51 - 3:02 Su/Mo 27/28 0:06 - 3:42
Mo/Tu 7/ 8 - - - Fr/Sa 18/19 20:52 - 3:32 Mo/Tu 28/29 0:50 - 3:41
Tu/We 8/ 9 - - - Sa/Su 19/20 20:53 - 3:48 Tu/We 29/30 1:30 - 3:41
We/Th 9/10 20:43 - 21:33 We/Th 30/31 2:05 - 3:40
Th/Fr 10/11 20:44 - 22:29 Su/Mo 20/21 20:54 - 3:47 Th/Fr 31/ 1 2:39 - 3:40
Weekend Sun Sun Mercury Venus Mars Jupiter Saturn
Sa/Su Set Rise Set Vi Rise Vi Rise Vi Set Vi Set Vi Vi=Visibility
5/ 6 19:06 5:31 20:16 4 3:35 -3 22:24 -1 21:21 0 20:19 5 -3 brilliant
12/13 19:11 5:26 20:49 3 3:23 -3 21:58 -1 21:01 1 19:56 8 0 conspicuous
19/20 19:16 5:21 21:05 3 3:12 -3 21:30 -1 20:41 2 19:32 - 3 moderate
26/27 19:20 5:18 21:03 4 3:03 -3 20:59 -2 20:21 4 Rise - 6 naked eye limit
2/ 3 19:24 5:16 20:41 7 2:55 -3 20:26 -2 20:00 8 4:55 - 9 binoculars limit
By Erich Karkoschka
Star Party Scheduling Suggestions
Although most star party requests originate from school-related or non-profit organizations, we occasionally get requests for star parties from TAAA members themselves. In these cases, we ask that the member follow these three steps prior to fully committing to a particular date: 1) contact us at 760-4578 or e-mail at jeffbuzek@aol.com to discuss the potential date in order to determine if there are any conflicts with the date; 2) discuss who will prepare the information for the newsletter so that your star party will be appropriately advertised; 3) discuss who will prepare the sign up sheet for the monthly meeting. Following these steps will ensure a successful star party for your group or organization. Thank you.
Jeff and Maggie Buzek
Grace Community Covenant Church Northwest
May 5, (Saturday) No. of Scopes: 5
The church is located at 9755 N. La Cholla Blvd. Take Ina Road to La Cholla Blvd and go north. Continue north past Magee and Overton Road. Look for the church approximately 1/2 mile north of Overton Road. There is a sign on the left (west) side of the street. Set up is at 7:15 pm in the northern parking lot with observing from 7:45 pm to 9:30 pm. Volunteers will be treated to dinner beginning at 6:30 pm. In addition, the church is graciously providing a $75.00 donation to the TAAA. A star party leader is needed for this event, and a sign up sheet will be available at the May meeting.
Lyons Elementary School Star Party Southeast
May 10, (Thursday) No. of Scopes: 3
The school is located at 7555 E. Dogwood Street. From Kolb and Broadway go south 3 miles to Escalante Road. Turn left (east) and go 1 mile to Pantano Rd. Turn right (south) and proceed approximately 1/3 mile to Dogwood Street. Turn right (west) and go approximately 1/2 mile. The school is on the right side of the road. Set up is at 7:15pm on the basketball courts (located on the west side of the main school building) with observing from 7:45 pm to 9:00 pm. A star party leader is needed for this event, and a sign up sheet will be available at the May meeting.
Accelerated Learning Center School West
May 11, (Friday) No. of Scopes: 5
The school is located at 5245 N. Camino De Oeste. Take Silverbell Road north from Grant Road and proceed to El Camino Del Cerro. Turn left (west) and proceed approximately 1 mile to Camino De Oeste. Turn right (north) and go approximately 1/4 mile and look for a white A-frame sign on the left side of the road with the school's name. Turn left on to the driveway and proceed to the first parking lot on your right. This is the observing area. Set up is at 7:00 pm with observing from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. A star party leader is needed for this event, and a sign up sheet will be available at the May meeting.
TAAA Star Party at TIMPA
May 12 (Saturday)
What makes this event special is that our novice members can get help with observing issues or equipment problems. There will be experienced members present who would be more than happy to help. If you don't own a telescope, don't worry. There will be lots of scopes set up and everyone is invited to look through them. This is a great way to check out the different telescope designs before you make that all-important decision to buy. There is no scheduled talk for this activity. Just come out with lots of questions and we'll do our best to get you the answers you need. Arrive at about 6:00 pm for a group question and answer session. It should be dark enough to observe by 7:30 pm. If you have friends who might be interested in amateur astronomy, bring them along. Be prepared for cold weather and dress warmly. Directions to the TIMPA site are located on the outside flap of this newsletter.
Sonoran Desert Home Schoolers Southwest
May 12, (Saturday) No. of Scopes: 7
This star party is being held at the home of Karen and Brian Metcalf. Their home is located at 3450 S. Jamie Avenue. Go west on Ajo past Mission to Kinney Road and turn right (north). Proceed approximately 1/4 mile to Bopp Road and turn left (west). Go about 2 miles on Bopp Rod and look for Jamie Avenue that goes RIGHT (north) off of Bopp Road. Their house is the second house on the left. If you have any difficulty locating their house, please call Karen or Brian at 883-1543. Follow the driveway past the house to the back of the property and look for the set up area at the back. Volunteers are welcome to join in their complimentary potluck dinner, which begins at 5:00 pm. Set-up will be at 7:00 pm with observing from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. A star party leader is needed for this event and a sign up sheet will be available at the May meeting.
Valencia Middle School Star Party [Southwest]
May 18 (Friday) No. of Scopes: 3-5
The school is located at 4400 W. Irvington Rd. Take I-10 east to the Irvington Rd exit and proceed west (right) at the exit light. Proceed west for approximately 4 miles passing through the intersections of Midvale Park Rd and Mission Rd, both of which have stoplights. The school will be on your right. Proceed into the parking lot. The set-up area will be at the basketball and volleyball courts. Set-up will be at 7:00 pm. Observing will run from 7:30 pm to about 9:30 pm. George Barber will be the star party leader for this event. A sign up sheet will be available at the May meeting.
Desert Museum Public Star Party
May 19 (Saturday)
This will be the third in a series of public star parties that the TAAA will co-host with the Desert Museum. TAAA telescope volunteers will set up their equipment in the front two rows of the main parking lot and in the circular drive close to the museum entrance. Set-up will be at 6:30 pm with observing from 7:30 pm to 11:00 pm. A moonless evening will make for great viewing of deep sky objects. This should be a fun activity, so please come on out!
TIMPA Long-Range Planning Meeting
The next meeting of the TIMPA Long Range Planning Sub-committee will be held on Wednesday, May 9th at 7:00pm in the Steward Observatory 3rd floor conference room (N305). We will be reviewing the long-range plan that was laid out at the April meeting. It is hoped that this plan will be ready for presenting to the general membership at the June Member's Night. All TAAA members are encouraged to attend this Long Range Planning Sub-committee meeting, especially those who use the TIMPA site. This is YOUR chance to give input into what happens at TIMPA. If you wish to be included in TIMPA Long-Range Planning Committee email announcements and reminders, send a request to Terri Lappin via email tklappin@earthlink.net.
TIMPA Update
By John Kalas
Slowly but surely, progress continues at TIMPA with the installation of the reinforcing steel bars into the previously dug footer trench. Claude and Teresa Plymate and I stopped off at Home Depot before the work party on Saturday, 4/7, and picked up the materials. The special rebar separators donated by Steve Furlong worked well to position the four loops of rebar. The next step is to schedule a cement truck to pour the footer. That should occur in May.
We are hoping to schedule another work party attempt to transfer the observatory support structure from Kitt Peak to TIMPA one either Saturday, 5/5 or Sunday, 5/6. The exact schedule will be announced at the May 4th meeting. If you are unable to attend the meeting, but would like to help out, please call John Kalas at 620-6502.
TAAA Board of Directors Meeting - March 12, 2001
Location: Steward Observatory Conference Room N305 University
of Arizona
Board Members Present: John Kalas, Andrew Cooper, Terri Lappin,
Jane Tongate, Bill Lofquist, Robert Callanan, Steve Peterson
Call to Order: 7:07 pm
Meeting adjourned at 10:19 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Jane Tongate,
Secretary, TAAA
TAAA Board of Directors Meeting- April 9, 2001
Location: Steward Observatory Conference Room N305 University
of Arizona
Board Members Present: John Kalas, Andrew Cooper, Terri Lappin,
Robert Callanan, and Steve Peterson
Board Members Absent: Jane Tongate, Bill Lofquist
Call to Order: 7:08 pm
The meeting was adjourned at 10: 15 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
John Kalas,
President, TAAA
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