If skies are reasonably clear on Feb 25th we have been invited to host a star party down at Boggle Hole Youth Hostel. The event commences at 19:00h until around 20:30h.
Last year, the same event attracted large numbers ofthe public; indeed Keith and Mark were swamped at the two scopes deployed. We will discuss arrangements at the February meeting. [Read more about Boggle Hole Event]
Betelgeuse is a star constallation of Orion, which is well known for being very unstable and possibly exploding in a supanova at any point. It's a star that is often studied by astronomers, but before they can understand how a star goes supanova, they need to understand what the steady state of a star really is... [Read more about What is Happening to Betelgeuse?]
"So what are gravity waves", Prof Hendry asked? How did we detect them, and what can they tell us about the Universe. It took Einstein to figure out gravity’s true modus operandi. Gravity, Einstein showed, did not just make what goes up always come down. Gravity made the universe go round! ... [Read more about Astromeet 2017 Talk Summary: Prof Martin Hendry: ♫ Gravity sang ♫ and LIGO was listening. (How we detected Gravity Waves)]
In this month's edition:
Bard Gibson is the Professor of Astrophysics director at the Centre for Astrophysics in Hull. He and his research team use some of the most powerful computers available to generate simulations of large scale structures in the Universe (such as galaxies). And that's what his talk was about... [Read more about Astromeet 2017 Talk Summary: Prof Brad Gibson: Building spiral Galaxies with supercomputers ]
Allan's chosen subject this year Mary Somerville-the Lady Mathematical Astronomer, one of the first serious scientific woman of the 19th century, a ‘grand amateur', of independent means who could pursue her passion to a professional level. In and an age when scientific work was undertaken by men, very few women could be counted as equal to their male scientific peers... [Read more about Astromeet 2017 Talk Summary: Dr Allan Chapman: "Mary Somerville 1780-1872"]
As far back as 1982, Prof Southwood recalled, he was present at the meeting at which the Cassini mission to Saturn stemmed. David remembers the date well – June 30th – his birthday.
David was founder of what became the Space and Atmospheric Physics group, part of the team arguing for a ‘bolt on lander’ which eventually would be funded by ESA as NASA was reluctant to do so. The lander was not destined for Saturn, but its mysterious and largest moon Titan. Huygens was born. Prof Southwood was also leader of the team which developed the magnetometer on the main Cassini spacecraft... [Read more about Astromeet 2017 Talk Summary: Prof David Southwood "Cassini-Hyugens and Rosetta/Philae"]
In our Solar System we find to kinds of planets: small rocky planets closer to the sun, and ice giants further out. The rocky planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars) have only three moons among them, whereas the ice giants (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Saturn) have around ninety. This month's video article by 'Astronomic' explains...
In the second part of our tour through the winter sky we shall look at some more deep sky celestial treats to tempt you outside.
To begin, locate the constellation of Gemini, the twins, whose two leading stars, Castor and Pollux ride quite high in the South-East sky. The object we are seeking is the Planetary Nebula - NGC 2392 or ‘The Clown face’ nebula, a telescopic object well worth observing. To find -follow the line of stars in Gemini extending away from Pollux... [Read more about A Winter Sky Ramble (Part 2)]
In this month's edition:
Our Christmas meal at the Hare and Hounds once again proved a great success. Even though only seven members made it to the banqueting table on the date chosen (and no we didn’t lose any on the way up) did not detract from the evening. [Read more about Christmas Meal 2016]
Five society members, Andi, Andy, Lee, Mark and John from Westerdale made the journey over to Leeds Astromeet this year. With Andi at the helm, we seemed to make good time, arriving at the venue with almost half an hour to spare before the first lecture... [Read more about Leeds Astromeet 2016]
We have been invited once again to assist with the Schools star night activities. The event is some way off, but the date for the diary is March 22nd – 19:00h. The York planetarium will be present, and hot soup, rolls and cakes will be available. Should be a good evening! [Read more about Eskdale Star Night]
In theory, a moon can have a moon. The region of space around a satellite where a sub-satellite can exist is called a 'Hill sphere'. Outside the hillsphere the sub-satellite would be lost around the satellite, and therefore orbiting the planet or the sun instead of the moon itself... [Read more about Can a Moon Have a Moon?]
In the first of this two-part feature we shall take a look at some of the celestial winter wonders located in or near the asterism sometimes referred to as the Celestial “G”, whether using the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope.
But first let us familiarise ourselves with the celestial “G”. This large asterism encompasses much of the southern aspect of the winter sky, incorporating the brightest stars visible there, which form a large, slightly tilted in aspect, capital letter ‘G’... [Read more about A Winter Sky Ramble (Part 1)]
| Sun | Rise | Set |
|---|---|---|
| Actual | 04:58 | 21:19 |
| Civil Twilight | 04:09 | 22:08 |
| Nautical Twilight | 02:55 | 23:22 |
| Astronomical Twilight |
| Moon | Rise | Set |
|---|---|---|
| 16:45 | 01:15 |
