Quarter Moon Saturday Star Parties Start this month!

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1 \ The Newsletter of the Cape Cod Astronomical Society September, 2014 Vol. 25 No. 9 Quarter Moon Saturday Star Parties Start this month! Montes Alpes (detail) Many Thanks to Hank Ricci and Bernie Young for providing us some sharp photos of the Quarter Moon taken from a video using a Pentax K-01 camera thru the 16 Meade at the Dome on/about September 3. Indeed, our fall/winter/spring (First) Quarter Moon Saturday Star Parties begin September 20 th and, with the exception of the first event on 20 September (explained later), take place monthly on the Saturday closest to the date of the First Quarter Moon for that month. Why? Two big reasons: the moon is most interesting with the side-lighting that comes with the quarter moon phase; and, the dark side of the moon is leading as it moves in its orbit from west to east in real time allowing easy observation of occultations of stars. Next Monthly Meeting: is Thursday, September 4th, at 7:30pm: Dr. Colin Bishchoff, researcher from the Harvard- Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, will return to us to present "Observing the Origin of the Universe from the South Pole", an update on the HSCA work on the BICEP2 project. In this issue: Quarter Moon Star Parties / New Member / Please pay dues! / autumnal equinox / old friends Neptune and Uranus / a moon of Saturn occulting a star! / Create dark skies with an old tarp! / Pennsylvania Star Party / Member giving away great Go-To Telescope! / 1

2 Bright New Stars: We are pleased to welcome Arthur B. Crooks, Jr. of West Dennis to membership in CCAS. Arthur has a Televue 127 telescope. He said in an early "I need help!" OK, Arthur, if you will let us look through your 'scope, we will give you all the help we can! Welcome aboard! We like to profile new members in our Society in this section of First Light each month. If you are a new member and have not yet been so recognized, or might have new information for us (background, astro equipment preferred, interests, etc.) on yourself or someone else, please let us know ( info@ccas.ws). PLEASE CONSIDER SUBMITTING AN ITEM OR ARTICLE FOR PUBLICATION IN FIRST LIGHT. CCAS News Items and Current Events: Dues / CCAS Officers: The Dues Cycle began July 1. CCAS has currently 74 active members, ten of whom are permanent or spouse members (not dues payers.) So of 64 active members, 22 (35%) are current. At that rate we will have trouble paying our liability insurance bill let alone leaving funds to support Society and Observatory activities. Part of the problem is that many members are in the habit of paying dues off cycle that is, near the anniversary date of a previous payment. If we look at end year, at the end of the cycle, 49 of 64 folks (76%) had paid dues. Please pay early in the cycle starting this year and we can be better in sync. Please, members, if you have not yet paid dues in the current cycle which began July 1, please do so now. Please bring your check to the September 4 th meeting or mail to: CCAS, 34 Ridgewood Rd., Orleans, MA Thank you. We have yet to find a member to serve as CCAS President since the end of Mike Hunter s term which ended June 30. If you know of anyone who might consider serving, please let anyone of the current officers know. CCAS Meetings: Many thanks to Larry Brookhart and Gus Romano for the excellent open house and presentation they provided CCAS members at the Harwich Observatory, located on the campus of the Harwich Elementary School. This was our CCAS meeting for August. Larry and Gus are CCAS members and Larry, Monomoy District technology teacher, is founder of the observatory. Larry presented a most informative and entertaining overview of the observatory spiced with examples of creative things he does "by the dozen" to engage his young students. Following his overview and inventory of key equipment, the main scopes, a 32 inch Obsession, the biggest telescope on Cape Cod, a 6" APO Refractor, a 10" Dob, and a 10" Schmidt-Cassegrain were featured in an observing session on a nicely clear night. Thank you, Larry and Gus. Dr. Colin Bishchoff, researcher from the Harvard- Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, has agreed to return to us to give "Part II" on the research work coming out of the HSCA South Pole location. On September 4th, Colin will speak on the latest findings of the BICEP2 project: "Observing the Origin of the Universe from the South Pole" including tidbits about what it s like conducting astronomy research in Antarctica. BICEP2 is a microwave telescope designed to search for evidence that the universe underwent a burst of inflationary growth at the time of the Big Bang. After observing for three years from the South Pole, they have detected a swirling pattern in the polarization of the Cosmic Microwave Background that might provide confirmation for this theory. This talk will be most interesting in that, in recent weeks, conflicting reports have been made in the popular "astro" press about whether current BICEP2 results have indeed provided valid support for the inflation theory or not. We are happy to announce that Charles Burke, our new Vice President, has arranged for Dr. Michael J. West, Director of the Maria Mitchell Observatory on Nantucket Island, to speak to us at our October 2 nd meeting. We will announce his topic in an upcoming First Light and on the website when we know it. Effort continues to find a speaker and topic for our meetings after October. Members, PLEASE participate in the effort to recruit good speakers to present programs in astronomy and related sciences at our meetings. Please send any ideas or contact information to Charlie, Gus, or Peter or to info@ccas.ws. For sure we will follow up. Please let us know if you have any leads or, even better, volunteer to give a talk yourself! 2

3 Reminder: If you have not yet paid your dues for the July 2014 June 2015 cycle, please do so. You may bring your check to the September meeting or mail to CCAS, 34 Ridgewood Rd. Orleans MA Thank you. Minutes: The minutes of our July meeting are on our website; click on the Minutes button at or go to From the Dome: The last Star Party of the summer schedule of weekly Thursday events at the Schmidt observatory was held on Thursday, August 28. This month, we begin our fall/winter/spring season of once a month Saturday Star Parties. Each event begins at 7:30pm. Usually these events are held on a Saturday closest to the date of the 1 st Quarter Moon***. All events are open to the public. Here is the schedule: Schedule for Monthly Quarter Moon Saturday Star Parties for : 1 st QTR Moon Date Star Party Saturday 2-Sep Sep*** (minimum of Algol on 9/20 at 10:55pm EDT) 1-Oct-14 4-Oct Oct-14 1-Nov Nov Nov Dec Dec Jan Jan Feb Feb Mar Mar Apr Apr May May Jun Jun-15 *** Note: 9/20 is a Saturday with a 9% WANING crescent moon (good for observing but difficult for lunar occultations) rather than the usual WAXING moon. Since this First Light issues so close to the QTR moon date for September, 9/2, there was not time to pick a First Quarter Moon Saturday in September. So we picked a Saturday for September on the other side of the cycle: waning moon for the first event this season. All the other dates are FIRST QTR moon Saturdays. As always, Private group or individual observing sessions at the Werner Schmidt Observatory may be scheduled by contacting Observatory Director Joel Burnett at Joelburnett@comcast.net or sending an to info@ccas.ws Our Society exists to promote observing! Help us promote this objective by asking for time at the Dome! CCAS has both 8 and 14 Dobsonian telescopes for loan to members. If you wish to borrow one of these scopes, contact info@ccas.ws September Observing: Please see resources in September s Astronomy Magazine, pp 44-51, and Sky and Telescope, pp 43-62, and Reference 5 for good guides to the September sky. See p 49 in Astronomy, and p 52 in the S&T and also reference 6 for positions of the moons of Jupiter for September. Details for the red spot of Jupiter and special phenomena of its moons for September can be found on pp 52,53 of the S&T. Here are observing highlights for September at Cape Cod: The autumnal equinox takes place at 10:29pm on September 22 nd. On this date, there are approximately equal hours of day and night (nox!) nearly everywhere on the globe. September and October are the months this year to make sure you take a look at our blue planets mag 7.9 Neptune and mag 5.7 Uranus with either good binoculars or a telescope. They are both nicely placed in the evening and later in the night sky. At 9pm, mid September, Neptune is 27º altitude in the southeast Cape Cod sky, while lazy Uranus won t get to 27º altitude until an hour later. Neptune transits at 11:32 (altitude 38º) on September 15; Uranus, at about 2am that same night (altitude 50º.) Make sure to visit these old friends soon. WANT A CHALLENGE? THIS EVENT WILL BE MOST SPECTACULAR BUT YOU WILL NEED LUCK, A POWERFUL TELESCOPE, AND A VERY LOW HORIZON TO SEE IT: Early evening on September 12 th when Saturn is approaching the horizon, at 8:38pm and about 90 minutes after sunset at Cape Cod, Saturn s moon Rhea, mag 10.2, will occult ( snuff out?, dim?) a bright 7.8 magnitude star, SAO At 8:38pm this night, Saturn and its moons should be only 8º above the horizon at the time of the occultation. Anyone who takes the trouble to see this event and is successful, please send us an and tell us of your experience. (See the story in September s S&T, pp 50, 51.) If you see the event, what did you see? A big dimming? 3

4 Mooncusser s Almanac and Monthly Alert 1 SEPTEMBER 2014 Object SEPT. 1 (EDT) Sun R: 06:07 S: 19:14 Moon R: 13:02 S: 22:56 Mercury (evening) Venus (late predawn) Mars (evening) Jupiter (predawn) Saturn (early evening) Uranus (most of night) Neptune (most of night) Pluto (until midnite) R: 07:50 S: 19:59 R: 04:53 S: 18:44 R: 12:24 S: 22:04 R: 03:37 S: 18:00 R: 11:54 S: 22:09 R: 20:33 S: 09:20 R: 19:02 S: 05:57 R: 15:58 S: 01:30 SEPT. 15 (EDT) 06:21 18:50 23:08 13:28 08:36 19:38 05:27 18:32 12:16 21:38 02:56 17:13 11:04 21:17 19:36 08:22 18:05 05:00 15:02 00:35 SEPT. 30 (EDT) 06:36 18:24 12:52 22:34 08:47 19:02 06:03 18:15 12:09 21:14 02:11 16:21 10:12 20:22 18:36 07:20 17:05 03:59 14:03 23:35 Moon Phases, September, 2014 First QTR Tuesday, September 2 nd, at 7:11am EDT Full Moon, Monday, September 8 th at 9:38pm EDT (Note: Perigee this month on the 7 th ; so high tides on the 8 th.) Last QTR Monday, September 15 th, 10:05pm EDT New Moon Wednesday, September 24 th, 2:14am, EDT Observing Tools: How to Shield Your Scope from a Bright Light Glen Chaple at S&T is always coming up with really useful ideas. Writing in the September issue of Astronomy (page 14.) he gives us a plan to build a big rectangular shield to put between your scope and any bright lights Minima of Algol 1,3, September: Algol, a variable double star in Perseus, shines normally at mag 2.1 but once every 2.87 days dims to mag 3.4. The dimming is caused by the dimmer of two selforbiting stars eclipsing the brighter as viewed from earth. There are three evening occurrences of the Minima of Algol at Cape Cod during September: Tuesday, September 2nd, at 9:14pm EDT, Saturday, September 20 th (Star Party at Dome) at 10:55pm; and Tuesday, September 23 rd, at 7:55pm. Using binoculars or a small telescope, try to begin viewing two to three hours before the minima to watch the dimming and up to two to three hours after the minima to watch the brightening. Declination Tables for the Moon 2 during this month please contact your editor for information or sources. (like we have at DY High School.) A big blue tarp and some PVC pipe! Thanks, Glen! 4

5 Invitation to Northwestern Pennsylvania Star Party Sept Dear Astronomy Leaders,...we received this invitation at I would like to take this opportunity to extend an invitation to you and others in your astronomy organization to attend the 2014 ASTROBLAST Star Party here at the Oil Region Astronomical Observatory in Northwestern Pennsylvania. This 5-day event will take place September 23-28, and offers a variety of observing and astronomy learning opportunities for people of all ages. Please visit the Astroblast page at the Oil Region Astronomical Society website at - CLICK on the ASTROBLAST link midway down the home page for details about the event and to register. I look forward to seeing you at ASTROBLAST 2014!! Best wishes, Tim Spuck, ORAS President tspuck@hotmail.com ASTROBLAST is an annual event, first held in June 1994, by the Oil Region Astronomical Society. Our organization is blessed with a remote "dark sky" site located far from the light pollution of large urban areas. The event is held in a large field known as Lockwood Group Campground at Venango County's Two Mile Run Park, near Franklin, Pennsylvania. Astroblast is a regional gathering of amateur astronomers and those interested from the general public. Lectures, information and educational sessions, and dark-sky observing are all a part of our annual Star Party. The event is open to registered participants only. On-site registration will be available during the event. Newcomers are welcome to attend. Participants are invited to bring their own telescopes or binoculars. CCAS Member Offering to Give Away an Excellent 5 Celestron Go-To Scope...we received this offer at info@ccas.ws from CCAS member Bob Cabezas Date: Mon, 11 Aug :00: I am a member of Cape Cod Astronomical Society although I seldom make the meetings. I own the above telescope and tripod as well as a number of lenses with a hard case. I have not used it for a number of years and wish to give it away to the Society or someone who will use it. I wouldn't want it put up for sale. Please feel free to me or call. It is a computerized "Go-To", 5" Schmidt-Cassegrain Optics, 1250mm Focal Length F/10 with a Motorized Mount and Computerized Hand Controller. It is a very nice scope. The best phone number to catch me is my home phone. If not home you can leave a message or try cell phone. Robert Cabezas Cell Phone <bobcapecod48@msn.com> A PORTION OF THIS PAGE IS INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK TO REMIND ALL MEMBERS THAT THERE IS ALWAYS PLENTY OF ROOM IN FIRST LIGHT FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS 5

6 Cape Cod Astronomical Society President Position is Open Vice President Charles Burke Secretary Gus Romano Treasurer Peter Kurtz Observatory Director Joel Burnett First Light Editor Peter Kurtz Mailing Address: A. P. Kurtz, CCAS Treasurer, 34 Ridgewood Rd, Orleans MA Cape Cod Astronomical Foundation Chairman Werner Schmidt Vice Chairman Michael Hunter Director of R&D Bernie Young Secretary Ed Swiniarski Treasurer Pio Petrocchi Observatory Director Joel Burnett Observatory Phone Line The Cape Cod Astronomical Society meets at 7:30 pm on the first Thursday of every month in the library of the Dennis- Yarmouth Regional High School in Yarmouth, Massachusetts. Meetings are open to the public. Membership dues are $30 for adults, $15 for students in two year colleges and part year residents, and no charge for spouses or for students in K-12 schools. REFERENCES AND NOTES FOR THIS ISSUE: 1) Information for The Mooncussers Almanac and Monthly Observing Alerts was extracted from Sky Events, Astronomy Magazine Online (Astronomy.com), Stargazing.net s Planet Rise/Transit/Set calculator ( Astronomy Magazine, Sky & Telescope Magazine, Sky and Telescope Skywatch 2011, and other sources. The Observer s Handbook, 2010 and 2011, published by The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada is also an important reference, particularly for information on lunar libration and declination and the minima of Algol. 2) Information on how Libration and Declination Maxima and Minima can make visible parts of the moon normally hidden was reviewed in the January2007-January2008 First Light. Quick recap: Max Long brings to view extra right side; Min Long, extra left side; Max Lat, extra north side; Min Lat, extra south side. Max Dec puts it high in our sky during its transit; Min Dec puts it low. 3) Algol is an eclipsing variable star in Perseus which has its brighter component eclipsed or covered by its companion once every 2.87 earth days. When the dimmer component is not eclipsing the brighter, Algol appears typically about magnitude 2.1; when eclipsed, magnitude 3.3 The minima usually lasts about two hours with two hours on either side to bring it back to mag 2.1. Good comparison stars are γ-andromedae to Algol s west, mag 2.1, and ε-persei to its east, mag ) Here is the web address for Astronomy Magazine s The Sky This Month online for September: also S&T resources online at 6) S&T s interactive Java utility for showing the positions of Jupiter s main moons for any date and time: : for Saturn s moons: 6