Hi all,
1. IAA LECTURE Wednesday 21 January , 7.30 p.m. Larmor Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, QUB: : " The Nitrogen Crisis in the Early Universe" by Dr Jorick Vink, Senior Research Astronomer at Armagh Observatory & Planetarium,
Synopsis
Nitrogen is one of the key elements for life, yet its origins in the early Universe remain surprisingly uncertain. Recent observations of very distant galaxies with the James Webb Space Telescope have revealed unexpectedly high levels of nitrogen — levels that are difficult to explain with our standard ideas about how stars form and evolve. In this talk, I will explain where nitrogen is thought to come from, why these new discoveries pose a serious challenge to our current understanding, and how new insights into the lives of massive and very massive stars may help to solve this cosmic puzzle.
Brief biography
Jorick Vink is an Astrophysicist at Armagh Observatory & Planetarium, where he studies some of the most massive stars in the Universe and their role in shaping galaxies over cosmic time. He is Principal Investigator of the ESO Large Programme X-Shooting Ulysses: Massive Stars at Low Metallicity, and combines observations from major telescopes with theoretical models to understand how massive stars evolve and how they produce heavy elements and black holes.
2. 2026 Total Solar Eclipse – Spain weather update.
I know that many of us are going to Spain for this eclipse, so this info from eclipse weather expert Jay Anderson may be useful
"I've added some additional material to the eclipsophile.com study for the 2026 total eclipse. In particular, the new material warns of the effects of convective buildups during the afternoon. These buildups are equivalent to throwing up 6-15 km-high mountains in the direction of the Sun if you happen to be located in an unfortunate place. I've included a half-dozen satellite images from Windy.com for the time of first contact from August 2025 to familiarize you with the extent of the problem. There is also a sobering video that shows how rapidly and completely the
convection can develop (though the example is a particularly bad day).
If you are going to Spain, the new material will help you to better plan for possible convective weather on eclipse day. Some of the images also show the impact of forest fire smoke, though that will depend on the character of the 2026 summer.
Mobility could be very important."
Jay A https://eclipsophile.com/tse2026/
3. JUPITER JUST PAST OPPOSITION .
Giant Jupiter was at a very favourable opposition on Jan 10 in Gemini, at mag -2.7, second only to Venus in brightness, and with an equatorial diameter of 46.5".
An amazing fact is that at close oppositions, the disc of Jupiter is greater in apparent area than the maximum illuminated discs of all the other planets combined! Venus can have a greater apparent diameter, but only when it is a very thin crescent, with most of its disc dark. AFAIK, I'm the only one to have ever mentioned this, but I have double checked it, and it's true!
At and very near opposition,. Jupiter's shadow lies directly behind it, so we don't see the satellites disappearing into, or reappearing from, eclipse in its shadow. And during satellite transits across the disc, their shadows lie very close to the satellites themselves. The shadows are much easier to see, as the satellites often blend in to the disc background, so they are very hard to see, except at the very beginning and end of transits.
4. Galway Astronomy Club, Annual Astronomy Festival, January 31. One website still says it will be at the Menlo Park Hotel, but that has now changed, and it will be at the Ardilaun Hotel, Taylor's Hill, Galway, H91 H29F. 9.30 am – 6 pm.
The theme this year is the Sun:- Here is the link to the website
https://www.galwayastronomyclub.ie/astrofest-2026/
For accommodation in the hotel, the following are the rates but you need to use the code below when making your booking online to get the rate:- https://www.theardilaunhotel.ie
Same rate for both Fri 30th & Sat 31st - the hotel also has a leisure centre & pool and plenty of parking and if it's full on the grounds there is extra parking around the back of the hotel and underground.
Single B&B €120 per night
Double/Twin B&B €150 per night
Use booking code: #211177
If any issues with booking, contact the hotel directly (link above).
5. Feb 11 – 22: NI Science Festival. IAA events on 14, 15 & 18 Feb.
14 Feb: Participating with the Astrophysics Research Centre in event in the main Lanyon Building, QUB; morning and afternoon
15 February: Major IAA Event at Ulster Museum, morning & afternoon
18 February: 7.30 p.m. Special Lecture by Prof Tom Ray on the largest telescope in the woeld – the Extremly Large Telescope, nearing completion in Chile –
(More details on all these in next bulletin)
6. Skellig DarkSky Festival, Co Kerry, March 20-22
7. Irish Astronomy Week, March 20 – 28
8. COSMOS Star Party, Midlands Astronomy Club. April 11
9. SATURN fading but still visible:
The second biggest planet in our system is still observable after its opposition on Sep 21.
The Earth has now passed through the ring-plane again, so the rings now 'opening up' slightly, after being edge on to Earth. Given their extreme thinness, they should be almost invisible from Earth except in very large telescopes, but they can be seen in a moderate telescope in good seeing conditions.
10. Another comet – maybe naked-eye?
Will comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) be the 'great comet' of 2026?
11. INTERSTELLAR COMET, 3I/ATLAS
3I/ATLAS mystery: Oxford professor reveals interstellar comet from a dead star - https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/3i-atlas-mystery-oxford-professor-reveals-interstellar-comet-from-a-dead-star/ar-AA1TlnJW?ocid=socialshare.
12. WhatsApp Group for alerts on Observing Nights.
The IAA have set up a WhatsApp Group for updates on Observing Nights. If you would like to be included in this group, please e-mail Mary at callistoboxers@hotmail.com with your full name & mobile telephone number.
No discussions about anything other than Observing Nights will be posted on this group.
13. ISS
The ISS will continue its series of evening passes until 26 January. Details for your location are available on www.heavens-above.com
14: HEADS UP – Advance notice. IFAS Convention, Saturday 12 September 2026.
"From Ancient Stones to Distant Stars". Birr Castle, Co Offaly. This event, being organised by Ronan Newman, chair of IFAS, is the first event of its kind. It will be an all-day event, with a possible optional dinner in the evening, and possibly observing if clear. Top speakers are being invited, and there will also be major contribution from IFAS clubs. Details still being arranged, but mark the date in your diaries.
15: Recurrent Nova T Corona Borealis – Latest predictions- 25 June 2026?:
By extrapolating the empirical fact that the previous T CrB eruption dates were separated by an integer multiple of the orbital period 228 days, the next eruptions should appear at 27 March 2025, 10 November 2025, 25 June 2026 or 8 Feb 2027. No physical hypothesis is made behind this extrapolation. I urge observers to be cautious about it, since an external perturbation could happen, and to continue to monitor the light-curve of the star. (By Jean Schneider, Paris Observatory)
Obviously it didn't explode on 27 March, so the next date is 10 November.
(It's well over a year and a half now since the first predictions of an 'imminent' outburst! But, it could explode any time, so, keep an eye on it - comparison charts can be found on the websites of the BAA Variable Star Section, or the AAVSO. The current magnitude is around 10, so you'll need a good telescope to see it now.
(BTW, don't confuse it with the other nearby famous variable star, R CrB, which does the opposite – it stays normally around 6th magnitude, but occasionally dims to as faint as magnitude 14 or 15!)
Anyway, do keep an eye out – T CrB lies just outside the East side of the circle of the 'Crown', about a degree from Epsilon CrB, but you really do need charts to observe it properly. It's visible in the WNW sky each evening until about 7 p.m., and again in the NE in the mornings from about 5 p.m. until dawn..
It's at Declination: 25° 55′ 12.613″; R.A.: 15h 59m 30.1622s)
16. NEW EASY TEASER:
Which 1960's song mentions an ideal stargazing opportunity in one of the USA States?
Clue: It's in the Eastern part of the country.
Another clue: Maybe you are in the dark about it?
17. NEW DIFFICULT TEASER
There are two things which always have a Right Ascension of exactly 18h. You have to name them both.
Clue: They aren't actually real 'things'
Another clue: Try to co-ordinate your reply.
Remember, send answers to me only at my aol address: terrymosel@aol.com.
18. INTERESTING WEBLINKS (Disclaimer – Use of material herein from various sources does not imply approval or otherwise of the opinions, political or otherwise, of those sources). NB: If the title in the weblink does not indicate the subject matter, I give a brief simple intro before the link. I may also comment about the link afterwards.
ASTROPHYSICS:
The universe should be packed with tiny galaxies — so where are they? | Space https://share.google/YyUv9cF5CIIQQw9hM
China's giant radio telescope observations unravel origin of cosmic enigmatic flashes http://xhtxs.cn/9y0 https://search.app/Lbtr3
An Object With a Black Hole Core Discovered 11 Billion Light-Years Away https://share.google/hM8gb4Ru5TSeZZQAf
Did a vaporized alien planet leave behind a strange iron 'bar'? | Science | AAAS
Black hole butterflies? James Webb telescope spots dozens of black hole 'cocoons' in early universe. | Live Science https://share.google/2ldhRmcVaW9tsfjcy
Flare as bright as 10 trillion Suns caused by supermassive black hole consuming an enormous star | BBC Sky at Night Magazine https://share.google/WAnoqWcNfeTy36uQr
Ancient Type II supernova discovered from universe's first billion years https://share.google/HoEv13NqRPJsKsRkd
Unusual 'ingredients' helped stars form in a galaxy near the Milky Way
James Webb telescope solves mystery of 'starved' galaxy that died far quicker than it should have
What are 'dark' stars? Scientists think they could explain 3 big mysteries in the universe
James Webb telescope saw black holes emerging from 'cocoons' near the dawn of time, new study hints
Do dwarf galaxies merge? https://search.app/2FJaN
James Webb Space Telescope could illuminate dark matter in a way scientists didn't realize
James Webb telescope confirms a supermassive black hole running away from its host galaxy at 2 million mph, researchers say | Live Science https://share.google/wSogTysuAM145Vj2B But can it 'complete the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs' ? (I know that doesn't make sense, but who cares?)
Rare 'firework morphology' of supernova remnant Pa 30 may be due to white dwarf wind https://share.google/DVkCQuCAEUZHd3amH
NASA X-ray spacecraft reveals the shockingly violent history of the Milky Way's supermassive black hole | Space https://share.google/Bg43ejF9l0QHR7557
Scientists Finally Identify What's Behind the Enigmatic 'Little Red Dots'
Ultramassive Black Holes and Their Galaxies: A Matter of Scale - Universe Todayhttps://share.google/CP5lWFbvo0ZphFosl
Hubble identifies the largest known protoplanetary disk
What old, dying stars teach us about axions as a candidate for dark matter
The first stars may not have been as uniformly massive as astronomers thought
Hubble examines Cloud-9, first of new type of object https://share.google/dyxTAvAsD27iYHTGh
Scientific breakthrough as researchers discover 'window into the dark universe' - it doesn't seem right. It should either be expanding or contracting.
NASA Webb Finds Early-Universe Analog's Unexpected Talent for Making Dust - NASA Science https://share.google/WyG8zQe0LVZCGOYVL
Another search for Dark Matter https://search.app/86HBG
An Invisible Skeleton Holds Our Galaxy Together and Scientists are closer than ever to finding out what it's made off: https://www.universal-sci.com/article/standard-format-tbjc6-aes6w-edn9d-sebt7-az867 https://search.app/iSgX5
Stars that die off the beaten path https://share.google/0hh8o2IA143zrRH97
Ultramassive black holes and their galaxies: A matter of scale https://share.google/7J1yJiucilekDdNYN
Type Ia supernova delayed-detonation model supported by SN 2024gy observations https://share.google/hBjE77KriUcBR0Wpj
Astronomers Discover the First Galaxy-Wide Wobbling Black Hole Jet - Universe Today https://share.google/aRqkZhvG3fMbltyUb
COMET I3/ATLAS (I3 stands for 'Interstellar 3', i.e. the 3rd known interstellar object)
Harvard scientist Avi Loeb claims 3I/ATLAS could be monitoring Earth pollution Words fail me! New study confirms interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is made of 'bizarre' alien dust Of course it is – it's from another star system!
COSMOLOGYNo space, no time, no particles: Vlatko Vedral's radical vision of quantum reality | New Scientist The notion that reality is a product of our observation is ridiculous. It would mean that nothing existed before we started observing at the quantum level. Yet even the history of the Earth shows that it existed for billions of years before we arrived on the scientific scene. You might argue that other intelligent civilisations existed long before us, and they were observers. But they too must have come into existence as a product of some physical reality. Our elegant universe: rethinking nature's deepest principle | New Scientist NASA X-ray instrument finds black holes act like 'cosmic seesaws' shaping the universe | Space https://share.google/Z3jaP0qf9uv907CpyNew research challenges the cold dark matter assumption | ScienceDaily https://share.google/hx9Dde27VYWoUktv5These Gravitationally Lensed Supernovae Could Resolve The Hubble Tension - Universe Today https://share.google/41ZM4LeiXdvdYcRR3 James Webb Space Telescope could illuminate dark matter in a way scientists didn't realize DARK SKY / LIGHT POLLUTIONSign the letter opposing this Sunlight on demand | DarkSky International https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OwWU7DCHJO9os9ThqUV1cg-NojzKA1mM/view EARTH & MOON2025 was second-warmest year at Armagh Observatory since records began - as data shows it was Earth's third warmest yet measured Earliest signs of life wriggling on Earth found in 3.3 billion year-old rock A lot of this AI generated stuff is waffle, but there are some interesting and fairly realistic bits -Day will turn to night during the longest total solar eclipse of the century https://share.google/kIqpyjNfYgkZ9zgXMThe Hubble Space Telescope could crash down to Earth sooner than expected https://share.google/t7pQnP1yWC9mmHjYB NASA, Department of Energy to Develop Lunar Surface Reactor by 2030 - NASA https://share.google/VI8qA236L2neHkhqK EXOLIFEComplex life on planets orbiting the galaxy's most common stars may be unlikely https://share.google/l2DjKbZbFWlEQpq1w EXOPLANETSHidden magma oceans could shield rocky exoplanets from harmful radiation https://share.google/uSSe7w2nP8YGeJHhfThe Ambitious Plan to Spot Habitable Moons Around Giant Planets - Universe Today Hubble identifies the largest known protoplanetary diskScientists create huge catalogue of stars where we might find aliens We would also need to know how old they are Giant cosmic 'sandwich' is the largest planet-forming disk ever seen — Space photo of the week IMAGES, VIDEOSHubble Observes Stars Flaring to Life in Orion - NASA Science https://share.google/1r4hWWhNygDVhniuCCrater on Ceres in high definition https://x.com/i/status/2011097153926533247Astronomers Reveal Incredible New View of the Milky Way https://share.google/Bz4eGGOhFJlOUnWjOAmazing galaxy cluster image! (17) World and Science on X: "This amazing image shows part of galaxy cluster MACS J1149.5+2223 Almost every object you see here is a whole galaxy - each with billions of stars of its own! Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, G. Rihtaršič (University of Ljubljana, FMF), R. Tripodi (University of Ljubljana, FMF) https://t.co/b7PIGFlbDW" / XGiraffe in space? Eerie dark nebula takes on an uncanny shape (photo) | Space https://share.google/WUsU6g0fFUVJUaUy3 It's a pity it's not in Camelopardalis!
Meet Sgr A*: Zooming into the black hole at the centre of our galaxy | Watch Simeis 147: The Spaghetti Nebula Supernova Remnant https://share.google/lTOBRkeZJKo9oUz82Amazing image from Vera C Rubin Observatory https://x.com/i/status/2009354168029598016The life cycles of stars https://search.app/MEgrcGravitationally lensed galaxy cluster https://x.com/i/status/2005647267743584600Giant cosmic 'sandwich' is the largest planet-forming disk ever seen — Space photo of the weekOrion Molecular Cloud https://x.com/i/status/2011469244865638666 SOLAR SYSTEM How Dark Asteroids Die - Universe Today https://share.google/VprkETab7i4yhgr9n NASA's Mars Sample Return mission is dead | Science | AAAS But - Experts push back against cancellation of NASA's Mars sample return project | Space https://share.google/HmmjgVpJgJn52H7yWJupiter's hidden depths: Simulation suggests planet holds 1.5 times more oxygen than the sun https://share.google/V3M2areNnsqLHIbmpNASA confirms Perseverance can move forward with a far more ambitious goal on Mars - Futura-Sciences https://share.google/gmpYyUoFVwYuqeWAC Astronomers may have already spotted the 'Great Comet of 2026' — and it could soon be visible to the naked eye | Live Science SPACE NASA releases all launch dates for Artemis II. This is how soon we could be going back to the Moon | BBC Sky at Night Magazine https://share.google/zklRjIKfGcOqrHFPC
SpaceX Crew-11 astronauts return to Earth after 1st-ever medical evacuation of ISS | Space
25 Years in Orbit: Science, Innovation, and the Future of Exploration - NASA https://share.google/KEybUiKKa2B5Gfe1j
Not science fiction: the plan to build the first hotel on the moon https://share.google/YrEazUGbRGbtIL4wt It will be interesting to read the reviews on Trip Advisor 'Nice views, but no atmosphere….' / 'Great gym – I bench-pressed 540kg!" / "Great weather- 168 hours of continuous sunshine!" / "I loved the high jump – I managed 11.2 metres!" / "Dune Buggy ride cancelled – Solar Storm!" / "As I was packing, I wondered how many other people's pee I had drunk!"
From a new flagship space telescope to lunar exploration, global cooperation – and competition – will make 2026 an exciting year for space https://share.google/LPBQRtUBmEBmsSKO5
NASA, Department of Energy to Develop Lunar Surface Reactor by 2030 - NASA https://share.google/VI8qA236L2neHkhqK
SPACE DEBRIS/POLLUTION
TELESCOPES, INSTRUMENTS, TECHNIQUES
China unveils world's first lunar clock to solve strange time dilation predicted by Einstein | Live Science https://share.google/KM5p785jzo2ZI1she
China's Antarctic survey telescope completes 2025 night observations - CGTN https://share.google/zrHGlwVtXtmYtdLyf
Frequency comb lasers enable clearer observation of black holes https://share.google/nZeGyKT9jRyViYMez
Former CEO of Google spearheads 4 next-gen telescopes — 3 on Earth and 1 in space
Roman Space Telescope on track for September launch - SpaceNews https://share.google/yr9237hGw2aTTp0EI
NASA Just Parked a Spacecraft 1 Million Miles from Earth, and Almost No One's Talking About It https://share.google/rB OyXO8EOUD8fIleA
Webb Space Telescope's Special Aperture Turns One Sensor Into Seven | PetaPixel https://share.google/b4HNGGPfAHtZeSOu3
Five years after the collapse of the Arecibo Telescope, a radio telescope is back online. The signal is back. 😀 #AreciboWow https://phl.upr.edu/wow/outreach#RadioAstronomy #Outreach https://search.app/75v1h
NASA's Pandora telescope will study stars in detail to learn about the exoplanets orbiting them https://share.google/KdfM3DAF7j9eXtZeC
FINAL WORD:
"The treasures hidden in the heavens are so rich that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment." - Johannes Kepler
19. JOINING the IRISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION. This link gives options to join the IAA.
https://irishastro.org/join-the-iaa/ If you are a UK taxpayer, please select the 'gift-aid' box, as that enables us to reclaim the standard rate of tax on your subscription, at no cost to you. You can also make a donation via Paypal if you wish: just click on the 'Donate' button. See also https://irishastro.org/
The Irish Astronomical Association is registered with The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland NIC 105858
DISCLAIMER: Any views expressed herein are mine, and do not necessarily represent those of the IAA.
Clear skies,
Terry Moseley
