1. Saturn at Opposition, July 9.
The most beautiful planet in the sky, and probably the most beautiful of all celestial sights, it's very low down, in Sagittarius, making seeing conditions poor. But it has now passed its most southerly point, and each successive year for the next 13 years will see it climb higher in our sky. We can watch as faster moving Jupiter gradually catches up with it, leading to a VERY close conjunction on 2020 Dec 21.
I never tire of having a look in any telescope. The rings are still very wide open, and this helps to make the planet a bit brighter than its average magnitude. . It's about magnitude 0.1, comparable to Arcturus, Capella or Vega, but will appear fainter as it's so low down. Look for the main gap in the Rings, the Cassini Division, and in a good telescope with steady seeing you may spot the Encke Division in the outer ring.
Also look for the satellites: Titan is the biggest and brightest, and 2nd biggest in the SS, and is visible in any telescope, and is visible even in good binocs when at elongation from Saturn. Look on July 10, 18, 27, Aug 3, 11/12, 19 and 27. Rhea can be spotted in even a 60mm refractor when well placed. Dione and Tethys are fainter and closer in, and the latter can be a challenge in most amateur telescopes at present. The next easiest target is Iapetus, but only when it's at greatest W elongation from Saturn, when it reaches 10th magnitude. It's then about twice as far from Saturn as Titan ever gets, so it's not overwhelmed by the brightness of Saturn itself. Its next greatest W elongation will be on July 15.
Also in the days around opposition, you may see the rings shine a little brighter than in the weeks before and after opposition. This is a consequence of the Seeliger effect, the temporary disappearance from our point of view of the shadows of the tiny ice particles that make up the rings.
2. NEW. To mark the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing, the Irish Astronomical Society is pleased to present 60 stunning images of the Moon, planets and other night sky objects at the Phoenix Park Visitor Centre during the month of July.
There will also be a special public talk titled "Apollo 11 - To the Moon and Back, Half a Century ago" by Paul Evans arranged for the 27th July at 11am at the same venue.
3. NEW. Apollo 11 Documentary recommended The Apollo 11 docu-film is based on remastered and recoloured original filming from a whole variety of sources mixed to give the story from launch to landing; the footage is brilliantly restored.... worth a second look. (Per Andy McCrea)
4. Earth at Aphelion The Earth was furthest from the Sun in its elliptical orbit on July 4th, at 22.10, at a distance of 1.0167543 AU. That's approximately 152 million km.
5. ISS: The ISS commenced another series of morning passes on 4 July, which will gradually transition to both morning and evening passes which will continue until 2 August.
Meanwhile, the 'train' of Starlink satellites is currently visible, although much more spread out now. Details of both ISS and Starlink for your own location, and lots more info on space and astronomy, on www.heavens-above.com.
If you want to check for transits of the ISS across the Sun or the Moon which occur somewhere near you, visit http://transit-finder.com
6. Apollo 11 Remembered, 18 July, 3 p.m. Bangor Library. Public talk by Paul Evans, IAA.
7. Festival of Curiosity, Dublin. July 18 – 21, 2019. Programme now available at
www.festivalofcuriosity.ie/programme
8. New. July 19, Stargazing at Dunsink. Details at www.dias.ie/event
9. Moon on the Mall, Armagh; 20 & 21 July. Part of AOP's celebrations of 50th anniversary of Apollo 11.
10. IAU100: Moon Landing 50th Anniversary - Let's All Observe the Moon!
Date: 20 July 2019 Location: All around the world
More information: https://www.iau-100.org/moon-landing-anniversary
The Moon will be waning gibbous, and not rising until about midnight, but at least some spectacular formations will be visible for those prepared to stay up late!
11. New. Mayo event: SATURDAY 20 JULY 2019, 12 noon; The W Cinema | Westport | County Mayo. Talk: 'HOW WE GOT TO THE MOON AND BACK'
"Fifty years ago, the most ambitious scientific project ever undertaken by humanity reached its climax as three men set out to walk on the Moon. It was the culmination of a vision set out nine years earlier by President John F Kennedy. In this talk, amateur historian and astronomer Brian MacGabhann will examine the logistical, scientific and technological challenges which had to be overcome, the remarkable talent and courage it demanded, and the way in which a project born out of conflict and hostility united humanity across the globe; if only for a brief moment"
Price: Adults : €5, Children : FREE [under 16, accompanied by an adult] (admission by ticket only)
To book: Visit www.mayodarkskyfestival.ie, or Eventbrite https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/moon-landing-50th-anniversary-tickets-64127821039
12. NEW. Birr Theatre & Arts Centre; Starcamp Summer Camps
Mon 12 – Fri 16 August
To Book- 0214377900, www.starcamp.ie
13. New. Skellig Star Party, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, Aug 24 – 25. see www.skelligstarparty.com
14. Original Apollo 11 videotapes to go to auction
15. Asteroid flyby, 9 September
https://earthsky.org/space/asteroid-2006-qv89-strike-earth-september-2019?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=2e143f4e51-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-2e143f4e51-394571661 Note that I didn't headline this "near-miss", or "close flyby". A distance of nearly 7 million km is not close, unless we're talking about something the size of Vesta, and then only in relative terms! This one is only about 30-40km in diameter. And whatever the actual statistics say, in practice the collision risk from asteroid 2006 QV89, is zero, because the orbital calculations could be slightly in error, but not by 7 million km! And even if some unknown external factor was to alter its orbit significantly, the chances that it would change EXACTLY in our direction, and by EXACTLY the right amount to hit a target only 12,800 km in diameter, are negligible. So it will be of interest, but the risk is zero.
16. IRELAND TO NAME EXOPLANET!
As part of the International Astronomical Union's 100 year Anniversary celebrations, Ireland will get to name an exoplanet!
IAU100 NameExoWorlds gives every country in the world the opportunity to name an exoplanet and its host star. Ireland has been assigned the honour of giving a popular name to HAT-P-36, an exoplanet 1.8 times Jupiter's mass, in Canes Venatici. The planet's host star is similar in age and mass to our Sun.
Within the framework of its 100th anniversary commemorations, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) is organising the IAU100 NameExoWorlds global competition that allows any country in the world to give a popular name to a selected exoplanet and its host star. Over 70 countries have already signed up to organise national campaigns that will provide the public with an opportunity to vote. The aim of this initiative is to create awareness of our place in the Universe and to reflect on how the Earth would potentially be perceived by a civilisation on another planet.
The public competition will open in mid-July, and close during World Space Week in October.
[My initial reaction – as the star is in Canes Venatici, home to M51, the Whirlpool Nebula, famously drawn by the third Earl of Rosse as the first spiral galaxy to have its shape and structure identified, how about naming them "Rosse" and "Birr"?]
17. NLCs. The season for seeing these ethereal silvery-blue high altitude Noctilucent, or 'night-shining' clouds will continue for another few weeks. Look low down in the North within a period of an hour or so on either side of local midnight, ignoring BST. Very roughly, within N.I, that's from about 00.30 to about 02.30 BST. When all other clouds are in shadow because the Sun is so far below the local horizon, these very high altitude clouds, thought to be caused by meteoric dust can sometimes be seen.
18. Centenary of IAU in 2019: IAU100: Uniting our World to Explore the Universe
In 2019, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) celebrates its 100th anniversary. To commemorate this milestone, the IAU will organize a year-long celebration to expand awareness of a century of astronomical discoveries as well as to support and improve the use of astronomy as a tool for education, development, and diplomacy under the central theme "Uniting our World to Explore the Universe". The celebrations will stimulate worldwide interest in astronomy and science and will reach out to the global astronomical community, national science organizations and societies, policy-makers, students and families, and the general public.
IAU100 Celebrations around the World for details for your own country, check the link below.. Meet the IAU100 National Committees and learn more about the people who are here to support you during the 2019 celebrations. For the UK, it's Prof Robert Walsh, originally from Belfast, but now at U of Central Lancs (who gave a great talk to the IAA in Belfast some years ago); and for ROI it's the indefatigable Clair McSweeney from BCO in Cork. See https://www.sciencespace.ie/celebrating-100-years-of-the-international-astronomical-union-ireland/
Read more: https://www.iau-100.org/national-committees
19. Apollo 11; 50th Anniversary. Armagh Observatory and Planetarium will be holding a suite of events through July and August to celebrate this event. More details soon.
20. European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky Mulranny, County Mayo, 3 - 5 Nov.
The14th European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky is to be held in Mulranny, County Mayo, from 3rd to 5th November 2019 (immediately following the Mayo Dark Sky Festival weekend). Please share the dates and details on this event and would love to see you there.
In particularly we are looking to promote the call for abstracts and would be grateful if you can help us share this international event for Dark Sky Ireland with colleagues in environmental /astronomy & scientific/ dark sky networks. This event will be sanctioned by the International Dark Sky Association.
Information is available on our website www.mayodarkskyfestival.ie/symposium and we will be updating this with more announcements, news and updates on the event as they happen.
21. 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
SMBHs formed quickly in the early universe https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190628120422.htm
Our heavy metals were probably formed in a Collapsar Supernova https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190613121042.htm
Fermi satellite reveals highest energy GRBs https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190613121040.htm
First detection of polarised radio waves from a GRB https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190619142530.htm
Earliest galactic merger detected by ALMA; it occurred 13 bn years ago! https://www.livescience.com/65740-oldest-merger-galaxies.html?utm_source=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20190619-ls
Astronomers have found the most compact accreting binary millisecond pulsar EVER! syfy.com/syfywire/the-m…
Crab Nebula produces highest energy photons ever https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7179485/Scientists-record-energetic-photons-coming-Crab-Nebula.html
Astronomers locate distant host galaxy of FRB. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190627143112.htm
Weird 3-body system has very close-orbiting brown dwarf https://www.livescience.com/65794-brown-dwarf-detected.html?utm_source=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20190626-ls
Old Red Giant paradox solved https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190627114016.htm
FRB pinpointed to very distant galaxy https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190702152826.htm
Weighing balance of matter in galaxy clusters https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190702112800.htm
Filaments of gas feed young galaxies https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190701144532.htm
Earliest example of merging galaxies https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190701144517.htm
Using deep AI to discover galaxy clusters https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190704191406.htm
A star even weirder than "Tabby's Star" - https://newatlas.com/strange-dimming-star-random-transiter/60464/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=890da82d15-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-890da82d15-92786061
COSMOLOGY
Understanding the Big Bang. https://www.livescience.com/65700-big-bang-theory.html?utm_source=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20190613-ls
Searching for a mirror universe https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/mirror-universe?rebelltitem=3#rebelltitem3
Quantum gravity has no symmetry https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190619103151.htm
Artificial Intelligence universe sim is fast, accurate, and smart! https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190626133800.htm
Algorithm to solve mysteries of universe https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190625173431.htm
SMBHs formed directly in the very early universe https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190628120422.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29
Searching for a Mirror Universe https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/scientists-are-searching-for-a-mirror-universe-it-could-be-sitting-right-in-front-of-you/ar-AADQM9j?ocid=spartandhp . Would Dark Energy also affect this parallel universe, and if so to what extent?
EARTH & MOON
Possible life-forming chemicals found in meteorites https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190625173452.htm
EXOPLANETS
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/two-potentially-life-friendly-planets-found-orbiting-a-nearby-star/ar-AAD4Ckc?ocid=spartandhp Wouldn't it be nice to find a tea-garden on a planet orbiting Teegarden's star!
Formation site for planet round nearest young star. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190626124952.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29
Astronomy bot searching for Jupiter twins https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190625093310.htm
TESS finds smallest exoplanet yet https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190627114113.htm
Atmosphere of mid-size planet found by HST and Spitzer https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190702164603.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29 and
TESS spots 3 Earth-sized planets orbiting nearby star https://newatlas.com/tess-smallest-exoplanet-earth-like/60388/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=91df13abc6-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-91df13abc6-92786061 this brings the exoplanet total to over 4,000!
Could any group of exoplanets explain this weird behaviour? https://newatlas.com/strange-dimming-star-random-transiter/60464/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=890da82d15-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-890da82d15-92786061
EXOLIFE
Did Mars have life before Earth? https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7184845/Mars-hosted-life-Earth.html
IMAGES
Unbelievable images! https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7155687/Asteroid-Bennu-close-NASAs-Osiris-REx-snaps-detailed-images-dice-shaped-object.html It looks like the scree slope on the side of Errigal mountain in Donegal! I doubt if the gravity is sufficient to do a scree-scramble, however!
https://www.msn.com/en-ie/news/science/in-pictures-fascinating-asteroids/ss-BBDkN4O?ocid=spartandhp But NASA should be ashamed of that opening image – the asteroid belt is not even one millionth as densely populated as that!
SETI
SOLAR SYSTEM
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7150055/Meteoric-smoke-created-clouds-Mars.html
Amazing detail! https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7155687/Asteroid-Bennu-close-NASAs-Osiris-REx-snaps-detailed-images-dice-shaped-object.html
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/mysterious-glowing-light-on-mars-captured-by-nasas-curiosity-probe/ar-AADdQcF?ocid=spartandhp Obviously a Martian cyclist with an LED head-torch…
Huge spike in Martian methane could indicate bacterial life https://www.msn.com/en-ie/news/techandscience/nasas-curiosity-rover-detects-spike-in-methane-on-mars/ar-AADi4y3?ocid=spartandhp
Uranus's main ring has a warm glow https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190620153544.htm
'Bathtub rings' round Titan's lakes could be weird crystals https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190624111528.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29
How icy outer solar system bodies formed https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190625093312.htm
NOT solar system! - https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/first-interstellar-visitor-oumuamua-probably-isnt-an-alien-spacecraft-scientists-conclude/ar-AADHgJG?ocid=spartandhp
Methane is vanishing on Mars https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190702152824.htm
Martian dust storms imaged from orbit https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7224293/Stunning-image-Mars-reveals-swarming-dust-storms-surface-red-planet.html
SPACE
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7142725/NASA-reveals-need-30-BILLION-moon-2024.html
Combating muscle loss in space https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190613143614.htm
Space to be safer for astronauts in next solar cycle https://newatlas.com/nasa-fair-space-weather-astronauts-decade/60124/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=24867a7b64-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-24867a7b64-92786061
NASA approves Dream Chaser space plane https://newatlas.com/nasa-dream-chaser-plane-production/57823/
Astronomers are concerned about Starlink satellites https://earthsky.org/human-world/aas-statement-spacex-starlink-satellites?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=a5e277a139-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-a5e277a139-394571661
https://earthsky.org/space/mars-2020-update-mars-helicopter-rover-mast
Ashes to space https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7170911/SpaceX-Falcon-Heavy-carry-remains-152-people-space.html
Amazing development of space suits over 60 years https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2019/07/suiting-up/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc=crm-email::src=ngp::cmp=editorial::add=Science_20190626::rid=00000000001662473516
50 years after Apollo, a new moon race is on https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2019/07/50-years-after-apollo-11-moon-landing-new-age-of-space-travel-is-coming/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7173125/Sperm-bank-set-space-study-suggests.html but where's the fun in that?
http://www.anatravelunlimited.com/could-avatars-help-build-a-new-moon-base/?utm_source=Taboola&utm_medium=msn-edgedefaulthomepage-uk&utm_campaign=Avatars+UK&utm_content=Avatar-Built+Moon+Base+Coming+Soon&utm_term=229633124 You won't see the Northern Lights from outer space, and not even very well from the Moon, at least not without optical aid! You need to be in Low Earth Obit with an inclination of about 50 degrees or more!
ISS mould is super tough https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190627121252.htm
Human sperm survives zero gravity https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190624111440.htm But what about cosmic and solar radiation?
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7200567/UK-Space-Agency-drawing-rules-Cornwall-spaceport.html This could be a "Second Division' spaceport, using aircraft for the initial launch, rather than rocket the whole way to orbit, and only for small satellites, and possibly for human 'pleasure flights' to the edge of space, but could never compete with the main sites closer to the equator.
Mold survives very high radiation doses on ISS https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/06/space-station-mold-survives-200-times-radiation-dose-would-kill-human?utm_campaign=news_daily_2019-07-02&et_rid=415711678&et_cid=2889841
A century of films about the Moon. https://newatlas.com/moon-cinema-history-century-film/59876/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=25d7b99e39-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-25d7b99e39-92786061#p577099
SUN.
Next solar cycle to be unusually quiet. https://newatlas.com/nasa-fair-space-weather-astronauts-decade/60124/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=24867a7b64-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-24867a7b64-92786061
Is a solar superflare likely? https://earthsky.org/space/could-superflare-happen-on-sun?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=b1ec883a3e-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-b1ec883a3e-394571661
Do planetary alignments regulate the sunspot cycle? https://earthsky.org/space/planetary-low-tide-force-regular-sunspot-sync-ups?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=666d05f708-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-666d05f708-394571661 . Very interesting. But what then explains the Maunder Minimum? And what will happen in Feb 2022 when the planetary tidal forces will be at an unusually high maximum?
Telescopes, Instruments, techniques.
Major improvement in design of X-ray telescopes https://newatlas.com/plastic-prism-space-telescopes-x-rays/60192/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=b59d00aaad-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-b59d00aaad-92786061
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/06/divisive-giant-telescope-cleared-construction-hawaiian-peak?utm_campaign=news_daily_2019-06-25&et_rid=415711678&et_cid=2875805 It's a pity that the locals can't be persuaded to support this, as in some way enhancing the 'sacredness' of the site, instead of diminishing it.
Self – Torque – a new property of light discovered! https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/06/physicists-discover-croissant-shaped-twists-of-light-new-property-optics/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc=crm-email::src=ngp::cmp=editorial::add=Science_20190703::rid=00000000001662473516
Artificial Intelligence helps find galaxy clusters https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
Jodrell Bank named World Heritage site https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7221877/Jodrell-Bank-observatory-named-Unesco-World-Heritage-site-putting-par-Taj-Mahal.html
22. JOINING the IRISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION. This link downloads a Word document to join the IAA. http://documents.irishastro.org.uk/iaamembership.doc
If you are a UK taxpayer, please tick 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 www.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
