Solstice, No Armageddon, Sir PM, ISS, New Year Party, Astronomy course, GSP, web

Hi all,

 

1. Solstice, but the World did not end:

I was invited to be at Newgrange on December 21, for interviews by RTE about the Solstice, and about the much hyped, but ridiculous, 'End of the world on December 21' predictions. These interviews were broadcast several times on RTE1, including the a.m. solstice programme and the 6.0 and 9.0 news.

   The crowds there were double the usual size, and though it was cloudy, there was a great atmosphere. As well as the RTE interviews, I was also interviewed by an English language Chinese TV station, and a Canadian documentary maker. It was an amazing day.

  And RTE also took the opportunity to interview me about Sir Patrick Moore: obviously that was too late for the main news items on his death, but it may be broadcast at the time of the commemoration to be held on 4 March. If I get any more news on that I'll let you know.

 

2. Funeral of Sir Patrick Moore: I was honoured to be present at the funeral of my very old friend Patrick, last Wednesday afternoon. It was a private affair, for close friends only, in Chichester crematorium, and then afterwards at his house, Farthings, in Selsey. I flew over to Gatwick that morning, and then drove a hire car to Chichester, and then on to Selsey. The date, time or venue were strictly confidential, as they didn't want gatecrashers or the media turning up, since there were a few celebrities there. There were security guards at both the crematorium and at Farthings, and if your name wasn't on the list, you didn't get in!

    The event was organised by his other old friends John Mason, Iain Nicolson & Peter Cattermole, who all paid tributes at the ceremony. The others who spoke during the service were his old friend Lawrence Clarke, Pieter Morpurgo (one of the early & longest serving SAN Directors), Chris Lintott and Brian May.

   The voices of some of these seasoned public speakers were breaking as they delivered their tributes, but the tears were interspersed with much laughter as some of their hilarious episodes with Sir P were recounted. Just as he would have wished.

    Other well known people present were Prof Garry Hunt, Sir Terry Pratchett (the SF author), Allan Chapman, and John Culshaw, well known for his impersonations of Patrick - although he was there as a friend, and did not do any impersonations. And of course, Jane Fletcher, the current producer, and some of the others now associated with the SAN. I was the only one from Ireland - it really was 'by invitation only'. Much food and drink was then consumed at Farthings, just as it was when I visited when he was alive. It was a lovely and a fitting send-off for a truly unique individual. 

   There will be a public celebration of his life on 4 March, which would have been his 90th birthday.

 

3. ISS: The International Space Station is readily visible during its current series of evening passes over Ireland, and will actually be providing some nice Xmas treats

   If the sky is clear, anyone out just before 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve might think that they are seeing Santa flying across the sky, led by a brilliantly-nosed Rudolf! But Rudolf's nose will be brilliant white, instead of red, as it's the International Space Station (ISS) making a spectacular pass over Ireland. And there will be more.

XMAS EVE, Pass 1. Start looking at about 5.40 or a bit later depending on where you live; the further West you are, the earlier it will appear. From Belfast, start looking about 5.45. It will rise in the West, not very bright at first, and moving quite slowly initially, but as it gets higher up it will get much brighter and appear to move faster. It will eventually get even brighter than Jupiter, which will be just below and left of the Moon. It will be moving steadily from West to East and then when it gets fairly low down in the East it will fade away as it passes into the shadow of the Earth. Altogether, it will be visible for about 4 minutes.

Xmas Eve, Pass 2, It will appear again, lowish in the Western sky, at about 7.20 to 7.25, but not nearly so bright, and it won't get so high up, and won't be visible for as long, so the second pass is not nearly so good as the first one. But it's worth remembering that the ISS will have travelled right round the world in the interval since the first pass!

XMAS DAY, Pass 1. This will be almost identical in appearance to the first one on Xmas Eve, but it will start to be visible from about 4.55 p.m. to 5.0 p.m. depending where you are: again if you live in the West, it will appear a bit earlier.

Xmas Day, pass 2. This won't be quite as good as the earlier one, but not bad: it will not get quite so high up, nor quite as bright, but it will still be easily visible if the sky is clear. Again, start looking from about 6.30 to 6.35 p.m., depending on your location. This time it will pass into the Earth's shadow when it's due South in the sky, and not quite so high up.  

ANOTHER XMAS SKY TREAT: And if it's clear at around midnight on Xmas Night (i.e. 25th/26th), you'll see the brilliant almost Full Moon very close to brilliant Jupiter! At midnight they are getting very close - under 1 degree apart, and the actual closest approach will be at about 00.45, when they are only 3/4 degree apart.

   So before you go to bed that evening, pop outside if the sky is clear, and see this spectacular conjunction.

Full details of the ISS passes for your own location, along with lots of other information, are on the free site www.heavens-above.com.

 

4. IAA New Year Party. This will be held on Saturday 5 January. We start with a buffet meal at McBrides restaurant in The Square, Comber, followed by a special private screening of a film in the local Tudor private cinema. Meet at McBrides at about 5.30 p.m. for 6.0. p.m. The film will be "Men in Black 3". This film is supposed to be funny, but has some S/F violence, and has a rating of PG-13, so parental discretion is advised regarding any children. We will also have free refreshments at the Tudor Cinema, including my notorious seasonal punch (notorious because no-one else can make one like it!), tea & coffee, and soft drinks. We will also have George's entertaining and challenging quiz. You MUST book in advance, by 28 November: £15 per adult - see the IAA website www.irishastro.org for details.

 

5. IAA LECTURE: The next IAA public lecture will be on 9 January, at 7.30 p.m.. It will be given by Prof Phil Dufton, of Queen's University. Entitled "45 Years in Astronomy"; Phil will recount the tremendous changes that have occurred in astronomy 'under his watch', as he now retires after a long and distinguished career. I've a feeling that some interesting anecdotes will also be included. This will be an interesting and entertaining start to the new lecture season, and all are welcome.

  Admission is free, including light refreshments

This lecture will as usual be in the Bell Lecture theatre, Physics building, main QUB Campus.

 

6. BBC's STARGAZING LIVE:  Venue: Lough Neagh Discovery Centre (LNDC), Oxford Island, near Lurgan, Co Armagh, on 10 January.

The whole event will be over the period  8 - 10 January, and the IAA is once again the main partner with the BBC in delivering this major public broadcast initiative. Last year was an unbelievable success, and the plans are to make the next one much bigger and even better.

   There will be stargazing if clear, mobile planetarium shows, telescope displays, telescope workshops, meteorites, comet-making, astronomy drama, stargazing cruises on the Maid of Antrim on Lough Neagh (weather permitting), live telescope links to other observatories, 'Ask an Astronomer', hands-on events, the BBC Bus, and much more.

   Final programme details in the next bulletin.  

 The other main special event is a repeat of the highly successful Jupiter Watch held by the IAA and QUB, in the front of the main QUB campus. This will be on 8 January, commencing at 6 p. m.

   More details in the next bulletin, but keep these dates free:

8 January, 18.00: Jupiter Watch at QUB main campus.

9 January: 19.30: IAA Public Lecture, Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, QUB

10 January: Main event: live radio and tv broadcasts of a wide and varied range of activities at LNDC.

 

7. ASTRONOMY COURSE at STRANMILLIS COLLEGE, BELFAST. I will be delivering a two part course, introduction to astronomy, as follows:

Astronomy:  Our place in the Universe

Looking to the sky for the first time you may feel overwhelmed and confused by the spectacle of thousands of stars above your head.  Astronomy is a great gateway science that can inspire you to do great things!  Participants will gain enjoyment from exploring the wonders of the night sky.  The topics covered include Greek mythology, Egyptian and Babylonian cosmology, Astrobiology, Quantum Physics, Terrestrial and Jovian planets and Solar System to help us understand our place in the cosmos.   This is a great way for the community to come together and take a fresh look at our night sky.....it belongs to us all.  No experience necessary and questions encouraged! 

Tutor:             Terry Moseley, Time:              7.00pm - 9.00pm

Session 1:         Tuesdays, 5 weeks; dates:      19^th February 2013 – 19^th March 2013 

Location:        Central Building.

Session 2:         Tuesdays, 5 weeks. Time: 7.00pm - 9.00pm. Dates:      9^th April 2013 – 7^th May 2013.   Location:        Central Building

There will also be a daytime visit to Armagh Observatory and Planetarium, provisionally on 17 May.

Full details and booking at:  http://www.stran.ac.uk/informationabout/courses/professionaldevelopmentlifelonglearning/

8. Galway Star Party:

The 10th Galway Starparty: "Ireland, the Final Frontier" takes place on Saturday, 2nd February, 2013 at the Westwood House Hotel, Galway City.

The speakers include:

Dr. Andy Shearer (Centre for Astronomy, NUIG): "Kepler: The Search for Habitable Planets"

Dave Gradwell: "OSCAR: A unique Irish Solar Observatory"

Ronan Newman (workshop): "Celestial Light: Chasing the Elusive Irish Aurora"

John Flannery (South Dublin AS): "What makes a Great Comet?"

Prof. Tom Ray (DIAS): "Making Stars and Planets: The First Three Billion Years"

Dave Grennan: "Hunting Extra-Galactic Supernovae from Ireland"

Terry Moseley (IAA): "Untold Stories of Sir Patrick Moore, FRS" (Celebrating his 90th Birthday)

Professor Lorraine O'Hanlon (UCD) "The GLORIA project"

Details & bookings at: http://galwayastronomyclub.ie/

 

9. IAA Annual Subscriptions: All IAA members are reminded that if they have not yet renewed their subscriptions for 2012 - 2013, they will not have received the last issue of STARDUST. You can do this easily online: http://irishastro.org.uk/join1.html, or via www.irishastro.org, or download a form, see Item 17 below.

 

10. INTERESTING WEBLINKS: 

Information on events at Blackrock Castle Observatory at www.bco.ie. These include Stardome shows daily at 11:00, 13:00 and 15:00 from December 27 – January 6.  Marvel at the Moon, see Saturn as never before and explore space travel with your friends and family.  

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/12/21/nasa-cassini-spacecraft-saturn-images-2012_n_2344223.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/12/21/nasa-new-space-suit-buzz-lightyear-toy-story_n_2343677.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/12/20/nasas-hubble-telescope-pr_n_2336050.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/12/19/tau-ceti-planets-science-alien-world-habitable-planet_n_2327326.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/12/19/saturns-shadow-nasa-cassini_n_2327912.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21628954.500-mysterious-star-deaths-are-really-mergers-in-disguise.html

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20952-missing-planet-explains-solar-systems-structure.html

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20952-missing-planet-explains-solar-systems-structure.html

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2012/17dec_sallyride/

 

11. TWITTER: Follow the IAA on Twitter:  @IaaAstro

12. BBC THINGS TO DO WEBSITE: See the forthcoming IAA events on  

http://www.bbc.co.uk/thingstodo. Look under 'Countryfile'.

 

13. JOINING the IRISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION is easy: This link downloads a Word document to join the IAA. http://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.  See also www.irishastro.org. 

  

Clear skies,

Terry Moseley