1. Saturn just past Opposition.
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 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.
2. Perseids. One of the best annual meteors showers, the Perseids will peak on the night of 12-13 August. Unfortunately the bright moon will spoil the show then, but the shower is already under way, building up activity gradually towards maximum. So observations in the days l.eading up to maximum will be just as fruitful, if you wait until the Moon is out of the way. Observe any time from the onset of darkness, but best conditions will be after moonset. The radiant is not far from the famous and beautiful Double Cluster in Perseus, about halfway between Perseus and Cassiopeia.
3. 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 and return to Earth. Well worth seeing, if you can still catch it.
4. ISS: The ISS will commence another series of morning passes on 31 August. 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
5. For Sale: 16" Revelation Dobsonian reflector Never really used - It is literally out of the box new. This is a big and powerful telescope, suitable for a keen observer or an astronomy club etc The new price is around £1500. For sale at £850 delivered. Contact Dr Andy McCrea of North Down Telescopes, email s.mccrea980@btinternet.com,
6. Birr Theatre & Arts Centre; Starcamp Summer Camps. Mon 12 – Fri 16 August
To Book- 0214377900, www.starcamp.ie
7. Skellig Star Party, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, Aug 24 – 25. see www.skelligstarparty.com
8. INAM – 4-6th Sept https://armaghobservatoryplanetarium.ticketsolve.com/shows/1173596564
The Irish National Astronomy Meeting (INAM) 2019 will be held at the Armagh Observatory & Planetarium (AOP), Armagh, Northern Ireland, on September 4-6.
With astronomy becoming the domain of large international collaborations and of scientific consortia behind new instruments, telescopes and space missions, this INAM meeting will be an opportunity for Irish researchers to showcase projects carried out in partnership with international collaborators.
Visit https://www.inam2019.com/ for more details.
Public talk and premier of "Unseen Universe" Dome show. 6:30pm: 4. Sep. Doors Open
7:00pm: Public talk by Professor Garrett Cotter of Oxford University - "Exploring the Universe at the Highest Energies".
8:00pm: "Unseen Universe" Fulldome show. Produced by former Planetarium Director Terrence Murtagh in which the Leviathan Telescope at Birr features prominently, and finishes with the first image ever taken of a Black Hole. Unseen Universe makes what was once thought to be unseeable, seeable. https://armaghobservatoryplanetarium.ticketsolve.com/shows/1173596570
PLUS: BAA Observatory Tour and Dome Showhttps://armaghobservatoryplanetarium.ticketsolve.com/shows/1173592278Special Sunday opening for an Observatory Tour and Dome show as part of the BAA meeting on 8th September.Learn more about astronomy on a private guided tour of our Observatory building and telescopes. Let us guide you around the history and heritage of our famous Observatory and experience our world and beyond in a Digital Dome Theatre Show at the Planetarium.. Highlights include a behind the scenes access to the historic Armagh telescopes, including the 1795 Troughton and 1885 Grubb equatorial telescopes, as well as learning about the current science conducted at the Observatory. This tour will be conducted by the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium Director, Prof. Michael Burton. While we make every effort to accommodate wheel chair users and others with mobility issues, by virtue of the nature of the building, the telescopes are accessed by steep narrow stairs. The tour includes access to our grounds outside so we recommend suitable footwear. The cost for the Sunday tour is £15.00 per person. Tour starts at 10.30am sharp from the Armagh Planetarium Main Building.
9. 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.
10. 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"?]
11. 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
12. Mayo Dark Sky Festival, 1- 3 November. Newport, Co Mayo.
Latest news - Astronaut Dr. Robert Thirsk will speak at this year's festival, and we are delighted to confirm that Professor Mark McCaughrean will also be joining the line-up.
Details at www.mayodarkskyfestival.ie
It will be followed by -
13 . European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky Mulranny, Co 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.
14. 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.
Apollo stories, images, film etc.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7258501/Buzz-Aldrin-SKIPS-moon-mission-50th-anniversary-reunion-photos-private-jet-company.html Shame. I'll bet he doesn't need the money that much.
https://www.wired.com/story/apollo-11-mission-out-of-control/
Apollo 11 in real time, website https://bigthink.com/technology-innovation/apollo-11-real-time?utm_source=All+Big+Think+Newsletters&utm_campaign=ac907618fb-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_03_15_09_16_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_4db4d7150a-ac907618fb-43203777
Seeing the Apollo 11 landing site, and the craters Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins. https://cosmicpursuits.com/2577/craters-armstrong-aldrin-and-collins/
You can pass on this link to any Apollo Moon hoaxers you know. https://earthsky.org/space/video-moon-hoax-not?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=c048fdd166-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-c048fdd166-394571661 and
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/50-years-after-apollo-conspiracy-theorists-are-still-howling-at-the-moon-hoax/2019/05/23/ca5b4a3a-700e-11e9-9f06-5fc2ee80027a_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_campaign=c048fdd166-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_source=EarthSky%20News&utm_term=.00ca9651e2e6 But you're probably wasting your time….
How Apollo 11 nearly failed https://www.wired.com/story/apollo-11-mission-out-of-control/
ASTROPHYSICS
Even weirder than Tabby's star! https://earthsky.org/space/random-transiter-hd-139139-kepler-tabbys-star?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=1c55c7f3cd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-1c55c7f3cd-394571661
Hubble Constant mystery not resolved by HST measurement of Helium Flash
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2019/new-hubble-constant-measurement-adds-to-mystery-of-universe-s-expansion-rate Well, at least the new measure fell between the two others, rather than outside them! But it would have helped if they had given the error bars, or uncertainties, for each of the 3 types of measurement.
Fastest eclipsing binary discovered https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190724131622.htm
Einstein right – again! https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/extreme-black-hole-vindicates-einstein-again/ar-AAESPnZ?OCID=ems.display.welcomeexperience
Watching the death throes of a red giant star https://newatlas.com/red-giant-star-pulses-dying/60769/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=9972eb5b2d-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-9972eb5b2d-92786061
Mapping our local cosmic void https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190722182136.htm
The early history of the Milky Way https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190722132446.htm
Magnetic activity of hot Jupiters https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190722111917.htm
Star-forming sites are rare https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190726124958.htm
The oldest stars in the galaxy found https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/07/oldest-known-stars-in-milky-way-galaxy-found-gaia/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc=crm-email::src=ngp::cmp=editorial::add=Science_20190731&rid=B44D5BDD89C3D2302973C899D2E91C40
COSMOLOGY
A new theory of gravity holds promise! https://earthsky.org/space/chameleon-theory-gravity-alternative-general-relativity?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=1c55c7f3cd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-1c55c7f3cd-394571661 and
Inter-galactic voids help probe Dark Energy https://www.livescience.com/65928-stare-into-the-fuzzy-dark-void.html?utm_source=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20190713-ls
Dark matter could be the end of us! https://www.livescience.com/66034-death-by-dark-matter.html?utm_source=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20190726-ls Seems unlikely: no evidence of such events in humans or any animals, or indeed in the roofs of our buildings, nor streaking through the atmosphere. Plus, such a 'bullet' would have to pass through the atmosphere. first, which would absorb the energy.
EARTH & MOON
A very scary must-read! https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2019/august/1566136800/jo-lle-gergis/terrible-truth-climate-change
Why the Apollo landings were NOT a hoax. https://earthsky.org/space/video-moon-hoax-not?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=1c55c7f3cd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-1c55c7f3cd-394571661
Understanding E-M waves in our atmosphere https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190712133341.htm
What's happening to water at the lunar poles? https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190723104053.htm
https://www.wired.com/story/apollo-11-mission-out-of-control/
Anyone wanting to visit the Kennedy Space Centre or the Manned Spaceflight Centre at Houston or even the National Air & Space Museum in Washington DC should go soon, before it gets too hot! https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/07/extreme-heat-to-affect-millions-of-americans/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc=crm-email::src=ngp::cmp=editorial::add=Science_20190724::rid=00000000001662473516 I was at the KSC in February, and that was too hot even now!
What gives meteorites their shapes? https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190722155243.htm
Climate warming fastest in 2,000 years https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190724131624.htm
Florida's fossil clams contain remnants of ancient meteorites https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190722132520.htm
EXOPLANETS
Cold dry planets could have lots of hurricanes https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190724111116.htm
Young planet round bright young star https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190725092512.htm
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/nasa-reveals-heavy-metal-planet-shaped-like-a-football-with-4600-degree-atmosphere/ar-AAFd8zi?ocid=spartandhp BTW, the reference is to an American Football, i.e. oval rather than round, as in the rest of the world.
EXOLIFE
Extreme Arctic sub-zero high salt environment supports life https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190712105707.htm
Better prospects for life on Enceladus https://earthsky.org/space/enceladus-ocean-moon-habitability-right-age-to-support-life?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=938da91f5a-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-938da91f5a-394571661
IMAGES.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-6481141/NASAs-Juno-spacecraft-captures-incredible-image-colorful-clouds-swirling-Jupiter.html Even better than Damien Peach's photos – and that's saying something! It helps that Juno is orbiting Jupiter, whereas Damien is on Earth, about 400 million miles from the planet!
ALMA reveals 20 young protoplanetary discs https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-6493275/Stunning-high-resolution-images-disks-swirling-20-young-stars-outside-solar-system.html
SETI
SOLAR SYSTEM
https://cosmicpursuits.com/2583/the-disappearing-great-red-spot/ My own observations from the mid-sixties showed it almost 3 times the width of the Earth. That wasn't just 'eyeballing' it, but careful timing when the leading and trailing edges crossed the central meridian of Jupiter. That gives its extent in longitude, and it's then easy to work out its length in km.
SPACE (excluding Apollo – see above)
Solving the problems of satellite mega-constellations https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190712174054.htm But what about the astronomers? The stuff that's already up there causes problems enough!
This is not a good time to be an astronaut! https://spaceweatherarchive.com/2019/07/16/cosmic-ray-update-new-results-from-the-moon/ And cosmic rays are a major hazard for any manned mission to Mars, with a 9 month journey (Hohman transfer orbit) in each direction, all of it outside the Earth's magnetic shield and the Van Allen Belts. And for the 6 month stay on Mars, there's no magnetic field, and only an extremely thin atmosphere. They'll need good protection in their accommodation. But they'll only have their space suits when out on the surface. An alternative route, called Ballistic Capture Transfer or Weak Stability Transfer, shortens the journey each way to about 6 months, but has never been tried for a manned mission, even to the Moon.
But on the other hand! - https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7257131/Red-wines-resveratrol-help-Mars-explorers-stay-strong.html
SLS launch delayed again https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/nasa-quietly-pushes-back-its-sls-launch-estimates-to-2021/ar-AAExiJY?ocid=spartandhp I hope they realise that as the Moon is gradually moving further and further away from Earth, the longer they delay, the harder it becomes! ;-)
This is a greater problem than building rockets - https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/scientists-are-grappling-with-our-biggest-limitation-in-spaceflight-our-own-bodies/ar-AAEwqIj?ocid=spartandhp
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/01/india-plans-tricky-and-unprecedented-landing-near-moon-s-south-pole?utm_campaign=news_daily_2019-07-22&et_rid=415711678&et_cid=2915231 Why do science journalists use such inappropriate terminology? The Moon's "anemic gravity"? Anermic? What's wrong with "weak" or "low" or even "feeble"? But not anemic, please!
https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/soon-we-may-be-sailing-between-the-planets-on-a-beam-of-sunlight THIS IS WELL WORTH A READ!
Microbes for mining on the Moon & Mars https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190723163927.htm
https://www.space.com/make-mars-habitable-with-silica-aerogel.html
Nuclear fuel for Mars Rover 2020 being installed https://newatlas.com/nasa-mars-2020-nuclear-fuel/60741/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=cf15cc9622-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-cf15cc9622-92786061
Van Allen probes being decommissioned https://newatlas.com/van-allen-b-probe-shut-down/60742/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=cf15cc9622-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-cf15cc9622-92786061
Mars 2020 Rover tests robotic arm https://newatlas.com/mars-2020-robotic-arm-flex/60783/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=9432601087-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-9432601087-92786061
SUN
How solar cycles start and end https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190724090241.htm
Telescopes, Equipment, etc.
SKA prototype tested https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190724104033.htm
TESS completes survey of S sky, with many finds https://newatlas.com/tess-halfway-sky-survey/60785/?utm_source=New+Atlas+Subscribers&utm_campaign=9432601087-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-9432601087-92786061
15. 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
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