Hi all,
1. IAA Public Lecture, Sep 25. Dr Mike Simms (UM): "1969; A special year for space rocks (and not just from the Moon)" Mike is one of Ireland's leading meteorite experts, and has given us many fascinating lectures before. This one focuses on 3 very significant meteorite falls which, coincidentally, occurred in the same year as the first retrieved rocks from the Moon. One of those was the famous Bovedy Meteorite, that last one known to fall in N. Ireland. A fascinating talk is to be expected, delivered in Mike's inimitable style.
SYNOPSIS:
"1969 was an auspicious time for rocks from Space. Meteorite falls at Bovedy in Northern Ireland, Allende in Mexico, and Murchison in Australia, all led to breakthroughs in our understanding of the early Solar System. Rocks brought back by Apollo's 11 and 12 gave us our first chance to find out if the Moon really was made of cheese. And a chance discovery down in Antarctica was to have a fundamental influence on the future of meteoritics for decades to come."
Details; 7.30 p.m., Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, QUB. Admission free, including light refreshments. See www.irishastro.org.
NB. Derek Heatly will be selling lots of books/dvds, including the 1999 BBC ''Planets'' series, quite hi-res, still worth a look, plus many of the 50s SF classics, e.g. Forbidden Planet, When Worlds Collide, etc..
2. Another Interstellar object! Ukrainian amateur astronomer Gennady Borisov discovered the object, now classed as a comet, and named C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), approaching from beyond the orbit of Mars on Aug. 30th.
Based on observations gathered since Borisov's discovery, the comet seems to be following a hyperbolic orbit with an eccentricity greater than 3.5. This means the comet is unbound to the Sun. Indeed, it is moving at 30.7 km/s (68,700 mph), too fast for the Sun's gravity to hang onto it. Comet Borisov is a first time visitor to the inner solar system, and after this flyby it will return to deep space.
The Comet will make its closest approach to the Sun (2 AU) around Dec. 7th. Three weeks later, near the end of December, it will make its closest approach to Earth (also 2 AU). At the moment the comet is very dim, around magnitude +18. We'll need more observations before we can estimate how bright it may become.
Unlike 'Oumuamua, which seems to have been asteroidal, this object is currently classed as a comet. Amazing that we should discover one of each in such quick succession!
3. Re: Congratulations, belatedly, to Deirdre Kelleghan!
Sorry for an awful typo in my last bulletin – "selfish" should have course have been "selfless"! I hope it was clear that that was what I meant from the context, but I'm correcting it here for the record!
4. Autumn Equinox, Sep 23, The Sun will cross the celestial equator going southwards on Sep 23 at 07.49 UT, marking the start of autumn in the N. Hemisphere. That's the latest date and time for the autumn equinox for the next 100 years (and more), as the date and time are currently slowly moving back in our calendar (just as is happening with our spring equinox). In fact the last one on Sep 23 occurs on 2059 Sep 23 at 00h 02m. And we'll have our first (in recent history) equinox occurring on Sep 21 in 2092 at 23h 41m. It's all due to slow cyclical changes in Earth's orbit.
5. Dark Sky Evening Event, Sep 27. Lough Navar Forest, Co Fermanagh, I'll be leading this event, run by Marble Arch Geopark,
This area has the darkest skies in N. Ireland, and will provide unbelievable views of the night sky and in particular the Milky Way, if the sky is clear! Bring binoculars if you have them, but the event will concentrate on the naked-eye view.
We will also see an excellent pass over by the ISS, which will be the brightest object in the sky, assuming that the clouds stay away!
Time. 8.00p.m. - 10:00pm. Participants are asked to drive their own cars to Aghameelan Viewpoint for 8:00pm. We will view the Southern aspect of the sky from there, and then move onto Magho Viewpoint overlooking Lower Lough Erne for a view of the Northern sky. The event will finish from there.
PLEASE – no white torches, particularly not LED head torches! Red ones, such as for bicycle rear lights, are acceptable, but the organisers will provide appropriate lighting
Finish time is scheduled for 10:00pm and we will have tea and coffee for everyone afterwards.
More details at: https://www.marblearchcavesgeopark.com/event/dark-skies-at-lough-navar-forest/
6. Flyover the 4 shortlisted sample collection sites for Asteroid Bennu: https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
7. ISS: The ISS continues its current series of evening passes until 9 October.. 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
8. Saturday, Sept 28th -- Frontiers of Physics 2019, Waterford
Waterford Institute of Technology is the venue for this year's event organised by the Institute of Physics in Ireland. More details at https://events.iop.org/frontiers-physics-2019
9. To the end of September -- Moon landing art
The Sporting Emporium in Dublin has been hosting an art exhibition on the theme of the Moon landings. It is being run in conjunction with Balla Ban Art Gallery (in the Westbury Mall). More details at https://visualartists.ie/events/50th-anniversary-of-first-moon-landing-at-sporting-emporium-dublin/
10. Monday, Sept 30th (to Oct 4th) RDS Library Booksale
The annual RDS Library book sale takes place during the above dates. Everyone is welcome to browse and purchase out-of-date and duplicate books. More details at https://www.rds.ie/Whats-On/Event/39313
11. Tuesday, Oct 8th -- DCUniverse
As part of Space Week, Dublin City Universe will host an evening of four talks by researchers at the University. More details and booking at https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/dcuniverse-tickets-70013651717
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.
12. Spaceweek at BCO, 4-11 October info at spaceweek@bco.ie)
13. IAA Public Outreach event, Oct 5, World Space Week Event. Mullaghbawn, Co Armagh. More details later.
14. Dark Matter Day: 31 October
15. Samhain agus Science, DIAS; 31 October - 01 November:
Our annual celebration will kick off with a talk by Peter Coles in 10 Burlington Road, with more events to be confirmed shortly. Once confirmed all details will be available on the Dias website.
16. 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, which also includes Dr Niall Smith of CIT and Blackrock Castle Observatory, and Dr Niamh Shaw, aspiring astronaut.
Also confirmed is DR. NORAH PATTEN is a faculty member at the International Space University and is a citizen scientist-astronaut candidate with Project PoSSUM. An award winning STEM advocate and ambassador. Norah has participated in several citizen science campaigns including microgravity research flights and spacesuit testing and evaluation. In September 2019, Norah will become a children's author with the publication of her book 'Shooting for the Stars' by The O'Brien Press.
Norah was a recipient of the Emerging Space Leaders Grant and a Next Generation Plenary panellist at the International Astronautical Congress in 2015. Through a partnership with NanoRacks, Norah initiated and managed 'The Only Way is Up' project which launched Ireland's first student experiment to the International Space Station in 2014. Norah participated in the International Space University Space Studies Program in 2010 and holds a PhD in aeronautical engineering. She currently works as the programme manager at the Irish Composites Center (IComp)Details at www.mayodarkskyfestival.ie
It will be followed by -
17. European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky Mulranny, 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.
18. For Sale: Pulsar Telescope Dome, with full control equipment.
The dome is around 5 years old in perfect condition and is currently fully dismantled and available for collection. The dome comes complete with the associated equipment;
· Pulsar Observatory 2.2m full height observatory dome
· Shutter drive kit (including solar panel module plus charger and 12V battery)
· Dome Rotation Drive Kit
· Shelyak Dome tracker kit
· Dome security clamps
· Rubber flooring kit
· Associated cables and wiring and other extras.
Total Price NEW – c £6,500; Price as available £3,500
Contact Dr Andy McCrea of North Down Telescopes, email s.mccrea980@btinternet.com, mob 07799434030
19. 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
Densest possible neutron star discovered https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190916114030.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29
Has the mystery of Tabby's Star been solved? https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190916114028.htm
Rare molecule helps weigh a protoplanetary disc. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190913080746.htm
Newborn Black Hole rings as Einstein predicted https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190911121948.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29
Six galaxies are undergoing major rapid changes https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190918131518.htm
https://www.livescience.com/whats-killing-universe-extreme-galaxies.html?utm_source=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20190920-ls Poor galaxies, RIP. Except that they won't be dead for billions of years yet - most of their existing stars will continue to shine for that long. But they needed a good headline, right?
COSMOLOGY
New hunt for Dark Matter using lasers https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190918112433.htm
Artificial Intelligence looks for Dark Matter & Dark Energy https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190918100223.htm
EARTH & MOON
STEVE is NOT a form of aurora https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190905090942.htm
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7451873/Almost-900-asteroids-risk-hitting-Earth-100-years.html Why is that asteroid on fire while it's out in deep space? Who is responsible for that stupid image? 1. Rock doesn't burn. 2. There's no oxygen out there even if it did. 3. If it was heating up by ablation, it's the front surface that would be hot and glowing or molten. 4. The night side of the Earth should be almost completely dark, apart from any city lights. Four major points wrong out of four. Are there any scientists there at all?
Ancient asteroid break-up may have caused early ice age https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190918142025.htm But there must have been many asteroid collisions and breakups. What effect did they have?
Asteroid near miss was nearly not spotted. https://www.aol.co.uk/news/2019/09/20/nasa-emails-reveal-how-agency-didnt-see-large-sneaky-near-mi/?ncid=webmail and
2019 joint hottest on record for N. Hemisphere, and 2nd hottest for S. Hemisphere https://earthsky.org/earth/summer-2019-tied-hottest-on-record-northern-hemisphere?utm_source=EarthSky+News&utm_campaign=3da293b3ea-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_02_02_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c643945d79-3da293b3ea-394571661
EXOLIFE
EXOPLANETS
https://newatlas.com/space/exomoon-dimming-alien-megastructure-tabbys-star/
IMAGES
Beautiful image of Saturn from the HST https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/nasa-snapped-a-new-image-of-saturn-and-its-a-real-stunner/ar-AAHdvpe?ocid=spartandhp NB, although the image is credited to NASA, the HST is a multinational venture, with ESO as the 2nd major partner.
Debate on age of Saturn's rings continues https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
SOLAR SYSTEM
3D models of the next Mrs Rover landing site https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
Asteroid strike on Jupiter imaged and analysed. https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
Comet's collapsing cliffs and bouncing boulders! https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
Solar eclipse on Jupiter https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/nasa-juno-orbiter-captures-solar-eclipse-on-jupiter/ar-AAHv1Eh?ocid=spartandhp
Mysteries of speeds of winds at Venus's cloud tops https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true
Saturn's rings may be as old as the Solar System https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190918105635.htm
Venus may once have been habitable https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-gb/DisplayMessage?ws_popup=true&ws_suite=true and more details at https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC-DPS2019/EPSC-DPS2019-1846-1.pdf
Amazing dunes on Mars https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/mars-north-pole-looks-so-bizarre-in-new-photo-by-exomars-orbiter/ar-AAHs1b7?ocid=spartandhp
A stony-iron asteroid smashed into Jupiter https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/we-now-know-what-smashed-into-jupiter-last-month/ar-AAHs1am?ocid=spartandhp
Mars Insight Lander is a star! https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/techandscience/nasas-insight-lander-just-won-an-emmy/ar-AAHq9ct?ocid=spartandhp
SPACE
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7442837/Indian-space-agency-Chandrayaan-2-Vikram-lander-surface-moon.html So close to being a success!
https://newatlas.com/space/first-earth-observation-satellite-ai-ready/
https://newatlas.com/space/spacex-starship-first-orbital-flight-preparation/
The menu on Mars will feature crickets! https://www.msn.com/en-gb/foodanddrink/foodnews/how-humans-could-survive-on-mars-by-eating-insects-colonies-would-need-lab-grown-meat-tunnel-grown-crops-and-cricket-farms-a-study-finds/ar-AAHAqCo?ocid=spartandhp At least with a cricket you get six legs - a chicken has only two! Kovalsky Fried Cricket, anyone? (Kovalsky is a crater on Mars...)
SUN
Fascinating new theory about the Sun https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190919095224.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29
Telescopes, Equipment, etc.
Space laser being developed for LISA https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190918124529.htm
20. 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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