Hi all,
(NB, all times are summer time when in force, for convenience)
1. Dark and Quiet Skies for Science and Society Workshop II, 3-7 October
Location: Virtual / La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain
Date: 3-7 October 2021
Website: http://research.iac.es/congreso/quietdarksky2021/pages/home.php
2. World Space Week, 4 – 11 October. Lots of events, including -
See Space Week 2021: 4-10 October (newsweaver.com)
And Daily Astro Challenge (newsweaver.com)
And Space Week Competition! (newsweaver.com)
And Space Image Lesson Plan (newsweaver.com)
And Sustainable Space - Oct 9th (newsweaver.com)
And ESERO Space Careers Roadshow - Oct 12th (newsweaver.com)
3. My fortnightly webinar with Nick Howes for Space Store Live on Tue 5 October at 7.30 p.m, will feature a special section on women in space and astronomy. Watch the YouTube live stream here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDPyrYWNucQ
4. STFC Events
Upcoming events
5 October, 19:00
World Space Week: discover the James Webb Space Telescope.
Join Professor Gillian Wright and Professor Catherine Heymans to explore the mission and science of the soon-to-launch James Webb Space Telescope.
Online. Free to attend. Click here to book.
11 October, 19:00
Online astronomy: the ESA comet interceptor mission.
Launching in 2029, find out more about a mission that will meet a yet-to-be-discovered comet as it enters the inner Solar System for the first time.
Online. Free to attend. Click here to book.
25 October, 19:00
Online astronomy: in pursuit of darkness.
The elements that affect astronomical viewing and their impact on the selection of sites to build modern telescopes.
Online. Free to attend. Click here to book.
5. GoSpaceWatch online lecture: The NASA Lucy Mission to the Trojan Asteroids by Dr Cathy Olkin, Wednesday 6 October 2021 at 19:30. Open to all. Everyone Welcome.. Register soon. Just £3.00 pp.
6. WSW – Lecture: The Weird and Wonderful World of Uranus - World Space Week Tickets, Fri 8 Oct 2021 at 09:00 | Eventbrite
7. Virtual Sustainable Space Event - Saturday, Oct 9th
The Rediscovery Centre's free, virtual Sustainable Space Event will be on Saturday, October 9th. The event's first half is geared towards kids and families, with multiple fun and interactive presentations, including one led by Dr. Niamh Shaw! The second half of the event is aimed at teens and adults, and the different speakers will investigate how we can guarantee the long-term sustainability of space as well as how space can help further sustainability at home on Earth.
Kids and Families
11.30-12.30: Rediscovery Centre Sensational Space Workshop
12:30-13:10: Armagh Planetarium Space Junk Talk
13:30-14:00: Dr. Niamh Shaw Interactive Space Talk
Teens and Adults
14:00-14:45: Dr. Niall Smith Head of Blackrock Castle Observatory - Q&A with Dr. Niamh Shaw at the end
15:00-15:45: ILOFAR and Dunsink Observatory Panel Discussion with Dr. Peter Gallagher of DIAS, second panellist TBD, moderated by Áine Flood
16:00-16:30: Dr. Peter Martinez Executive Director of the Secure World Foundation
You can learn more about the event and register for your free ticket on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sustainable-space-tickets-169456313395?keep_tld=1
8. Davagh Dark Sky Park and Observatory now open, with pre-booking, and some restrictions.
See https://www.midulstercouncil.org/visitor/things-to-do/star-gazing/davagh-dark-sky-observatory , and https://www.facebook.com/omdarksky/ I'll post any updates here. Or phone 03000 132 132 for changing Covid-19 advice.
9. Series of astronomy lectures by Gresham College.
A series of 6 lectures from now to June 2022, at 6 p.m.. See: Cosmic Revolutions (gresham.ac.uk)
10. PAYMENT OF IAA ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION: PAYPAL IS WORKING AGAIN ! Subscriptions were due on September 1. We're glad to be able to keep the amount unchanged for yet another year: £20 for individual membership, £25 for family membership (only one copy of STARDUST per family).
Anyone wishing to pay by bank transfer should contact the Treasurer, Pat O'Neill (pb.oneill@ntlworld.com, or treasurer@irishastro.org) for our bank details.
11. Saturn and Jupiter are still well placed
SATURN: is still near its closest and brightest for the year, but it's very low from our latitude, so viewing conditions are not great. It's now mag 0.2, in Capricorn, with an apparent diameter of 18.2".
The angle of the ring system to Earth has been steadily decreasing recently, so the rings no longer extend beyond the poles. Aesthetically, I think this angle, and down to an angle of about 10 degrees, is the most beautiful.
Of the satellites, Titan is visible in any telescope, and Rhea is not too difficult. With the low altitude, it may be harder to see fainter Dione and Tethys, especially as they are closer to the planet. Big telescopes and good seeing are required for Enceladus and Mimas.
I've seen them all, using the 10-inch refractor at Armagh Observatory, and my own 37cm Newtonian, but when Saturn was a lot higher up, and in much less light-polluted skies!
Jupiter is also still readily visible from UK & Ireland, after its Opposition on August 20. It's in Capricorn, mag -2.8, some 20 degrees E of Saturn, and with an apparent diameter of 48". It's a bit higher up than Saturn, and that will gradually increase over the next few years.
The four big Galilean moons are visible in even a modest telescope. This year, the Sun and Earth are almost exactly in the plane of Jupiter's equator, so the moons pass backwards and forwards almost exactly in the same plane. This means that sometimes they are so close together that they will appear as one, unless you use high magnification.
The Moon will form a nice isosceles triangle below the pair on the evening of 14 October
12. International Observe the Moon Night, October 16
On October 16, everyone on Earth is invited to learn about lunar science and exploration, take part in celestial observations, and honour cultural and personal connections to the Moon. Attend or host a virtual or in-person event, or join in from wherever you are as an individual observer. Registration is now open.
Read more: https://moon.nasa.gov/observe-the-moon-night/
With the Moon as a very large gibbous phase, this is an odd date to choose. I have no idea why that date was picked, but there we are.
13. RAS Lecture, Tues 19 October, at 13,00. "What's in a Shadow? The past, present and future of Black Hole Imaging". By Prof Heino Falcke By Zoom, must be booked.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=4696985820313589&id=100000066530698&sfnsn=scwspmo
14. New 'Easy' Teaser.
In a telescope without a drive, which First Magnitude star would move quickest through the field of view of any eyepiece?
15: Difficult Teaser answered already: $*&$£&*@ ! Grrr! It's that man John O'Neill again! Next day, he emailed with the correct answer. The question was "What rare event happened in October 1862 and September 1988?" The answer is that Mars was in opposition in the constellation of Cetus then. Not only is Cetus not a zodiacal constellation, the ecliptic doesn't even run through it (unlike Ophiuchus, which is not an official Zodiacal constellation, even though the ecliptic runs through it for over 18 degrees)
16. New Difficult Teaser: OK, No more Mr Nice Guy (Who said: Were you ever?!). From now on it's war with all you Smart Alecs (and Alices) out there!
Q: What's the connection between: a novena, a tax, and the last?
Please send all answers to me at my aol address terrymosel@aol.com
17. 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
Exceptionally rare planet with three suns may lurk in Orion's nose | Live Science I wonder how stable such a system would be?
COSMOLOGY
Dark energy might be neither particle nor field - Big Think This is a very good summary of the biggest question in astronomy at present.
EARTH & MOON
32,000 mph fireball spotted soaring over North Carolina | Space The authors / editors of those stories are still using ridiculous illustrations of giant bodies burning up while they are still far out in space. That just does not happen.
Vanishing ice is warping Earth's crust | Live Science
Superbright aurora lights up Earth's night side in incredible image from space | Live Science
Our climate projections for 2500 show an Earth that is alien to humans (theconversation.com)
Chang'e-5 Returned an Exotic Collection of Moon Rocks - Universe Today
EXOLIFE
Baby planets marinate in a life-giving cyanide 'soup,' detailed maps show | Live Science
EXOPLANETS
Exceptionally rare planet with three suns may lurk in Orion's nose | Live Science And
Astronomers may have discovered first planet to orbit 3 stars: Potential discovery of a circumtriple planet has implications for bolstering our understanding of planet formation -- ScienceDaily I wonder how stable such a system would be?
'Planet confusion' could slow Earth-like exoplanet exploration -- ScienceDaily
IMAGES:
Hubble telescope spots celestial 'eye,' a galaxy with an incredibly active core | Space
Mercury looks stunning in this 1st flyby photo from Europe and Japan's BepiColombo mission | Space
SOLAR SYSTEM
Catastrophic floods shaped Mars more than previously thought, scientists suggest | Space
Jupiter's Great Red Spot is not only shrinking. Its winds are also speeding up. | Live Science
Future exploration of Mars by rotorcraft https://www.facebook.com/551070831/posts/10160231021170832/?sfnsn=scwspmoMars on the cheap: Scientists working to revolutionize access to the Red Planet | Live Science Space mission gets first glimpse of Mercury (aol.co.uk) After 3.5 million-year hiatus, the largest comet ever discovered is headed our way | Space Appalling journalism. It won't "strafe" the orbit of Neptune. Because of the orbital inclination, it won't get anywhere near the orbit of Neptune - not even within 100 million miles of it. And it's not 'barrelling' towards the Sun - at that distance, objects move comparatively slowly.
See also Astronomers size up biggest-known comet as it approaches solar system (newatlas.com) Yet another use of 'barrelling' – can anyone define just what it means? I presumed that it means that it is coming quickly, rotating forwards in the direction that it is approaching, like a barrel rolling downhill towards you. However, we have no idea of how, or in what plane, it is rotating. Or is it just a trendy word, like 'massive'?
Mercury looks stunning in this 1st flyby photo from Europe and Japan's BepiColombo mission | Space and
"Flawless" flyby for BepiColombo turns up its first photos of Mercury (newatlas.com)
Using dunes to interpret wind on Mars -- ScienceDaily
SPACE
Chinese satellite declared lost following back-to-back launches Monday | Space
Mars helicopter Ingenuity aborted latest flight attempt because of anomaly | Space
Elon Musk scorns Jeff Bezos' lawsuit on NASA moon lander | Space
FAA clears Virgin Galactic to start flying again | Space
Mars on the cheap: Scientists working to revolutionize access to the Red Planet | Live Science
Beam me up, Bezos! Star Trek's Captain Kirk rocketing into space next week [Video] (aol.co.uk) (Not even 0.0000001% of mere Impulse Drive, but sure who's complaining?
Watch live: Russian film crew to launch to the International Space Station | Space
World View to start flying passengers on stratospheric balloon rides in 2024 | Space Not space, and not even close, but 100,000 feet is much higher than even the highest flying military fighters; higher even than the U2! You could probably see the brightest stars and planets even in daytime, and if they flew it at night it would give a spectacular view – unless the windows are heavily tinted.
Chinese company aims for suborbital space tourism with familiar rocket design | Space – start saving your Yen!
Air Force's X-37B robotic space plane wings past 500 days in Earth orbit | Space
UK Space policy announced https://www.facebook.com/groups/587442468465687/permalink/1028531831023413/
Sent from the all new AOL app for Android
18. 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 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
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