Aylesbury Astronomical Society
Registered Charity Number 276313
Site Updated: 05 May 2012 @ 22:19:55
You will require flash to view this gallery
AYLESBURY ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
For Heaven’s Sake! JUNE 2011
Aylesbury Astronomical Society Newsletter Issue No. 518
Membership renewal
It’s that time of year again so please pay your subscriptions to Ian MacDonald, Treasurer. Fees are held down for another year. £25 for adults and £15 concessions. Cheques payable to Aylesbury Astronomical Society
Newsletter and website
Please forward any newsletter contributions to the Editor (see link at end). An email prompt like “Next month is the anniversary of the first aardvark in space”? helps make newsletters more topical
With so many new members I would like to start new series on “Observing for dummies beginners” and “How to choose a telescope.” Dark evenings are nearly over but in preparation for next autumn, please send your suggestions on these themes. Your tip could even be as simple as wearing a white/red LED head torch to keep your hands free to adjust the ‘scope or a night sky guide as in this newsletter!
Newsletters will be forwarded by email to many members saving postage, printing and, you can usually have this newsletter sooner than the monthly meeting. Please forward your email address to the Editor (details at end) if not an electronic recipient
I appreciate that many still prefer a hard copy which will be available at the monthly meeting or by post. Despite many references to web sites, I appreciate not everyone has access to a computer which why I would appreciate a paragraph on any book vaguely connected with astronomy you’ve read, not necessarily very recently
Visit the AAS web site at www.aylesbury-astronomy.org.uk and if you have any comments or suggestions, email the Webmaster
Your committee
In last month’s AGM, the following persons were elected: Chairperson: Ralph Campbell; Treasurer: Ian MacDonald; Secretary: Sue MacDonald; Site manager: Steve Edwards; Web site editor: Geoff Evans; Newsletter editor: Simon Leach; Committee members without portfolio: Ray Wood and Terry Bracy-Wright. Please give them your support
OBSERVING:
Observing nights Friday 10th June and Friday 24th June from 9 pm. In case of doubtful weather, please check with a committee member before attending.
The Winchendon Observatory is available at any time to key holders. Keys are available from Steve Edwards, 01296 427098 or steven.l.edwards@ntlworld.com.
We ask that you attend with at least one other person in case of mishap at the site and check clashes with visiting groups (helpers invited!)
30th September: Edgcott & Winslow Young Farmers
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
All at 7.30 pm at the Scout Hut, Oakfield Road, Aylesbury unless otherwise stated.
- Monday 6th June: DVDs on the Space Shuttle.
- Saturday 9th July: BBQ at Winchendon Observatory from about 5 pm with South West Herts Astronomy Club.
- Monday 1st or 8th August: Allan Chapman date to be confirmed
- Monday 5th September - TBA
- Monday 3rd October: Mike Leggat on Exploration of Saturn
- Monday 7th November: Mike Beales – Update on his current observing
- Monday 5th December: Nigel Mason on Mars
AAS VISIT TO NORMAN LOCKYER OBSERVATORY
This year’s outing is to the Norman Lockyer Observatory in-September (exact date to be confirmed) near Sidmouth, East Devon. Some may stay overnight in a B&B to make a weekend of it.
http://projects.exeter.ac.uk/nlo/Home~EN.php
On site there is: Planetarium with night sky presentations; 3 historic telescopes; an exhibition on the life and work of Lockyer (a founder-editor of the journal 'Nature') and discovery of helium. Discover how astronomy, the oldest science, turned into astrophysics, the most modern, and the part Lockyer played in this. Also observing through the telescopes at night if the sky is clear.
Please forward your name to Steve Edwards if you are interested
WHAT’S UP? June Night Sky
A total lunar eclipse is visible from the UK on 15th June. Totality begins just as the Moon
rises. Totality ends at 21:02 and the partial phase ends at 23:00
New Moon – 1st; First quarter – 9th; Full – 15th (Eclipse); Last quarter – 23rd
The Moon will be close to: Jupiter on 26th; Mars on 28th and 29th; Venus on 30th
You may see “earthshine” on the moon around 6th June
- Mercury won’t easily be visible for much of the month since it will be very low in the eastern sky before dawn at the beginning then reaches superior conjunction (behind the sun) on the 13th then emerges into the evening sky by the 30th, but will be very low in the west after sunset
- Venus is very difficult to see as it remains very low in the eastern sky before dawn and will be almost lost in the Suns glare by the end of the month
- Mars is slowly creeping out of the twilight into the eastern morning sky
- Jupiter will be easily visible in the eastern morning sky for a while before dawn breaks. With a good telescope you can see the transit of Europa in the early hours of 30th June
- Saturn will still be visible in the evening sky close to the double star Porrima in Virgo in the middle of the sky at 23.00. The rings are still worth a look
- Uranus is not visible this month
- Neptune will be visible in Aquarius in the early morning but at magnitude 7.9 binoculars or a small telescope will be required
- I hope you are all have your Druid suits ready for the Summer Solstice on the 21st where twilight lasts all night! Generally observing is not easy at this time of year as dark nights are very short. Try to view Saturn this month as it won’t be this good again for a few years
The following shows the night sky at 23:00 in the middle of the month
The last Space Shuttle mission,
is due to lift off on 8th July. Not only is there a woman in the flight crew (presumably
to do all the washing up), she wears glasses! For all these years I’ve assumed I
could not train as an astronaut! (By the time some of the members have finished thumping
you, you won’t be able to train as anything – Chairman.)
Atlantis will carry the Raffaello multipurpose logistics module to deliver supplies, logistics and spare parts to the International Space Station. The mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing spacecraft and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135/index.html
The shuttle is to be replaced by an Orion “Crew Exploration Vehicle” which looks like an overblown Apollo. I’m not suggesting this is necessarily good or bad but I at the time of writing, I could not see a schedule for first flight. With Astronauts on the ISS, I’d like to think that at least one shuttle would be available for emergencies at least until this new Orion is off the ground - but what do I know?
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html
http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/491544main_orion_book_web.pdf
George Turner, Peter Biswell writes,
Sadly we report the death of George Turner who joined the Society in the 1970s and was Chairman from 1980 to 1986. He continued to serve on the Committee for many years responsible for the Observatory site eventually becoming one of the Society’s trustees
George brought great practical knowledge to the Society and giving many hours at the Observatory. He did not profess to know a great deal about astronomy and at some meetings humorously exaggerated his difficulty in understanding the speaker’s point “I was with you, ‘till you said Good Evening”
He was a great character who did much to foster a convivial atmosphere in the Society. For George, the only place to have a Committee meeting was in a pub with a good selection of traditional English bitter. I remember him producing his own beer guide (just for private circulation) naming it ‘Origrav’ listing the original gravities (and therefore the likely alcoholic strengths) of the beers found in our part of the country
George was often forthright in his views, occasionally to the point of being dogmatic. However, I shall remember him instead for his geniality and his humorous sayings - “I don’t claim to be infallible – I once thought I was wrong...and I was right!”
CONTACTS www.aylesbury-astronomy.org.uk
- Chairman:
Ralph Campbell 81 Narbeth Drive, AYLESBURY, HP20 1NY 01296 421328 chairman@aylesbury-astronomy.org.uk
- Secretary:
Sue Macdonald 107 Willis Road, Haddenham, AYLESBURY, HP17 8HG 01844 299031 secretary@aylesbury-astronomy.org.uk
- Editor:
Simon Leach 28 Vicarage Road, Winslow, Bucks, MK18 3BE 01296 713061 editor@aylesbury-astronomy.org.uk
