Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
astro-officers group:

How many members have had an extended turn around between
the time an observing log was turned in and when the observing
award was received?

   o Yes
   o No


To vote, please visit the following web page:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/astro-officers/surveys?id=2923611

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

STARGAZER # 518 for November 14, 2009


The Fox's Swan Song

High in the west in the early evening are the three bright stars forming the
Milky Way Triangle, also called the Summer Triangle. Each is the brightest star
of its respective constellation.

The brightest by far is Vega in Lyra the Lyre (harp). Next brightest is Altair
in Aquila the Eagle, and the least bright of the three is Deneb in Cygnus the
Swan.

Finding them isn't too difficult. Facing west, Vega is mid way a bit to the
right (north) with Altair mid way up to the left (south). Deneb is higher above
Vega.

Within the triangle are two other constellations: Vulpecula the Fox and Sagitta
the Arrow. Both are smaller, consist only of faint stars, and are difficult to
see. But Vulpecula, a cunning and stealthy hunter, likes it that way.

Most foxes are content with a diet of small animals, insects, and fruits -- but
not Vulpecula. Although sly, he has a foolish streak that's about to do him in.
While out looking for a meal, he has spotted huge Cygnus flying in his
direction. Prudence would warn other foxes against taking on such a large prey,
but not Vulpecula. Thinking only of what a tasty meal the big bird would be, his
mouth is watering as he throws caution to the wind.

Off in the distance he failed to note Sagittarius the Archer also out hunting;
the archer barely missed the fox as Sagitta the Arrow whizzes just beneath his
belly. But the archer won't have time for a second shot for Aquila, the large
eagle, is swooping down, about to turn the careless Vulpecula from predator to
prey.

Not far away, Lyra is watching the drama unfold with its harp strings softly
strumming the fox's swan song.

The moral of the story? There's nothing wrong with thinking big -- just don't
become blinded by greedy ambition.

Next Two Weeks. Avg. sunrise: 7:02 a.m.; avg. sunset: 5:27 p.m. Tomorrow morning
a thin crescent Moon is to the right of Venus near the eastern horizon at dawn.
The Moon is new Monday. Tuesday morning (midnight to dawn) the Leonid meteor
shower peaks with no Moon interference and possibly enhanced rates. The evening
of Nov. 23 Jupiter is to the lower left of the Moon. The Moon is at 1st quarter
Nov. 24.

Naked-eye Planets. (The Sun, Moon, and planets rise in the east and set in the
west due to Earth's west-to-east rotation on its axis.) Evening: Jupiter is the
brightest object in the south. Morning: Venus, near the eastern horizon at dawn,
is fast approaching the rising Sun. Saturn is well up in the east with Mars high
in the south.

Astro Milestones. Nov. 20 is the 120th birthday of Edwin Hubble (1889-1953),
American astronomer for whom the Hubble Space Telescope is named. While not as
well known as Galileo and others who revolutionized our cosmic understandings,
Hubble's contributions were no less profound. In 1924 the then-35-year old
astronomer discovered that what was considered to be the Andromeda "nebula" was,
in fact, another far-away galaxy. Up to that time, astronomers thought our Milky
Way galaxy was the entire universe. But thanks in large part to Hubble, we now
realize the universe is far more vast than was ever imagined, and that it
contains countless billions of galaxies besides our own.

=======================================================


Stargazer appears every other week in the Waco Tribune-Herald and other
newspapers.  Paul Derrick is an amateur astronomer who lives in Waco.  Write him
at 918 N. 30th St., Waco, TX 76707, call or fax at (254) 753-6920, or e-mail at
paulderrickwaco@....

Copyright 2009 by Paul Derrick.  Permission is granted for free electronic
distribution as long as these paragraphs are included.  Please obtain permission
from the author for publication in any other form.  To be added to (or removed
from) the free e-mail distribution list, send your e-mail address (and name) to
paulderrickwaco@....

* * See the Stargazer Web site at http://www.stargazerpaul.com. * *




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STARGAZER #517 for October 31,  2009

Galileo's New  Universe a Book Worth Reading

Being the 400th anniversary of Galileo's first astronomical use of the
telescope, 2009 is being celebrated as the International Year of Astronomy. As
such, it's not surprising to see new books and articles on the subject. One
book  that has come to my attention is Galileo's New Universe: The
Revolution  in Our Understanding of the Cosmos by astronomers Stephen P. Maran
and
Laurence A. Marschall (Benbella Books, Dallas, 2009). At 174 pages and
$14.95,  it's an easy and inexpensive read which I highly recommend.

Having  already read many accounts of Galileo's story, I was tempted to
pass on the  book, but I'm glad I didn't. While it contains much I already
knew, there's  plenty of new material to make it well worth my while. And beyond
that, the  literary device used by the authors is engaging.

After a brief but  informative account of Galileo's story, they devote a
chapter each to  telescopes, the Moon, the Sun, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus,
comets, the Milky Way,  and cosmology. With each, they present the 17th century
view followed by the  contemporary, dramatically illustrating the progress of
the past 400 years.

For example, they describe the telescopes Galileo made and used for his
Earth-shaking discoveries in the early 1600s, telescopes that were inferior
even  to today's inexpensive department store scopes. They then describe
today's huge  observatory telescopes, and the mammoth scopes currently under
development --  instruments Galileo couldn't have imagined in his wildest
dreams.

With  each of the other topics, they relate what was known to Galileo and
his  contemporaries, and then contrast that with what we now know 400 years
later. It  is sobering to realize that even many of the school children with
whom I work  could teach the brilliant Galileo things about the solar system
and the cosmos  that would leave him dumbfounded.

In future columns, drawing from this  book, we'll look at the Moon, Sun,
and planets as they were understood then and  now. In the meantime, just for
fun, imagine traveling into the future and  reading a comparable book that
contrasts what we know today with what our  descendants will know in 2409.

Time Change. Tonight  (Saturday) before retiring, set your clocks back one
hour ("fall back") to  Standard Time.

Next Two Weeks. Avg. sunrise: 6:49 a.m.;  avg. sunset: 5:35 p.m. Today
(Saturday) is Halloween, a traditional  cross-quarter day celebrating the middle
of fall. The mornings of Oct. 30 -  Nov. 2, Mars passes through the Beehive
star cluster high in the  southeast; binoculars will help. The Nov. 2 full
Moon is called the Hunter's  Moon, Frosty Moon, and Beaver Moon. The morning
of Nov. 9, the Moon is at 3rd  quarter with Mars above it. The morning of
Nov. 12 Saturn is to the left of the  crescent Moon low in the east southeast
at dawn.

Naked-eye  Planets. (The Sun, Moon, and planets rise in the east and set in
  the west due to Earth's west-to-east rotation on its axis.) Evening:
Jupiter is the brilliant object in the south.  Morning: "Morning star" Venus is
near the  eastern horizon at dawn with creamy-colored Saturn  higher in the
east and reddish Mars high  overhead.

Star Party. The Central Texas Astronomical  Society's free monthly star
party is Saturday, Nov. 7, at the Waco Wetlands  beginning at 7 p.m., weather
permitting. For directions see my Web site.

*************************************************

Stargazer appears every other  week in the Waco Tribune-Herald and other
newspapers.  Paul  Derrick is an amateur astronomer who lives in Waco.  Write
him at 918 N.  30th St., Waco, TX 76707, call or fax at (254) 753-6920, or
e-mail at  paulderrickwaco@....

Copyright 2009 by Paul Derrick.   Permission is granted for free electronic
distribution as long as these  paragraphs are included.  Please obtain
permission from the author for  publication in any other form.  To be added to
(or removed from) the free  e-mail distribution list, send your e-mail
address (and name) to _paulderrickwaco@..._ (mailto:paulderrickwaco@...)
.


* * See the Stargazer Web  site at http://www.stargazerpaul.com. *  *



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