Hey Guys,

I havent been here in a while. So much has gone on. Finished all 10 certs for
the Master Award9 Still waiting for that to get here) Started working on the
next Star Party.

Congrats to those who got their Certs.

Hey Rip  I checked the calender and the dates for the next TWO RIVERS SPRING
STAR PARTY  is May 13-16, 2010.

web site  www.freewebs.com/tworiversstarparty

check it out. If you have any questions feel free to ask.

New Apollo movie to be shown at the 18th annual
St. Louis International Film Festival (Nov. 12-22 2009)

Webster University
Hi-Pointe Theater
Tivoli Theater
Plaza Frontenac
St. Louis Art Museum

The Wonder of It All
  Jeffrey Roth, U.S., 2007, 83 min.
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 5 p.m., Tivoli 1

“The Wonder of It All” focuses on the rarely told human
side of the men behind the Apollo missions through
thoughtful and candid accounts from seven of the astronauts.
Buzz Aldrin, Alan Bean, Edgar Mitchell, John
Young, Charles Duke, Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt
reflect on the training, the tragedies, the
camaraderie and the effect their space travel has had on
  their families and the world. “These elder statesmen’s
recollections of their brief moments on the moon, as well
  as of what preceded and followed, make for vivid and
emotional storytelling,” says the LA Times. “The
talking-head testimonies are matched by wonderful NASA
archival photos and footage from the various Apollo excursions.”

Shown with the documentary short “Reaching Tranquility”
(Karl Ferron, U.S., 2009, 10 min.), a look back at
the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 using dramatic
time-lapse footage of the moon.

Ticket Prices

  Individual tickets are $10 each or $8 for Cinema
St. Louis members and students with current and valid ID.

Advance tickets for programs at the Tivoli and Plaza
Frontenac are available at those box offices beginning
Thursday, Oct. 15. Box-office hours are 5-10
p.m. Monday-Friday and 2-10 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.
No phone sales. For tickets online, visit
tickets.landmarktheatres.com.

Advance tickets for Hi-Pointe Theatre are available
at Tivoli box office from Oct. 15 until Nov. 12.
Day of show at Hi-Pointe after that.

Six Before Six: Weekday screenings from Nov. 16-20
before 6 p.m. at Tivoli and Plaza Frontenac are
specially priced at $6. No other discounts are
valid for these tickets.

The Most Violent Places in the Universe (2009 International Year of Astronomy)

Featured Speaker: James H. Buckley, Ph.D., 2004 Outstanding St. Louis Scientist
Innovation Award recipient, Academy of Science – St. Louis; Professor of
Physics in Arts & Sciences, McDonnell Center Faculty Fellow, McDonnell Center
for the Space Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis

Wednesday, November 4; 7:30 – 9 p.m.
Saint Louis Zoo Living World Auditorium
One Government Drive in Forest Park, St. Louis MO 63110

FREE and OPEN to ALL. Middle and high school students welcome.
(Parking free in the Zoo's North lot.)

When one looks at the seemingly unchanging stars in the night sky it is hard to
imagine the violent processes that are at work in corners of our universe
–exploding stars, flaring super massive black holes, and rapidly spinning
stars with the mass of the sun packed into an object smaller than St. Louis.
Astrophysicist and Washington University Physics Professor, Dr. James Buckley,
presents highlights from “high energy astrophysics” – a field of astronomy
that studies some of the most energetic processes in the universe and seeks to
uncover some of the fundamental questions about the formation of galaxies and
the makeup of the universe. Dr. Buckley shares how his field of gamma-ray
astronomy probes these violent processes and may provide a means of detecting
the dark components of our universe, ranging from black holes to the dark
matter. It’s an out-of-this-world talk you won’t want to miss.

Doomsday 2012 Is A Hoax, Aided by Viral Marketing for a Movie, Astronomers
Assure the Public

For immediate release

No Doomsday in 2012, But Lots of Profits for Purveyors of Doom

----------------------------------------

The widespread Internet belief that Dec. 21, 2012 will be doomsday for planet
Earth because some astronomical event will destroy or decimate our planet is a
complete hoax, according to NASA scientist David Morrison. His concise summary
of the claims and the scientific response is being published by the Astronomical
Society of the Pacific as a public service at:

http://www.astrosociety.org/2012

For several months, NASA and many astronomers have received increasingly worried
letters and e-mails from members of the public about the possibility, widely
touted on the Internet, that the world will end in 2012.

Many mechanisms for doomsday are being proposed, including a collision with a
fictional planet called Nibiru, deadly activity on the surface of the Sun that
lashes out at Earth, alignments with the center of our Galaxy, etc.� David
Morrison has coined the term "cosmophobia" -- fear of the cosmos -- for these
concerns, and has seen a huge increase in the phenomenon this year.

Dr. Morrison, a world-renowned expert on the solar system (and asteroid
impacts), also serves as the public scientist for NASA's "Ask an Astrobiologist"
service, where he answers questions for the public.� He has received so many
questions about 2012 and the end of the world, that he felt he had to
investigate and set the record straight.

One of his most interesting findings is that the distributors of the science
fiction motion picture "2012", to be released this November, are purposely
feeding the flames of the internet panic (in what is called a viral marketing
campaign) by creating fake science websites and encouraging people to search for
"2012" on the web.� Most of the sites such searches encounter are full of
nonsense and misunderstanding, often by people who have written books on coming
disaster that they are trying to sell.

Morrison's article is in the form of questions and answers, and is followed by a
resource guide that allows readers to find even more scientific information
about why no 2012 disaster is in the cards.� There are many reasons to worry
about the future of planet Earth, of course, but absolutely no reason to single
out the winter solstice of 2012 as a special time to be concerned.

For an annotated guide of resources for responding to claims of astronomical
pseudo-science, from astrology to crop circles, and ancient astronauts to moon
landing denial, see:

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html

Founded in 1889, the Astronomical Society of the Pacific is an international
scientific and educational organization, with a goal of providing reliable,
authoritative information to help the
public understand and appreciate astronomy.���Their website
at http://www.astrosociety.org has a host of information and resource guides for
those who want learn more about the exploration of the universe.

Washington University's McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences cordially
invites the St. Louis community to the Robert M. Walker Lecture

Andrew H. Knoll
Fisher Professor of Natural History and
Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Harvard University

Free lecture open to the public:

Is there, or was there once, life on Mars?  For over a century, this issue has
been hotly contested.  Unprecedented new observations from the MER rovers Spirit
and Opportunity have documented minerals influenced by surface water early in
Martian history. These fluids, however, appear to have had an ephemeral
existence on the surface and were salty enough to inhibit even the hardiest
terrestrial microorganisms. Thus, extant life at the modern Martian surface
seems unlikely.  However, sedimentary rocks on the surface, deposited during the
first several hundred million years of Martian history, provide a promising
window to search for the preserved remains of ancient Martian life – and an
appropriately instrumented rover may, in the near future, finally be able to
settle the debate over Mars as an abode for life.

LECTURE IS FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2009 AT 7:00PM IN LAB SCIENCES (DANFORTH CAMPUS)
ROOM 300.  THIS BUILDING IS LOCATED SOUTHWEST CORNER OF THE CAMPUS.

QUESTIONS?  PLEASE CALL JAN FOSTER (314) 935- 5332.

For those looking for a dark spot to congregate with astronomy in mind, two
midwest star parties start this Wednesday.

Illinois Dark Sky Star Party
Oct. 15-18
http://www.sas-sky.org/star%20party%202009/star%20party%202009.htm

Heart of America Star Party
Oct. 15-21
http://www.hoasp.org/


If the Good Lord willin' & the creek don't rise (and lately that's been a real
concern), I hope to make a night or two at HOASP along with a few other members.

Also, mark your calendar for May 13-16, 2010 for the Two Rivers Spring Star
Party near Barry, IL. For more details, check:

http://tworiversstarparty.webs.com/

--- In gag_astro@yahoogroups.com, "rip124c41" <ripps1@...> wrote:
>
> Sure looks like it works, Harry. Beautiful starscape.
>
> This taken from your yard ?
>

Yes, from the back patio. The last of the clouds were still around, hard to see
in the dark but they sure reflect light in the pictures.
   After I rigged this up I took about 30 minutes of M-31 and tracking is a
little off bit I think it is due to the hurried polar alignment. I am processing
that now, I'll see how it turns out but I know it is streaky.

   Harry

Sure looks like it works, Harry. Beautiful starscape.

This taken from your yard ?

I used this PVC pipe in place of the 80mm scope that is normally mounted to
lighten the load and allow for free rotation of the camera once the target is
found. Just loosen the scope ring hold down nut slightly, rotate and retighten.
Notice that the camera lens is mounted on my installed 1/4-20 threaded rod on
the back of the pipe, not the scope ring. Yes that is a black plastic bag on the
front to keep down reflection. The pipe can be turned around to mount the camera
on the front for smaller lenses.
   This can be seen in the "Aiello" album, it's easy to find, also a fisheye shot
unguided or tracked from my patio.
  Don't forget to click the "large" version to see the details, Ha.

  Harry

OK Joe, nice website, but access does seem limited.  I see no information or
links for joining EMDSO, or a way to register with the website to allow deeper
access.  Did I miss something?  How do we get into your corner of the sky?

-John B.


--- In gag_astro@yahoogroups.com, "j_bougeno" <joe@...> wrote:
>
> It does still exist and you can find the new site at http://www.emdso.org.
>
> --- In gag_astro@yahoogroups.com, "Dennis Rippelmeyer" <ripps1@> wrote:
> >
> > Does anyone know if the Eastern Missouri Dark Sky Observers club
> > still exists?
> >
> > I tried their website and can't get the thing to fully load and a lot
> > of the info I can get to seems outdated. I tried emailing one of the
> > members but haven't heard back yet.
> >
> > Rip
> > Waterloo, IL
> >
>

It does still exist and you can find the new site at http://www.emdso.org.

--- In gag_astro@yahoogroups.com, "Dennis Rippelmeyer" <ripps1@...> wrote:
>
> Does anyone know if the Eastern Missouri Dark Sky Observers club
> still exists?
>
> I tried their website and can't get the thing to fully load and a lot
> of the info I can get to seems outdated. I tried emailing one of the
> members but haven't heard back yet.
>
> Rip
> Waterloo, IL
>

On Aug. 14, 2009 Jupiter rises at 19:52 CDST, transits at 01:04 CDST

GRS and recent impact site transit times for this weekend:

Aug 14
GRS transits at 5:16 , 15:11 UT;
00:16, 10:11 CDST
Impact site transits at 02:22, 12:17 CDST;
07:22, 17:17 UT

Aug 15
GRS transits at  1:07 , 11:02 , 20:58 UT;
20:07(8/14 CT), 06:02, 15:58 CDST
Impact site:
22:13(8/14 CT), 08:08, 18:04 CDST

Aug 16
GRS transits at 6:54 , 16:49 UT;
01:54, 11:49 CDST
Impact Site Transits:
04:00, 13:55
09:00, 18:55 UT

Aug 17
GRS transits 2:45 , 12:40 , 22:36 UT;
21:45(8/16 CT), 07:40, 17:36 CDST
Impact Site Transits:
22:51 (8/16 CT), 09:46, 19:42 UT

---------
Explanations

GRS = Great Red Spot. Best seen from 50 minutes before it transits until 50
minutes after it transits. With small scopes, you may only see it very close to
the actual transit time.

GRS transits = When GRS crosses the meridian of Jupiter (when it's easiest to
see) in either CT (Central Daylight Savings Time) or UT (Universal Time).

Impact Site Transit = When the impact site crosses the meridian of Jupiter (when
it's easiest to see) in either CT (Central Daylight Savings Time) or UT
(Universal Time).

UT = Universal Time; what used to be known as "Greenwich Mean Time". Subtract 5
hours from it to get Central Daylight Savings Time

Transit times for the impact site are calculated by adding 2 hours and 6 minutes
to the GRS transit time as described in the article linked below.

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/skytel/beyondthepage/41085997.html

Red Spot Transits in (Aug) 2009

August 1, 9:33 , 19:28 ; 2, 5:24 , 15:19 ; 3, 1:15 , 11:11 , 21:06 ; 4, 7:02 ,
16:57 ; 5, 2:53 , 12:48 , 22:44 ; 6, 8:40 , 18:35 ; 7, 4:31 , 14:26 ; 8, 0:22 ,
10:18 , 20:13 ; 9, 6:09 , 16:04 ; 10, 2:00 , 11:55 , 21:51 ; 11, 7:47 , 17:42 ;
12, 3:38 , 13:33 , 23:29 ; 13, 9:25 , 19:20 ; 14, 5:16 , 15:11 ; 15, 1:07 ,
11:02 , 20:58 ; 16, 6:54 , 16:49 ; 17, 2:45 , 12:40 , 22:36 ; 18, 8:32 , 18:27 ;
19, 4:23 , 14:18 ; 20, 0:14 , 10:10 , 20:05 ; 21, 6:01 , 15:56 ; 22, 1:52 ,
11:48 , 21:43 ; 23, 7:39 , 17:34 ; 24, 3:30 , 13:26 , 23:21 ; 25, 9:17 , 19:12 ;
26, 5:08 , 15:04 ; 27, 0:59 , 10:55 , 20:50 ; 28, 6:46 , 16:42 ; 29, 2:37 ,
12:33 , 22:28 ; 30, 8:24 , 18:20 ; 31, 4:15 , 14:11

--------

Jovian Satellite events:

Friday, August 14, 2009

18:40 UT, Europa exits occultation behind Jupiter.
18:40 UT, Europa exits eclipse by Jupiter's shadow.
19:16 UT, Io exits occultation behind Jupiter.
19:16 UT, Io exits eclipse by Jupiter's shadow

Saturday, August 15, 2009

14:10 UT, Io begins transit of Jupiter
14:12 UT, Io's shadow begins to cross Jupiter.
16:28 UT, Io ends transit of Jupiter.
16:30 UT, Io's shadow leaves Jupiter's disk.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

08:28 UT, Ganymede enters occultation behind Jupiter (03:28 CDST)
10:24 UT, Europa begins transit of Jupiter.
10:30 UT, Europa's shadow begins to cross Jupiter.
11:24 UT, Io enters occultation behind Jupiter.
12:14 UT, Ganymede exits eclipse by Jupiter's shadow.
13:16 UT, Europa ends transit of Jupiter.
13:22 UT, Europa's shadow leaves Jupiter's disk.
13:44 UT, Io exits eclipse by Jupiter's shadow.

No wonder you moved out there, Harry.

If you've got nothing better to do take a look at the night sky in Terre Du Lac.
It's a 32 second shot over my house and it is turned on end.
   It is in 'photos' Adler album #277.

   Harry

The St. Louis Astronomical Society (SLAS) hosts free public
Star Parties at the St. Louis Science Center (SLSC) on the
first Friday of each month from January-October. Weather
permitting, the St. Louis Astronomical Society and the
Science Center will set up a number of telescopes and be
on hand to answer visitor questions.  A special free planetarium
program "The Sky Tonight" is usually done for these PTVs
(Public Telescope Viewings). Parking on the planetarium side
of the SLSC is free.

On September 4 the planetarium will NOT do "The Sky Tonight"
presentation. All activities on that evening will be outside
with telescopes, weather permitting. October 6, 2009 will be
  the last SLSC PTV of the year.

Call the Night Sky Update, 314.289.4453, toll-free
800.456.SLSC, x4453 for more information or go to

http://www.slsc.org/content.aspx?id=338

To the Planetarium Entrance in Forest Park:

The James S. McDonnell Planetarium entrance is in the
southeast corner of Forest Park.

From westbound I-64, exit at Kingshighway and turn right.
Turn immediately left at Barnes Hospital Plaza to enter
Forest Park (first stoplight after I-64 overpass). Turn
right on Clayton and then left into the planetarium parking lot.

From I-44, exit at Kingshighway and go north. Turn left at
Barnes Hospital Plaza to enter Forest Park (first stoplight
after I-64 overpass). Turn right on Clayton and then left
into the planetarium parking lot.

From Forest Park Parkway, take the Kingshighway exit and turn
right (south) on Kingshighway. Turn right at Barnes Hospital
Plaza to enter Forest Park. Turn right on Clayton and then
left into the planetarium parking lot.


--- In gag_astro@yahoogroups.com, "mark_a_forsythe" <mark_a_forsythe@...> wrote:
>
> Hate to show my ignorance, but does SLSC PTV stand for, sounds interesting?
How may one attend?
>

Hate to show my ignorance, but does SLSC PTV stand for, sounds interesting? How
may one attend?

--- In gag_astro@yahoogroups.com, "K. Michael M." <kmichaelm@...> wrote:
>
>
> For those of you that will be coming to the SLSC PTV tonight, bring any yellow
or orange filters you may have. They may help in observing the Jovian impact
site when Jupiter is at low elevations like it will be tonight (21 degrees when
the impact site is an hour past transit). I found this piece of advice on
observing the 1994 impact sites that might be useful now at:
>
> http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/basics/3304176.html?page=5&c=y
>
>
> "...A color filter is especially useful when you're aiming at altitudes lower
than 45� above the horizon. The seeing is always worse at low altitudes in the
sky because you're looking through more air. In addition, you face more
atmospheric dispersion. This is the smearing out of a celestial image into a
short spectrum, with blue on top and red on the bottom. Even as high as 60� up,
the far-blue component of an image appears 0.9" (0.9 arcsecond) above the
far-red component. The difference is 1.5" at 45�, 2.5" at 30�, and 5" at 15�.
Your eye is fairly insensitive to light at the extreme red and blue ends of the
spectrum, so dispersion really doesn't look quite as bad as this. Still,
filtering out all but one color in a swarm of chromatic aberration will sharpen
your view. In the summer of 1994 I found a yellow or orange filter invaluable
for following the dark spots on Jupiter caused by the impacts of pieces of Comet
Shoemaker-Levy 9; because Jupiter
>  was quite low near the horizon."
>
> -----
>
> K. Michael M.
>

For those of you that will be coming to the SLSC PTV tonight, bring any yellow
or orange filters you may have. They may help in observing the Jovian impact
site when Jupiter is at low elevations like it will be tonight (21 degrees when
the impact site is an hour past transit). I found this piece of advice on
observing the 1994 impact sites that might be useful now at:

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/basics/3304176.html?page=5&c=y


"...A color filter is especially useful when you're aiming at altitudes lower
than 45� above the horizon. The seeing is always worse at low altitudes in the
sky because you're looking through more air. In addition, you face more
atmospheric dispersion. This is the smearing out of a celestial image into a
short spectrum, with blue on top and red on the bottom. Even as high as 60� up,
the far-blue component of an image appears 0.9" (0.9 arcsecond) above the
far-red component. The difference is 1.5" at 45�, 2.5" at 30�, and 5" at 15�.
Your eye is fairly insensitive to light at the extreme red and blue ends of the
spectrum, so dispersion really doesn't look quite as bad as this. Still,
filtering out all but one color in a swarm of chromatic aberration will sharpen
your view. In the summer of 1994 I found a yellow or orange filter invaluable
for following the dark spots on Jupiter caused by the impacts of pieces of Comet
Shoemaker-Levy 9; because Jupiter
  was quite low near the horizon."

-----

K. Michael M.

Jupiter's impact site will be transiting the disk of Jupiter tomorrow morning
(Tue, 7/28/09) at 03:23 am. This might be the last chance to see it for the rest
of the week - forecast is for cloudy/rainy weather after tuesday morning. How
visible the impact site will be in medium small to medium sized scopes after
that is anyone's guess. It seems to me like it's dimming a bit already.

Impact site transit on July 28 at 03:23 am CT / 08:23 UT
EL=35 degrees
AZ=197 (E of N)

Below are El and AZ data for Jupiter as seen from St. Louis from 2 hours before
until 2 hours after the transit time (UT).

July 28 UT
GRS transits (UT) 6:17 , 16:12 ;
Impact Site Transit (UT): 8:23 , 18:18
GRS transits (CT) at 01:17 , 11:12
Impact Site Transit (CT): 03:23 ; 13:18

Jupiter Apparent Topocentric Positions
Local Zenith and True North ST. LOUIS,MISSOURI

    Date        Time          Zenith          Azimuth
         (UT1)               Distance        (E of N)
              h  m   s        �  '   "        �  '   "
2009 Jul 28 06:23:00.0      54 57 24.1     161 43 18.1
2009 Jul 28 07:23:00.0      53 02 30.3     179 36 08.7
2009 Jul 28 08:23:00.0      54 48 09.2     197 31 28.9
2009 Jul 28 09:23:00.0      59 54 29.8     213 45 30.1
2009 Jul 28 10:23:00.0      67 34 58.6     227 35 30.5

To calculate when Jupiter's impact site is transiting, just add 2 hours and 6
minutes to the UT times listed below from Sky & Telescope online article at

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/skytel/beyondthepage/41085997.html

Red Spot Transits in 2009

July 1, 9:04 , 18:59 ; 2, 4:55 , 14:50 ; 3, 0:46 , 10:42 , 20:37 ; 4, 6:33 ,
16:28 ; 5, 2:24 , 12:20 , 22:15 ; 6, 8:11 , 18:06 ; 7, 4:02 , 13:58 , 23:53 ; 8,
9:49 , 19:44 ; 9, 5:40 , 15:36 ; 10, 1:31 , 11:27 , 21:22 ; 11, 7:18 , 17:14 ;
12, 3:09 , 13:05 , 23:00 ; 13, 8:56 , 18:51 ; 14, 4:47 , 14:43 ; 15, 0:38 ,
10:34 , 20:29 ; 16, 6:25 , 16:21 ; 17, 2:16 , 12:12 , 22:07 ; 18, 8:03 , 17:58 ;
19, 3:54 , 13:50 , 23:45 ; 20, 9:41 , 19:36 ; 21, 5:32 , 15:28 ; 22, 1:23 ,
11:19 , 21:14 ; 23, 7:10 , 17:05 ; 24, 3:01 , 12:57 , 22:52 ; 25, 8:48 , 18:43 ;
26, 4:39 , 14:35 ; 27, 0:30 , 10:26 , 20:21 ; 28, 6:17 , 16:12 ; 29, 2:08 ,
12:04 , 21:59 ; 30, 7:55 , 17:50 ; 31, 3:46 , 13:42 , 23:37

August 1, 9:33 , 19:28 ; 2, 5:24 , 15:19 ; 3, 1:15 , 11:11 , 21:06 ; 4, 7:02 ,
16:57 ; 5, 2:53 , 12:48 , 22:44 ; 6, 8:40 , 18:35 ; 7, 4:31 , 14:26 ; 8, 0:22 ,
10:18 , 20:13 ; 9, 6:09 , 16:04 ; 10, 2:00 , 11:55 , 21:51 ; 11, 7:47 , 17:42 ;
12, 3:38 , 13:33 , 23:29 ; 13, 9:25 , 19:20 ; 14, 5:16 , 15:11 ; 15, 1:07 ,
11:02 , 20:58 ; 16, 6:54 , 16:49 ; 17, 2:45 , 12:40 , 22:36 ; 18, 8:32 , 18:27 ;
19, 4:23 , 14:18 ; 20, 0:14 , 10:10 , 20:05 ; 21, 6:01 , 15:56 ; 22, 1:52 ,
11:48 , 21:43 ; 23, 7:39 , 17:34 ; 24, 3:30 , 13:26 , 23:21 ; 25, 9:17 , 19:12 ;
26, 5:08 , 15:04 ; 27, 0:59 , 10:55 , 20:50 ; 28, 6:46 , 16:42 ; 29, 2:37 ,
12:33 , 22:28 ; 30, 8:24 , 18:20 ; 31, 4:15 , 14:11

That will give you the UT (Universal Time) of the impact site transit. Subtract
5 hours to get local (CDST) time.

See S&T's article at

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/51237952.html

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/jupiter-hubble.html

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has taken the sharpest visible-light picture yet
of atmospheric debris from an object that collided with Jupiter on July 19. NASA
scientists decided to interrupt the recently refurbished observatory's checkout
and calibration to take the image of a new, expanding spot on the giant planet
on July 23.

Discovered by Australian amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley, the spot was created
when a small comet or asteroid plunged into Jupiter's atmosphere and
disintegrated. The only other time such a feature has been seen on Jupiter was
15 years ago after the collision of fragments from comet Shoemaker-Levy 9.

"Because we believe this magnitude of impact is rare, we are very fortunate to
see it with Hubble," said Amy Simon-Miller of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
in Greenbelt, Md. "Details seen in the Hubble view shows a lumpiness to the
debris plume caused by turbulence in Jupiter's atmosphere."

The new Hubble images also confirm that a May servicing visit by space shuttle
astronauts was a big success.

"This image of the impact on Jupiter is fantastic," said U.S. Sen. Barbara A.
Mikulski, D-Md., chairwoman of the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations
Subcommittee. "It tells us that our astronauts and the ground crew at the
Goddard Space Flight Center successfully repaired the Hubble telescope. I'm so
proud of them and I can't wait to see what's next from Hubble."

For the past several days, Earth-based telescopes have been trained on Jupiter.
To capture the unfolding drama 360 million miles away, Matt Mountain, director
of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, gave observation time to
a team of astronomers led by Heidi Hammel of the Space Science Institute in
Boulder, Colo.

"Hubble's truly exquisite imaging capability has revealed an astonishing wealth
of detail in the impact site," Hammel said. "By combining these images with our
ground-based data at other wavelengths, our Hubble data will allow a
comprehensive understanding of exactly what is happening to the impact debris."

Simon-Miller estimated the diameter of the impacting object was the size of
several football fields. The force of the explosion on Jupiter was thousands of
times more powerful than the suspected comet or asteroid that exploded over the
Siberian Tunguska River Valley in June 1908.

The image was taken with the Wide Field Camera 3. The new camera, installed by
the astronauts aboard space shuttle Atlantis in May, is not yet fully
calibrated. While it is possible to obtain celestial images, the camera's full
power has yet to be seen.

"This is just one example of what Hubble's new, state-of-the-art camera can do,
thanks to the STS-125 astronauts and the entire Hubble team," said Ed Weiler,
associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
"However, the best is yet to come."

As the story below indicates, there are several good chances to see the ISS
(International Space Station) with nothing but the unaided eye as it passes over
the St. Louis area, sometimes twice an evening;

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2009/03jul_sightings.htm

Space Station Marathon 07.03.2009

July 3, 2009: If you've never seen a spaceship with your own eyes, now's your
chance.

The International Space Station (ISS) is about to make a remarkable series of
flybys over the United States. Beginning this 4th of July weekend, the station
will appear once, twice, and sometimes three times a day for many days in a row.
No matter where you live, you should have at least a few opportunities to see
the biggest spaceship ever built.

-----------------

There are particularly good passes on these dates:

July 7 22:05 CDST
July 8 20:54 CDST
July 9 21:21 CDST
July 11 20:35 CDST

Details in the table below is from heavens-above.com which generates satellite
visibility predictions based on location.

Explanation:

1st column is date of the pass

2nd column (mag) is brightness of the object in astronomical magnitudes (6 being
the dimmest the unaided eye can usually see, 1 being roughly the brightness of
bright stars, -2 being the brightness of the brightest planets such as Jupiter &
Venus)

3rd column is when the ISS first becomes visible (local time)

4th column (Alt) is the altitude in degrees above the horizon when it becomes
visible

5th column (Az) is the direction in azimuth it will be seen (N, E, W, S, etc)

6th column (Max Alt Time) is the time when it is at it's highest above the local
horizon

7th column (Alt) is the altitude in degrees above the horizon when it's at it's
highest above the local horizon

8th column (Az) is the direction in azimuth it will be seen (N, E, W, S, etc)
when it's at it's highest above the local horizon

9th column ( End Time) is when it disappears from view as it either goes below
the horizon or passes into the earth's shadow

10th column (Alt) s the altitude in degrees above the horizon when it disappears

11th column (Az) is the direction in azimuth it will be seen (N, E, W, S, etc)
when it disappears


http://www.heavens-above.com/PassSummary.aspx?satid=25544&lat=38.627&lng=-90.198\
&loc=Saint+Louis&alt=135&tz=CST

OR http://tinyurl.com/5aahtd

Date    mag    Start time    Alt    Az       Max Alt Time    Alt       Az     
End time            Alt     Az
6 Jul    -0.5        23:16:45    10    W         23:19:04    21    NNW   
23:21:23    10     NNE
7 Jul    -2.5        22:05:20    10    WSW    22:08:10    54    NW        
22:11:06    10     NE
7 Jul    0.5        23:43:02    10    NW         23:43:58    11    NNW   
23:44:52    10     N
8 Jul    -2.9        20:54:48    10    SSW    20:57:34    39    SE        
21:00:20    10     ENE
8 Jul    -0.4        22:30:36    10    WNW    22:32:53    20    NNW    22:35:09
10     NNE
9 Jul    -2.3        21:19:07    10    WSW    21:21:59    51    NW        
21:24:52    10     NE
9 Jul    0.5        22:56:57    10    NW         22:57:45    11    NNW   
22:58:34    10     N
10 Jul    -0.3        21:44:24    10    WNW    21:46:38    19    NNW    21:48:52
10     NNE
11 Jul    -2.1        20:32:50    10    WSW    20:35:42    49    NW        
20:38:34    10    NE
11 Jul    0.5        22:10:46    10    NNW    22:11:28    11    NNW    22:12:10
10     N
12 Jul    -0.2        20:58:06    10    WNW    21:00:18    19    NNW    21:02:30
10     NNE
13 Jul    0.4        21:24:29    10    NNW    21:25:07    10    NNW    21:25:44
10     N
15 Jul    0.3        20:38:12    10    NNW    20:38:41    10    NNW    20:39:11
10     N
15 Jul    0.1        23:49:29    10    NNW    23:50:13    13    N        
23:50:13    13     N

Michael Malolepszy
St. Louis Astronomical Society

Yep...at least for the winter months.  Might be a good reason for a trip to the
southern hemisphere  ;^)

I'm wondering if this activity is a precursor of this star going supernova.  If
so, maybe I'll be able to witness the event in my lifetime.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/06/090610-betelgeuse-star-shrinking\
.html

Famous Star Is Shrinking, Puzzling Astronomers
Ker Than in Pasadena, California
for National Geographic News
June 10, 2009

One of the largest known stars in the universe is shrinking rapidly, and
astronomers don't know why.

Betelgeuse (pronounced almost like "beetle juice") is a red supergiant star 600
light-years away in the constellation Orion. From Earth the star is clearly
visible with the naked eye as the reddish dot that marks Orion's left shoulder.

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, first measured the star
in 1993 with an infrared instrument on top of Southern California's Mount
Wilson. They estimated the star to be as big around as Jupiter's orbit around
the sun.

But measurements made since then using the same instrument show that Betelgeuse
is now only about as wide as the orbit of Venus—a size reduction of about 15
percent in 15 years.

The cause of the star's rapid contraction is a mystery. But the team noted that
they had observed an unusual big red spot on the star three years ago.

"Maybe there's some kind of instability going on there," said study team member
Charles Townes, a Nobel Prize-winning astronomer at the University of
California, Berkeley.

"This red spot may be connected with the fact that [Betelgeuse is] gradually
shrinking in size."

Collapse or Bounce Back?

A class of stars known as Mira variables are known to swell and contract by as
much as 25 percent every two years—at their lowest points Mira stars can
completely disappear from view.

Astronomers know how and why Mira stars pulsate, and they know that the pulses
are linked to changes in the stars' brightness.

Betelgeuse is a type of variable star, with slight dips in its brightness every
few years. (Find out why Betelgeuse is also called the Valentine's Day star.)

But its pulses are nowhere near as dramatic as those of Mira stars, the UC
Berkeley researchers say. And on average the star is no fainter now than it was
15 years ago.

"Something unusual is happening with this star. The question is, What's going to
happen next?" Townes said.

Betelgeuse is about 8.5 million years old, and astronomers predict it could
explode as a supernova at any time. When it detonates, the blast should be
clearly visible from Earth.

"Is it going to keep on shrinking and maybe collapse, or will it oscillate back
and forth?" Townes mused. "We don't know."

Findings presented June 9 at the 214th meeting of the American Astronomical
Society in Pasadena, California.

For all those who are curious, I hope you are sitting down, yes Bill Breeden and
John Solodar do have seperate LX 90's.  The perpetual curse was finally broken. 
I dont know if it was John or Bill who summoned the Gypsies, but what ever they
did - it must have worked.

Cook

Good luck with the Deep Sky challenge, John. You'll need some dark skies and
cooperation from Mother Nature  ;^)

While perusing the Observing Awards section of the latest issue of the
Reflector, I noticed John Solodar earned the Binocular Messier Award.

Congratulations, John.

For Sale:

I was contacted by James Moore. He has an Odyssey-I 13.5" telescope for sale. (I
think it may actually be 13.1", but let's not quibble)
This telescope was owned by his wife's late husband who was a SLAS member. (name
not given)

It has not been used in 10+ years.
Also included in is:

Telrad finder (mounted on the telescope)
TeleVue 2.5X Barlow
TeleVue 13mm Plossl
Orion Moon filter
Orion Skyblock filter.

Please contact jmoore1528@... if interested.

--
John Newcomer
St Louis Astronomical Society