The Warren Astronomical Society Paper

Volume 29, Number 11, November, 1997

Don't Miss Those Events
Computer Chatter
Minutes of Meetings

Don't Miss Those Events

by Marty Kunz

Recently an occultation of the Moon and Saturn was missed by many people. An occultation is when the Moon passes in front of an object in the sky. This is a rather rare event but it's not the end of the world if you missed it. Fortunately it's going to happen again if you live on the east coast. This time it will occur in the early evening on Nov 11, 1997.

A lot of celestial events are missed for one reason or another and I've lost out on a lot of good ones. Probably the main reasons for not seeing something special are forgetting to look ahead and not writing it in a calendar. There are a lot of resources such as magazines to find information on future events. However if you don't put this information where you will see it every day you might notice it too late. That's why I write astronomical events on an everyday calendar. Don't forget to highlight it also. Another resource for future events is an astronomical calendar. I don't use one for everyday use because they can have too much information on them and I tend to miss things in the jumble.

Below is a list of mutual events of Jupiter's moons. Occ means that one moon passes in front of another.

Oct 17, 1997	12:09 AM	1 occ 3
Oct 30, 1997	6:54 PM	2 occ 3
Oct 30, 1997	8:23 PM	1 occ 2
Nov 6, 1997	10:08 PM	2 occ 3
Nov 8, 1997	8:06 pm	4 occ 3
Nov 8, 1997	8:26 pm	1 occ 2
Nov 18, 1997	9:41 pm	1 occ 4
Nov 25, 1997	5:42 pm	3 occ 2
Dec 2, 1997	5:15 pm	3 occ 1
Dec 5, 1997	6:41 pm	1 occ 3
Dec 9, 1997	8:34 pm	3 occ 1

Here are a few things to look for in the upcoming weeks:

Oct 18, 1997	the moon passes in front of the bright star Aldebaran. Disappearance will be just before 5:00 AM. Reappearance will be about an hour later.
Oct 20-26, 1997	The Orionid meteor shower
Nov 10, 1997	Three moon shadows will appear on Jupiter, starting at 9:10 PM
Nov 12, 1997	Jupiter passes in front of a star. Look before 10:20 PM
Nov 17, 1997	Leonid Meteor shower

Computer Chatter

by Larry Kalinowski

IBM has announced a breakthrough in microchip design and fabrication. The old method of using aluminum has been superseded with copper. IBM claims the new method, using copper, will reduce manufacturing and retailing costs substantially. Startup production involving the new method is supposed to begin in a month. Chip speed, however, won't increase all that much. A 40% gain is speed is possible. Look for lower prices in microchips, in the future.

A celestial mammoth, discovered at The University of California, with the help of the Hubble Telescope, turns out to be a star. Born three million years ago and two hundred times more massive than our Sun, it's large enough to engulf all the planets up to Mars, if it were located where our Sun is. It radiates the equivalent of our Sun's output in six seconds. Named the Pistol star because of its location in the Pistol nebula, it exceeds our Sun's output ten million times.

The planet Jupiter will have a special show on November 10, starting at 9:10 pm. Three of the planets Galilean moons (Io, Callisto and Ganymede) will cast their shadows on the face of the planet. Not all the shadows will appear in the beginning but all will finally show themselves eventually, providing a show seldom seen.

The Sun's getting hotter, according to analyzed solar satellite data. Data collected over the last seventeen years indicates a significant rise in energy. It's less than one percent but even that little amount is meaningful when it comes to what the Earth collects from the Sun. It looks as though we can't blame all our corruptive weather on man's environmental contributions.

If you're one of those poets that likes to move those magnetic words around and create short works of art, you may be interested in a screen saver version with the same capability. The screen saver is produced by the same company that makes the magnetic version.

Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus, the bull, will disappear behind the Moon on the morning of October 19, at approximately 4:55 AM. Reappearance will occur about 6:10 AM. The star is so bright that you can view this event with just a pair of binoculars.

The Detroit Astronomical Society (DAS) will hold its annual Swap Shop on Friday, October 17, at their Southfield meeting site in the Southfield Civic Center, community room 224, on the north side of the Civic Center complex. Look for telescope accessories, optics, astronomical software, books and other items of astronomical interest. Festivities begin at 8:00 PM. There's no charge and the general public is invited to attend. The Civic Center is located between Ten and Eleven Mile Rd., on the east side of Evergreen Road. I'll see you there behind the WAS software table.

Blaine McCullough has reported that the group that repaired the latch on the observatory dome left the premises without closing up properly. The dome must be moved so that the sliding door is facing east. This prevents westerly winds from driving rain into the observatory. The telescope was left with the tube pointing up toward the dome and also left uncovered. The tarp found over the telescope has to be replaced when the observatory is closed. Any one of the deficiencies mentioned could have caused a lot of damage to the telescope if there had been a storm. Anyone using the observatory, for any reason, has to follow those closing-up rules. If not, you'll lose your privilege to use the building and possibly be liable for telescope damage and repair. Blaine wants those parties to know their work is appreciated, but improper closure could have caused more problems than the broken lock.

Cassini, the space probe designed to analyze Saturn's moon, Titan, will be well on its way from Earth by the time you read this at the Macomb meeting. If all goes well, the probe will rely on the gravity assist it gets by passing Venus, Earth and Jupiter, with final approach to Titan in 2004. The space craft will launch the Huygen's probe which will do the final analysis of Titan's atmosphere and surface. Cassini is the controversial space probe that contains a quantity of plutonium, a highly radioactive material that is used to power the craft during its long trek to Saturn. Some facets of the general public have demonstrated against the launch of this probe for fear of a possible radioactive accident.

Sunday morning, October 26, marks the end of Daylight Savings Time, the last Sunday in October. That means more observing time for evening star watchers and your chance to recover an hour of sleep that you lost in the Spring. In case you don't remember, the clock goes BACK one hour.

Local computer shows for the end of October are in Taylor, on the 18th, at The Democratic Club Hall, 23400 Wick Road, four blocks east of Telegraph Rd., and one mile south of I-94. Madison Heights has one on the 26th, at the U.F. & C.W. Hall, 876 Horace Brown Drive, one block east of I-75 and one block south of Thirteen Mile Road.

Here are a few things to look for in the upcoming weeks: The October computer meeting will be at Gary Gathen's home, on Thursday the 23rd. All new visitors will receive a free Windows planetarium program. Gary lives in Pleasant Ridge, at 21 Elm Park, three blocks south of I-696 and a half block west of Woodward Ave. His number is 810-543-3366.

Here are a few things to look for in the upcoming weeks: The November computer meeting will be one day earlier, on Wednesday, the 26th, due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday. It will resume at my home. Call me at 810-776-9720, for further information.

Minutes of Meetings

by Glenn Wilkins

Macomb - Sept 18, 1997

Dave opened the meeting at 7:48. There were 21 members plus 3 guests present. There were approximately 1,000 people at the Ford Island Lake Star Party. This was their largest event so far and is indicative that new interest in astronomy developed by the recent comets is continuing.
Ben reported that our cash position had increased by $197.11 to $4,824.64 as of 8-21.
There are at least 10 astronomy clubs interested in participating in the 2nd. star party at Kensington next May 1 & 2. Each organization signed up for one presentation. They are looking for a theme. Suggested activities from the Macomb mtg. included earth from space, solar eclipse talk, possibility of selling solar filters for the upcoming partial eclipse, asteroid views/talk and light pollution.
It was noted that the Woodland Waters Campground at 37 Mile Rd./Van Dyke is for sale. A possible combined club viewing site?
Lou indicated that Larry Kalinowski will give a talk on computerized astronomy (maps etc.) in November. John Herrgott will provide a book review on the cosmic evolution of life at the Dec. Cranbrook meeting. Blaine noted that Mike Cyric & Kim Dyer repaired the observatory dome latch. The scouts continue to show a strong interest in astronomy.
Due to a holiday conflict, THERE WILL NOT A CRANBROOK MTG. ON 1-1! Alternatives are being considered. Our annual banquet will be again held at the Warren Chateau. The early-bird cost will be $17.50 and Ben has started a sign-up list. Angie noted that Ben Tolbert also contributed cookies & punch to the Open House event (the Secretary stands corrected).
Officer nominations were opened and John Dombrizel will run for 2nd. VP against Blaine McCullough & Fred Judd. Steve Green will run against Mike Affeld for Treasurer. We still need additional nominations for President and 1st. VP. Also, anyone interested in the appointed positions of WASP Publisher or Librarian should contact Dave. The actual appointments, however, would be made by the 1998 President.
Marty Kunz showed his split-screen video of the recent, rare occultation of Saturn by the moon.
After the break, the feature presentation was a light-hearted and informative talk on photoelectric photometry of Cepheid variable stars by Francette Faye. Francette is a physics & astronomy instructor at Macomb. Her master's thesis was done at Wayne to see if useful photometery can be done from the heart of a big city. As those who were present learned, the answer is Yes!
The meeting ended at 10:22.

Cranbrook Meeting - Oct 2, 1997

Lou Faix opened the meeting at 7:40 in place of Dave. He noted that an offer was extended to Francette Faye for the use of Stargate to continue her research into the extent that photometric studies can be made from light-polluted areas.
The answers to the Krueger 60 solar mass calculations from the last Cranbrook meeting were 42.5 years/orbit and a combined mass for the pair of 0.4 to 0.45 solar masses. Several members were very close to these figures. Congratulations!
Lou read from an obituary indicating that Frank Ales died suddenly this week. A card will be circulated at the next meeting to send to Frank's family.
John Herrgott reported that meetings have commenced for the Stargate Improvement Committee on a proposal to present to the Metro Park Authority. John will also make a presentation SETI at the December Cranbrook mtg.
Ben Tolbert reported that the treasury balance has increased to $5,172.61 as of 10-2. Also, advance tickets for the Awards Banquet are now available from him at $17.50 through 12-3. The banquet will be on 12-18 at the Warren Chateau on the north side of 10 Mile, just east of Mound. The gourmet menu will be repeated by popular demand.
Nominations were strongly solicited for 1998 officers, but no nominations were accepted and no volunteers came forth. The need for President is especially acute since Dave is having a difficult time finding the time he would like to have to dedicate to this office and he is the only nominee for '98.
Doug Bock reported that 25-30 people showed up at his place last Saturday for his star party. Some observing was accomplished in clear patches as the clouds moved through, and the 2nd. observatory was moved onto it's pad. It is now waiting for a suitable telescope.
Larry Kalinowski has exposure guides for anyone in need. Recent TV interference experienced by some satellite users is apparently due to the proximity of the sun relative to the satellite(s) at this time of year, rather than any unusual sunspot activity.
After the break, Lou re-presented his original presentation of his Little Splat theory on the creation of our moon and the interesting sequence of events that occurred at the time leading to the acceptance of this idea as a viable theory. In essence, the direct collision of the proto-earth with a very large comet.
The meeting was closed at 10:10.

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8/9/2022

The Warren Astronomical Society Paper

Volume 29, Number 11, November, 1997

Table of Contents

Don't Miss Those Events

Computer Chatter

Minutes of Meetings