WASP
WASP
The Warren Astronomical Society Paper
 WAS
Volume 31, Number 7July, 1999

astro chatter Astro Chatter
by Larry Kalinowski

SETI made another splash in the local paper with the announcement that it is asking all interested computer users to log onto their websites around May 15, and download a program that will actually analyze the data [continued]

On Looking Up by Chance at the Constellations
by Robert Frost

You'll wait a long, long time for anything much
To happen in heaven beyond the floats of cloud
And the Northern Lights that run like tingling nerves.
The sun and moon get crossed, but they never touch,
Nor strike out fire from each other nor crash out loud.
The planets seem to interfere in their curves -
But nothing ever happens, no harm is done.
We may as well go patiently on with our life,
And look elsewhere than to stars and moon and sun
For the shocks and changes we need to keep us sane.
It is true the longest drout will end in rain,
The longest peace in China will end in strife.
Still it wouldn't reward the watcher to stay awake
In hopes of seeing the calm of heaven break
On his particular time and personal sight.
That calm seems certainly safe to last to-night.

 The WASP 25 years ago

icon New Members
by Joe Van Poucker

The thing that makes the Warren Astronomical Society a great are its members. We are very happy to announce the following new member who joined during May of 1999. Please extend them a warm welcome.
  • Duane Birrell; Warren, MI
  • Gerald Franklin; Warren, MI
WAS Anniversaries for July:
  • 10 Years: Larry V. Holloway; Shelby Twp., MI
  • 9 Years: Ed Watson; Palms, MI
  • 6 Years: Kenneth Bertin; W. Bloomfield, MI
  • 4 Years: Ronald Marvin; Farmington Hills, MI
  • 2 Years: Mark McNett; Royal Oak, MI
  • 1 Year: David & Sabrina Heidmann; Bloomfield Hills, MI
icon Minutes of Meetings
by LoriAnn Skonieczny




astro chatter Astro Chatter, continued

that radio astronomers have been collecting over the last few years. The expected starting date is May 15. Once the analyzing program and data are downloaded, it'll take about twenty-four hours to analyze one batch of data. It can be done at night when you're sleeping or just about any time you're not using your computer. You must sign up at the website in order to recieve your data assignment and program. The following websites are available for sign-up: setiathome.ssi.berkeley.edu and http://planetary.org. If you happen to be the lucky one to recognize an extraterrestrial signal, your name could go down in the history books.

Mars has plate tectonics. The Global Surveyer space probe that was sent to Mars recently has seen magnetic signals that are very similar to the Earth's. It means that Mars does have moving plates, or did have in the past. However, it was long before (about four million years) the Earth had them.

Comet Lee (C/1999 H1) is becoming an interesting object to observe in the southwestern sky. By the end of May it will be located near the head of Hydra with a magnitude of about 7.0, just on the limit of visibility but a good object for a camera with ordinary film or a CCD chip. I'll provide an ephemeris for Lee at the meetings.

If you didn't make the May meeting at MCCC, then you missed a superb lecture on the expanding universe by Lou Faix. I hope Lou will present that same lecture to the Cranbrook group sometime in the near future. It was so good that I copied the electronic version that he used to give the lecture and will make it available from the WAS computer library. It's a self running program that uses DOS to operate. You can run it right from your "A" drive if you're using WIN95 or 98.

The June computer meeting will be held at Gary Gathen's home on Thursday, the 24th. His address is 21 Elm Park. Three blocks south of the I-696 expressway and about half a block west of Woodward in Pleasant Ridge. You can reach him at 248-543-3366 for further information.

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The WASP 25 years ago

ASTRONOMY PUNS
for a cloudy night
(reproduced from the July 1974 issue of the WASP)
  1. Me second, U-niverst.
  2. TELE* scope We'll be out to use it later.
  3. If you didn't get that one you're a real domey!
  4. Go tell it on the Mount-an.
  5. If I can't drive, the clock will.
  6. Eyepiece, you peace, we all peace?
  7. Tri-pod, hippies do.
  8. I didn't planet that way either.
  9. Sun be home by Moon.
  10. We are all making a crater profit here on the moon.
  11. Because we are all a bunch of LUNA-tics.
  12. You bet your BRECHAS we are!
  13. I always had a nite- Mare, do you Sea?
  14. Oh shucks I missed the Bald-win. (club joke)
  15. Sun you're not too bright are you?
  16. Another flareup like that and you'll be in a spot.
  17. I ex- Spectrum all home soon.
  18. I want to order a cheese and Astronomy sandwich.
  19. It is my turn now it is Saturn.
  20. They were all a bunch of nice guys when we went for a spin, but they all turned out to be a couple of Axis.
  21. They majority of the people voted to view the solar eclipse without filters, I asked who opposed, no one did so the eyes had it!
  22. Jerry Persha said, "Oscillalater Ya'll."
  23. Pete Kwentis made a complete Reticle of himself!!
  24. Lou Faix picked a Dry, but Ice night to shoot his pictures.
  25. Dave Harrington shoots so many one minute exposures through his telescope, that a Film has started to collect over his eyes.
  26. Poor Tony Bonmarito, his nagging wife has finally given him a reciprocity failure!!
  27. The Reason! Angie made her Celestron her main Objective. (Our sympathy Tony)
  28. Doug my son, hold your 8" f20 on the fence while I make this 4 hour exposure of Saturn.
  29. THE OBSERVATORY REPORT.
  30. There are so many space vehicles up in space that there has been a tremendous increase in parking Meteors.
  31. The space baby got so sick that it threw Ejecta all over the moon.
  32. When the American astronaut stopped at one of Jupiter's moons he decided he would shop, but they would not accept money, so he wrote out an Io-u.
  33. When he went to the 7th planet of our solar system, they would not let him land until he took the URAN-us test.
BY THIS TIME YOU ARE PROBABLY PRAYING FOR CLEAR WEATHER!!!
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icon Minutes of Meetings

Cranbrook, May 3, 1999

Macomb, May 20, 1999

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This page was created by Jeff Bondono, and last changed on May 28, 1999.