Arrowhead Astronomical Society
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Arrowhead Astronomical Society
Observing Notes
The tables below are links to AAS club member reports of past observing sessions and commentaries:
AAS members: Click here for observation article submit instructions.
| 2008-09 Observations | 2007 | 2006 & Older |
|---|---|---|
The Space Train was sponsored by the Duluth Art Institute. The idea was to take the general public out to a dark site and see the stars. The AAS, along with the UMD Planetarium staff, job was to talk about the stars and planets, and show the public the night sky.
I brought my 4" refractor, Eric his 8" Dob (Sewer pipe scope, which was renamed "Big Heavy White Thing" by the train staff). The UMD staff also brought some scopes. It was a bit of a struggle to get all this equipment on the train, but we did it.
While waiting for the train, Eric dressed up in his space suit (left over from Astronomy Day), and greeted the crowd - they thought that was great. Since Eric had another suit, Britney (UMD) "volunteered" to wear the extra suit. As you can see, she was quite pleased to be selected to wear the suit...
Before the train left, I had volunteered to give a short talk. Luckily, I had a lot of material from NASA's Night Sky Network (our club is a member). I talked about the scale of the Milky Way Galaxy compared to the Solar System. I think it went ok. Next time I think I'll practice a little more.
After our talk, all the passengers boarded the train. Eric and I were beginning to worry about the sky. There wasn't any. It was cloudy and looked like rain.
The train ride itself was great. We rode in the last car with all our equipment. The Space Train ticket included pizza and beer. In the dining car a band was playing. A lot of the passengers asked us questions about the night sky, astronomy and telescopes. We also noticed it was starting to rain outside.
When we got to Palmers (up the North Shore on Homestead rd), the train stopped and Eric and I went outside to see what the sky conditions were like. It was not good at all. Very dark (good), very cloudy (not so good) and starting to drizzle (very bad). But what amazed me the most was that almost everybody, with very few exceptions, got out of the train. If they could not see the sky, they wanted to hear what we had to say about the night sky! I'll never forget 100+ people standing in the dark listening intently to the composition of Saturn and Jupiter while it rained lightly on our heads. One of the staff from the train told me that "it stopped raining, maybe the scopes could be setup?". He was hoping that somehow we could see the stars that night.
It always surprises me how interested the public is in astronomy. It is up to us who know how to use a scope, find our way around the night sky, and know a fact or two about astronomy to inform and educate the public about astronomy and the night sky. Show them why we get up in the middle of the night or the early morning to see the wonders of the universe. They'll never forget...
- Michael Sangster
We pulled it off!
Though the wind was howling the road cleanup went well. We even found a printer in the ditch! Our BBQ feast was bacheloresque. The dessert was too die for! How about Saturn, M81 & 82 and the Ring? It was a beautiful starstudded evening, with no wind! and no bugs. Thank you to all 7 who helped A visiting dog did the dishes and cleaned up the grill.
Thanks to all
Eric
It was my first public star party of the year. Eric Norland and Jim Schaff were also present from the club.
Although not many people came to the star party, they were very enthusiastic.
We viewed the crescent Moon, Saturn, some double stars (Mizar was popular), galaxies in Leo and M13. Saturn was the favorite, of course. Many of the observers found 2-4 Moons of Saturn.
- Mike
We did it!
There were just a few of us AAS members at the Plaza Super One last night to show the public the celestial wonder's. (Because of spurious clouds, all we saw was the moon.) But it was fun talking to some very!! surprised visitors who looked through our telescopes and talked astronomy. We gave away about 60 booklets and had about 30 observers look through our scopes.
Thanks to all, especially those who helped!
Eric
It was an interesting year in astronomy. There was the mysterious comet Holmes, the discovery of ice on Mars, the Hubble images of distant stars surrounded with Jupiter sized planets and the new theory that the universe will ever expand until everything moves away from everything else. On a more local level, we did do many things in 2008. We did imagine a visit to Orbit Cafe, a journey to M13 and M22 and to a space conference on a moon of Pluto. We also tried a little Earth Riding, but seriously we talked about many more realistic topics, we reached out to the community and tried to open their eyes to the universe.
This past year of 2008 saw the Arrowhead Astronomical Society continue to grow and expand its astronomy outreach. Our club has grown in membership, continued with public presentations, shared more sidewalk astronomy and held many observing sessions, though I must say participation has waned in comparison to years past.
We started the year of 2008 with $375 dollars in the coffers and now have $345.
There is risk in all things that humans do. Every month for the last year our brave members have given planetarium presentations on each 2nd Wednesday of the month. This open format is a wonderful privilege and it is hoped that more members will take advantage of it. Thank you to the UMD Planetarium! We had several very unique programs, such as Rachael Ellis and the mythology of constellations, Richie Townsen and his Cosmic Pit Orchestra. Mike Sangster even gave a great presentation! He was also on TV! Thanks also to Dave Evans, Bob, Jim, Brian and others. Lets expand and reach out to more people who want to express an interest in sharing about astronomy and its many aspects. Most of all, thank you to those of you who get up here and express your knowledge of astronomy to others.
People can do the nicest things. This past year, members of A.A.S. helped set up telescopes after several Wednesday evening planetarium programs and we showed the public astronomy objects. On Jan. 9th we looked at Mars between the clouds with the public. There was one magnificent total lunar eclipse on February 20th, which we were involved in. We were involved in the planning and delivery of Astronomy Day on April 21st of last year. On that day, we saw about 300 people pass by the exhibits, despite the horrible weather. As you recall we had an astronaut mission to move a killer asteroid. For this feat we bode well to say the weather did not defeat us on Astronomy Day. In May, I drove up to Lake Vermilion to offer advice to a wealthy naturalist on where to build an observatory.
Members of A.A.S. did participate in the Harvest Moon gathering at Two Harbors in September, and we intended to go to the Winter Solstice gathering, but it was canceled due to heavy snow. I did 2 observing nights up at Hawks Ridge with the migratory bird enthusiasts numbering about 20.
Boldly going where no man has gone before, members of A.A.S. were out at Korkki a total of 12 times in the past year. Visitors who were not with A.A.S. who came to Korkki numbered in the teens. A.A.S. members did participate in 2 road cleanups, which are required during the year. We had 2 BBQ's last year. At one of them, I was the only participant.
Members of A.A.S. participated in about 7 Canal Park sidewalk astronomy events. A total of approximately 800 to 1000 people walked past or stopped in and looked through our telescopes.
About 6 or 7 of our members did make it to Hobbs for the annual summer gathering at Eau Claire. Another 6 or 7 of us made it down to Greg Furtman's gathering on Labor Day Weekend.
When we are old and frail, we may look back with pride on the many individuals who have given so much during this past year. Will Wiethoff took about 100 images with his 16inch Celestron. and had his supernova photos used in an international study of supernovas. I think this is a wonderful accomplishment. Bob King has been very diligent on his website blog and it holds a wealth of information. We also thank Bob for each months meeting he brings us, "Whats Happening Up There?" update. Mike Sangster has continued with organizing the clubs website. Jim Schaff has invested in a solar observing telescope and has shared his knowledge of astronomy with other employees at Cirrus Design. Ted Pellman put together the Astronomy Day video. Mark Clement helped assemble things on Astronomy Day. It has been so wonderful to see and hear from the lady members of AAS-, Dawn, Tina, Paula, Nancy, Sannie, as your involvement is appreciated. To Brian Sorvik we give our thanks for keeping track of the finances. Our two doctors, Jim Donovan and Peter Miller have had their research put in the display case in the lobby outside of the planetarium. To all of the individuals who have contributed, we give our deepest thanks.
A worker is only as good as the tools of his trade. We have been using the 17inch Pipke telescope and it works fairly good, the 12 inch Meade has a good image but mounting problems. The 8 inch Nelson telescope was stuck and was repaired by Jim Schaff. The clubs 8 inch is again out on loan to a member. Future challenges for AAS are to renovate the clubs 12 inch telescope into a truss mount and a go to system. I believe this should be a club project, one that gets many of us involved.
We should try to visit a few more schools this year. Astronomy is a wonderful topic for young minds, and it can help us attain points with the Night Sky Network.
I think we should also try to visit some retirement homes. Reaching out to the elderly and gaining their interest could be a real interesting experience for both of us.
Thank you to Aaron Bransky, our light pollution coordinator. We should continue to speak out on the problems of light pollution. I would like to see a committee formed that would be available to go around and voice this increasing problem.
To Steve and Lou, it is good to see you around once again.
It would be wonderful to put together a $500 scholarship fund for possible students of astronomy. Let's continue to try and develop this idea.
It would also be wonderful to publish at least one Astronomy North newsletter this year.
How about going to China or India this summer for the total eclipse of the sun? Because of the economy this may not be feasible, but perhaps we can do a live website visit of the eclipse.
Overall, I feel stronger than ever, that astronomy is the key to opening up our human minds to understanding more about our place in the universe. It can be so transforming, when we learn something about our solar system, the sun, the nearby stars, the Milky Way Galaxy, other galaxies and the vast other islands of galaxies, we realize something more about ourselves and our miniscule position in this universe. We are not unimportant, that is for sure. We discover through astronomy, how united we are as a world unit, moving through space on this tiny planet. In our pursuit of astronomy, there is so much more to unravel and to demonstrate about how understanding it can be of benefit. Astronomy makes life for us on earth even more interesting. Astronomy can figuratively transport us off this world to the many other realms out there. It is a natural part of daily life. It brings science to our reality, brings a meaning to life, that we are inhabitants living on a tiny atom within the cosmic ocean. It is humbling, to think how small we really are, floating on this endless sea, called the universe. Mostly, astronomy is a way of explaining the wonders out there - from the inner workings of a supernova, to the depths of a black hole or the edge-on rings of Saturn, it becomes a tangable and understandable universe, one that we can feel comfortable with and comprehend. That is why it is so good to promote this topic and share it with others.
Now we are about to embark on even greater endeavours for 2009. We hope to join in the pursuit of spreading our interest via Astronomy Day on May 2nd and since it is the International Year of Astronomy, I think we should take advantage of this format and spread the great news about the wonders of the universe.
Your input is valued and appreciated. I know this is a volunteer organization, but every little bit of help adds up to making it happen. If there are any ideas or expressions that you want to share, then you are always welcome to express yourself, to come up here and speak out or to forward them to me and we shall discuss them further.
Finally, I want to thank Mark Helmer for allowing us to use his property for the betterment of astronomy. I think we should immediately send him $50 as a token of our appreciation.
Thank you very much for everything,
Eric Norland
By Eric Norland
It had been a long, cold winter followed by a dreary spring, so clear skies were a welcome sight on Friday May 23rd. Members of AAS did a Korkki Road Cleanup then enjoyed a barbecue and socializing while watching a glorious sunset. At dusk the tiny planet Mercury was spotted above the treeline. Zooming in through a telescope, it looked like a disco ball shimmering. Jim Schaff had his Starry Night program running on his laptop and this helped us identify the location of Mercury.
We then swung the scope to glorious Saturn and challenged our eyes to confirm its many moons. Titan was the brightest moon, but tiny Dione was not easily seen below the planet. The Jim Nelson 8 inch telescope worked very well for this task, as it resolved Cassinis Division on Saturns ring. The mount worked smoothly and thanks to Jim S. for rebuilding it.
Jim Donovan set the 12 inch Meade upon Saturn and the image was excellent. We also looked at Mars, and it appeared orange and crisp, but of course tiny as it is far away. We then swung the 17 inch toward the Garnet Star, Mu Cepheus, in order to compare it to the color of Mars. It looked coppery or as Stuart Sivertson corrected me when he said, "it looks brassy to me."
We looked at some galaxies in Leo, then watched the International Space Station pass 200 miles overhead at 17,000 mph. We looked at the Sombrero Galaxy, M5 a fat globular in Sextans, which looked fabulous in comparison to M13, but Hercules wins the prize once again. There were 2 globulars in Opheucus, M10 and 12, and the Ring Nebula, M57 in Lyra. We once again visited our old friends M81 and 82, looking splendid, as well as a fine little galaxy in Canes Venatici, which has a supernova going on board at this point in time.
That is when we noticed the arcing band of the Milky Way rising up above the eastern horizon, revealing the coming summer stars like Deneb and Altair. It was like a smile to our eyes. Dark dust lanes zig zagged from Cygnus down to Scutum. These areas of interstellar dust are the ingredients for future stellar production, the seeds of life to a galaxy. Though they block out the brilliant stars beyond, we realize they are essential to building life such as us. We found ourselves once again looking outward into the great expanse asking - could it be that we are alone? Oh come on now!! You arrogant human, have you no shame? Look once again through the 17 inch telescope at the enormous numbers of stars along this great rift. They can hardly be counted! Didn't Columbus wonder if he would ever see any other humans as he headed west? It would be absurd to think that life is not elsewhere in our galaxy, let alone amongst all the other galaxies throughout the universe. In fact, the cosmos smiles down upon us, it is egging us on, come and find me, keeping looking, we are all out here, calling you to come and join us.
By Eric Norland
On Saturday March 1, 2008 Jim Schaff and I met up at Korkki. Clouds were already rolling in when we pulled up. However, there were a few breaks in the sky, so, being optimists, we set up the telescopes. Jim started to take an exposure of Perseus, where Comet Holmes was expected. While he did that, I used my digital camera to attempt to take photos of Saturn. This was not going very well, as the cold air had a real bite to it and shooting a hand held camera through an eyepiece is very difficult.
I then mounted the camera onto a tripod and in between clouds I tried to take a few constellation photos. Jim helped me adjust the camera so that the shutter would stay open for 16 seconds. This helped give the camera a long enough exposure to bring out an image of the Orion constellation.
I went back to attempting photos of Saturn, but it moved to fast in the eyepiece. Our hands were freezing, and we retreated into the warming house to look over our photos. Jim did get a couple of nice images of the area where the comet is expected. We thought we could see the comet in one. (Later it turned out to the star Mirphak) It was nice to have a hot cocoa drink and munch on some chocolate cake.
When we went back outside it had turned perfectly clear. We attempted to take more photos. Jim aimed his camera again at the comet. I went on to try and take images of Mars. It looked great in the viewfinder, but each time I took a photo, the image zipped away. It turned out I was pushing on the telescope while pressing on the shutter. All the images came out a little blurry.
Soon the clouds rolled back in and we called it quits at about 10:30. The evening was our first time stargazing in about 4 months. It seemed like this past winter the stars were being protective of our looking at them.
