August Meetings
This month’s meeting will be on Friday August 3,
at 8:00 PM in room 215 of the Aerospace Engineering
Building on the Auburn University campus.
This month’s star party will be on The weekend
of August 17/18 at Cliff Hill’s farm.
We’ll shoot for Friday if it’s clear with Saturday as the clear weather
back-up date. This arrangement seems to be working well for us.
July Meetings
For those of you who couldn’t be there, here’s what
you missed: Alan Cook gave a riveting slide presentation of
the astronomical aspects of his recent trip to Europe which included
numerous variations of sundials, armillaries and extraordinarily complex
mechanical clocks. This was an excellent program. But then,
Alan shared his designs that he had submitted several years ago for the
memorial to astronauts who lost their lives in the American space program.
The consensus was Alan should have won the competition. Apparently
the jury thought that there was too much for the ordinary visitor to absorb.
It’s a shame.
Overcast skies gave way to patches of blue sky
late on the Saturday evening of our July star party at Cliff Hill’s farm.
Attending were: John Williams, Mark Pratt, Ricky Wood, Scott Thompson,
Dave Burnett, Alan & Max Cook, Susie Jensen, and Russell Whigham.
Alas, Mars was a disappointment as dust shrouded all detail except for
the northern polar cap. Perhaps the highlight of the evening was
comet Linear A2. Despite having faded substantially from it’s former
glory, and finding it while still low in the sky was somewhat of a challenge,
it was nice to say hello to this itinerant member of our solar system.
John was taking photos using his barn door camera mount.
Regional Star
Parties
Peach State Star Gaze, September 13-16,
Indian Springs State Park, Jackson GA. http://www.atlantaastronomy.org/PSSG2001/PSSG2001.htm
Registrations for the 250 available spaces are
going fast. Sky Atlas 2000 author, Wil Tirion, will be the keynote
speaker.
Deep South Regional Star Gaze, October
17-21, Percy Quin State Park
http://www.nightskydesign.com/pas/dsrsg.html
This will be the 19th year of DSRSG – it just
keeps getting better.
See the AAS “Field Trips”
pages for representative samples from past regional star parties.
Scope for Sale
Reduced Price
FOR SALE: Meade 90mm Refractor Astronomical Telescope
LOCATION: Opelika, AL
PRICE: (Originally, the retail price for it was
$500, but I purchased it on sale for $400.) Was asking $300; Now:
$199 (or best offer, including baby furniture :-). The tripod itself is
probably worth about $75-$100, so $199 seems to be a good price for both.
I'm willing to negotiate, however (I'm in the market for a wide-angle,
low power eye-piece for my ETX.)
Specifications of Meade Model 90mm-EQ:
Supplied complete with 90mm (3.5") multi-coated objective lens and aluminum
optical tube assembly (D = 90mm, F = 1000mm, f/11); rack-and-pinion focuser;
equatorial mounting with dual worm-gear slow-motion controls; setting circles;
latitude control with scale; full-length, variable-height aluminum tripod
with accessory shelf; 6 x 30 mm viewfinder; diagonal mirror; MA 25mm (40X),
12mm (83X), 4mm (250X) eyepieces (0.965"); 2X Barlow; instructions.
See some more pictures of the scope at http://www.aces.edu/~richardf/telescope/
This scope is about three years old, and has only
been used in the field a few times since I have another scope that I use
more often. It is in almost new condition and is in the original box and
packaging material.
If you are interested, please contact Richard
F. Feuerriegel via e-mail at the following address: richardf@acesag.auburn.edu
Astronomical League
Observing Programs
The American Association of Amateur Astronomers
http://www.corvus.com
The Astronomical League provides a wide range
of observing programs for the amateur astronomer, ranging from beginner
to highly experienced.
As a member society of the Astronomical League,
the American Association of Amateur Astronomers is pleased to make these
programs available in Adobe PDF format for FREE download from the AAAA
website.
Manuals for programs which we do not distribute
may be purchased directly online from Astronomical League Sales at http://www.astronomicalleague.com
You may find the complete list of these programs
and instructions for certification on the AAAA website at http://www.corvus.com/aa01006.htm
Clear Skies and Good Observing!
Ed Flaspoehler
American Association of Amateur Astronomers http://www.corvus.com
AL OBSERVING PROGRAMS IN PDF FORMAT
Messier Club -
70 object and 110 object levels for the telescope.
Buy from AL Sales
Binocular Messier Club -
50 of the best Messier objects for binoculars.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-binom.pdf
Deep Sky Binocular Club -
60 additional deep sky objects for binoculars.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-binod.pdf
Southern Skies Binocular Club -
50 of the finest objects in the Southern Hemisphere.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-binos.pdf
Herschel Club -
400 deep sky objects for the telescope.
Buy from AL Sales
Herschel II Club -
400 more challenge deep-sky objects for the telescope.
Buy from AL Sales
Double Star Club -
100 of the finest double & multiple stars
in the heavens.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-dstar.pdf
Lunar Club -
100 features on the moon for naked eye, binoculars,
and telescope.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-lunar.pdf
Meteor Club -
observe a series of meteor showers, and record
your observations for ALPO.
Buy from AL Sales
Sunspotters Club -
observe and study sunspots and their cycles.
Buy from AL Sales
Arp Peculiar Galaxy Club -
CCD image or observe 100 Arp galaxies.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-arp.pdf
Urban Club -
observe 100 objects in heavily light-polluted
areas.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-urban.pdf
Asteroid Club -
learn to identify and observe asteroids and minor
planets.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/al-asteroid.pdf
Universe Sampler -
a journey through the universe for the beginner.
Buy from AL Sales
Planetary Club -
27 selected projects to introduce the pleasures
of planetary observing.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/alplanet.pdf
AAAA Observing Log -
Record essential information during your observing
session. 10 objects per
page.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/a4-obsfm.pdf
AAAA Observation Log and Sketch Template - Make
drawings at the eyepiece. 1 object per page.
http://www.corvus.com/pdf/a4-sketch.PDF
Hope to see everyone at the meeting,
Russell
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