Amateur astronomy and other miscellaneous topics. http://www.webjones.net Sun, 22 Nov 2009 21:26:43 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.webjones.net/themes/webjones/images/blockcoffee.gif http://www.webjones.net http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=35 Lonely Minds In The Universe by Giancarlo Genta

A book that tackles many questions about life beyond Earth not only from the standpoint of science, but also of sociology, psychology, philosophy and religion. It explores not just what if (or when) we might find other life, but how will we recognize it, how will we react to it, and how it might affect us as a species. And, of course, it's not just all about other intelligent life - it's about life of any kind. Genta looks at past and current ideas about how life came to Earth and efforts underway to search for life forms in our own Solar System, efforts to detect signals from alien civilizations and efforts to transmit our own signals to nearby stars, and efforts to locate earth-like exoplanets. Lonely Minds is not a particularly light read, but it is not so technical as to completely daunt the layman either.]]> argot@webjones.net Reading http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=35 Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:56:00 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=33
What I found this time is that my own telescope design and documentation has been featured on Wired Magazine's GEEKDAD blog, maintained by John Baichtal, and cited on Make Magazine online by Phillip Torrone.

Build Your Own Newtonian Telescope on GEEKDAD

HOW TO - Build your own telescope on Make: Online]]> argot@webjones.net Telescope Whatever http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=33 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:49:16 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=34
Of course we all hung around so as not to miss the opportunity to observe. The forecast was perfect, the early afternoon promising, the late afternoon not so promising, and the evening more disappointing than not. In the late afternoon a light covering of high clouds began to move in and they stuck with us, with random clear respites, until around 10 PM. But as soon as it cleared up the condensation struck. Lots of dew. Everyone pretty much packed it in and went home by 10:30 PM.

However, I did manage to add a few new reports to the lists for the Messier observing Club, the Globular Cluster observing Club and the Herschel 400 observing club.

10" f4.7 Reflector | 20mm eyepiece (60x) | 9mm eyepiece (133x)

• NGC 7078 / M 15 (GC Club) : Fairly clear with the 20mm eyepiece with a well defined core of stars with many outlying stars in a halo around it. The view is much the same in the 9mm eyepiece. I'll consider this one a concentration class III.


• NGC 7089 / M 2 (GC Club) : It took me some time to track this one down with the 20mm eyepiece, mainly because the high atmosphere haze cut down on the number of stars I could see for reference (I don't use a magnifying finder). Once located I found a slightly larger twin of 7078 with a somewhat larger core of stars and smaller halo of outriders. I put it at a concentration class V.


• NGC 7296 (H400 Club): I used the 20mm eyepiece to get to the spot I thought I should be in, but everything just looked like the usual thick scattering of background stars you find in the field of the Milky Way. I had prepared myself with an image and a few other observer's descriptions, so with a succession of higher magnifications (15mm then 9mm) I was able to make out a somewhat triangular grouping of stars that matched the descriptions I'd read.


• NGC 7243 (H400 Club) : With the 20mm eyepiece and a good bit of willpower, I could make out a large and very loose oval grouping of stars. Moving up the 15mm and 9mm didn't reveal much else.


• NGC 7209 (H400 Club) : I'm only half certain I saw this one. My eyes and reflex finder tell me I was pointed at the right location, but the view in the eyepiece looked very much like the fairly uniform rich field of the Milky Way. I'm listing it anyway because other observer's descriptions indicate that's the way it should look.


• M 74 (Messier Club) : Tracked down with the 20mm eyepiece, this galaxy is only barely visible. It was from bumping up the magnification with the 9mm and then a 6mm eyepiece that I was able to discern a faint round patch of light, quite diffuse, and requiring averted vision to clarify.


• M 77 (Messier Club) : Moving down toward the horizon a bit, I was able to locate this one fairly quickly, despite that this is the most light-polluted part of sky from our observing field. Very similar to M 74, but with a discernibly brigher core in the 9mm eyepiece.

Of course we all looked at Jupiter, which was pretty as always and had 3 visible moons. Being close to time for the Leonids, we had a meteor about every 10 to 15 minutes.]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=34 Sun, 15 Nov 2009 18:36:32 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=32 A Game of Thrones
A Clash of Kings
A Storm of Swords
A Feast for Crows
by George R.R. Martin

After reading the short stories last month and seeing a few reviews of Martin's A Song Of Ice And Fire series, I thought I'd give it a chance.
I have not been reading much fiction for the last few years - nothing on the bookstore shelves (the real or the virtual kind) looked appealing. The few books that look promising usually fall flat upon thumbing them open and reading a random page. But this book has been excellent so far. Martin puts together an unsentimental and complex historical fantasy and his writing is nice and direct, and refreshingly free of the kind of formulaic dialog too often used to give fantasy novels a sense of "period". This is no cut and dried, good vs. evil novel, not for the reader looking for some light escapism.]]> argot@webjones.net Reading http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=32 Tue, 06 Oct 2009 02:25:38 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=31 Dreamsongs vol. I & II by George R.R. Martin

I picked up up this two volume set of short stories from the sale rack at Barnes & Noble for a bit of light, casual reading with no real expectations. This is my first experience with Martin's work and I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised. The stories go in chronological order of writing, and the first few were what can best be described as derivative and stilted. But they just kept getting better, deeper, more thoughtful and interesting. Now I suppose I'll have to seek out more of Martin's work. ]]> argot@webjones.net Reading http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=31 Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:36:26 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=30 When I redesigned and rebuilt the telescope, one thing that I didn't change was the primary mirror cell. A few weeks ago I decided to clean the mirror and reached a few conclusions: 1) it was highly inconvenient to remove the mirror from the cell, 2) the cell did not allow for any air circulation at all and 3) the design was just sloppy. So I cast about for ideas and happened upon Gary Seronik's simple design. I especially like that, instead of having springs on each of the 3 collimation bolts to provide tension, Gary's design has the collimation bolts pulling the mirror cell tight against an acorn nut which provides a central pivot point. I didn't follow his plan exactly, but adapted it to the design of my telescope.

Images of my new primary mirror cell are in this photo set.

Gary Seronik's primary mirror cell design can be found on his site.]]> argot@webjones.net Telescope http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=30 Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:47:52 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=29 Globular Cluster Observing Club. I targeted a handful of GC's in Hercules, Lyra, Delphinus, Sagitta and Aquila to start off with. All of these are high in the sky this month. The GC Club requires fairly extensive observations, thorough descriptions, estimating concentration class, and some of the objects are difficult to find.

10" f4.7 Reflector | 20mm eyepiece (60x) | 9mm eyepiece (133x)

• NGC 6205 / M13 : Large and clear. With the 20mm eyepiece there is a well defined core of stars with many outlying stars branching out from it. It nearly fills the view with the 9mm eyepiece, and the outreaching legs of stars are much clearer.


• NGC 6341 / M92 : Located with the 20mm eyepiece and observed with the 9mm eyepiece. This cluster appears a bit oval, with a well-defined core and sizable halo of stars. Some of the outlying stars run in short serpentine patterns.


• NGC 6229 : Located with the 20mm eyepiece as a faint fuzzy spot. With the 9mm eyepiece it is still faint and diffuse. The core is well-defined but even with averted vision and a long stare, no individual stars are discernable in the core.


• NGC 6779 / M56 : Located with the 20mm eyepiece. Viewed with the 9mm eyepiece, it is small but clear. Stars seem evenly distributed with only the merest congregation at the center. There are a number of outlying stars distributed around it.


• NGC 7006 : This one was a challenge to track down, star hopping with the 20mm eyepiece. With the 9mm eyepiece it is very small and dim with a large core of stars and a barely discernible, thin halo of outlying stars.


• NGC 6934 : Located with the 20mm eyepiece. The 9mm eyepiece reveals a dense cluster with an even distribution. The core is large so that it takes up almost the entire span of the cluster, leaving a very thin diffusion of stars on the edge. One defining feature is a bright star just on the edge of one side. I don't know if this star is part of the cluster, or in front of it.


• NGC 6838 / M71 : Tracked down by star hopping with the 20mm eyepiece. Using the 9mm eyepiece, M71 appears more like an open cluster than a globular, with a roughly arrowhead shape. Though small, individual stars are reasonably clear.


• NGC 6960 : Much to my surprise, I landed on this one on the first try, hopping from d Aql with the 20mm eyepiece. With the 9mm eyepiece I see a faint, fuzzy ball with no real detail.

I spent some time also looking at Jupiter, which was bright and clear with 4 moons visible - two to each side. We saw half a dozen satellites, one of which passed through Cygnus in a direct line from head to tail and one which winked in and out of sight, and must have been rotating or tumbling.]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=29 Sun, 23 Aug 2009 16:23:02 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=28 Forbidden Nation: A History Of Taiwan by Jonathan Manthorpe

This book provides a decent history of the colonization and development of Taiwan, which was my main interest. Manthorpe also uses this raw history to shape some understanding around contemporary political and social issues with Taiwan, China, the United States and the Southeast Asia region. There is plenty of information and insight into the culture of Taiwan and what makes it unique. In general it's a good read, well-written, in a style that is engaging and won't put you too quickly to sleep.]]> argot@webjones.net Reading http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=28 Thu, 06 Aug 2009 03:21:11 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=27
I spent a bit of time browsing the star fields of the milky way, just enjoying the clarity. Then someone announced that the ISS would be passing over at about 10:30pm. And right on schedule it came in from the West, passing a bit to the South - bright when it first appeared and fading at about the zenith of it's pass. I tracked it with the Binoculars, but they only made it a slightly larger bright dot.

I decided to take a look at a few objects around Cygnus. First I tracked down NGC6871, a very small open cluster of stars. Then I moved out a little to look at NGC6882 and 6885, both open clusters very near one another and easy to see together in the 20mm eyepiece. I would not have found them had I not looked up images beforehand. Next I decided to make first use of the OIII filter and see if I could find the North America Nebula. I searched and searched, certain that I was in the right spot but not able to find anything. Then Alex came by, looked into the eypiece and told me I was right on it. With a bit of inverted vision and moving the telescope back and forth a bit I was able to make out a ghost of shadow, but nothing like the shape of North America. But at least I can now say I've observed it. After that I moved over past Ursa Major and tried to find NGC4530, which the SEDS NGC/IC database indicates does not exist. I suppose that might be true because I didn't find anything. Nearby is NGC5272 (aka M13) a pretty globular cluster.

Jupiter was up pretty good by this time and was showing well, with 3 moons. Ron showed us a moon transit with his scope and with various filters was able to bring out the great Red spot, which is not so red any more. Other than that there were satellites and several meteors, a couple of them pretty bright.]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=27 Sun, 26 Jul 2009 18:27:41 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=26 Centauri Dreams: Imagining & Planning Interstellar Exploration by Paul Gilster

I've followed Paul's blog, Centauri Dreams, for some time - so it was inevitable that I would eventually read the book. This is an excellent introduction, for the nominally technical reader such as myself, to historic and present efforts to design interstellar missions. It's a serious book and has plenty of good detail, but the reader doesn't need to be a Rocket Scientist to understand appreciate the concepts. An inspiring read, Centauri Dreams encourages the reader to think long, as some of the mission plans could take thousand of years. It has been 5 years since the book went into print and there have been both delays and advances in interstellar mission projects, but it provides plenty of starting points for additional research.]]> argot@webjones.net Reading http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=26 Mon, 13 Jul 2009 21:14:51 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=25 argot@webjones.net Whatever http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=25 Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:34:56 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=23
First order of business was to take a gander at Saturn whose rings are still at a very shallow tilt, though not absolutely edge-on as they were in March. In the binoculars, Saturn is tiny but clear. I can see the rings clearly and there was one moon out to the side.

So, on to the Messier objects. First up was M51 right out by the end of the Big Dipper's handle (Alkaid). This galaxy was pretty easy to locate and didn't look like much in the binoculars. At this point the clouds were just beginning to dissipate but there was just enough haziness that M51 tended to blend into the background. A bit of relaxing and averted vision did the trick, though. Next, a short hop Southwards where M94 is about halfway between, and just to the side of, the path between the two stars that make up Canis Venatici. No real detail was visible, but it was certainly clearer than M51. Next I moved down toward the body of Ursa Major, viewing M106 and then M109.

At this point I took a break to view the Iridium flares that some of the other guys were excited about. I'd never seen one of these events, which occurs when the sun reflects off of the large antenna of an Iridium communications satellite, causing the satellite to brighten significantly for a few seconds. We saw the first one at about 11:15pm and then the second about 4 minutes later. Then, a few minutes later, we saw an unexpected third satellite pass over in the same path.

I continued my search in the body of the great bear, locating M108 with a good bit of difficulty. This galaxy is edge-on and obscured by a good bit of dust. It was a short hairline in the binoculars and I wouldn't believe I was seeing it until I got a look through one of the telescopes. Then I found the galaxies M81 and M82 just above the bear's tail toward Polaris. After this I spent a bit of time looking at some other objects and generally browsing about rich star fields. In the end it was a good night, with good company.

Astronomical League Binocular Messier Club

Iridium Flare on Wikipedia]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=23 Sun, 21 Jun 2009 14:58:35 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=24
What I discovered is that this is a tough group to work with. They are all galaxies and they are literally piled one on top of the other. I believe that I observed M58, M59, M60, M84, M86, M87, M88, M89, M90 and M91. But I am not at all certain I have them correctly identified. For instance, I'm not sure that when I thought I was observing M58 that I was not actually observing M89 or M90. In short, I was not really prepared to try and sift through all of these galaxies. So I'm going to work on filling in other corners of the list in the coming months and hopefully next early Spring I'll have clear skies and a better plan.

Astronomical League Messier Club]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=24 Sun, 29 Mar 2009 21:19:13 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=22
I also hope every evening on a new Moon is clear and dry.]]> argot@webjones.net Whatever http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=22 Thu, 01 Jan 2009 05:03:00 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=21
The first thing to appear in the sky, around 8:00 PM, was Jupiter and it looked wonderful despite being low in the SouthWest and up before even good dark. The bands were very clear with the 15mm eyepiece. I could see 3 moons to one side. Using the 20mm eyepiece I caught another moon pretty far away on the other side. Venus appeared next, but looked pretty much like a really bright star in my scope. Vega was the first star visible, as usual, and I spent some time looking over the charts I'd printed out. I won't have an opportunity to finish up the Messier catalog until late Spring next year, so I've started on the Herschel catalog - and there are so many things to be seen in the Winter skies. It's been a while since I've hunted new objects and my skills are a bit rusty. The humidity fogging up my finder was a hindrance. I may consider, as an auxiliary, building a primitive finder site that has no lens to fog up.

I located M30, a small globular cluster, fairly easily. The other Messier object up this night, M74, eluded me. For Herschel objects, I concentrated on those near Cassiopeia, successfully observing NGC 7789, 7790, 129, 136, 225, 381, 436, 559, 637, 654, and 659 over around two hours time. I made unsuccessful attempts to track down NGC 185, 287 and 40 but by this time my mirrors were also fogging up a bit. Andromeda was striking visible to the naked eye, and looked excellent in the scope along with the companion galaxy. I was winding down around 11:30 PM. Orion was just striding up on the Eastern Horizon, showing a shoulder, a foot and his belt of 3 stars. I casually gazed at the Pleiades with the 25mm eyepiece for some minutes and then began packing my sodden gear. I knew that on arriving home, I'd have to unpack it all and set it up in the garage to dry out.

A few images of the observing site and some of my fellow observers is on flickr.]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=21 Sun, 26 Oct 2008 16:50:32 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=20 Wanting a way to use my red LED flashlight both at the lens and on the worktable, I cast about the shop for some scrap materials that might work as a simple stand. A Tazo tea canister, scrap of aluminum bar, a bit of self-adhesive velcro (fuzzy half), a couple of machine screws and a handful of pea gravel (for ballast in the canister) and viola! I used the canister as a form to hand bend the aluminum bar into an S shape. The velcro provides some thickness for the flashlight's clip to grab onto and protects the light from scratches.

Full size image is here.]]> argot@webjones.net http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=20 Sun, 12 Oct 2008 20:07:47 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=19
On the positive side, I enjoyed viewing Jupiter and 3 of its moons, combing the Milky Way and observing a number of objects in its span. This was the first night out at the farm with the new telescope, and it validated the design and general quality.]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=19 Sun, 10 Aug 2008 11:49:28 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=18
I first pointed the scope at a hole in the clouds and made sure I could get clear, pinpoint stars with the 25mm eyepiece. I'm pleased with the position of the focuser now (had to adjust it slightly to get focus nearer the midpoint of the focuser travel), but there is a little more spikiness than I recall having before. I may need to revisit the spider design.

I noticed Mars was nearly right overhead, so I got it in the field of view and focused very clearly. I observed with the 15mm eyepiece and then the 9mm eyepiece, and it looked better and better. There was another planet low in the East, so I slewed over and found Saturn. It resolved very nicely with the 9mm. I could see a bit of contrast in the planet but not the gap in the ring. Last, I turned the scope on the Orion Nebula. By then the entire sky was covered and only the brightest stars and planets could be seen. Even so, I was able to view the nebula, which was faint but exceptionally clear given the poor conditions.

Overall, I'm satisfied. It will be good to get this scope out to the field for some real observing.]]> argot@webjones.net Observing http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=18 Sun, 02 Mar 2008 01:26:54 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=17 Done!

This week I finished the final touches and the new scope is ready for the field. I painted and polyurethaned the struts and adjusted the focuser's distance from the secondary mirror. Overall I'm pleased with the rebuild; The scope is more functional, looks better, and is certainly a step up in craftsmanship. There are still small things that bug me, but they'll have to wait for the next rebuild - or the bigger scope project.

Images documenting my progress on this Flickr photo set.]]> argot@webjones.net Telescope http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=17 Sat, 16 Feb 2008 16:01:14 +0100 http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=16 I calculated the strut length, cut and drilled, and assembled the primary mirror box, secondary cage and struts together. After mounting the reflex finder and putting my heaviest eyepiece in I found the scope a bit top heavy when tilted over to about 25 degrees above the horizon. To lighten up the top a bit I cut out reveals in the upper ends of the struts. This helped the balance a little (but not enough) and helped the aesthetics even more. Ultimately I had to add two pounds to the bottom, which I accomplished with a pair of small metal canisters with eight four-ounce fishing sinkers divided between them.
The extra weight not only helps the balance when the scope is tipped far over - it also improves the motion overall. I measured to ensure that my calculations for the strut length were correct, but I need some clear skies for a 'first light' test to make sure.

EDIT: On 2/6 the skies were clear, so around 9:00 PM I set the scope up just outside the garage in a spot with no direct light from the houses or streetlights. Light pollution is very bad here, but I could see Orion, the Pleiades and Mars clearly with my eyes. Using the 25mm eyepiece I observed all three and discovered that I could almost achieve focus with it turned all the way in. A little adjustment with the spacers on the HC-2 focuser and I had it. The views were very sharp, so the spider design appears to be alright.

I calculated and measured again to be sure I had the secondary mirror in the optimal position relative to the primary. What it appears that I didn't do was account for the 1.25" adapter, which adds a little over a quarter inch to the focuser height. So I moved the focuser in toward the secondary about 3/8". One more test when the skies are clear, one last report and I'll be done.

Then, no doubt, I'll start thinking about how to make this design even better.

Images of telescope v.2 are in this photo set.]]> argot@webjones.net Telescope http://www.webjones.net/index.php?entryid=16 Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:30:05 +0100