From: TerryMoselaol.com

Date: 3 March 2015 16:44:20 GMT

Subject: Lecture, Amazing comet photo!!! TV, Jupiter's Moon Dance, Venus, Spock, more

Hi all,

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1:á á IAA LECTURE: Next IAA public lecture:á á Mar 4, 7.30 p.m. by Dr John Mason: "Mysteries of the aurora". John is giving this lecture as a special tribute to his great friend, the late Sir Patrick Moore, whose birthday was 4 March.

á  We are delighted to have John back again to give another of his excellent lectures. Dr John Mason, FRAS,á Writer, Broadcaster, Astro trip Leader,á is a former President of the British Astronomical Association, and a full member of the International Astronomical Union. Heá has given us many lectures over the years, all of them superb! And he knows Á€˜everything about everythingÁ€™ in astronomy.

á á  Next to a TSE, a good aurora is probably the most spectacular sight in the sky. They have been recorded since antiquity, and they are only about 50 miles above out heads, yet thereÁ€™s a lotá we donÁ€™t know about them. As well as some lovely pics, John will be telling us all about them, and what we still donÁ€™t know.á 

á á á á  The lectureá is free and open to all, including free refreshments.á Venue: Bell Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, Queen's University, Belfast, at 7.30 p.m.á á 

á á  Thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for help in hosting these lectures.

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2. The most amazing comet photo ever!

Dark Energy Camera Takes Accidental Gigantic, Magnificent Picture of Comet Lovejoy

http://i1.wp.com/www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/c2014-q4-lovejoy-des-lg.jpg. Stunningly incredible capture showing fabulous detail.

á á á  HereÁ€™s a 50mb version uncompressed and raw for unprecedented detail! http://www.fnal.gov/pub/presspass/misc/2015/images/c2014-q4-lovejoy-des-highres.jpg

Thanks to Colin Morrison for the alert.á 

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3.á TV:á HORIZON "Secrets of the Solar System"á á á  3 March, 9 pm. BBC2.á 

This will feature QUB astronomer Dr Chris Watson, who has given some excellent lectures to the IAA.á 

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4.á Jupiter. Jupiter wasá at opposition in Feb, and is stillá appearing almostá atá its biggest and brightest for the yeará mag -2.6, diam = 45" (arcsecs).

á á Jupiter's Moon dances:á Some notable satellite events visible from Ireland:á 

4 March: Moons in order: From about 19.30 to 21.00: The moons will lie West of Jupiter, in order:á 1,2,3,4:á Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.

5 March: Only 2 Moons? At about 21.30 a quick glance will show only 2 moons, as Io will be in transit and Ganymede and Callisto are so close together that without high power they will appear as one.

6 March: Only ONE moon! From 18.10 to 18.49 only one Moon, Europa, will be visible, as Io, Ganymede and Callisto are all in occultation or eclipse. The other moons reappear as follows: 18.49: Ganymede reappears from eclipse; 21.08: Io reappears from eclipse. 21.25: Callisto reappears from occultation. Then -á 

6-7 March: Callistoá is eclipsed in Jupiter's shadow from 22.54 to 03.45.á This event will happen on the E side of the planet, since Callisto orbits so far from Jupiter that the planet'sá shadow is offset completely to one side of the planet at the distance at which Callisto orbits. Imagine the shadow as a slightlyá tapering cone extending off into the distance behind Jupiter at an angle to the left (because the Sun lies to the right), and then picture Callisto passing through it.

á á  MUTUAL JOVIAN SATELLITE EVENTS: Next ones on Mar 11 and 16 - more details later.

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5. Venus Is now rising higher in the evening twilight each day, andá is nowá visible in a dark sky. It's above much fainterá Mars and slowly moving away from it, and closer to Uranus, which it will pass very closely on the evening of 4 March, at a distance of just over 5 arcmins (1/6 moon diameter) to the upper right of it. Uranus will be about 6th mag, needing binoculars or a telescope to see it. The magnitude difference will be a staggering factor of 10,000!

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6. Anti-SuperMoon! After all the recent hype about Supermoons, you might want to note that the Full Moon on 5 March at 18h 05m will be theá most distant, and therefore the smallest in apparent size, for this year. It will rise shortly afterwards at about 19.05, andá will thená lie at a distance of 406,321 km, and have an apparent diameter of only 29' 28" (both topographic, from Belfast, for the purists). But we need a better name than 'Anti-SuperMoon'. How about 'Mini-Moon'?

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7. March 6: Dawn spacecraft arrives at Ceres

á  The NASA-led Dawn spacecraft will arrive at the dwarf planet Ceres, the largest object in the main asteroidá belt between Mars and Jupiter.á It will initially enter a polar orbit, 13,500 km above the surface of this mysteriousá icy world. Over the following eight months a series of rocket burns willá move the probeá intoá an orbit just 375 km above the surface, enabling close up imaging, measurement of the gravitational field (giving insights into the interior of Ceres) and allowing analysis ofá the composition of its surface.

á á  Dawn wasá launched in 2007,á andá used ion propulsioná for a flyby of Mars in 2009, and a successful 14 months in orbit around the asteroid Vesta. Itá will be the first spacecraft to visit a dwarf planet.á The missioná is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, with components supplied from the Netherlands, Italy and Germany.

á á  By then I hope we'll know the answer to this mystery:

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/02/26/strange-light-on-ceres and http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2969463/Another-alien-mark-Ceres-Dawn-probe-spots-dimmer-companion-close-dwarf-planet-s-strange-bright-spot.htmlá and

Mystery bright spots on Ceres. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150225111111.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29-is-baffling-nasa-scientists_n_6757952.html?ir=UK+Techá Really odd! And the brightest one is right in the middle of a large crater. Even odder is the Sun - reflector - spacecraft angle - it seems as if the reflecting surface must be at an angle of about 45 degrees to the horizontal - very steep for a natural object of that size. And if it's at a lesser angle, it means that the reflectivity must be exceptionally high.á 

á á  Anyone want to bet on what it is?á  Prof Alan Fitzsimmons at QUB hopes they are fresh impact plumes....

See also http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2976014/Countdown-Ceres-Dawn-prepares-orbit-dwarf-planet-probe-finally-reveal-mystery-bright-spots-are.htmlá I'm surprised that the UFOlogists haven't claimed evidence of an alien signal on Ceres! Look at the huge shallow crater near the bottom of the left hand image of the pair shown together. Note the central crater in that one, flanked by 4 others within the big crater, making a cross shape centred on the central crater. Obviously an alien version of a Pentangle... (Joking, of course!)

á á  And seeá http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150302122726.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29á and http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2015/27feb_cerespuzzle/á For more on Dawn, see http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/

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8. ISS The ISSá will commence another series or morning passes over Ireland on 13 March. Full details for your own location, along with lots of other up to date astronomical information, on the excellent FREE site www.heavens-above.com.á Also try the ISS Spotter by Mediapilot https://appsto.re/gb/os8mF.iá 

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9. IAA Observing Nights at Delamont Country Park

These very popular weekendá observing sessionsá have recommenced,á with the nights ofá Mará 13 &á 14á asá next option. Delamont is well signposted off the A22 just South of Killyleagh, (North of Downpatrick)á Co Down. They are suitable for anyone, but are aimed especially at beginners. We bring our own large telescopes; bring your own if you have a portable one. The eventsá work like this: If it's clear on the Friday night, the event goes ahead. If not, we try again on the Saturday night. If both are cloudy, we try again on the following weekend, same procedure. To check if it's going ahead, check the IAA website: www.irishastro.org up to 6.0 p.m.á on each day, and forá dates forá next session:á If cloudy, we'll try again on the next date on the list.Á€¦

10. Farewell, Spock:á 

A nice tribute: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/02/28/leonard-nimoy-dead-iss-international-space-station_n_6775224.html?ir=UK+Tech

The sad death of actor Leonard Nimoy, best known as the ultra-logical Human/Vulcan Spock in Star Treká was announcedá just as I was issuing the last bulletin, with no time to comment. He was first cast in that role in 1966, predating the Apollo moon landings, so next year would be the 50th anniversary of that character.á 

á á  Of course, he was only an actor, and a lot of credit must also go to the writers and directors of the programmes and films. But what we can learn most from Spock is to cast aside silly superstitious and irrational beliefs, and accept what logic and scientific deduction and experiment reveals. Otherwise we end up with things like Young Earth Creationism, and even a Muslim cleric maintaining that the Sun orbits the Earth! See http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2957414/Saudi-cleric-online-laughing-stock-telling-student-sun-rotates-Earth-planes-not-able-fly.htmlá 

See also http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/02/13/why-some-american-politicians-have-to-deny-the-theory-of-evolution_n_6678800.html?ir=UK+Politics

Live Long And Prosper.

11. Open night at Armagh Planetarium: Tuesday 24^th March 2015

Suitability: Public Á€“ Over 6 years for Theatre Show

Times: open 7pm Á€“ 9pm. Beyond the Blue Digital Theatre Show 7.30pm

Cost: FREE

Booking: Phone on 028 3752 3689

Pre-Booking is essential as there is a limited number of tickets

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12. Armagh Observatory St PatrickÁ€™s Day Eventá Á€œDiscovering the Sun and Stars at Armagh"

See: http://star.arm.ac.uk/press/2015/stpatricksday2015.html

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13. LARGE PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSE, 20 MARCH: The IAA is finalising plans for SAFE public viewing ofá this really major event, at various locations around N.I. It will occur in the morning, with maximum eclipse around 9.30 a.m.á These will include Portballintrae, Co Antrim; QUB in Belfast, Scrabo Tower car park, near Newtownards, and the Chaine Memorial Park at Larne seafront. More details in next bulletin. Details of the eclipse itself were given in the last issue of our magazine STARDUST; I'll be updating and expanding these in the next bulletin.

The hype is starting already: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2966822/Solar-eclipse-Europe-84-cent-sunlight-blocked-London-Scandinavia-gets-total-blackout.htmlá Actually, parts of Scotland will have over 97% eclipse.

Request: Eclipse viewing in L'Derryá (From Prof Mark Bailey, Armagh Observatory)

Weá are doing an outreach event at St Cecilia's College, Londonderry, timed to coincide with the partial eclipse of the Suná on Fri 20th morning; and then a performance of "aroundNorth" that evening in a nearby housing estate in the same part of Derry, from around 7pm to 9pm.á I was wondering whether any IAA members might be able/willing to travel to the site (particularly in the evening) to provide telescope-viewing

opportunities that evening (if clear) to complement the aroundNorth event.á We could provide some financial assistance through the provision of a small mileage payment at the usual rate of 45p per mile.

á á  If there are any IAA members in that area who would be prepared to help out with this event, please contact Prof Bailey directly at mebarm.ac.uká 

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14. Light Workshop at Blackrock Castle Observatory:

There is a partial solar eclipse in the morning of March 20. Do you know how to safely view this? Make and take away a pinhole camera and a spectroscope. Explore how lenses are used to make telescopes, experiment with prisms and use solar telescopes (weather permitting). For ages 8+. February 19. 11:00 - 12:30. Á‚¬10 each.á Booking and prepayment essential Details at www.BCO.ie

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15. Safe Solar viewingá material available: Baader safe viewing foil nowá in stock ... just in time for the big eclipse! á¸19 for an A4 sheet delivered. Contact Dr Andy McCrea at s.mccrea980btinternet.com

see also http://www.dpreview.com/articles/7975337131/marumi-introduces-fixed-and-variable-neutral-density-filters-nd100000-solar-shooting

And from Peter Paice: See also: Information re ND filters. There is a good site to visitá http://srb-photographic.co.uk/á . There are ND 1000á filters shown; prices á¸20 - á¸35 depending on diameter. These filters look like the polyester type. á (I think that you would need several of these filters stacked to give safe imaging of the Sun, but I haven't tried them, and you try them at your own risk! TM)

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16.á IAA Event at Bangor, 27 March, 7 p.m:á á á Stars and Mars, Moon and Jupiter @ Night at The Museumá 

See North Down Museum Come Alive at Night!

Bring along your telescope and get some expert advice.

Observing highlights will be a spectacular First Quarter Moon, plus Jupiter and its moons, the Pleiades and lots of other stellar wonders.

Inflatable indoor star dome

Meteorites on display.

Only á¸1:00 per person admission.

Coffee Cure @ The Museum will remain open until 9:00pm.

For further information telephone 028 9127 1200

www.northdownmuseum.com

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17. ARCHAEOASTRONOMY TRIP TO NEWGRANGE and KNOWTH, 9 May 2015, These trips have proved so popular that as soon as I got back from the last one,á Stranmillis Universityá College Institute of LifeLong Learning asked me to lead another one next spring!á á Like the last one, the next trip willá include a visit to the Knowth Tomb as well. It has the largest collection of Megalithic art anywhere in Europe in one single site, some of which is reckoned to be astronomical. Booking for thus very popular, non-technical trip will open later, but if you want to go, note the date in your diary: Sat 9 May. More details when the new brochure comes out.

18. IAA Telescopes for loan: Theá IAA has telescopes available to borrow,á for any paid up memberá  Enquiries to David Stewart david.stewart22ntlworld.comá orá Andy McCrea s.mccrea980btinternet.com.á 

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19. IAA members invited to Spotlight Special.

BBC Northern Ireland's flagship current affairs programme, "Spotlight"á will be recording an audience special, presented by Noel Thompson, in Blackstaff Studios, Great Victoria Street, Belfast on Tuesday March 24^th.

á  The style of the programme is a Question & Answer format to a panel including politicians and commentators and we are looking for people of all ages who want to take part in the programme. We aim to feature a fair number of audience contributions - in the form of questions and comments - during the hour long programme.

á á  It's a busy night for the audience: people should arrive promptly between 6:30 and 6:45pm - this gives people time to submit questions, catch up on the dayÁ€™s events and have a cup of tea, before going into the studio and recording the programme between 8.15 & 9.30pm.á  'Spotlight Special' broadcasts the same night at 10.35 on BBC1.á 

á á  Audience participation is at the heart of a successful programme and we would like to encourage people in your organisation who have something to say, are opinionated, are interested in the news and local affairs.á 

á á  If you would like more details about the programme, please e-mail spotlightspecialbbc.co.uk or ring 0845 300 30 80 or 07864910147.

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20, STAR PARTIES and OTHER EVENTS:á á 

COSMOS: April 17th to 19th 2015, Shamrock Lodge Hotel, Athlone.

SKELLIGS Star Party: 14-16 August,á Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry.á  This is a Gold Medal winning Dark Sky site.á  see www.skelligstarparty.comá 

AI 'Star-B-Q': 15 August, An Tochar GAA Grounds, Roundwood, Co. Wicklow.

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21: UFO SIGHTINGS Daily - the comedy section:

(UFO sightings daily - the best comedy site on the Internet!)

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22. New Online part-time, onlineá Postgraduate Diploma iná Astronomy from the University of York.á 

The programme is taught wholly online, for maximum flexibility of learning,á with optional residential weekends in York forá the opportunity to meet your fellow students and staff, engage in discussion and share your knowledge of astronomy.á 

á á  This programme will offer home astronomers, who may have graduated in subjects other than physics, the opportunity to gain a formal postgraduate qualification in Astronomy and Astrophysics, and is designed to give students a robust and up-to-date background in these areas. Over the course of two years, we will explore the solar system, stellar physics, infra-red, radio and high energy astronomy, as well as discussing the foundations of cosmology.

Address: Centre for Lifelong Learning, University of York,á Heslington, York, North Yorkshire YO10 5DD, United Kingdom

www.york.ac.uk/lifelonglearning/astronomy/á T. 01904 328482

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23. Interesting Weblinks:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2971112/First-pictures-biggest-aircraft-history-Microsoft-founder-provides-glimpse-proposed-megaplane.htmlá To launch rockets, of course.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2944581/ET-Scientists-launch-plan-beam-welcome-messages-far-star-systems-planets-bear-life.htmlá Is this a good idea? What if they're like ISIL? Or indeed what the colonising Europeans were likeá several hundred years ago in Africa and the Americas? If you could go back in time and ask the native Americans such as Chief Sitting Bull, or his equivalents in South America, you might think twice about it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2976216/Can-spot-astronaut-Stunning-image-shows-incredible-size-ISS-weekend-spacewalk.htmlá 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2971933/Stars-forming-16-000-light-years-Milky-Way-s-disc-aliens-one-day-lived-galaxy-s-spiral-night-sky.htmlá The caption to the 4th image is wrong - they would NOT see itá as a centralá face-oná spiral, but a bit more like the angle at which we see M81, although a lot closer.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2977443/Could-alien-life-survive-WITHOUT-water-methane-based-organism-thrive-Saturn-s-moon-Titan-claims-study.htmlá and http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150227181333.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29á 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2976890/Lawrence-Berkeley-National-Laboratory-University-California-scientists-pictures-ultra-small-bacteria.htmlá If that's the size of life on Mars, we'll have trouble finding it!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2977251/Mystery-Y-shape-Venus-solved-Fast-winds-slow-planetary-rotation-create-odd-pattern-astronomers-reveal.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2969104/Pink-cloud-visible-Arizona-New-Mexico-rocket-launch.htmlá and http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2975417/SpaceX-rocket-launches-world-s-electric-satellites-Mission-gets-two-price-one-thanks-cheaper-fuel.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2976166/Satellite-blows-Earth-orbit-Mystery-temperature-spike-explosion-adds-43-pieces-debris-region-planet.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2975620/Is-dark-matter-lurking-inside-SUN-Mysterious-particles-reducing-star-s-core-temperature.html

Global warming disproved by snowball... ? http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/03/02/global-warming-debate-finally-ended-by-us-politician-james-inhofe_n_6784420.html?ir=UK+Politics. And this guy is chair of the SenateÁ€™s Environment and Public Works Committee!á  Still, we have our own equivalents at Stormont!

Shape of Black Holes' winds http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150219211904.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29á 

Problem for search for life on Mars? http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150219211724.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29á 

Astrophysical jets from the Sun http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150219115636.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29

Solar shockwave caught in the act http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150218141313.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29

MAVEN spacecraft dips into Mars' atmosphere http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150219211906.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29á 

Your phone's Li-on battery came originallyá from a Nova? http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150219085831.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29

Old galaxy in young universe? http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150302122925.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29á 

First photo of light as a wave AND asá a particle http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150302104731.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29

Stars forming in outer Milky Way http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150227111111.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29á 

Iron in early Moon and Earth http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150302123119.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29

Osiris Rex mission to Asteroid; progress http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150227111112.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29á 

Curiosity on Mars drills new rock http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150225111112.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29á 

Curiosity's 'Selfie' from Mars http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150224111111.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29á 

New views of planet Earth http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150226111112.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29

New giant antenna in space http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150226111111.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fspace_time+%28Space+%26+Time+News+--+ScienceDaily%29

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24.á  TWITTERá Follow theá IAAá on Twitter: IaaAstro.

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25. JOINING the IRISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION is easy: This link downloads a Word document to join the IAA. http://documents.irishastro.org.uk/iaamembership.doc

á á  á If you are a UK taxpayer, please tick the 'gift-aid' box, as that enables us to reclaim the standard rate of tax on your subscription, at no cost to you.á You can also make aá donation via Paypal if you wish: just click on the 'Donate' button.á á See also www.irishastro.org.á 

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Clear skies,

Terry Moseley

mob: (0044) (0) 7979 300842

I'm now back on Twitter (occasionally - I don't have enough time!), after some temporary hiccups: terrymoseley2

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