RASC Victoria

Video transcript of meeting

Historical Comets

Members’ photos, sketches and observations of comets past, including some famous ones!

• 2015 Lovejoy – Sherry Buttnor photo
• Observing Highlights – website archive 1995-2013
  • 2013 – 2012 S1 (ISON) , 2013 R1 (Lovejoy), 2012 X1 (LINEAR), 2013 V3 (Nevski), 2P/Encke, Panstarrs (C2011/L4).
  • 2012 – 168P-Hergenrother, 2009 P1 Garradd
  • 2011 – Comet 2009 P1 Garradd
  • 2010 – Hartley, C/2009 R1 McNaught
  • 2009 – C/2007 N3 Lulin, Kushida 144P
  • 2008 – no comets observed
  • 2007 Jul-Dec – 8P/Tuttle, 17/P Holmes
  • 2007 Jan-Jun – Lovejoy C/2007 E2, McNaught C2006 P1
  • 2006 Jul-Dec – C/2006 M4 Swan
  • 2006 Jan-Jun – 73/P Schwassmann-Wachmann
  • 2005 – Temple, Machholz C/2004 Q2
  • 2004 Apr-Jun – C/2001 Q4 NEAT
  • 2003-2000 – no comets observed
  • 1999 Feb-Mar – Comet Linear
  • 1997 – Hale-Bopp – Sherry Buttnor photo, John McDonald photo, Lola wood block painting from Belize
  • 1996 – Hyakutake – Sherry Buttnor photo
• Zenfolio comet collections
  • C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) in 2020
  • John McDonald’s comets
  • Comet C/2011 L4 (PANSTARRS) in 2013
  • 17/P Holmes in 2007
• The Great Comets – Carpenter & Westley slide 14 (Wikipedia article)
  • 1680 – C/1680 V1, also called the Great Comet of 1680, Kirch’s Comet, and Newton’s Comet, has the distinction of being the first comet discovered by telescope
  • 1682 – Halley’s Comet or Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, is the best-known of the short-period comets and is visible from Earth every 75–76 years.
  • 1744 – The Great Comet of 1744, whose official designation is C/1743 X1, and which is also known as Comet de Chéseaux or Comet Klinkenberg-Chéseaux, was a spectacular comet that was observed during 1743 and 1744
  • 1811 – The Great Comet of 1811, formally designated C/1811 F1, is a comet that was visible to the naked eye for around 260 days, a record it held until the appearance of Comet Hale-Bopp in 1997. In October 1811, at its brightest, it displayed an apparent magnitude of 0, with an easily visible coma.
  • 1835 – Halley’s Comet or Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, is the best-known of the short-period comets and is visible from Earth every 75–76 years. Last apparition was in 1986, and the next apparition is in 2061.
  • 1843 – The Great Comet of 1843 formally designated C/1843 D1 and 1843 I, was a long-period comet which became very bright in March 1843 (it is also known as the Great March Comet)

The First FDAO Virtual Star Party: 7PM August 1st

You are invited to the inaugural Virtual Star Party hosted by Friends of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory. David Balam, Plaskett telescope operator and Near Earth Object specialist will deliver a presentation on comets. For more information and hyperlinks to the Zoom meeting please click on the following:

https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Invitation—Virtual-Saturday-Night-from-the-Centre-of-the-Universe.html?soid=1132744782935&aid=Kn9A2Z3_-74

Canadian Comet Sleuth David Levy: Webinar 4PM Thursday July 30th

The Canadian Comet Sleuth David Levy, author and comet hunter
Comet NEOWISE has been the sensation of our July skies, the first naked-eye comet for the Northern Hemisphere in ages. David Levy knows all about comets that snag the spotlight. Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, which broke apart in July 1992 and collided with Jupiter in July 1994, garnered the “Canadian comet sleuth” media attention around the world, including the headline on the very first cover of SkyNews 25 years ago.
Join The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Jenna Hinds and SkyNews’ Allendria Brunjes as they sit down with Levy in the next Speaker Series, at 7 p.m. on Thursday, July 30.
Levy has discovered 22 comets, given innumerable lectures and written countless articles and more than 30 books — including an autobiography, A Nightwatchman’s Journey. There’s an asteroid named in his honour, and his awards include the Chant Medal of The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
Click this link to register for this Webinar

Dr Gordon Walker speaks at the Wednesday UVic Open House

You are invited to the UVic Open House which starts at 7:30PM on Wednesday July 29th. The zoom guest link (with password embedded) is:
https://zoom.us/j/97173236268?pwd=V2hhYTAwVVY5cXl5eEFoOUxSYmZGdz09

Dr. Gordon Walker will deliver a presentation entitled “Falling Through Space”

Observing

• This Week’s Sky – Skynews magazine
• This Week’s Sky At a Glance – Sky & Telescope magazine
• Explore the Universe Online – complete this observing program over the next few months, guided online by RASC’s Eric Wickham
• RASC’s Youtube channel has lots of content!

Video transcript of the meeting

While Waiting for Neowise by Dan Posey

Comet Neowise: An Urban Challenge by John McDonald

UVic Astronomy Open House 7:30PM Wednesday

The zoom guest link (with password embedded) is:
https://zoom.us/j/97173236268?pwd=V2hhYTAwVVY5cXl5eEFoOUxSYmZGdz09

Bigger, better, faster: how changes in technology drive astronomy data collection by Nat Comeau

Abstract: There are roughly five variables of interest in observational astronomy: where the object was (sky position), what it looked like (spatial resolution), when it was seen (observation time), how bright it was (brightness), and what colour of light it was (spectral resolution). In this talk I’ll give an overview of how enhancements in technology have driven how precisely we can measure these five variables, and how increasing this precision unlocks wonders that were previously invisible to us. From the first naked eye measurements of the planets, to automated networks of telescopes working hand in hand with gravitational wave observatories, I will describe how far we’ve come in astronomy data collection and how much more there is to do​.

Observing

• This Week’s Sky – Skynews magazine
• This Week’s Sky At a Glance – Sky & Telescope magazine
• Explore the Universe Online – complete this observing program over the next few months, guided online by RASC’s Eric Wickham
• RASC’s Youtube channel has lots of content!

Transcript video

Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3

RASC Victoria members’ photos of Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3

More Victoria RASCal images and sketches of Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3

Useful Comet Websites

The following websites are a rich source of information about visible comets including Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3. Check them out:

The Sky Live https://theskylive.com/comets

Comet Chasing has excellent finder charts: https://cometchasing.skyhound.com

Computer Science in Astronomy: A UVic Open House Webinar

You are invited to attend the Wednesday UVic Open House which starts at 7:30PM. This week student Sarah Clapoff is talking about the important role of comp sci in astronomy. The zoom guest link (with password embedded) is:
https://zoom.us/j/97173236268?pwd=V2hhYTAwVVY5cXl5eEFoOUxSYmZGdz09

Observing

• This Week’s Sky – Skynews magazine
• This Week’s Sky At a Glance – Sky & Telescope magazine
• Explore the Universe Online – complete this observing program over the next few months, guided online by RASC’s Eric Wickham
• RASC’s Youtube channel has lots of content!

Transcript video

Views from Doug Hardy’s Deck

David Lee’s Creamsicle Moon

Could Creamsicles overtake Viva Puffs to become the favourite Astro Cafe summer treat? Penumbral Eclipse July 4. 2020 Billed as a subtle eclipse the penumbral shadow is subtle. What David didn’t expect was the orange ball that emerged from the horizon. A nice creamsicle colour! Camera: Nikon Z6 with FTZ adapter Lens: Nikkor 300/4 AFS with 1.4 x TC Effective 420mm cropped. Sensor ISO: 1600. Exposure: 1/100 sec at f/5.6
Processing: Adobe Photoshop CC 2020

Martian Citizen Science: Zoom Webinar at 11AM Tuesday

Meg Schwamb (Queen’s University Belfast) will be speaking about “Exploring Mars with 150,000 Earthlings.”

Planet Four (http://www.planetfour.org) and Planet Four: Terrains (http://terrains.planetfour.org) are citizen science projects mining Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) images to explore how the south pole of Mars is sculpted by the never-ending cycle of freezing and thawing of exposed carbon dioxide ice. In the summer, carbon dioxide jets loft dust and dirt through cracks in the thawing carbon dioxide ice sheet to the surface where winds blow the material into the hundreds of thousands of dark fans observed from orbit. Planet Four enlists over 136,000 volunteers to map the sizes, shapes, and orientations of these fans in high resolution images. Planet Four is creating an unprecedented wind map of the south pole of Mars in order to probe how the Martian climate changes over time and is impacted year to year by dust storms and other global-scale events. Planet Four: Terrains, aims to study the distribution of the jet process across the south pole and identify new targets of interest for MRO. Over 12,000 people have helped identify the channels and pits (dubbed araneiforms) carved during the jet formation process. In this talk, I’ll give an overview of Planet Four and Planet Four: Terrains and present the latest results from these projects.

Zoom info: Meeting ID: 954 6636 7375 password: DAOseminar

Please click this URL to start or join. https://monash.zoom.us/j/95466367375?pwd=cVJpdEZjVW1kaHAyWGo4Um9NOWxkZz09

Astronomy Poem inspires Mystery Novel: from Marjie Welchframe

“Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light;
I have loved the stars too truly to be feaful of the night.”

From poem The Old Astronomer
Sarah Williams/S.A.D.I.
English poet/novelist, 1868

Novelist Ian Rankin titled his Inspector Rebus novel Set in Darkness after these lines. The poem is written from the perspective of an aged astronomer on his deathbed bidding his student to continue his humble research. The lines have been chosen by a number of professional and amateur astronomers as their epitaphs. Entire poem:
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Twilight_Hours_(1868)/The_Old_Astronomer

Video transcript of the whole 1-hour meeting.

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More Lunar Photos from Mike Nash

Two more beautiful lunar images from Mike. Check them out and zoom in!

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-rsJ3pkb/0/c0e69a9c/O/i-rsJ3pkb.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-QmJGhnz/0/2d67596c/O/i-QmJGhnz.jpg

Balcony Astronomy from Edmonton – Abdur Anwar

June 21st Annular Eclipse of the Sun from India

Time lapses by Neelam and Ajay Talwar and family in an amazingly complicated setup in the midday heat – note the giant fans! They did a wonderful job of capturing Bailey’s Beads peeking through the lunar craters and mountains along the thin rim of sunlight at the edge of the Moon at mid-eclipse.

Noctilucent clouds from Osoyoos – Debra Ceravolo

Debra’s comments on her Facebook page: “Many people like me have never seen noctilucent clouds and here I have seen and photographed four different events this month. The frequency of these special iridescent clouds is increasing due to climate change. Noctilucent clouds or NLCs form way out in the mesosphere at the edge of cold space. Meteor ‘smoke’ lingers there and ice crystals form around that. The solar minimum causes the thermosphere/mesosphere to be even colder and terrestrial activity affects how water vapour gets up there. So it’s water vapours and extreme cold that form NLCs. This photo was taken the evening of June 27th from my home in southern BC.”

Here is my time lapse video of another display on the morning of June 22.

Recording Astronomical Observations – Joe Carr

Joe reviews how he records his observations by using a combination of an observing log, photos, diagrams, and he also shares how he stays motivated and shares his observations online.

Planet Nine or Planet Nein? – Reg Dunkley

On 23 June former NRC/DAO Plaskett Fellow Samantha Lawler gave a public outreach lecture from her new Regina home entitled, “Planet Nine or Planet Nein?” She radiates enthusiasm for studying the outer solar system and includes some excellent graphics to help her audience gain new understanding in an enjoyable fashion. Here is UR’s message with links; if you watch the video I’m sure Samantha and UR would be grateful to receive your feedback via the form they provide:

“We hope you enjoyed “Planet Nine or Planet Nein?” with Dr. Samantha Lawler. A few links and attachments follow:
1) Please complete this survey – we would like to hear your feedback.
2) Please click on this link to view the recording of the presentation.
3) Attached are Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 of the slide deck of Dr. Lawler’s presentation
Again, thank you for your interest in the University of Regina’s Research with Impact!”

Observing – Chris Purse

• This Week’s Sky – Skynews magazine
• This Week’s Sky At a Glance – Sky & Telescope magazine
• Explore the Universe Online – complete this observing program over the next few months, guided online by RASC’s Eric Wickham
• RASC’s Youtube channel has lots of content!

More Noctilucent Cloud Sightings from Edmonton’s Alister Ling

UVic Open House Presentation: Using Telescopes as Time Machines

Be sure to catch the following UVic Webinar that begins at 7:30PM on Wednesday June 24th: Using Telescopes as Time Machines by Nishith Eluri and Jonathan Ranallo

“The telescope is perhaps an astronomer’s most useful tool, allowing them to study and understand things billions of lightyears away, in places we could never dream of visiting in person. With only a small telescope and a dark view of the heavens, anyone can see with their own eyes the beautiful planets and moons of our Solar System, faraway spiral galaxies dancing and interacting with each other, the nebulous death throes of ancient stars, clusters of young stars just leaving their nurseries, and a myriad of other celestial wonders. This week, our volunteers Nishith and Jonathan will delve into the history and inner workings of telescopes of all types, from Galileo’s first hand-made refractor to the Earth-sized telescope used to image a black hole, and everything in between.”

The zoom guest link (with password embedded) is:
https://zoom.us/j/97173236268?pwd=V2hhYTAwVVY5cXl5eEFoOUxSYmZGdz09

Meeting ID: 971 7323 6268 Password: 554555​

Observing

• This Week’s Sky – Skynews magazine
• This Week’s Sky At a Glance – Sky & Telescope magazine
• Explore the Universe Online – complete this observing program over the next few months, guided online by RASC’s Eric Wickham

Telescope Price Fixing Legal Dispute

Chris Purse shared this CBC story on a legal dispute regarding price fixing of amateur telescopes.

Christopher Go Planetary Imaging Tutorials

Zoom has allowed accomplished members of the astronomical community to share their expertise in a Webinar environment. These sessions are often posted on YouTube to replay at your leisure. There are so many postings, however it is easy to miss some valuable talks. In the following three links acclaimed planetary imager Christopher Go shares his expertise. These sessions may help some local planetary and lunar imagers to further hone their skills. These sessions were hosted by Woodland Hills Camera and Telescopes in April 2020.

Planetary Imaging Essentials Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5ctZoqOi20

Planetary Imaging Essentials Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-b1rO38Snh0

Planetary Imaging Essentials Part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJTCDLljNYU

Sketching by Victoria Centre Members

• Online collection of astro sketches created by our members
• Phillip Teece’s Messier Sketches – observations from 1973 to 1978 from Victoria
• Diane Bell
• Dorothy Paul

Kuiper belt talk at the Wednesday Night UVic Astronomy Open House at 7:30 PM

Using New Horizons Probe for Parallax

The distance between the Earth and New Horizons offers a very long baseline that facilitates parallax measurements. Check out the interesting article here.

CANadian Virtual Astronomy Seminar Series (CANVAS)

The next talk in the CANVAS series will be given Paul Weigert of Western on Monday June 22 at 11:00 PDT. Dr. Weigert’s talk is titled ‘ Interstellar asteroids and comets: what are they and where do they come from?’

Visit the CANVAS webpage – http://astroherzberg.org/canvas/ – for the schedule of talks, a link to the YouTube channel, and links to the recorded talks and upcoming talks.

The Zoom link for Monday’s talk is – https://zoom.us/j/97943735055?pwd=alhsVC9vdUVTUHBoenZKRzFleGVxdz09

Noctilucent clouds from Edmonton – Alistair Ling

Daytime Lunar Photo from Mike Nash

During this cloudy interlude RASCals have had to resort to desperate measures to capture Astro objects. Despite multiple layers of cloud and a rising Sun, Mike managed to get a remarkable amount of detail in this image taken at 9AM on Sunday June 14th. He writes: “The filter works well enough, but not perfect – on screen the sky is grey rather than a completely visible light-blocking black. Alignment points (for stacking software) needed to be set at a much higher brightness than I would normally do.” Check it out

Observing

• This Week’s Sky – Skynews magazine
• This Week’s Sky At a Glance – Sky & Telescope magazine