the Astronomical Society of New Haven presents

Revised: 04/26/2006

News - What's happening around ASNH

Youngs Pond

Bethany

CSP

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Welcome to News & Views! This page is designed to hold astronomical news that impacts our club or that takes place in our general area. Readers are encouraged to submit their stories and / or comments for posting! Thanks for stopping by!

- NDSW - National DARK SKY Week This week marks the fourth year of Jennifer Barlow's brain child to help people appreciate the need for light pollution controls. This year the week of April 23 through April 30. Please encourage all your families, friends and associates to consider reduced wattages and extinguishing of unnecessary lights!

- CSP-16 is fast approaching and we have several excellent speakers interested in our event. The holiday weekend is proving to be an issue, but we do have a couple of top notch folks who are looking forward to coming. Obviously it's too early for absolutes, but it looks pretty solid. You can find out more at NEAF or wait for our fliers to be mailed out.

- CPTV Is THIS WEEK! We are looking for help with the event. This is a four day event and naturally the weekdays are difficult to staff. If you can lend a hand please get in touch with Greg Barker. Your help will be appreciated. The event begins Thursday Apr 27 at 10am.

- Young's Pond Park is OPEN FOR BUSINESS! - Bob Crelin has retired from Young's Pond, but our members have volunteered to staff the successful monthly event. If you can make it down please come and offer your support. This is one of the gems of our area. A dark site for observing in a shoreline area close to home. You don't find those too often.

- Training for the Observatory instruments is coming up! Get trained on our biggest instruments and gain access to them for your viewing pleasure. Time and date TBA.

- Public Outreach and Education is an ASNH priority. Throughout the year a small group of our members host events where we help school aged and underprivileged children, children with cancer and children dealing with AIDS in their family. If you think any of these efforts are worthwhile please contact Greg Barker to sign up and help us out. It doesn't take much more than showing up. Everyone can help.

- ASNHs NewHavenAstro Yahoo Group is available to members now. Join up and get the news as it happens. Participate in club activities on line.

- BIG News! - ASNHs Bethany Instrument Group (BIG) is always looking for membeAr assistance. Get in on all the really exciting underground knowledge of Bethany Observatory! Contact Bob Carruthers or Dave Johnson for more information and see our calendar for meeting dates. All members are encouraged to attend.

- Keep your eyes open for environmentally friendly night time lighting. Bob Crelin wants to know about more businesses and locations using full cut off, proper lighting (bright enough to see without overlighting) for the ASNH Good Neighbor Outdoor Lighting Award. Send your suggestions to Bob at bcrelin@rcn.com

Views - What's happening everywhere else - Your Posts

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73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann - Discovered in 1930 on a photographic plate, this comet has visited us about every five years since then. For some reason in 1995 it was detected that 73P broke into about forty pieces. All of which will be making a very close pass to our own spaceship Planet Earth. Peak brightness is expected in mid-May (or May-mid for you european folks) and will only approach mag 5 or 6 with the dimmest pieces weighing in at around 13. Reports say you can currently spot up to two of these pieces with your smaller telescopes. John Bortle has been tracking this comet and reports that on or about March 28-29 it appears part B has also fragmented (see the "Updates" in S&T article) earlier this month. Currently passing through Corona Borealis it's headed for Hercules and points beyond.

SOL! - Our little yellow star keeps surprising us with activity during it's "quiet" time. Keep you're eyes on the Solar Tracker and STD Aurora Monitor!

- Saturn - Saturn is rising around 1pm and setting around 3am early in the month of April. At magnitude -0.1 it's still very bright and close enough to get great views of the planet, rings and moons. I was lucky to catch some excellent views of Saturn through the Clark at Bethany recently. Some fabulous surface detail, moons and the ink black Cassini division were highlights. The shadow is growing on the rings.

- Jupiter - No longer content to sit idly by Jupiter is making it's way back into the evening sky. Start watching around 9pm for an appearance early in the month, and by month's end you should be seeing it rise in the southeast around sunset.

- Omega Centauri - Our very largest globular cluster and the Northeast's most southerly object is available April and May about two degrees above the horizon. Find a clear dark view of the southern horizon and train your eye due south around 1am early in the month and around 10pm later in the month. A great binocular object.

- Lunar Views - The recent discovery of a significant impact on the moon's surface excited many of us. You never know what you'll see! A waning crescent is less than half a degree from Antares (1° from M4) in the morning twilight of January 25, and shows up as a slim crescent just 15° lower right of Venus at dawn the morning of January 27.

- Mars - Still Bright at but fading and moving away. Mars sits at the feet of the twins (Gemini) close to M35 and the God of War is going to sleep around 1am. Surface detail is difficult. It was a good run.

- Just Another Hubble Discovery - It just never stops! Hubble has provided the most detailed views of the Orion Nebula ever seen! Thousands of new stars are now evident in the most visible star nursery in our northern sky.

- SOL - You never know when that star is going to act up. Late December had a series of large sunspots pass across the face so keep your eyes peeled (with appropriate protection!), and watch our Aurora Monitor (above).

- Still some comets out there - There are still some dim comets around if you like looking at them. They do make terrific photographic objects! (if you've got the aperture)

- Lookin' for something to do? - Try Skyhound! or Abrahms Planetarium.

Every so often you run into a truly magnificent website and have to share it. I found this gem a number of years ago and no matter how many times I visit it still never ceases to amaze me what a vast and limitless universe we live in. Give "An Atlas Of The Universe" a look and see if you are as impressed as I am. Walk slowly from our astronomical neighborhood out to the furthest reaches of the known universe and stop along the way to learn about the configuration and natural composition as larger and larger components are assembled. This is a terrific experience for everyone. Take your time and read the sub screens and info.

This man is amazing! Check out this FREE 26 sided Polyhedron Skyglobe!

Iridium flares - Check out www.heavens-above.com for information on satellites, ISS passes and other exciting events. Iridium flares happen all the time and this is a good place to look for scheduled times.

**ASNH Members!** - Check out our ASNH Chat group at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewHavenAstro/
Send comments, contributions or corrections to: starsplitter_ne@yahoo.com