June First Light Newsletter1 message

June, 2014 Issue 120

AlachuaAstronomyClub.org

Member astrophoto of the monthPhoto by Dr. Howard Cohen

(Click to enlarge)

SUMMER SOLSTICE LIGHTNING

Lighting the Sky. Summer in Florida is not afriend to star gazers. Moist warm air risingover the Florida peninsular often bringsextensive thunderstorms with abundantlightning, especially during afternoons andevenings. Last night was no exception. Activelate evening thunderstorms brightly lit upnorth central Florida skies in the hours beforemidnight, 2014 June 20, about 7-8 hoursbefore the June solstice (6:51 a.m., EDT June21).

Most lightning was cloud to cloud including

North Central Florida's

Amateur Astronomy Club

Serving Alachua County since 1987

Member Member

Astronomical League

MemberNASA Night Sky Network

sheet lightning that strongly illuminated thenorthern and western horizons from thislocation. Photo taken from southwestGainesville, Florida looking northwest towardthe cities of Alachua and High Springs. PictureTaken: 2014 June 20, 11:36 p.m. EDT.

A Glorious Gravitational LensSpace Place article by Dr. Ethan Siegel

In 1979, two identical-looking quasars were discovered. Later dubbed the Twin Quasar(QSO 0957+561), scientists quickly realized that both objects were, in reality, the samequasar. This discovery resulted in the confirmation of gravitational lenses undefinedsomething first proposed in 1937. The light traveling from this quasar is actually bent andsplit by the gravity of a massive galaxy in the foreground, making us see double. Learnabout how this incredible phenomenon can actually be used to peer deep into the distantuniverse and how you might be able to observe a gravitational lens on your own. It's all inthis month's column below!

As we look at the universe on larger and larger scales, from stars to galaxies to groups tothe largest galaxy clusters, we become able to perceive objects that are significantly fartheraway. But as we consider these larger classes of objects, they don't merely emit increasedamounts of light, but they also contain increased amounts of mass. Under the best ofcircumstances, these gravitational clumps can open up a window to the distant universewell beyond what any astronomer could hope to see otherwise.

The oldest style of telescope is the refractor, where light from an arbitrarily distant source ispassed through a converging lens. The incoming light rays, undefined initially, spread overa large area are brought together at a point on the opposite side of the lens, with light raysfrom significantly closer sources bent in characteristic ways as well. While the universedoesn't consist of large optical lenses, mass itself is capable of bending light in accord withEinstein's theory of General Relativity and acts as a gravitational lens!

The first prediction that real-life galaxy clusters would behave as such lenses came fromFritz Zwicky in 1937. These foreground masses would lead to multiple images and distortedarcs of the same lensed background object, all of which would be magnified as well. Itwasn't until 1979, however, that this process was confirmed with the observation of theTwin Quasar: QSO 0957+561. Gravitational lensing requires a serendipitous alignment of amassive foreground galaxy cluster with a background galaxy (or cluster) in the rightlocation to be seen by an observer at our location, but the universe is kind enough toprovide us with many such examples of this good fortune, including one accessible toastrophotographers with 11" scopes and larger: Abell 2218.

Located in the Constellation of Draco at position (J2000): R.A. 16h 35m 54s, Dec. +66° 13'00" (about 2° North of the star 18 Draconis), Abell 2218 is an extremely massive cluster ofabout 10,000 galaxies located 2 billion light years away, but it's also located quite close tothe zenith for northern hemisphere observers, making it a great target for deep-skyastrophotography. Multiple images and sweeping arcs abound between magnitudes 17 and20, and include galaxies at a variety of redshifts ranging from z=0.7 all the way up toz=2.5, with farther ones at even fainter magnitudes unveiled by Hubble. For those lookingfor an astronomical challenge this summer, take a shot at Abell 2218, a cluster responsiblefor perhaps the most glorious gravitational lens visible from Earth!

Learn about current efforts to study gravitational lensing using NASA facilities:http://www.nasa.gov/press/2014/january/nasas-fermi-makes-first-gamma-ray-

study-of-a-gravitational-lens/

Kids can learn about gravity at NASA’s Space Place: http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/what-is-gravity/

Abell 2218

Image credit: NASA, ESA, and Johan Richard (Caltech). Acknowledgement: Davide deMartin & James Long (ESA/Hubble).

SchoolsMike Toomey

Outreach & Star PartiesIvo Rabell

Shower report from theUpper Peninsula of Michigan(a.k.a. Da Yoopers!):

It took little effort to whiphalf the town of Marquetteinto a meteor frenzy. By the

At Saturday night’s Star Partyskies started clear above(zenith), a patch towards SWand the East. Around 9:45pm to10:00pm clouds shut downviewing so some of us sataround until around 11:15pmdiscussing politics, which is

time meteor shower was predicted topeak, I had 12-14 new friends at animpromptu star party on a north-facingbeach of Lake Superior, some 20 mileswest of Marquette. We enjoyed a campfireuntil midnight, then let the flames simmerinto coals for continued warmth.Chocolate and spirits kept us going tilldawn.

Conditions could not have been moreideal... clear, dark skies... though I wouldhave preferred temps a little higher thanthe 40's... t-shirt weather in these parts.Also enjoyed the occasional crunching ofthe lake's ice pack -- still not completelymelted! We practiced pronouncing"Camelopardalids" -- sometimes ElectricCompany patterned: "Camelo-" + "-pardalids".

I have not replayed my recordings yet butin sum, we enjoyed a good number ofsporadic meteors (typically 6-10 per houron any given evening) -- several of whichwere bright. We did observe a fewCamelopardalids -- very distinct from thesporadic background. The Camelopardalidmeteor members were slow, fairly bright(typically +1 mag), greenish, with a"wake" lasting a second or so.Unfortunately, the number of thesemeteors was disappointing -- the entiregroup recorded perhaps 15Camelopardalids over the course of 5hours. At best, the Zenith Hourly Ratewas perhaps 5 per hour.

Nonetheless, Dr. Tony Phillips(spaceweather.com) poignantly wrote:

"It is worth noting, and perhapsmarveling, that forecasters correctlypredicted the onset of a never-before-seen meteor shower. They got the timingalmost perfectly correct; only the rateswere off. Such a prediction would havebeen impossible only 20 years ago beforethe development of physics-based duststream models. In this respect, the MayCamelopardalids were a success if not aspectacle."

From a warm room overlooking LakeSuperior... keep looking up!

Mike

never a good idea.

In future events held by AAC we all shouldrefrain from discussing politics and religion. Ibelieve we did come to the conclusion thatboth right and left are full of it.

Before sunset Andy did show the Sun'sprominences and sunspots with AAC's PSTsolar telescope. Andy decided to check outthe telescope and tripod for the next monthor two.

Lisa was first to spot both Mars and Saturn.Saturn and its moon Titan looked spectacular.I never get tired of looking at Saturn.

Andy was able to find M57, the Ring Nebula,which looked like a tiny smudge. M13, thebest globular cluster in the Northernhemisphere, looked very nice in both Lisa andAndy’s telescope.

We did see a few more sky denizens butnothing to write home about.

We had two new members show up lastnight. Jerry Johnson a retired high schoolastronomy teacher and Mark Kelly from NorthCarolina who due to his job, will becommuting every month from North Carolinato Florida for the next 3 years.

Mark brought his 4” Celestron telescope on aNewtonian mount. His spotting scope batterywas dead and no one had an extra one forhim so he gave up spotting sky objects.

I appreciate both of them for showing up andhope we see more of them in futuremeetings, outreach events and other starparties. For great skies they may have to waituntil September or October but you neverknow.

I like to congratulate both Andy and KristinWilliams. Kristin will be a mother to anotherAndy in 7 months.

I want to thank all members who showed uplast night including one visitor.

Margarita Quinteros and daughterLizzy CorderoAndy Williams, wife KristinWilliams and their guest.Mary Lisa McGaughran

Upcoming Events

For full details of events, please visit ourwebsite's events calendar.

July Public Meeting

Tuesday, July 8, 2014, 7-9 p.m.3000 NW 83rd Street

Building X-129Gainesville, FL 32606

Join us for an exciting and interestingevening at the Kika Silva Pla Planetarium(Santa Fe College)! Our speaker is JamesAlbury, Planetarium director and co-hostof the weekly TV show "Stargazers". Thetitle of his talk is Summer Stars.

August Public Meeting

Tuesday, Aug 12, 2014, 7-9 p.m.Florida Museum of Natural HistoryUniversity of Florida Cultural Plaza

3215 Hull RoadGainesville, FL 32611

Join us for an exciting and interestingevening when our speaker will be Dr.Andy Howell, President, AlachuaAstromony Club. His topic is CAMSFlorida - Observing Meteors by VideoCamera.

Mark KellyJerry JohnsonLisa Eager

Members don’t forget to track your volunteerhours on OurVolts.

Members who showed up to Saturday's StarParty at NSP post your hours on ourvoltsbelow.

http://www.ourvolts.com/user

Cheers,- Ivo Rabell

Guests enjoying themselves at May'sKanapaha Moonlight Walk

President's ReportAndy Howell

First Light Newsletter EditorLaura Wright

The summer got off to a bang withthe "summer solstice" lightning andthunderstorm show on June 20. Ifyou haven't visited the AAC webpage yet, go there to check outProfessor Howard Cohen'sspectacular 30-second

time exposure of lightning taken from his back

The International Observethe Moon Night is an AACevent on our calendartaking place on Saturday,September 6, 2014between 7 and 10 p.m. at

the Newberry Star Park.

yard. Dr. Cohen's photo has been posted on theAAC web page and on Facebook. It also appearedon NASA's Space Place Facebook page. The Clubis very fortunate to be among the first to see andpublish Dr. Cohen's astrophotos. Other examplesof his work are in the AAC photo archives.

For family vacation this year, my family and Itraveled to Flagstaff, Arizona. Flagstaff is only 90miles south of the Grand Canyon, and it is anideal jumping off point to visit that naturalwonder. Flagstaff is also a great astronomydestination. 45 miles east of Flagstaff is thefamous Meteor Crater.

Meteor Crater

In the city of Flagstaff is the renowned LowellObservatory, where the planet Pluto - sorry, Ican't help myself - was discovered in 1930. It isa modest 14-inch astrograph that ClydeTombaugh used to discover the elusive planet,which required blink-comparing thousands ofphotographic plates.

Pluto discovery telescope

We're holding our collective breaths for the first

According to the InOMN website thisdate "is an annual event that isdedicated to encouraging people to‘look up’ and take notice of ournearest neighbor, the Moon. Fromlooking at the Moon with the nakedeye to using the most sensitivetelescope, every year on the sameday, people from around the worldhold events and activities thatcelebrate our Moon. On this site, youcan find information about an InOMNevent near you or register your ownevent. We encourage everyone to joinus in the celebration!"

The InOMN "team consists ofscientists, educators, and Moonenthusiasts from government, non-profit organizations and businessesthroughout the United States andacross the globe. We believe in theinspirational power of the Moon as anundefined celestial body that hasinfluenced human lives since the dawnof time."

"International Observe the Moon Nighthas created the opportunity for peopleto take notice of the Moon’s beautyand share that experience with one

pictures of Pluto from the New Horizonsspacecraft next year (2015)!

On the north end of Flagstaff is the astrogeologyscience center of the U.S. Geological Survey. Thenewest building on the USGS astrogeologycampus is the Shoemaker building, named afterGene Shoemaker, co-discoverer of CometShoemaker-Levy 9 and who proved beyond alldoubt in 1960 that Meteor Crater is, in fact, ameteor crater.

Shoemaker Building at USGS, Flagstaff

Next time you are in the vicinity of the GrandCanyon, go visit Flagstaff!

another. Through InOMN, we hope toinstill in the public a sense ofwonderment and curiosity about ourMoon. Our partnerships enable us tostay up to date with the latest andgreatest scientific discoveries aboutEarth’s nearest neighbor and we striveto bring those discoveries to thepublic."

For much more information check thewebsite observethemoonnight.org.Have a wonderful night.

- Laura

Boötes and Ursa Major: Constellations for June

by Larry Lebofsky and Don McCarthy (University of Arizona)

From the NIRCam Education & Outreach Newsletter May/June, 2014. Used with permission.

Boötes: Boötes has one bright star, Arcturus. It is the fourth brightest star in the night skywith a visual magnitude of −0.04, making it the fourth-brightest star in the night sky. It is aK-type giant (4,300K). While it is only about 1.1 times the mass of the Sun, its diameter isabout 26 times that of the Sun. Similar to Alphard, it has used up the hydrogen in its coreand has evolved off of the main sequence. The second-brightest star in Boötes is EpsilonBoötis with a visual magnitude of 2.3. It is a K-type giant (4,600K) with a mass of about4.6 times that of the Sun and a diameter of more than 30 times that of the Sun. Again,though it has already evolved off of the main sequence, it is only about 40 million years old.Epsilon Boötis has an A-type companion orbiting at a distance of 185 AU. The distances toArcturus and Epsilon Boötis are about 37 and 200 light-years, respectively. Even thoughEpsilon Boötis is nearly ten times fainter than Arcturus, as we see it in the sky, its absolutebrightness is about three times that of Arcturus and is fainter only because of its greaterdistance. There are nine stars with a total of 13 known exoplanets in Boötes.

Ursa Major: We are more familiar with the asterism of Ursa Major’s seven brightest starsundefined the Big Dipper. Six of those stars are brighter than magnitude 3.0. In othercultures it is known as an English plough, a Viking wagon, a Sioux skunk, and an Egyptianpriest’s magic hook. The brightest star in Ursa Major is Alioth at visual magnitude 1.8. It isin the handle of the dipper (the tail of the bear). It is an A-type (white, 10,800K), mainsequence star with a mass 2.9 times that of the Sun and four times the diameter of theSun. The second brightest star in Ursa Major is Dubhe with a visual magnitude of 1.81. It isone of the “pointer stars” that point to Polaris. It is a K-type giant (orange, 4,700K) with amass four times that of the Sun and a diameter of 30 times that of the Sun. It has evolvedoff of the main sequence. Dubhe has a smaller, but warmer, F-type companion orbiting at adistance of about 23 AU (the same distance as the Sun-Uranus distance) and another F-type companion orbiting at a distance of 8,000 AU. This star has its own companion orbitingit! The distances to Alioth and Dubhe are 83 and 124 light-years, respectively. There are18 stars with a total of 25 known exoplanets in Ursa Major.

Below is a chart, made using Sky Safari, that shows Boötes and Ursa Major on July 1 at10:00 pm Daylight Saving Time. The red planet Mars, fading in brightness, is close to thestar Spica. Click on the chart to enlarge and print it.

Boötes and Ursa Major (looking Southwest July 1 at 10pm)

Copyright © 2014 Alachua Astronomy Club, Inc. All rights reserved. Contact email: FirstLight@alachuaastronomyclub.org

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