san diego astronomy association - sdaa · 2020-06-27 · • a guide to hubble space telescope...

San DiegoAstronomy AssociationCelebrating Over 50 Years of Astronomical Outreach

http://www.sdaa.orgA Non-Profit Educational Association

P.O. Box 23215, San Diego, CA 92193-3215

July 2019

Next SDAA Business MeetingJuly 9th at 7:00pm7270 Trade Street

San Diego, CA 92121

Next Program Meeting July 17th at 7:00pm

Mission Trails Regional ParkVisitor and Interpretive Center1 Father Junipero Serra Trail

CONTENTSJuly 2019, Vol LVII, Issue 7Published Monthly by the San Diego Astronomy AssociationIncorporated in California in 1963P r o g r a m M e e t i n g . . . . . . . . . . . 1J u n e M i n u t e s . . . . . . . . . 2J u l i a n S t a r f e s t . . . . . . . . . 5Two Stellar Elementary Schools..7A s t r o n o m i c a l L e a g u e . . . . . . . . 1 6F o r S a l e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 7Wide F ie ld Astrophotog raphy.18S D A A C o n t a c t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1N A S A N i g h t S k y N o t e s . . . . . . 2 2A s t r o n o m y C a r t o o n . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 5

Newsletter DeadlineThe deadline to submit articles

for publication is the15th of each month.

July Program Meeting

Date: July 17, 2019Speaker: Jack LightholderTopic: Roving the Red Planet - 20 years of Mars Exploration

San Diego Astronomy Association (SDAA) sponsors speakers on a wide range of astronomy topics on the third Wednesday of every month at the Mission Trails Regional Park Visitors Center. The program meeting begins at 7:00pm. Each attendee receives one free door prize ticket. After announcements and a small amount of business, the audience is treated to the featured presentation. At the close of the meeting the door prizes are presented. The event is open to the public. The Mission Trails Regional Park Visitors Center is at One Fr. Junipero Serra Trail, San Diego CA 92119. Call the park at 619-668-3281 for more information or visit http://www.mtrp.org

Jack Lightholder is a member of the Machine Learning and Instrument Autonomy Group at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He supports a variety of missions in con-cept, development and operational phases, including engineering camera operations for the Mars Science Laboratory, Curiosity. Jack has previously lead a number of high altitude balloon, microgravity aircraft and small spacecraft development projects.

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/[email protected]&ctz=America/Los_

Link to Outreach Calendar

http://www.sdaa.org

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/[email protected]&ctz=America/Los_

San Diego Astronomy Association

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San Diego Astronomy Association Board of Directors MeetingJune 13, 2019- Unapproved and subject to revision

1. Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 7:00pm with the following board members in attendance: Dave Wood, President; Steve Hallman, Vice President; Bill Nguyen, Corresponding Secretary; Brian McFarland, Recording Secretary; Gene Burch, Treasurer; Pat Boyce, Director; Mike Chasin, Director; Jeff Herman, Director. Members in attendance: Dan Kiser.

2. Approval of Last Meeting Minutes

May meeting minutes were approved.

3. Priority / Member Business a. None.

4. Treasurer’s & Membership Report

a. Treasurer’s report approved.

5. Standard Reports a. Site Maintenance – Nothing to report. b. Observatory/Loaner Scope Report

• Observatory: Everything continues to run smoothly. • Loaner Scopes: Having some difficulties with one return.

c. Private Pad Report – We currently have 3 unleased pads and 2 people on the waiting list, both current pad holders who are looking to upgrade to a darker part of the site.

d. Program Meetings Program Meeting Guest Speaker List: Jun - Steve Murray // Event Horizon Telescope // Confirmed Jul - Jack Lightholder // Mars Sojourner Rover // Confirmed Backup - Steve Hallman Possible Speaker: Andy Boden (Spectroscopy), Shelley Wright (Searching for ET). 15 May program meeting synopsis: multiple speakers including Kin Searcy and Dorothy Wood; Presentation: Palomar Observatory; 30 Attendees Current Program Meeting Petty Cash (3June19): $369 Previous Report $305 (9may19) Expenses Since Previous Report as of (9May19): $49.88 Snacks

e. AISIG – Last month Kin S. hosted the meeting with Dennis Mammana presenting. Dennis gave a talk on his imaging techniques and gave tips on composition and aesthetics. We had good discussions, and Dennis is interested in resuming tracked telescope imaging and is interested in working with AISIG to learn current procedures. This month Steve Hallman and Scott Dixon are going to talk about exoplanets.

f. Newsletter Report – Andrea continues to do stellar work. g. Website Report – Please remember to send me the information on upcoming meetings when they become

scheduled and when more detailed information becomes available so that I can update the Program page of the SDAA website. It contains similar information to the newsletter, except that I sometimes make links to relevant information: https://sdaa.org/program.htm

h. Social Media Report – Nothing new to report for social media. I've been thinking about the best ways to promote JSF and can definitely post advertising materials for the event. If the board and JSF coordinators can help provide any digital posters, flyers, photos that would be helpful. We can build a nice promotional campaign and blast it out repeatedly as we come closer to the event.


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i. Outreach Report – The Summer months always bring a few interesting opportunities for our volunteers. We supported a late-night session at Lake Morena in conjunction with the Eta Aquarids Meteor shower, the annual Space Day solar event at the Air and Space Museum, and our first visit to the City of El Cajon, America on Main Street “Out of this World” fair.

Cuyamaca State Park has cancelled our June and July events at Paso Picacho Campground because SDG&E will be using the area for system upgrades. We do not know the status of the later Paso Picacho events. Ben Grunbaum is doing a great job negotiating with the State Parks, and others, to make sure we have an inviting public campground program. Other special programs this summer include KQ Ranch, the Meeker Foundation 2-day event, UCSD Exchange Student program, Julian Starfest, SPIE, Borrego Springs Library, Dixon Lake, Mt. Helix Park, and of course, Nightfall.

Totals for May:

Totals for Month: Events Completed 9.0 Events Cancelled 3.0 Public Attendance 385.0 Private Attendance 100.0 Total Attendance 485.0 Mem Support: 38.0 Average: Mem/Event: 4.2

Year to Date since January 1:

Completed Events since January 1: 48.0 Cancelled Events since January 1:

19.0

Events Scheduled since January 1:

67.0 Public Attendees since Jan 1:

1828.0

Private Attendees since Jan 1:

2538.0 Total Attendees since Jan 1: 4366.0

j. TARO Report – Taro is back on line. Sky Alert weather reporting system was returned due to a bad network

interface card. Installed last weekend, the unit was still not functional. New parts are being shipped for field installation this weekend. Imaging train has been updated and calibrated.

k. Merchandise Report – No report. l. Cruzen Report

• The G-11 mount carrying the TOA-130 is not tracking well, it’s exhibiting large errors both periodic and non-periodic. Bill will disassemble, clean, and adjust the worm and then retest. If the problem still exists, we’ll look into a worm upgrade (possibly Ovision).

• Still looking for suitable counterweights for the large DK Cassegrain to be installed. m. Astronomical League Report – No report.


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n. Julian Starfest Report Nearly everything is complete. We just need more raffle prizes and more camper registrations. I will plan on putting everything in a July newsletter article; key milestones include:

• Registered vendors & exhibitors include: Meade, OPT, Niederfrank's, Woody's Mobile Observatory, Julian Lions Club Field Kitchen.

• We have registered 80 campers and 10 RVs. • Speakers Programs are set, including James Chen who will be presenting and signing books

"Astronomy for Older Eyes" and "How to Find the Apollo Landing Sites". Dennis Mammana will also do a presentation.

6. Old Business a. Electrical Upgrade – Still in progress. b. Other old business – None.

7. New Business

a. Audit Committee – Gene will ask the previous volunteers if they’ll do the audit again. b. Budget – The annual budget meeting was held an hour before the start of the business meeting. Gene

presented his draft budget, a few adjustments were made, and it was approved. c. Call for new business – None.

8. Adjournment Adjourned at 8:40pm.


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Time is Running Out

Register Now to Attend the 2019 SDAA Julian StarFest

Please register now to attend the 2019 SDAA Julian StarFest! On-line registrations for JSF camping and Palomar Observatory tours can now be made at: https://sdaa28.wildapricot.org/SDAA-Store Additional links to register and to view detailed information for the event can also be found on the SDAA website and https://www.julianstarfest.com/

Preparations are nearly complete for the 2019 Julian StarFest. This year, OPT, Mead Instruments, and Woody’s Mobile Observatory will be joined us at the Menghini Winery in beautiful Julian for three days of action packed events. The tentative schedule includes:

Thursday, August 1 12:00 Noon – Open for Merchants and Exhibitors set up 3:00 PM - Open to camper and RV check in Friday, August 2 10:00 AM – Merchant and Exhibitor booths open 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM – Lions Club Field Kitchen is open 2:00 PM - Speaker Program – Palomar Science Update – Kin Searcy 4:00 PM – Speaker Program – Cruzen Observatory Update – Bill Nguyen 6:00 PM - Speaker Program & Book Signing – Astronomy for Older Eyes – James Chen

Saturday, August 3 8:00 AM - Lions Club Field Kitchen open for breakfast 8:00 AM - Carpool leaves for Palomar Tour 9:30 AM -Merchant booths open 9:30 AM - Tour begins at Palomar Observatory 10: AM to 7:00 PM - Lions Club Field Kitchen is Open 10:00 AM - Kids Crafts at Stage area 11:00 AM - Speaker Program – Through the Looking-glass - Dennis Mammana 1:00 PM - Speaker Program – Dark Energy / Dark Matter – Steve Hallmann 2:00 PM - Kids Craft at the stage area 2:00 PM - Speaker Program – Distance Latter Project – Steve Hallman 3:00 PM - Speaker Program & Book Signing – How to Find the Apollo Landing Sites – James Chen


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4:00 PM - Raffle Drawing 5:00 PM - Speaker Program – Science at TARRO – Dave Woods 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM - Set up for public star party Dusk to 11 PM – Largest Public Star Party in Southern California

Sunday, August 4 8 AM – Lions Club Field Kitchen Open for Breakfast 10:00 AM - The 2019 Julian StarFest closes This year, noted author James Chen will be speaking and signing copies of his books, which can purchased in advance of the event at Amazon and Springer Books. His books include:

• How to Find the Apollo Landing Sites • A Guide to Hubble Space Telescope Objects: Their Selection, Location, and Significance • The Vixen Star Book User Guide: How to Use the Star Book TEN and the Original Star

Book • The NexStar Evolution and SkyPortal User’s Guide • Astronomy for Older Eyes: A Guide for Aging Backyard Astronomers

In addition, we will be joined by many fan favorites, like Woody’s Mobile Observatory, Niederfrank’s Ice Cream, and a presentation on telescope viewing with Dennis Mammana. JSF attendees will also be able to visit the nearby town of Julian and the Julian Natural Wonderfest; which is being held this year at Jess Martin Park from 4 PM to 11 PM on Saturday, August 3. Registration is open, with camping and Palomar Tours still available. We look forward to seeing you at the 2019 SDAA Julian StarFest!


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Two Stellar Elementary Schools Set in the West Until Next Fall

By Dennis Ammann SDAA Center City Outreach Coordinator

Just like the constellation Gemini, two stellar elementary schools have set in the west until September when they will rise again in the east! These two schools are Lemon Crest, Lakeside and Chollas-Mead, San Diego. What fun we had at the end of this school semester for SDAA outreach. As most of you know, each year our visits to elementary schools drop off after daylight savings time, this year March 10th. Most schools do not want to schedule stargazing evens after 8:30 or 9:00p.m., keeping children out too late. There was no stopping Lemon Crest and Chollas-Mead, as they found ways to promote their respective astronomy labs without keeping their students up late. Last March, I was asked by 1st grade teacher Aleya Cunningham if I would visit Lemon Crest Elementary School and give a one hour presentation about astronomy on April 1st at 9:00a.m. SDAA daylight presentations are rare because most members have daytime jobs. Being retired I’m very flexible and will jump at the chance to support these requests. With my 10” Dobsonian and 70mm refractor telescopes, plus PowerPoint presentation how telescopes work, history, and a talk about a few constellations, I was ready to go… I thought. My computer wouldn’t ‘talk’ to Ms. Cunningham’s big screen TV, so after a long 10 minute delay, she called in the IT guy who gave it a try while I commenced the astronomy lesson. Looking at these 1st grade children, they were all sitting quietly, patiently waiting! I was amazed, never experiencing this before… everyone sitting, well behaved. This is a direct reflection on Aleya’s excellent ability to teach children the art of classroom decorum. As I spoke, Aleya was placing requested pictures on the big screen TV from the internet such as, Galileo, Newton, some of the constellations, etc. She turned ‘lemons into lemonade’, saving my presentation. To make up for lost time, she gave me a few extra minutes after recess to finish up. I left them all dizzy out in the playground demonstrating how the star Castor, a six star system, operates by grouping children in three sets of two ‘stars’ revolving around each other. This is fun to watch as it teaches each child how multiple star systems orbit each other. On May 31st, Ms. Cunningham arranged for a one hour Open House to show off her students’ astronomy projects. If you’ve never been to an elementary school’s open house, you’re in for a real treat! She had about seven stations, with two or three students explaining their astronomy projects: stars and the moon. What fun it was to listen to their presentations and ask questions about what they learned. All future astrophysicists! Next on the SDAA outreach calendar was, Thomas Courtney, a 5th grade teacher at Chollas-Mead Elementary School. This gifted educator is well known to SDAA as he schedules us each year for stargazing at his wonderful school. Although he knew that stargazing was not practical after March 10th, he just scheduled his event on a Friday night, May 24th, not having to worry about keeping the children staying up too late, as the next day was Saturday. Many of us were outside sharing the night sky with the students and parents, they were: Jeremy Ha, Damon Blackman, Cindy Decker, and Dave Decker. Mr. Courtney’s classroom was open for all to see his students’ solar system science projects at the same time. After the stargazing was completed, we took a look at these amazing exhibits. Each year, Thomas presents a 40mm refractor telescope to his 1st place winner. We rarely see how our tax money is spent on primary education and often wonder about the results. Rest assured, you can be thankful that we have teachers like Ayela Cunningham and Thomas Courtney guiding, stimulating, and teaching young minds to become future productive citizens of this country. Please consider joining our SDAA outreach team, check the outreach calendar each month, grab your telescope and join us all over San Diego County. Don’t have a telescope? No excuse, come on out anyways, we can use you! Meet exceptional teachers like these two, park rangers that are so happy and thankful you are supporting their night programs, and dedicated volunteers from non-profit organizations that request our support. I hope to see you there under the night starry sky throughout the year.


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Meade LXD55 for Sale

SDAA presale price of $510 for Contributing Members. Cloudy Nights & Astromart pricing will be $600. SDAA has a very nice Meade 8” SCT on a German equatorial mount (GEM). Both the mount and scope are identified as Meade LXD55. The mount is fairly rouged and includes the Autostar controller and software. The OTA is an 8” SCT with Meade’s upgraded UHTC coatings. A 2” William Optics diagonal, 26mm Supper Plossl, manual, and JMI case are included. Everything looks to be in very good to excellent condition. As stated, a very nice setup for those getting into the hobby. Ed Rumsey for SDAA 858.722.3846


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Wide-Field AstrophotographyBy Hunter Harling

Many people might think that all types of astrophotography require a telescope, but wide-field imaging simply requires a regular DSLR camera and a tripod. Wide-field astrophotography is also a very rewarding and a mostly straightforward type of astrophotography. Most types of astrophotography require hours of camera exposure to produce a good image, however, wide-field Milky Way astrophotography only requires 10-30 second exposures to achieve a stunning image. For example, this image was a 10-second exposure:

Equipment and Technique All the equipment that is required to get started is a DSLR, lens, tripod, and optionally an interval timer / remote shutter release to better control your exposure times. Once you have the equipment, your technique for capturing the images is very important. Like any time of astrophotography, you should wait for a clear night preferably far away from city lights, and with the moon at least an hour below the horizon. Set up your camera away from any light source, such as street lights. Even red lights, although they do not reduce the eye sensitivity, can cause color gradients in the photo. Camera Settings Exposure length and ISO: Although this may vary with camera type, I have found that most newer Canon MKII, MKIII, and, MKVI models and newer Nikon such as the D800-D810 cameras produce the best image with shorter exposures (8-15 seconds) and higher ISO (2500-3500). F-Stop: You should always put the f-stop as low as your camera will allow.


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Image type: Images should be shot in RAW, however, I have also produced good images with JPEG. White Balance: The best white balance seems to be around daylight ~5200K, however, you can always change this in post-processing when shooting in RAW. Focal length: If you want more of the sky in your shot, the lower the focal length the better. However, longer focal lengths have more detail in the images because of the higher resolution. The best solution would be a longer focal length, about 28mm, and make a panorama to still achieve a large portion of the sky. Here is an image at 14mm focal length:


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And this image below is at 25mm focal length:

Despite the obvious difference in the field of view, there is more detail present in the longer focal length image. Post Processing: Although there are many different image processors, most have the same or similar features. I personally use Lightroom and Photoshop for my image editing. After opening the image, my first step is to warp and stretch the image to correct lens fish-eye effects. I also use the vignetting tool to lighten the corners of the image to counter-act light falloff. After these first steps, you can get creative and use your judgment to adjust white balance, apply contrast, saturation, clarity, and curves to bring out the full beauty of the Milky Way. Wide-field milky way photography is a great way to get started in astrophotography, or simply a way to put your DSLR to use and enjoy the night sky.


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SDAA ContactsClub Officers and Directors

President Dave Wood [email protected] (858) 735-8808Vice President Steve Hallman [email protected] Recording Secretary Brian McFarland [email protected] (619) 462-4483Treasurer Gene Burch [email protected] (858) 926-9610 Corresponding Secretary Bill Nguyen [email protected] (619) 751-6621Director Alpha Dave Decker [email protected] (619) 972-1003Director Beta Jeff Herman [email protected] (619) 846-4898Director Gamma Pat Boyce [email protected] (619) 227-9614Director Delta Mike Chasin [email protected] (858) 210-1454

CommitteesSite Maintenance Bill Quackenbush [email protected] (858) 395-1007Observatory Director Ed Rumsey [email protected] (858) 722-3846Private Pads Mark Smith [email protected] (858) 484-0540Outreach Dave Decker [email protected] (619) 972-1003N. County Star Parties -Vacant- [email protected] S. County Star Parties -Vacant- [email protected] E. County Star Parties Dave Decker [email protected] (619) 972-1003Central County Star Parties Dennis Ammann [email protected] (619) 247-2457Camp with the Stars -Vacant- [email protected] K.Q. Ranch Coordinator Dennis Ammann [email protected] (619) 247-2457Newsletter Andrea Kuhl [email protected] (858) 547-9887New Member Mentor Dan Kiser [email protected] (858) 922-0592Webmaster Jeff Stevens [email protected] (858) 566-2261AISIG Scott Dixon [email protected] (858) 673-9588 Site Acquisition -Vacant- [email protected] Field Trips -Vacant- [email protected] Grants/Fund Raising -Vacant- [email protected] Julian StarFest -Vacant- [email protected] Merchandising -Vacant- [email protected] Publicity Jeff Flynn [email protected] (619) 806-6505Loaner Scopes Ed Rumsey [email protected] (858) 722-3846 Governing Documents TBDTDS Network Dave Wood [email protected] (858) 735-8808Amateur Telescope Making -Vacant- ALCOR (Astronomical League Correspondent) Mary Todd [email protected] (858) 560-2052

Have a great new piece of gear? Read an astronomy-related book that you think others should know about? How about a photograph of an SDAA Member in action? Or are you simply tired of seeing these Boxes in the Newsletter rather than something, well, interesting?

Join the campaign to rid the Newsletter of little boxes by sharing them with the membership. In return for your efforts, you will get your very own byline or pho-tograph credit in addition to the undying gratitude of the Newsletter Editor. Just send your article or picture to [email protected].

SDAA Editorial StaffEditor - Andrea [email protected]

Assistant Editor: Craig Ewing

mailto://[email protected]




















mailto:[email protected]


[email protected]






mailto:// [email protected]





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NASA Night Sky Notes July 2019

This article is distributed by NASA Night Sky Network The Night Sky Network program supports astronomy clubs across the USA dedicated to astronomy outreach. Visit nightsky.jpl.nasa.org to find local clubs, events, and more!

Observe the Moon and Beyond: Apollo 11 at 50

By David Prosper Saturn is at opposition this month, beckoning to future explorers with its beautiful rings and varied, mysterious moons. The Moon prominently passes Saturn mid-month, just in time for the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11! Saturn is in opposition on July 9, rising in the east as the Sun sets in the west. It is visible all night, hovering right above the teapot of Sagittarius. Saturn is not nearly as bright as Jupiter, next door in Scorpius, but both giant planets are easily the brightest objects in their constellations, making them easy to identify. A full Moon scrapes by the ringed planet late in the evening of the 15th through the early morning of the 16th. Some observers in South America will even see the Moon occult, or pass in front of, Saturn. Observe how fast the Moon moves in relation to Saturn throughout the night by recording their positions every half hour or so via sketches or photos. While observing the Saturn-Moon celestial dance the early morning of the 16th, you can also contemplate the 50th anniversary of the launch of the Apollo 11 mission! On June 16, 1969, Apollo 11 blasted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on a journey of almost a quarter million miles to our nearest celestial neighbor, a mission made possible by the tremendous power of the Saturn V rocket – still the most powerful rocket ever launched. Just a few days later, on July 20, 1969 at 10:56 pm EDT, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set foot on the lunar surface and became the first people in history to walk on another world. The astronauts set up equipment including a solar wind sampler, laser ranging retroreflector, and seismometer, and gathered up almost 22 kilograms (48 pounds) of precious lunar rocks and soil samples. After spending less than a day on the Moon’s surface, the duo blasted off and returned to the orbiting Columbia Command Module, piloted by Michael Collins. Just a few days later, on July 24, all three astronauts splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean. You can follow the timeline of the Apollo 11 mission in greater detail at bit.ly/TimelineApollo11 and dig deep into mission history and science on NASA’s Apollo History Site: bit.ly/ApolloNASA. Have you ever wanted to see the flag on the Moon left behind by the Apollo astronauts? While no telescope on Earth is powerful enough to see any items left behind the landing sites, you can discover how much you can observe with the Flag on the Moon handout: bit.ly/MoonFlag You can catch up on all of NASA’s current and future missions at nasa.gov


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Caption: Observe the larger details on the Moon with help from this map, which also pinpoints the Apollo landing site. Full handout available at bit.ly/MoonHandout


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Caption: Earth-based telescopes can’t see any equipment left behind at the Apollo 11 landing site, but the cameras onboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) can. This is Tranquility Base as seen from the LRO, just 24 kilometers (15 miles) above the Moon’s surface, with helpful labels added by the imaging team. Image Credit: NASA Goddard/Arizona State University. See more landing sites at: bit.ly/ApolloLRO


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MEMBERSHIP INFORMATIONSend dues and renewals to P.O. Box 23215, San Diego, CA 92193-3215. Include any renewal cards from Sky & Telescope or Astronomy magazine in which you wish to continue your subscription. The expiration date shown on your newsletter’s mailing label is the only notice that your membership in SDAA will expire. Dues are $60 for Contributing Memberships; $35 for Basic Membership; $60.00 for Private Pads; $5 for each Family membership. In addition to the club dues the annual rates for magazines available at the club discount are: Sky & Telescope $32.95 and Astronomy $34. Make checks payable to S.D. Astronomy Assn. PLEASE DO NOT send renewals directly to Sky Publishing. They return them to us for processing.