- OTEvents - Old Town Sidewalk Astronomers

Smart-1 Saturday
by Jane H Jones 01 Sep '06

01 Sep '06

Hope to see some of you Friday or Saturday night. As always, our schedule is shown at the top right of the Old Town Sidewalk Astronomers (OTASTRO) website http://www.otastro.org/ I've been receiving a lot of questions at work today about the European Space Agency's Smart-1 lunar orbiter's impact on the moon tomorrow night (Saturday, September 2) SO I typed this up for my colleagues, and thought I'd share it with you too. It sort of coincides with our Monrovia Sidewalk Astronomy Saturday night, tho' it is highly unlikely that it can be seen from amateur telescopes. But we'll stay out a little later than usual just to view the moon at the designated time of 10:41 p.m. I'll bring some maps to hand out for those who want them. Friday night - gosh, that's tonight, we'll be in Pasadena 7ish - 10:00 p.m. mostly moon, and possibly a low Jupiter view. The nine-day old waxing (or gibbous) moon will be visible throughout the late afternoon, will transit at mid-evening and set after midnight. Refer to the moon map linked below to find the craters I describe. One of the moon's most glorious sights, the large (100km/60 mile) diameter young crater Copernicus (area 31) is located midway between north and south on the sunny side of the terminator. Further south, the bright ejecta rays of 85km/53mile diameter even younger Tycho (area 64) are more and more brilliant as the moon nears full. Hitchhikers Guide to the Moon is my favorite lunar website. http://www.shallowsky.com/moon/hitchhiker.html Meanwhile, over on the night side of the terminator, Smart-1 is preparing for its own termination. SMART-1, ESA's "Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology", is about to end its exploration adventure after almost sixteen months of lunar science investigations. Look on this ESA link to see an image of the moon at the nominal impact time (10:42 p.m. Pacific September 2. http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object/index.cfm?fobjectid=39942 You'll see bright craters Copernicus and Tycho center and south. The impact most likely won't be visible through anything but large ground or space telescopes, but amateurs everywhere will all be looking moonward anyway. You can share these times with your friends around the world.....The expected impact time (07:41 CEST or 10:41 P.M. PST) will be good for big telescopes in South and Northwest Americas and Hawaii and possibly Australia. But if SMART-1 hits a hill on its previous pass, around 02:37 CEST on 3 September (5:37 p.m. PST Saturday night, before sunset) , then it can be observed from the Canary Islands and South America. If SMART-1 hits a hill on the pass on 2 September at 21:33 CEST, then telescopes in Continental Europe and Africa will have the advantage. Smart-1 background info: It travelled to the Moon using solar-electric propulsion and carried a battery of miniaturized instruments. As well as testing new technology, SMART-1 made the first comprehensive inventory of key chemical elements in the lunar surface. If left on the course of its lunar orbit, SMART-1 would have naturally hit the Moon on 17 August 2006 on the lunar far side, not visible from Earth. A 2-week series of manoeuvres started on 19 June and concluded on 2 July allowed SMART-1 to adjust its orbit to avoid having the spacecraft intersect with the Moon at a disadvantageous time from the scientific point of view, and to obtain a useful small mission 'extension'. On 3 September 2006 (Evening of Sept 2 here in California) the SMART-1 perilune, coinciding with the point of impact, will be on the lunar area called 'Lake of Excellence', located at mid-southern latitudes. This area is very interesting from the scientific point of view. It is a volcanic plain area surrounded by highlands. At the time of impact, this area will be in the dark on the near-side of the Moon, just near the terminator - the line separating the lunar day-side from the night-side. The region will be shadowed from the Sun's direct rays, but it will be lit faintly by the light from the Earth - by earthshine. The spacecraft's orbit will take it over the region every five hours, getting one kilometer lower at each pass. From Earth, a Moon quarter will be visible at that time. Useful links: Science@Nasa's Aug 30 Smart-1 feature: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/30aug_smart1.htm?list117725 Read more from the Aug 4 News release here: http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/SMART-1/SEMKTCBUQPE_0.html Smart-1 visibility from Earth http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object/index.cfm?fobjectid=39878 -- Jane Houston Jones Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205 Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435 jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov Cassini Saturn Observation Campaign http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

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tonight's view of the ISS
by Jane Houston Jones 19 Aug '06

19 Aug '06

Hello Otastro I know some of you stepped outside and looked up at 8:00 p.m. and were hoping you would see the visible pass of the ISS over southern California. Whether you did or didn't see it, here is my recap of the event. At 8:00 p.m. Mojo and I turned our gaze outward :-) and stepped outside. We walked a few yards to where we had a good view of the entire sky. It was not yet dark, but we could see Jupiter and a few brighter stars We kept looking towards Jupiter, and soon Mojo saw a "star" moving up from Jupiter to overhead. 8:06:15 is when we first spotted the Internatinal Space Station, aka the moving "star". We observed the ISS for about 5 minutes , until 8:11:00 before it was below the horizon in the NE. I hope you saw it. If not, I hope my description was a good alternate to the actual view. Now it is only 9 hours until a gorgeous view of the moon, Venus, and maybe Mercury and Saturn are visble in dawn sky. Jane (who recommends checking the morning planet view at 5:30 a.m.) is now signing off at 8:30 p.m. -- Jane Houston Jones Monrovia, CA 34.2048N 118.1732W, 637.0 feet http://www.whiteoaks.com Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org

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Moon and Planets this weekend
by Jane H Jones 18 Aug '06

18 Aug '06

Step outside tonight after sunset and you'll see brilliant Jupiter hanging low in the western sky. If it happens to be a little after 8 p.m. you may spot the International Space Station from about 8:04 to 8:10 as it passes from SW (near Jupiter) to overhead to NE. Step outside in the morning a little before dawn over the next few days and you may see three additional planets -- Mercury, Venus and Saturn -- plus a lovely crescent moon . Here is a little feature and graphic I put together this week about observing the morning planets. http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/scitech/display.cfm?ST_ID=1329 Want to see the rest of the solar system? On Saturday (tomorrow, Aug 19th) at sunset until Sunday at dawn, we'll be at our current favorite observing spot near the community of Desert Center http://cleardarksky.com/c/DsrtCntrCAkey.html?1 Our favorite spot is a bit of a trek --150 miles from our home in Monrovia -- but the desert landscape is beautiful and the skies are nice and dark. You can see pictures of the location here: <http://www.otastro.org/2006-04-01-messier/> Our spot is on BLM land, just two miles off I-10. But no water or toilets. We are bringing both. :-) Beginning at 7:30 p.m., we'll be on the lookout for Mars, which will be a difficult target as it sets soon after sunset. Jupiter is next and is easy to spot. Neptune, Uranus and Pluto will be our evening targets. Then there will be many hours to enjoy the summer milky way, or take a snooze and wake up before dawn to observe Mercury, Venus and hopefully, Saturn. Did I leave one out? Earth! I think you all can find that one. If you are interested in joining us, send an email to mojane(a)whiteoaks.com before 2 p.m. Saturday for a map and our cell phone number to contact us on the way. We'll select some other dark sky observing spots that are not such a long drive in the future, but this spot has the sunset and sunrise horizons required to try a "9 Planet night". To read more about "what is a planet" read this summary: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/features.cfm?feature=1151 The definitions may be changing as soon as next week! A note of caution: It will be hot (100's) during the day, cooling to the high 70's after 10 p.m. We plan to stay all night, but we will not set up a tent, and will probably leave at sunrise, before it gets hot again. If you are interested in joining us for this nine planet project, you should arrive no later than 7 p.m. We'll probably leave Monrovia around 3:30 to 4 p.m. with a halfway stop in Banning for Coffee and Subway sandwiches if you want to follow us. Bring your own water, and we recommend some salty snacks or fitness beverages like Gatorade to help with the heat. Our next sidewalk astronomy dates will be Sept 1 Pasadena, September 2 Monrovia. We'll be viewing the moon and one planet: Jupiter. Jane -- Jane Houston Jones Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205 Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435 jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov Cassini Saturn Observation Campaign http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

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An excellent ISS pass Friday night
by Jane H Jones 17 Aug '06

17 Aug '06

I sent this out to my fellow NASA astronomy educators this morning and thought our list would enjoy it too. Jane I was at the Art Center College of Design's http://www.artcenter.edu/accd/index.jsp open house last night viewing (and using) my Cassini Colleague Dave Doody's Gravity Assist Mechanical Simulator - (a work of art that does hands-on science), and we stepped outside to view the ISS a little before 9 p.m. We started looking near Jupiter - that bright thing in the southwestern sky. At a few minutes later than scheduled (I think) - maybe the clocks were off, I spied a little moving 'star" started rising slowly near Jupiter. Over the course of about 5 minutes it got higher and higher and brighter and brighter. There were clouds or fog marring some of the starry signposts, and in fact I gave up looking after a few minutes, and Dave started walking back inside. Then I saw it and hollered, and Dave and others came back out. It was soon as bright as Jupiter. Meanwhile, Mojo was at a Baldwin Park school doing the same thing, showing Jupiter and the International Space Station. There is another ISS pass Friday night.....beginning 8:02 p.m., reaches 10 degrees of altitude at 8:04, reaches maximum altitude - highest point is a whopping 83 degrees (90 degrees is straight overhead) at 8:07, then drops below 10 degrees above the horizon at 8:10 p.m. That's a nice long pass. http://www.heavens-above.com/PassDetails.asp?SatID=25544&lat=34.148&lng=-11… Be sure to check out the ground track link, as ISS passes directly over Pasadena both nights. And if greater LA is not your location, you can create your own map from the home page link. Are you wondering if you'll be able to see the ISS, despite some of our pesky evening fog? If you can see bright Jupiter in the SW about 30 degrees above the horizon, then you should be able to see the ISS. Use Jupiter as your reference point. The ISS will rise from the SW, rise near Jupiter - which is about where I spotted it last night , tho' it was an hour later and an hour darker last night. It will continue brightening and rising almost overhead, then start sinking in altitude towards the NE. No telescope required, this is a view for the unaided eye. There are also locally visible passes on the 17th and 19th http://www.heavens-above.com/PassSummary.asp?lat=34.148&lng=-118.144&alt=24… but the altitude is quite low at maximum altitude, meaning that trees and buildings may mar your view. Friday is the best next pass. Next news will be about our next sidewalk dates and a pretty view in the pre-dawn morning sky for you early risers - Mercury, Venus Moon and Saturn on the eastern horizon. -- Jane Houston Jones Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205 Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435 jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov Cassini Saturn Observation Campaign http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

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More sidewalk astronomy this weekend
by Morris Jones 07 Jul '06

07 Jul '06

Several things are drawing us to the sidewalk this weekend: There's a nice gibbous Moon to observe, Jupiter is in a great location for observing in the early evening, the weather is really good, and tonight there's a great Space Station pass. Jane and I will set up tonight (Friday) in Old Town Pasadena on Colorado near Delacey to show the Moon and Jupiter from about 7:30 'til 10:00 p.m. As a special added attraction, there will be a pass of the International Space Station with space shuttle Discovery attached, visible from the sidewalk at 9:15 p.m. Tomorrow (Saturday, July 8) we plan to set up on our favorite Monrovia street corner, Myrtle & Lime at Library Park, from 7:30 'til 9:30. Best regards, Mojo -- Morris Jones Monrovia, CA http://www.whiteoaks.com Old Town Astronomers http://www.otastro.org

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Seeing the shuttle and space station
by Morris Jones 06 Jul '06

06 Jul '06

We're often asked if you can see the space shuttle from here, wherever "here" happens to be. The answer is "Yes, you can," but you have to be looking at the right time, in the right location. The shuttle and space station are among the brightest objects in the sky when they're passing over. When they do pass over, they're only visible for three or four minutes at a time. They look like a very bright moving star, and could be mistaken for an airplane, except they have no blinking red beacons. Once you get familiar with observing satellites, it becomes obvious that they're not following a path anything like an airplane would. So the key is knowing when. Timing is critical. In order to see the shuttle or space station flying overhead, three things need to happen: It needs to be passing over your area, it needs to be dark where you are, and the satellite needs to be lit by the sun. That means it has to pass within a couple hours of sunset or sunrise, where it will still be high enough to be in sunlight while it's dark down on the ground. A very popular web site will make those calculations for you and give you predictions of when you might see the shuttle, International Space Station, and hundreds of other objects that orbit the Earth: <http://www.heavens-above.com/> You have to tell it where you live (latitude and longitude, or city from a database). Then it will tell you when you can see the ISS or shuttle for the next ten days. The best passes are ones that have a maximum altitude higher than 35 degrees. We have a couple of passes coming up that are close to that. Thursday evening, 8:52 to 8:56 p.m. Look for it at its highest in the northeast. If you face north, you'll see it passing from your left to your right, at a maximum of 39 degrees high, very close to the North Star and right through the summer triangle. Friday evening, 9:15 'til 9:18 p.m. Face to the west, then south; you'll see it pass from right to left. It'll pass very close to bright Jupiter slightly west of south, and should be almost as bright as Jupiter. Best regards, Mojo -- Morris Jones Monrovia, CA http://www.whiteoaks.com Old Town Astronomers http://www.otastro.org

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Moon and Jupiter viewing this weekend
by Jane H Jones 29 Jun '06

29 Jun '06

It's sidewalk astronomy weekend again. We'll update our web page in case of any change in weather or circumstances. The waxing crescent moon and Jupiter will be our observing targets this month. Friday, June 30, 7:30 p.m. 'til 10:00 p.m., Colorado near Delacey, Old Town Pasadena Saturday, July 1, 7:30 p.m. 'til 9:30 p.m., Myrtle & Lime, Monrovia. There is a Monrovia Art Walk near Colorado and Myrtle 5:30 - 9:30 on this same date, and again August 5 and September 2. I don't think this will impact our Myrtle and Lime setup tho', it just offers more interesting things to do. From U of Illinois' Jim Kaler comes this lovely description of this week's sky. You can find the whole text, updated every Friday, here (scroll down past the interesting links for the text) : http://www.astro.uiuc.edu/~kaler/skylights.html "Mars, closer and faster-moving than Saturn, has now pulled well to the east of the ringed planet. Saturn, which now sets around 10:30 PM Daylight Time, will be gone from view toward the end of July. Mars currently sets right after Saturn. Keeping better orbital pace with Earth, however, the red planet will be seen in bright twilight well into August. With these planets slowly disappearing, the night sky then belongs to very bright Jupiter, which hangs out in far western Libra about two-thirds of the way from Spica in Virgo to Libra's Zubenelgenubi." Hope to see some of you out this weekend! Jane and Mojo -- Jane Houston Jones Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205 Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435 jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov Cassini Saturn Observation Campaign http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

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saturday night stargazing :-(
by Jane Houston Jones 24 Jun '06

24 Jun '06

In addition to the hot weather, there are clouds in both the desert and mountain areas we are considering for a dark sky night tomorrow night. Sometimes that happens. :-( Sorry Todd, Gary and Romain - we think it will be a bad sky, not enough incentive to driving a long way. So come over to our house this Saturday after 5 p.m. June 24 and let us regale you with amusing anecdotes about our Grand Canyon trip, watch our talks which we gave to the canyon visitors, and if it clears enough, see Jupiter. Directions email or call 626-359-5323 for Monrovia directions. This is a spur of the moment idea, so call so we can buy some BBQ items. Bring something you like, only if you want to. We'll do the rest. Family members including children are welcome. Oh, our trip to the Grand Canyon this week (just got back yesterday, whew), are here http://www.whiteoaks.com/mojo/2006-06-grand-canyon/ Jane and Mojo -- Jane Houston Jones Monrovia, CA 34.2048N 118.1732W, 637.0 feet http://www.whiteoaks.com Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org

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Mars and Saturn above the fog :-(
by Jane H Jones 09 Jun '06

09 Jun '06

It's been cloudy, drizzly and foggy above the OTastrodome this week and it looks like we're in for more June gloom this weekend, darn it. But if it clears, you are in for a treat! You all know how to find Saturn in the sky - we've been showing it for months from the Monrovia and Pasadena sidewalks. Be sure to take a look at Saturn over the next two weeks as faint Mars moves Eastward (closer to Saturn) until the 17th of June. After that, Mars will be to the upper right of Saturn. I wrote this little feature for our NASA Solar System Exploration website - it's about Mars and Saturn (and a few other objects). http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/scitech/display.cfm?ST_ID=1189 On June 19 we'll be presenting a star party at the Kaibab Lodge near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, and on the 20th and 21st we'll be attending the Grand Canyon Star Party. This annual event is great fun, and if you plan a June vacation to the Grand Canyon, you are welcome to share the views through a vast array of telescopes at Yavapai Point on the South rim, and through a smaller number of 'scopes on the North rim. You can find the future dates well in advance for vacation planning. http://www.tucsonastronomy.org/gcsp.html We're contemplating another desert/mountain dark starry sky excursion on June 24th when we return from the Grand Canyon, so if this is something you are interested in, drop us a note. We'll have a fellow sidewalk astronomer from Hawaii visiting us for these excursions - the fellow who made our lovely Litebox telescopes - which we almost always have out on the sidewalks. Our next sidewalk astronomy dates will be Friday June 30 in Pasadena and July 1 in Monrovia, and we may repeat on July 7th and 8th. Jane - about to present a foggy star and planet party at a Monrovia elementary school. -- Jane Houston Jones Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205 Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435 jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov Cassini Saturn Observation Campaign http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

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Perfect night in Monrovia
by Morris Jones 04 Jun '06

04 Jun '06

It's a hot, still night in Monrovia -- a night to bring out your best telescopes. If you're still reading email on Saturday evening, think about dropping by Myrtle & Lime. Jane and I are bringing our big 7-inch refractor with its superb optics. We're expecting more excellent telescopes as well. We'll have our last views of Saturn from the sidewalk for this year, as well as views of Jupiter and a great first-quarter Moon. Mojo -- Morris Jones Monrovia, CA http://www.whiteoaks.com Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org

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