Here's what happened this month, and What's Up next :-)
August: August 5th, while Mars shined in the western sky, NASA's Rover
Curiosity landed on the red planet. All month long Mars, Saturn, Spica
and the moon have been forming into geometric designs. On the 21st, a
diamond with the moon below. On the 22nd, a straight line recalling a
baseball diamond with the moon in left field, Mars at third base, Spica
at home plate. Saturn just stole first base. We had an interesting
planetary lineup on August 12, when the Earth plowed into the wide
cometary debris cloud from comet Swift-Tuttle. You could have seen
Perseids from July 17th through August 24th. We saw plenty on August
10th and 11th from the Glacier Point Star Party! Dozens of shooting
stars well before midnight thrilled hundreds of park guests, when they
weren't looking through telescopes. Then on the 13th, a daytime
occultation of Venus by the foreground object, our moon. I watched from
work, snapped a few naked eye pictures, here's my writeup
http://jane.whiteoaks.com/2012/08/18/venus-kissed-the-moon-a-daytime-occult…
.
Sidewalk astronomy this weekend will probably just be the moon. With a
chance at Mars and Saturn, trees and buildings notwithstanding. Aug 24th
in Pasadena on Colorado Blvd between Pasadena and Fair Oaks Avenues,
where ever we find parking. August 25th in Monrovia at Library Park.
September 15 would be our dark sky getaway night this month - if you are
interested (weather and heat depending) send me an email. We typically
drive 150+ miles one way to Amboy Crater (south of Mojave National
Preserve) to avoid light pollution. You won't believe the Milky Way from
a dark site. This isn't a camping site, but a paved parking lot next to
the crater, with pit toilets, picnoc tables and a great morning hike. If
it's too hot we probably won't go.
September: International Observe the Moon Night is our regular sidewalk
Astronomy night event Saturday September 22nd, so join us as we join
astronomers around the world sharing moon views! Friday the 21st is our
Pasadena night. Other than that, planets at dawn - a gorgeous Moon and
very close Jupiter on September 8th. Venus is lovely in the 3 hours
before dawn. And another pretty evening conjunction will find Mars and
the moon close together at Sunset on the 19. For those interested in
buying a telescope, the annual Pacific Astronomy and Telescope Show
http://www.rtmcastronomyexpo.org/pats/index.php/ happens in Pasadena
September 22 and 23. You can buy PATS tickets in person at the box
office on the day of the event ($20) or in advance. You can also mail
payment along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Call for details:
(626) 449-7360.
Heads up for October, our twice-a-year Mojave national Preserve Star
Party is scheduled for October 12 and 13. Although the event is not on
the MNP conservancy website the last two star parties info is there. The
Star Party is Free, with free campsite, but you do need to RSVP to hold
a campsite (it's a huge area at Black Canyon Group Campsite, with room
for quite a few tents) RSVP with David Lamfrom at dlamfrom(a)npca.org or
760-219-4916
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://jane.whiteoaks.com/http://twitter.com/jhjones
What's Up for August video: Mars as Curiosity lands, Perseids
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-archive.cfmYoutube:http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=JPLnews
We should have great views of the moon this weekend and a pretty
triangle comprised of Mars, Saturn and Spica about 30 degrees above the
horizon.
Tonight we'll be in Old Town Pasadena, somewhere between Fair Oaks and
Pasadena Avenues - we set up where ever we find a parking spot. We'll be
there from about 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 or maybe a little later. We don't
make it to Pasadena as often as we'd like to so we are looking forward
to tonight!
Saturday night Myrtle and Lime Streets in Monrovia - our regular spot
where we've been serving up views of the solar system once a month since
early 2004.
In a little more than a week, Mars gets another visitor. On Sunday
night at 10:31 p.m. Pacific Time, the Mars Science Laboratory mission's
rover named Curiosity lands on the red planet! Tonight at 8 p.m. the
landing site will be right smack in the middle of the planet. We might
be able to see the dark mark indicating Syrtis Major tonight, even tho'
Mars is so very far away, over 150 million miles from Earth, and not
much more than a smudge through the telescope. Nevertheless, we're
looking right at Gale Crater, the soon-to-be home of Curiosity.
If you are interested in following the mission and landing events here's
a couple resources for you:
My own Mars viewing tips pages with a downloadable flyer (at the bottom
of the page) for your own viewing/sharing pleasure is online already.
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-view.cfm?WUID=1224
Our NASA Mars Curiosity Landing Toolkit, with videos, news, images,
where to watch landing, etc is here: We update this page every day!
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/msl_landing.cfm
And my August What's Up podcast about Mars and the Perseid meteor shower
should be available next Wednesday (I hope) Speaking of the Perseids,
Mojo and I will be with other members of the San Jose Astronomical
Society at Glacier Point/Yosemite August 10 and 11. Each summer weekend
(but not full moon weekends) thru Labor Day brings a different Northern
CA astro club to Yosemite for free star parties. We kept our memberships
in several of our Northern California clubs when we moved south in 2003,
mostly so we could attend these events with our telescopes. It's a
membership perk! Mojo will give his Milky Way talk both nights, and all
the park visitors look through an array of 20+ telescopes, and have a
guaranteed perfect Perseid viewing opportunity both nights, with the
peak on Saturday night. If you come, bring layers, a blanket, and
hydration for the altitude. Plan to stay until well past midnight
sitting/lying on the granite steps at the amphitheatre to enjoy the
Perseids with us.
Finally, if you haven't seen Mojo's lovely astrophotography featured in
my July 2012 What's Up video, here it is - it still July, after all.
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjCT53Lm1Kk
Other formats and transcripts:
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-view.cfm?WUID=1204
Hope to see you out under the clear skies tonight, or to encourage you
to look up from your own location, or take your telescope out in your
own neighborhood. The one and only Sidewalk Astronomers agenda is to
share the skies through telescopes, with you.
Jane
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
What's Up Podcast for July: Milky Way, Mars and Saturn
On Youtube: http://is.gd/kPUtSx
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jhjones /CassiniSaturn /otastro
My Blog: http://jane.whiteoaks.com/
Tonight Mojo and I will be at Recreation Park for Monrovia's Relay for
Life - our local annual American Cancer Society 24 hour walk-a-thon
fundraiser. Others from our group will be at Myrtle and Lime from 8 -
9:30 tonight.
Walk with us, or look up at the moon, Mars and Saturn as other walk
tonight Saturday, June 2 at Monrovia's Relay for Life event at Monrovia
Recreation Park, 620 South Shamrock Ave. Please join us (look for
telescopes along the walk Saturday night from about 7:30-9:30p.m. as our
community fights cancer.
http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?pg=entry&fr_id=36809 . It's a great
night for stargazing tonight!
In other news (sorry we haven't written much, both working super long
hours for the last month)
May 19 was our semi annual Mojave National Preserve Dark Sky Star
party. It was great to see some of you from our list there!
Mojo and I got up early Sunday and drove to Mesquite, NV to see the
annular "ring of fire" eclipse of the sun and will get up at 3 am Monday
morning June 4 for the partial lunar eclipse, weather permitting.
Did you know eclipses of the sun and moon always come in groups. A solar
eclipse is always accompanied by a lunar eclipse
<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47648602/ns/technology_and_science-space/#>two
weeks before or after it, since over those two weeks the moon travels
halfway around in its orbit and is likely to form another almost
straight line with the Earth and sun. If the solar eclipse is a
"central" one --- that is, either total or annular --- the lunar eclipse
is likely to be one where the moon will only partially interact with the
shadow of the Earth.
On June 5th 3 p.m. to sunset, witness a rare Transit of Venus - the next
one will be in 2117, so don't miss it. Safe solar filters on your
telescope, #14 welders glass or pinhole projection are required to view
the sun. My podcast *should* be available Monday at the below websites
- it's all about the transit, naturally!
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://jane.whiteoaks.com/http://twitter.com/jhjones
What's Up for May video: Sunspots and a solar eclipse
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-archive.cfmYoutube:http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=JPLnews
Tonight instead of Old Town Pasadena, our group is doing an event for
scouts. Don't look for us on Colorado Blvd.!
Look for us Saturday evening in Old Town Monrovia, at the corner of
Myrtle and Lime. We'll be there from 7:30 - 9:30.
If you come early, we'll have an interesting view of a crescent Venus.
If you come late, Saturn might be peeking above the trees. Meanwhile
Mars is almost overhead at sunset, but moving quickly away from Earth
and growing quite small.
Hope you can visit!
Best regards,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://whiteoaks.com
With "mostly cloudy" and a 40% chance of showers, we'll have to abandon
any hope of doing astronomy this evening. We'll try again next month.
Hope you all got to enjoy the Venus / Jupiter / Moon show in the
evenings over the past week!
Here's a little astronomy from Jane on the April edition of What's Up
from JPL:
http://youtu.be/nJSOTMm8wiQ
Best regards,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://whiteoaks.com
If you are not quite sure which of those stars is Mars, or where to look
for swift Mercury, or your smart phone with Google Sky has a dead
battery, then this month's What's Up podcast will help you out. It'll
also show you why some Mars Oppositions are closer than others and
provide some moon-near-planets or planets-near-planets guideposts.
This month I added some downloadable planet finding charts, a calendar,
and a Mars Opposition graphic. You can find all these on the Solar
System Exploration website here right below the video formats.
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-view.cfm?WUID=1124
Good dates to catch a planet (or two)
* March 3 is Mars Opposition. It'll rise at sunset, set near dawn,
and you'll have good views for many months!
* March 5 Mercury below Jupiter and Venus (its highest altitude)
* March 7 Moon and Mars
* March 12 and 13, Venus passes Jupiter (watch them switch places over
the next two weeks - Venus is the brighter of the two)
* March 25 Moon next to Jupiter
* March 26 Moon next to Venus
We'll have 2 telescopes out on busy Colorado Blvd, weather permitting
tomorrow night (Saturday March 3, since we were weathered out last
Friday night) Look for our man-sized telescopes somewhere along
Colorado between Fair Oaks and Pasadena Avenues, where we find a
curbside parking spot. Stop by and have a look at Jupiter, the moon, and
Venus, and we'll point out Mars (at opposition) to you.
Mark your calendar for May 19 - we'll hold a public star party in Mojave
National Preserve's Black Canyon Group Campsite on that night. Free
camping, RSVP required. Dark skies - darker than you've ever seen, I
bet. Let us know if you are interested, we'll get you the directions
and who to call for a campsite RSVP - potluck dinner before dark, lots
of rangers, interpretive staff attend. Great event!
This weekend is an interesting Mars in the Mojave Festival (March 9-12)
at Death Valley National Park
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/events/2012/03-09-2012_mars-and-the-mojave…
We may be there for a few of the events (hikes, great talks and panel
discussions)
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://jane.whiteoaks.com/http://twitter.com/jhjones
What's Up For March: Amazing planetary views all month
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-archive.cfm
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=JPLnews
I made a mistake regarding Friday night astronomy in Old Town Pasadena.
The moon is going to set much too early for it to be a real sidewalk
astronomy night. So instead we'll do Pasadena on Saturday night, March 3.
Monrovia should be good on Saturday evening with a slim crescent moon
and Venus and Jupiter putting on a show.
Watch those two along with the moon for the next few evenings as they
put on a great sky show. Later in the evening (about 8:30) you can
"connect the dots" to the opposite side of the sky and see very bright
pumpkin-colored Mars rising in the east.
Best regards,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://whiteoaks.com
Team OtAstro - what do you think of May 19 (an awesome new moon weekend)
for a Mojave getaway??
or
The group site is available on April 13, 14 (a nice third quarter moon) , and 27 (that date is out because its out sidewalk astro weekend).
If any of you belong to the Mojave National Preserve Conservancy, David included us in the annual roundup letter to members. We were mentioned in the first paragraph! It was very nice. I have the letter someplace.....
PS David we are the "Old Town Sidewalk Astronomers" from the San Gabriel Mountain Foothills ;-)
Or On 2/1/2012 11:39 AM, David Lamfrom wrote:
> How about may 19 or around there. Sierra club is meeting there, and we
> would have a built in audience.
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
What's Up Podcast-January 2012: A pretty parade of planets
On Youtube: http://is.gd/kPUtSx
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jhjones /CassiniSaturn /otastro
My Blog: http://jane.whiteoaks.com/
Last night we were spooked by the wind forecast, and opted not to set up
in Pasadena. We're probably still a little touchy from the November wind
storm!
But the wind is forecast to die down this afternoon, and we're planning
to set up in Monrovia at Myrtle & Lime from 6:00 to 9:00.
If you've looked to the west after sunset the past few days, you've seen
the great sky show of Venus, moon, and Jupiter, tracing the ecliptic
across the sky. We'll get some up-close looks at the three of those
tonight. Come early to see Venus; it will set first.
Venus is not very interesting in a telescope until it begins to reach a
crescent phase. It's not quite there yet, but will be approaching that
over the next couple of months. Otherwise it's mostly a featureless
white ball that shows a little bit of phase like the moon.
When Venus is a crescent, people are always surprised that they aren't
looking at the moon -- just as Galileo was when he first observed Venus
in a telescope and began charting its phases.
Jupiter remains high and bright this month and next.
Best regards,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones, Monrovia, CA
http://whiteoaks.com
It may be New Year's Eve, but it's also a great night for sidewalk
astronomy.
We will be set up in Monrovia's Library park tonight, at the corner of
Myrtle & Lime, from about 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Here's the thing though: the city of Monrovia is closing off a block of
Myrtle, between Lemon and Colorado, to hold a New Year's Eve block
party. The street will be closed this afternoon, and the block party
starts at 7:00 p.m.
But if you have a chance to start your evening in downtown Monrovia
tonight, we'll be giving out great views of the moon and Jupiter with
its four big Galilean moons.
Don't miss Jane's "What's Up" for NASA for January, here on YouTube:
http://youtu.be/udTu2K15Boo
And she has a great blog post today on the subject of black-eyed peas
for New Year's Eve:
http://jane.whiteoaks.com/2011/12/30/black-eyed-peas-a-new-years-traditiona…
Best regards and Happy New Year,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones, Monrovia, CA
http://whiteoaks.com
