VOL 34 NO 10 OCTOBER 2005 PUBLISHED MONTHLY

Orion Acres Regular Star Party Announcements:
October 29, 2005, Saturday at Orion Acres, set up one hour before sunset as usual.
November 5, 2005, Saturday at Orion Acres, sunset is at 5:43 PM EST, First Quarter Moon sets at 8:28 PM EST. Camping is welcome for those who wish to stay all night, and as Vic has the motor home (RV) there, restroom facilities and a place to warm up are now available.
  

MEETING NOTICE:

The regular meeting of the BARNARD ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY will be held Thursday October 13th at 7:30 PM at Jones Observatory on Brainerd Rd.

PROGRAM:

The program will be provided by Gary Caldwell

OFFICERS

Minutes for September 8, 2005

The September meeting of the Barnard Astronomical Society was called to order at 7:42 pm by President Tom Atkins. The minutes for the August meeting were accepted as read and published in the Barnard Star.

Treasurer's Report by David Witt : 
The current balance in the Society's checking account is $556.48. The dues check for the Astronomical League has not cleared as of the meeting. A change in the A.L. by-laws does not require that all members of the Society have to be members for the Society to be a member society of the Astronomical League. The Society has 41 current members. Should the Society entertain increasing the annual dues to $20 or $25? Upcoming expenses are postage, Christmas party and the Lewellyn Evans Award plaque.

Secretary's Report by Gary Caldwell:
The e-mail traffic is increasing since Rod has been forwarding inquiries to me. Replies to two e-mails were sent the week of the meeting.

Old Business: 
There has been a request for a star party for the Soddy Elementary School. The date has yet to be determined.
An e-mail database manager is needed for the e-mail addresses

New Business: 
There will be one last opportunity for those members who are 3 months overdue to get current. A motion was made by David Witt and seconded by Gary Caldwell and Vic Rogers which passed unanimously that members who are not current by 1 November, 2005 will be dropped from membership. This may be as many as 32 members.

The observatory will re-open the public on October 2.

John Mannone reported that the Cleveland Banner did an article on Poetry Under the Stars.

The Book Sale netted $21.00

The Peach State Star Gaze is scheduled for early November.

Will the November meeting be held at Baylor School?

Possible fundraiser? An astronomy "flea market" at Orion Acres with an evening of star gazing afterwards?

The January program will be more on Gama Ray Bursts by Robert Smith.

Program by David Hanon.
Volcanoes and Observatories.

Respectfully submitted
Gary Caldwell, Secretary

REMINDER- Your annual BAS dues of are now due on the anniversary of your membership in accordance with the adopted amendment to the by-laws. The due date appears below your name on the address on the front of this newsletter. If your expiration date says “Overdue” or if you don’t agree with the date shown, contact David Witt to resolve discrepancies. The current dues rates are as follows: REGULAR $15.00, REGULAR ASSOCIATE $7.00, JUNIOR $8.00, JUNIOR ASSOCIATE $5.00. Your Sky & Telescope or Astronomy subscription will continue to be handled as in the past. When you receive your subscription reminder card, submit it to:

David Witt
4503 Cove Lane
Chattanooga, TN 37415-2306

Along with the group subscription rate of $32.95 for Sky and Telescope, or $34.00 for Astronomy. Note the increased rate for Astronomy. This was effective July 31, 2005

A Special Note to All BAS Members: 
Since he took over as treasurer, David Witt has worked hard to clean up our membership list and our dues records. We still have about 30 people listed on the rolls whose dues are 3 months or more past due.. We will be sending out one final letter this month asking these members if they wish to renew, and those who don’t respond will be removed from the mailing list.

DEADLINE:

All articles and other materials for publication in the next STAR are due no later than Wednesday, November 2nd. The following media are acceptable: hard copy, disk (IBM), video tape (VHS), prints, or e-mail to bas@chattanooga.net or stramey@catt.com and attach a file or mail to:

Steve Ramey
109 Sioux Trail
Ringgold GA 30736

PHOTOGRAPHS ARE ALSO ACCEPTABLE.

ORION ACRES DIRECTIONS:

FROM NORTH HAMILTON COUNTY:
From 27 (corridor J) take hwy. 111 to Dunlap, continue through the Sequatchie Valley up the next mountain (Cagle Mountain). When you reach the summit about 5 miles turn LEFT onto hwy. 399 (sign reads 'to Savage Gulf State Park' Stay on 399 until it ends, which will be in Grundy Co. Now make a LEFT onto hwy. 108 South. This goes thru Palmer TN. Continue on 108 up to a higher elevation. When this levels off, turn RIGHT onto Palmer Fire Tower Rd. This is a large open area with possibly trucks loaded with timber for the paper mills. Orion Acres will be on the RIGHT about 8 tenths mile.

FROM INTERSTATE 24 (to Nashville):
Go to the Dunlap/Whitwell exit (#155). This is hwy. 28. Exit right and keep on 28 for about 11 miles, passing Hardee's on your left. Continue through the stoplight and take the next LEFT on Hwy. 108 North. Continue another 11 or so miles. You will see 'Grundy County' sign. Take the next left. This is Palmer Fire Tower Rd. Go 8 tenths of a mile and Orion Acres is on the RIGHT.


Announcements

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of one of the pillars of our organization. Frank Helms, a member of the BAS for 33 years, died on September 9, 2005. He had been an active member of the BAS, serving as President, Secretary, and many years as Treasurer. His hard work and service through the years will not be forgotten, nor will his love and enthusiasm for science and astronomy. He is survived by his wife, Doris, 2 sons, 1 daughter, and several grandchildren.

Special Orion Acres Star Party for Whitwell Middle School: Friday, November 4th, 2005 at 6 PM Central time (7 PM EST) at Orion Acres. Volunteers with or without scopes who can attend are needed. The teacher is Vicki Wells. She will have the student's parents to bring them to Orion Acres. There will be a 3 day old moon. Rain date is set for November 11th. This special star party will be discussed at the BAS meeting October 13th. Thanks in advance for your help. Call Victor Rogers at 842-5595 to volunteer and get the latest info. Please note that this special star party is on a Friday night, not the usual Saturday star party night

2005 Peach State Star Gaze (PSSG)

While not a BAS event, our friends in the Atlanta Astronomy Club are hosting the annual 2005 Peach State Star Gaze (PSSG) in Ducktown, Tennessee on November 2nd through November 6th, 2005.

This is a nationally known top of the line multi-night dark sky star party, and has been announced in Astronomy and Sky & Telescope Magazines. The skies are dark and magnitude 6.5+ is visible. It is usually well attended by amateurs from Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina, as it is located in the corner of all 3 states. There will be speakers during the day, vendors, workshops, door prizes, and swap meets.

The event is held at Whitewater Express and there is tent and RV camping, as well as bunkhouse space available. A large observing field for telescopes is provided, and many large telescopes are expected. Restroom and shower facilities are available. An optional meal plan is available. Participants must be registered and pay the required fees, as this is a paid event. Participants may come for all nights or just one.

While the BAS does have Orion Acres star parties scheduled during this time, some BAS members may wish to attend the PSSG 2005 and experience all this unique gathering of amateurs has to offer. See the PSSG 2005 website for more details and contact info: http://atlantaastronomy.org/PSSG05

 

That Phone Call From Stockholm

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded the prize to Roy Glauber, John Hall and Germany's Theodor Haensch for studying light and harnessing lasers to create a measuring stick to gauge frequencies with extreme precision. “Such precision will one day be needed for navigation on long space journeys and for space-based telescope arrays”, the Academy said, while Haensch, the youngest of the winners at 63, said it could even lead to 3D holographic television. Hall, 71 and from Colorado, said he might use his share of the 10 million Swedish crown prize money to endow a scholarship in science and technology. “I'm very interested in helping young people that don't have financial means”, he said.

“We get most of our knowledge of the world around us through light”, said the Academy, calling optics “the physicists' tool for dealing with light phenomena”.

The winning trio's research answered such questions as how candle light differs from laser beams in a CD player and how light can measure time more accurately than an atomic clock.

“All three of them deserve the prize”, said Peter Rodgers, editor of Physics World magazine. “The general area of quantum optics and lasers is an area in which there has been a lot of progress in recent years. This prize reflects well on progress in that area”.
Harvard University's Glauber, 80, said he was awakened at home in Massachusetts by a call from an Academy official but he first thought it was a joke. “I could scarcely believe him”, he told a news conference at Harvard.

Glauber, who took part in the Manhattan Project in World War II which developed the atomic bomb, wins half of the prize money, though he expressed surprise that there was a cash award. "Nobody mentioned money” he said. He laid the groundwork for the Nobel-winning work by establishing the basis for quantum optics in 1963, providing a theoretical description of the behavior of light particles.

Most of us have had daydreams about phone calls like these, only a few follow through with the determination it takes to get one. Yes there is the money, but, then there is the history!

Good Seeing!

 

These pictures show Victor Rogers and his new fork mounted 16 inch at Orion Acres. The fork mount is custom made and permanently set in concrete at Orion Acres. The 16 inch tube is the only part transported back and forth. Also note the permanent picnic table. The views of deep sky objects through the 16 inch scope under the dark skies are incredible. Pictured are Victor Rogers (white T-shirt), Jim Lauck (white and dark shirt) and David Hanon (gray shirt). These were made by David Witt at the September 3, 2005 BAS Orion Acres Star Party.