MEETING NOTICE :

The BAS will conduct two consecutive nights of astronomy field training for college students at Chickamauga Battlefield, just South of Fort Oglethorpe, GA. Thursday, November 8th—for UT Chattanooga, and Friday, November 9th—for Lee University. In the event of a weather cancellation, a global e-mail will be sent out to BAS members the previous day. See inside for directions to the site and more details.

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The Barnard STAR is the official publication of the Barnard Astronomical Society.

Planned Activities to Enjoy
The Wonders of Astronomy—

“The joy of astronomy comes from finding your way around the starry sky and understanding what you see.” –The Editors, SKY AND TELESCOPE MAGAZINE

OCTOBER REGULAR MEETING PROGRAM

At the annual UTC joint meeting of BAS and the Chattanooga Section of The American Chemical Society, Dr. Harold McAlister of Georgia State University (GSU) gave a very interesting program about his work as CEO of The Mount Wilson Association and Director of CHARA.

Dr. McAlister is indeed a transcontinental astronomer. Based in Atlanta where he is on the GSU Physics/Astronomy faculty, he travels four or five times a month to the historic Mt. Wilson Observatory in the San Gabriel Mountains high (5,710 ft.) above Los Angeles, California. The 100 inch reflector there is where Edwin Hubble (1889-1953) did his classic work as the founder of extragalactic astronomy and provided the first evidence of the expansion of the universe.

Dr. McAlister oversees the many uses of the Mt. Wilson Observatory and also directs an impressive research program using the CHARA array—a baseline interferometer arrangement with a group of high quality 30 inch reflector telescopes linked by fiber optic tubes for channeling light to a central detector and computer. The array is “phased” because light waves from a target star reach any two telescopes at slightly different times and the peaks and troughs are slightly out of synchronization (or phase). Channeling the light and the use of computers can artificially shift the phases to match up. By combining the signals simultaneously from many adjacent telescopes as an interferometer to simulate one very large telescope, an impressive resolving power of several thousandths of an arc second can be achieved. Such resolution is being utilized in many research programs at Mt. Wilson such as those to detect planet-like objects orbiting distant stars. To date, according to Dr. McAlister, other astronomers around the world have already discovered more than 200 such stars having suspected planets. The disadvantage of the light channeling arrangement is that intensity of incoming starlight is diminished significantly as it moves through all of those tubes, and consequently stars down to only approximately the seventh magnitude can be studied.

Although the 100 inch reflector has long been dwarfed by larger telescopes at other locations around the globe, and although light pollution has become more prevalent in the Los Angeles area in recent decades, serious astronomy research continues at Mt. Wilson.

Dr. McAlister also discussed efforts toward the preservation of Mt. Wilson as a historical site, and showed photographs of world class scientists, including Albert Einstein and Edwin Hubble, who frequented Mt. Wilson in its glorious past.

NOVEMBER SPECIAL PROGRAMS

BAS will conduct two consecutive nights of astronomy field training for college students at Chickamauga Battlefield, just South of Fort Oglethorpe, GA.: Thursday, November 8th—for UT Chattanooga and Friday, November 9th—for Lee University

Set-up will begin at 6:30 P. M. Viewing will last several hours after dark and will be terminated before midnight to comply with National Park Service use permits.

In the event of a weather cancellation, a global e-mail will be sent out to BAS members the previous day. (Unfortunately, due to a scheduling conflict at the University of the South, the BAS plan to have an alternative trip to the Astronomy Laboratory there on their regular Thursday night open house in case of inclement weather will not be possible.)

Directions to the viewing site at Chickamauga Park:
--From the I-75, I-24 junction, follow I-75 South for approx. 7 miles to GA Hwy 2, Battlefield Pkwy.
--Turn right (West) and follow Hwy 2 for approx 6.1 miles to Lafayette Rd. in Fort Oglethorpe.
--Turn left (South) on Lafayette Rd and travel approx 0.8 mile to the Chickamauga Park Visitor Center on the right.
--Continue South on Lafayette Rd through the Park for approx. 1.6 miles to Dyer Rd. (on right just before the first log cabin).
--Turn right (West) on Dyer Rd. and travel approx. 2.3 miles to the 2nd stop sign at Chickamauga-Vittetoe Rd.
--Turn right (South) and travel approx. 2.9 miles to the next intersection (Glenn-Viniard Rd.)
--Viewing field and parking lot are just South of intersection.

BAS MEMBERS ARE URGED TO BRING TELESCOPES AND SUPPORT THIS FIELD TRAINING OF COLLEGE ASTRONOMY STUDENTS ON THESE TWO NIGHTS. STUDENTS ARE DEPENDING ON US FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.

Also, this is a great chance to view the surprise comet which recently appeared –Comet Holmes 17P-- and is at approx. magnitude 2.5 in the constellation Perseus now.

LOOKING AHEAD

December Program

Christmas Banquet; Date and time to be announced in the December BARNARD STAR.

January, 2008 Program

BAS member Dr. Gary Caldwell will present a program, “The Orion 3 Imaging System for Astrophotography”

WANTED: BAS ASTEROID HUNTERS

Dr. Douglas Durig, Astronomy Professor at The University of The South, Sewanee, has a unique opportunity for BAS members to participate in his asteroid research program during the Spring Semester of 2008. He will be on sabbatical and his students will not be using the equipment during that time.

BAS members who want to participate do not have to travel to Sewanee, but rather can sit at their home computers and use the powerful ASTROMETRICA software to scan the telescope images of fixed star backgrounds furnished by Dr. Durig’s automated telescopes (four 12 inch Meade LX-200’s and a 14 inch RCX).

There will be a required training period with the ASTROMETRICA software. BAS member Adam Krause can provide free copies for loading on home computers.

Dr. Durig is internationally known for his hundreds of asteroid discoveries. He is connected to the Minor Planet Center, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, the world clearinghouse for reporting new asteroids and comets.

In October, 2007 alone, he and his students discovered 17 previously unknown asteroids, his best month ever.

Although most asteroid discoveries usually go into the scientific and academic record books without much public notice, there is always the chance that this research could suddenly become immensely important for the future of the human race. Consider the world-wide anxiety if there were a discovery of a mountain-size “civilization killer” rock lurking out there somewhere about to cross the earth’s orbit at a perilously close distance.

From a technical standpoint, this type of research is extremely fascinating with the detection of deep space objects down to 21st magnitude from time exposure CCD images. Not only can asteroids and comets be detected, but also the exotic gamma ray bursts are sometimes seen.

This is a wonderful chance for BAS members to participate in a world-class astronomy research program at a major university. Adam Krause and Bill Seymour will be the coordinators for BAS. Contact them if you are interesting in participating.

Here are a couple of shots taken by two of our own of Comet Holmes 17P:

Victor Rogers: Short tube 80mm f/5

Heriberto Gonzalez: Modified spc900 webcam through an Olympus 50mm camera lens

 

Stardust Samples and Comet Wild 2

Comet wild 2 is believed to have originated within the cloud of comets just beyond the orbit of Neptune called the Kuiper belt. Because Belt objects
spend most of their time far away from the Sun, researchers suspect they remain unchanged by radiation, heating and aqueous alteration and therefore likely carry intact material from the earliest ages of the solar system.

The cometary samples were collected from the comet Wild 2 by the Stardust spacecraft, which traveled 2.88 billion miles during its seven-year odyssey before returning to Earth. Stardust returned about one microgram of cometary dust, the largest of which are about 10 microns—about a tenth the diameter of a human hair.

The samples of the Stardust mission examined by the scientists were compared with the most primitive meteorites found on earth, which are believed to be samples left over from the formation of the solar system. The samples contain a wide variety of minerals and organic materials that look similar to those seen in primitive meteorites. But the Stardust samples also revealed the presence of new materials not previously found in meteorites. The chemical analysis of the Stardust samples could therefore improve our understanding of the chemistry of the early solar system.

The researchers also discovered that the samples contained minerals similar to compounds in meteorites known to form at high temperatures. These compounds, called Calcium Aluminum-rich Inclusions (CAIs), are believed to have been formed in the innermost part of the solar nebula, well inside the orbit of Mercury. This discovery challenges the belief that comets are formed only beyond the orbit of Jupiter, and suggests that these cometary materials must have somehow been transported to the edge of the solar system where Wild 2 formed. The results also suggest that the materials that formed our solar system underwent considerable mixing as the sun and planets formed.

Good Seeing

 

BAS WEB SITE
http://bas.chattanooga.net

Officers

President……………………………………….....….Tom Adkins
Vice-President………………………………..……Gary Caldwell
Secretary………………………………….....………Bill Seymour
Treasurer……………………………………...……….David Witt
STAR Editor……………………………….….…….Steve Ramey
Webmaster………………………………….………….Rod Ruch
Star Party Chairman……………..………......……...Victor Rogers

October Minutes

(Note: Due to the Joint BAS/ACS Meeting at held at UTC on October 11th, a business session was not conducted.)

Bill Seymour, 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

DEADLINE- All articles and other materials for publication in the next STAR are due no later than Wednesday, October 31st . 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.

DIRECTIONS TO ORION ACRES

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

NSN Event Log: Orion Acres Star Party

Sequatchie County
Cumberland Plateau
Saturday October 13, 2007 6:45 PM-12:45 AM Eastern

Magnitude 6.3 skies graced the Cumberland Plateau some forty miles as Aquila flies from Chattanooga. NSN coordinator and owner of Orion Acres, Vic Rogers, hosted a dark sky star party for members and regional Boy Scouts. Some of these young men were working on their Astronomy Merit Badge. About twenty of us were treated uncommonly beautiful skies with the Milky Way swathing its silvery dust horizon-to-horizon. The glitter was punctuated with long ashes of meteoritic trails seeming to originate between Cygnus and Cassiopeia. At least five per hour were seen, many drawing oohs and aahs. The next day I learned that they were probably early Orionids, which will peak next week on the 21st. They were seen as soon as it was dark, but well before the midnight rising of the “glorious” constellation, Orion.

Cited from Spaceweather.com:

“That streak of light is very likely a piece of Halley's Comet. Every year in October, Earth passes through a stream of Halley's dusty debris, giving rise to the Orionid meteor shower. This year, the display is expected to peak on Oct. 21st, but some of the meteors may be arriving early. ‘My camera captured three more Orionids on Oct. 13th,’ says Emfinger, while Doug Zubenel reports seeing at least ten Orionids from the 24th annual Okie-Tex Star Party on Oct. 10th.

Do early Orionids bode well for peak-night? There's one way to find out: Watch the sky during the dark hours before sunrise on Sunday, Oct. 21st. If 2007 is like 2006, observers can expect 20 to 50 Orionids per hour: This morning, Oct. 15th, a bright meteor raced out of the constellation Orion over Ozark, Arkansas, where photographer Brian Emfinger caught it in mid-flight.”
Before dark, the scouts had built a bonfire to take off the edge of night’s chill forecasted to around 40 F. The remnant embers helped demonstrate my radio telescope (on loan from the SARA/NRAO Navigators—a radio astronomy outreach effort). The “Itty Bitty Telescope” designed by Kerry Smith, screams out in unison with a dancing meter needle whenever a thermal source, like hot coals, warm-bodied humans, terrestrial trees, etc. are sensed in comparison to the cold sky. The Sun as well as parked satellites (transmitting around 12 GHz) is detected. The strength of the signal is converted to an increasing pitch audible tone. This is easier to hear than to see in the dark. The telescopes stirred quite a bit of discussion on the electromagnetic spectrum, black body emission, geosynchronous satellites, telescopes, in general, and even extraterrestrials (SETI). Of course, traditional optical telescopes were there; a complement of about a half dozen, to gawk at the double cluster and numerous other wonders.

Many of the folks camped on the 2300-foot mountain/plateau, but reluctantly, my two grandkids and I had to leave for home. Interestingly enough, the image of Aquila, the Eagle, remained indelible in my mind’s eye and managed to fly right into my Sunday morning sermon. And though we had to leave for our two-hour drive when the meteors were starting to ramp up, we were greeted with Orion just as Robert Frost had put it in his poem, “The Star-Splitter” (1923):

You know Orion always comes up sideways.
Throwing a leg up over our fence of mountains,
And rising on his hands…

It was a very good night. JCM

Fellow BAS members, I am happy to announce that as your Outreach Coordinator for BAS (not just your Night Sky Network Coordinator), I have resumed an aggressive interaction with the Night Sky Network. Until October, no event logging has occurred since February 2007. The following is a list of events logged to date:
02 Nov 2007 Guide to Logging Interesting NSN Reports Knoxville TN
01 Nov 2007 Solar System Exploration Knoxville TN
01 Nov 2007 Light Conservation Group Meeting 3 Rockwood TN
30 Oct 2007 Web-posting: Orionids on Orion? Oak Ridge TN
26 Oct 2007 Open Mike Astronomy Chattanooga TN
25 Oct 2007 Light Conservation Group Meeting 2 Rockwood TN
25 Oct 2007 Perigee Moon Rockwood TN
20 Oct 2007 Orionids Rockwood TN
16 Oct 2007 Light Conservation Group Meeting Oak Ridge TN
13 Oct 2007 Orion Acres Star Party Palmer TN
11 Oct 2007 The CHARA Array: Opital Interferometry Chattanooga TN
06 Oct 2007 StarFest 2007 Kingsport TN

However, in order to maintain good national visibility, I will need your help. Soon, you will be seeing a worksheet currently under design that will help you to easily record general information about any club astronomy-related activity. This will really help me and the club, especially when I cannot personally attend. For example, the up and coming star parties that Gary Caldwell has organized and the club's assistance to both the University of Tennessee Chattanooga and Lee University astronomy classes, should be documented. In turn, I will transcribe the information on an event log form and credit you with the contribution. I hope you understand that this is your program and your club. I cannot do this outreach without your help. So please help me help you. Thanks.