20 January 2006

Observing Location	PSC
Observational Period	1400-1415 EST
Atmospheric Conditions	The temperature was mild and there was a light breeze, it was like a spring day. It was hazy and I could see clouds moving N to S across the disk of the Sun. There was no boiling evident. If the temperature holds and the transparency increases I will be sorely tempted to go out observing tonight although I am still trying to shake this cold/flu and should stay home. Transparency Fair Seeing Excellent
Instruments	Canon 15x50 IS binocular with Baader AstroSolar filter film - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target	Sun
Constellation	Cap
Category	Solar
Time	20060120.1400 EST
Comments	The view of the sun was very stable, although I was not - a little weak from the cold perhaps. Sunspot group 848 must be huge although the spots don't look all that large themselves. I was not able to see them without magnification. The NASA image indicated that 847 is still present and Rayben Systems is still showing 846, both on the preceding limb, but I could not see anything there. 848 SE Quadrant. This is an Esi group, possibly Eai. I don't see well defined penumbra but under better observing conditions have never seen spots this big that did not have it. The p-spot has an outer bright ring on its leading edge. The f-spot appears to be two spots, or at least has lobes. There are at least two small solitary spots between the main spots.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 1 5 15 Total 1 5 15 Groups * 10 + Spots = Relative Sunspot Number I am still having hardware problems so don't have the scanner working right now so can't scan my sketch until I get something working again. I am including NASA and Rayben System images as a substitute. NASA SOHO graphic In the high resolution SOHO image I could see compact penumbra around both of the large spots. The f-spot does not show the lobed appearance and the small spots in between the large ones are missing so I suspect that I am being served an old image. Rayben Systems, Inc. graphic It seems strange to me, but the text on the Rayben web page says that solar flares occurring in the orange shaded portion of the sun's disk are more likely to be aimed at Earth. I would have expected that it would be the ones closest to the meridian which would be aimed at us. I think what is happening is that the CME is being hurled into space ahead of earth's position in its orbit and it and Earth meet up at the same point in space and time farther along in the orbit.

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I went downtown this evening to pick up my Tablet PC from the shop and it bluescreened and then wouldn't start Windows so it is still in the shop.

On the way home I stopped at Home Depot and picked up a Magnetic Polycast Protractor. It has a magnetized flat base that will hold it against whatever metal object you want to measure the slope of. There is a pendulum that points down to read the slope in degrees. I plan to use it as an altitude setting circle for SAR. The thing is huge, nearly 4" in diameter itself, but that should make the numbers easier to read in the night. My whole telescope is aluminum so it looks like I am going to have to put Velcro on the back of the secondary cage to hold the protractor in place. It cost just under $10.

Further along on my way home I stopped at Barnes and Noble and picked up a copy of the newest BBC Sky at Night that they had. Here the magazines on the newsstands are at least the February issue and maybe even March, but they only have the December Sky at Night. It must come across the Atlantic on the Space Shuttle. The almanac data isn't much good since it was for December and we are most of the way through January already, but there are some good articles and the cover CD with the monthly Sky at Night broadcast with Patrick Moore and Chris Linott is usually interesting. There is always freeware astronomy software included as well as spectacular space photos. The best part about this month's issue is the product review which is on image stabilized binoculars. The Canon 18x50 ISs edged out the Fujinon 14x40 Techno Stabis by one point for first place. Canon was better on ergonomics and optics, Fujinon on image stabilization which must be miraculous judging from my experience with my smaller sibling Canons. The Zenit Bst 16x40 gyroscopically stabilized binocular was better yet at image stabilization. I graphed the results of the review and have included them below.

Data Source: BBC Sky at Night, December 2005

The article describes the three technologies currently in production for image stabilization. Now I have a little bit of an idea how my binoculars work. That portion of the article is quoted below.

The four binoculars we tested encapsulate the three methods manufacturers use for steady images.

First are the electronic motion sensors used in the canon and the Fujinon binoculars. These feed positional data many times a second to a built-in computer, which changes the shape of an internal optical component. This alters the path of light through the binoculars, thus cancelling out jolts and shakes. The mechanism is silent, but can overcompensate for hand shake.

Next is the miniature gyroscope in the Zenit, which stabilizes the internal prism assemblies. This offers very responsive correction for any jitters, but the sound of the gyro motor will be heard far and wide in the quiet of the night.

Lastly, the Russian BS system relies on a gimballed internal prism assembly. No power is required, but it proved to be the least effective system of all.