10 December 2006

Observing Location	CSP
Observational Period	0500-0830 EST
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 35°F Wind 8 Humidity Low Feels Like ~27° F Wind Chill When I got home around 0100 EST there was a ring of haze lit up around the Moon about half way down to Castor. The ring was even bigger by the time I got back to 86 St. 3 1/2 hours later and I was a little worried. But it turned out to be a passing cloud. It was clear except for the first 20° above the eastern Horizon. It was a lot warmer than it has been of late but there was still a stiff breeze with some stronger gusts creating a wind chill condition. The wind was also causing a lot of instability in the atmosphere and I had to wait longer than I had planned until the air between me and the Sun was steady enough for me to be sure what I was seeing. Transparency Good Seeing III-IV
Instruments	SAR: Coulter CT-100 Newtonian reflector - Charlie Celesteon Omni 20mm Celesteon Omni 2x Barlow Baader AstroSolar filter film Nikon CoolPix 990 - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway Kin Lee Jane Leavenson - AAA a couple I have observed with here on a prior occasion a guy with compact binoculars

Target Jupiter-Mercury-Mars Conjunction Constellation Sco Category Planet: Occultation/Conjunction/Alignment Time 20061210.0638 EST Comments 06030638 Time EST Event 0530 Astronomical Twilight Begins 0555 Mercury Rises 0556 Mars Rises 0887 Jupiter Rises Nautical Twilight Begins Civil Twilight Begins 0640-0816 Jupiter/Mercury/Mara Conjunction 0709 Sun Rises Mercury Waxing Gibbous 90.2% Illuminated Mag -0.6 Mars Waning Gibbous 99.3% Illuminated Mag 1.5 Jupiter Mag -1.7 G   C  I  (J)    E Since the Palm had crashed I couldn't look up where the planets were supposed to rise. And a compass would have been useless above all the beams and rebar supporting the park above the East River Drive. So I had to punt. I knew today was a sunrise Manhattan Henge day so figured the sub must rise in line with 86 St. and the planets would rise near there too. I estimated about half way between the fake lighthouse on Roosevelt Island and the clock tower to the right of it on the Queens shore. I was too far south by about three degrees but it didn't matter since I was uncertain of the location and was sweeping the horizon in that general area. Mercury and Jupiter were lined up fairly vertically with Mars out to their south in a long skinny triangle. Mars, being the smallest and dimmest, was the last to be found and the first to be lost. Jupiter and Mercury hung on for a long while until I moved the telescope down to the horizon to pick up a landmark to use trying for a last naked-eye sighting and was not able to find them when panning back up to where I thought I had left them. I didn't bother looking for then naked-eye after that. I did not see any of Jupiter's Galilean moons.

Target Moon-Saturn Conjunction Constellation Leo Category Planet: Lunar: Occultations/Conjunctions/Alignments Time 20061210.0800 EST Comments I hadn't thought of it as such at the time I was looking at it, but reflecting back on how close Saturn was to the limb of the Moon I realize that it was much less than one lunar diameter making the center to center distance between the two objects less than 1° (actually 28.9°), so they were also conjuncted. The conjunction lasted from 0522 until 0934 EST with the appulse occurring at 0736-0739 EST. .The only naked-eye planet that was not visible and not conjuncted with another planet or moon was Venus, which doesn't rise until after the Sun. I was having trouble telling what I was seeing. The moon was so bright all that was visible was Regulus and Saturn and they initially looked like Castor and Pollux although too close together. I had forgotten Saturn was near Regulus and my Palm had died so I couldn't reference Planetarium. Everything was turned around from what we see at TotL 4-8 hours earlier. That shouldn't make a difference, but it does. I use terrestrial geography as a clue to identifying celestial objects and have a rough mental map of where features were the last time I stopped observing. If I change location, observe at a different time, or don't get to observe for a few days I have trouble adjusting the settings on my mental planisphere to the new reality. I still have a way to go remembering who holds hands with who. Saturn was visible naked-eye in the daylight sky for a while and was probably recoverable in the telescope until around 0800 EST. Moon Waning Gibbous 68.7% Illuminated Mag -10.8 Saturn Mag 0.4

Target Sunspots Constellation Oph Category Solar Time 20061210:0800 EST Comments Heliographic Latitude (B0) -0.30° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 21.94° Position Angle (P) +12.28° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2050 There was a lot of boiling today as a result of the strong winds. Group 930 appeared naked-eye to be a bit left and below the center of the disk.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 1 3 13 Total 1 3 13 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots) Group 930 Heliographic Latitude -1° Heliographic Longitude 13° Mcintosh System Hko The umbra appears large and fairly circular while the penumbra appears to be triangular with one small spot in each of two of its corners..