1 September 2007

September

The name was recycled from the previous calendar and comes from the Latin word for "seven" (septem) since it was the seventh month of the Roman calendar.

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Observing Location	HoS
Observational Period	1145-1200 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 76°F Wind Gentle Breeze Humidity Moderate Feels Like Comfortable Transparency Excellent Seeing II
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Leo Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.1145 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 1.00 AU 8ms Angular Size 31'44.8" Altitude 54.5° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 7.20° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 121.36° Position Angle (P) 21.11° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2060 Space Weather says there are two spots up there today but I can’t see either of them.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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Observing Location	TotL
Observational Period	0900-0130 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Isolated Clouds becoming Broken Clouds Temperature 71°F dropping to 63°:F Wind Light Breeze Humidity Moderate Feels Like Slightly cool When I arrived there were just a few clouds but in a while the whole southern sky was filled with them while it remained clear to the north. Transparency Good Seeing I
Instruments	Golden Gate 7x35 Binocular Teleport 10" Donsonisn reflector – Peter 2" Pentax 40mm, 70° FoV, 40x 1.25" TV Plossl 32mm, 50° FoV, 68x 2" TV Nagler 17mm, 82° FoV, 90x 1.25" TV Nagler 13mm, 82° FoV, 120x
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway Peter Tagatac Kin Lee

Target Jupiter Constellation Oph Category Planet Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2110 EDT Comments Object Class Classical Planet Elongation ° Distance Light Time (from Earth) AU ms Distance (from Sun) Au Angular Size 38.1" Magnitude -2.2 Central Meridian I/II 166.52°/14.49° Altitude 19° Moons Starry Night Starter graphic Calisto, Io and Ganymede were lined up on the eastern limb while Europa was in transit. Peter reported having seen something on the NEB before I arrived. A little while later Europa emerged from the transit and its shadow began to transit. We could see the moon separated from the planet but could not see its shadow on the planet. To me the NEB was easily visible and seemed to span nearly the entire planet, the limb looking a brighter white than the rest of the disk and the NEB not apparent there. I could see two much fainter southern bands , the southernmost being the more pronounced and it most easily seen in the SE quadrant. In my binocular I was only able to locate one moon and Peter two. After Peter told me where he saw the moons I was able to locate the fainter second one with difficulty.

Target MetOp A Constellation Cyg Category Satellite Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2140 EDT Comments Comments This was an extremely bright flare. This is going to be a good satellite to watch. Mag.: -4.1 Alt.: 63° Az.: 102° Starry Night Starter graphic

Target Cassiopeia Constellation Cas Category DSOs Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2008 EDT Comments The sky was clearest to the north so I started star hopping through Cas to see what I would be able to see with the 7x35 binocular. I didn’t see anything. I had a long list of all of the individual objects that I didn’t see but decided that it would be more space- and time-efficient to merge them into a single entry for the constellation. If an object appears in boldtype it indicates that I have previously seen it from TotL with the 15x50 binoculars. Object Type Comments NGC7780 OCl   NGC225 OCl   NGC129 OCl   NGC136 OCl   NGC318 OCl   NGC457 OCl   NGC436 OCl I did pick up the secondary of φ Cas M103 OCl   NGC654 OCl   NGC663 OCl   NGC659 OCl

Target Hai Lang LM Rocket Constellation Cas Category Satellite Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2204 EDT Comments While looking in Cas the satellite passed through my FoV and we were able to pick it up naked-eye.

Target M15 Constellation Peg Category DSO: GCl Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2222 EDT Comments Bright core, falls off quickly. The core is displaced from the center of the cluster. Seen in the Teloport

Target M22 Constellation Sgr Category DSO: GCl Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2232 EDT Comments At first I saw a broad area of light that moved when I moved the scope. Then as I continued looking stars started to resolve into a line coming from 11:00 that splays out toward the center of the cluster. Seen in the Teleport at 63x

Target Stock 2 Constellation Cam Category DSO: OCl Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2301 EDT Comments I think I was on the FoV and saw something big and sparse there. Later when I was searching for the Double Cluster and Peter said I had found it he said it looked like the same FoV I had when I thought I was on Stock 2 so I am not sure what I did see.

Target Double Cluster, NGC869 & NGC884 Constellation Per Category DSO: OCl Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2310 EDT Comments We think I found it but Peter said it looked like what I had when I should have been on Stock 2.

Target M103, NGC581 Constellation Cas Category DSO: OCl Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2316 EDT Comments It looks to me like a ladle. Peter calls it a slipper. I see three levels of brightness among the stars with a background of stardust beneath the all. There is a red star where the handle of the ladle joins the bowl and low of the line between the end handle star and the end bowl star.

Target NGC663 Constellation Cas Category DSO: OCl Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2322 EDT Comments Large and fairly equal in brightness, some of the stars are fainter.

Target Moon Constellation Ari Category Lunar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070901.2346 EDT Comments Lunation 1047 Phase Waning Gibbous Age 20.20d Distance Light Time (from earth) 364,521 km s Elongation ° % Illuminated 71.9% Morning Terminator Colongitude (λ E) 151.6 Evening Terminator Colongitude (λ W) 331.6 Libration in Latitude -5°32’ Libration in Longitude 3°02’ Magnitude -12.47 Angular Size 32.78' Altitude 22°43’ Virtual Moon Atlas graphic Mare Serenitatis looks like it has been folded in half and laid out flat, the ray up through the center looks like a crease. The Altai Scarp is very prominent. It looks like there are stings of craters fanning out from the bottom of Maurolycus toward the southern limb. An hour or so later I did not get that impression when observing that same area.

I returned Peter’s Kellner eyepiece tonight. I am not using SAR enough to justify holding onto it any longer. It made it easier to use SAR for public viewing or when I was observing with Peter, but neither of those things happened that often. I have become accustomed to push-pulling the eyepiece in the chimney and since my best view is with the Celestron eyepieces, which have a slightly smaller barrel OD than the Kellner or the ID of SAR’s drawtube, I get my best view when I am pushing them toward the side of the drawtube. Since I am already touching the eyepiece it is no big deal to have the thumb screw lose so that I can make continuous focus adjustments as needed.

We got invited to leave the park by the police at around 0115 EDT. There were some dog walkers there. I don't know if we would have had any better luck if it had just been Peter and I but I doubt it. I think there will be some heavy enforcement until the school year gets under way and the college students have to start studying.