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Space and Astronomy Thread |
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#951 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 2,910
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Hi all... caught a few glimpses earlier, but it's too cloudy to see anything here now.
![]() Are there any live streams/commentary of this on the web anywhere? |
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#952 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: West London
Posts: 688
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Stupid West London is all cloudy
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#953 |
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Guest
Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 53,841
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Cloudy here in Northumberland. Can't see a thing
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#954 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 500
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Far too cloudy here to get a decent view of anything - managed to see a couple at least.
Can I just say - nice to find this threat. Just got back into the star gazing thanks to the spur of a new telescope as a birthday gift. Isn't..........the scale of it all, so humbling. But as terrifying in its scale as it is humbling. Either way, craning the neck back to glance at the stars, clouds allowing, ****ing amazing! |
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#955 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Bishop-Auckland / Darlington
Posts: 6,636
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Quote:
It was clear enough here and I saw quite a few.
I quickly took this, http://steaa.adsl24.co.uk/IMG_0029_.jpg You can see so much more on a long exposure on camera. Collinder 399, the 'Coathanger' cluster - M13 globular cluster - M27, the 'Dumbell' planetary nebula (just) Pity about the hazy cloud across much of the pic, or so much more might have been visible in there. The shapes of Hercules and Lyra are pairly prominent too - along with a good few lesser constellations. Bright star top middle is Vega - and the bright one at far left is Altair. Look about 1/3 of the way from Altair to Vega - that's the 'Coathanger' cluster. |
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#956 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 500
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Is there a forum or site the stargazers get together. Like I said, newly returned to "Christ in hell, look at that" fold, but once again, instantly lost my heart to the stars and am looking to share with people.
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#957 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 6,183
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Seen a few big ones over Belfast hills there about an hour ago!! woo
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#958 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Bishop-Auckland / Darlington
Posts: 6,636
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Quote:
Is there a forum or site the stargazers get together.
That one is my forum BTW - there are a fair few others too... 'Sky at Night' has a forum - there's the 'Stargazer's Lounge', 'SPA' (society for Popular Astronomy' and 'UKastroimagers' All UK-based. |
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#959 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 500
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Cheers Carlos, been a help ......... x
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#960 |
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Inactive Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Alacant
Posts: 7,773
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Well we weren't feeling too good last night so stayed in. There was a lot of light pollution, but we sat in the loungers in the terrace and saw.................nothing.
Mind you, Jupiter was looking very lovely, so I got the telescope to have a look at it again. |
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#961 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 19,567
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Here is an interesting meteorite. See http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090813.html
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#962 |
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Inactive Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Alacant
Posts: 7,773
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Look at this video and be amazed. It's about the famous. Hubble Deep Field image.
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#963 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Bishop-Auckland / Darlington
Posts: 6,636
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Quote:
Mind you, Jupiter was looking very lovely, so I got the telescope to have a look at it again.
![]() I too resorted to viewing Jupiter, around midnight-ish (with my 1977 Celestron C8 'classic' 8" SCT) - and was pleasantly surprised to see a moon crossing it's face, with it's shadow also on the planet's surface. (an eclipse, if you could stand within that shadow) 'Starry-Night' software confirmed a transit of Europa - the two other moons I could see off to the right (to left in my view, as I was using a diagonal) were Ganymede, close-in, and Callisto further out. Io was nowhere to be see, but 'Starry Night' showed me it was behind Jupiter from our point of view. By 1:30, Europa had passed right across the planet's disk, and off to the right to join Ganymede and Callisto. I also spotted a faint double-star, off to the left (to the right, in my view) - very tight together. I tried to use it to get best focus for Jupiter (focusing a star to a pinpoint, gets a telescope to it's sharpest possible focus) But no matter what I tried, it always looked slightly 'elongated' - so I whacked up the magnification to 350x, and confirmed my suspiscion - a tight double-star. Slightly de-focused them at this high magnification, to accentuate any colours - and one of them appeared to be bluish, the other pure white. Gonna stop there, because it's starting to feel a bit like I'm writing up an observing session ![]() Having satisfied myself with a little astro 'fix' - I packed up and came in for a piping hot 'cup-a-soup' |
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#964 |
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Inactive Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Alacant
Posts: 7,773
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Quote:
There was a horrible thin haze here - only the brighter stars visible by naked-eye, and also only the brighter Perseids were visible.
![]() I too resorted to viewing Jupiter, around midnight-ish (with my 1977 Celestron C8 'classic' 8" SCT) - and was pleasantly surprised to see a moon crossing it's face, with it's shadow also on the planet's surface. (an eclipse, if you could stand within that shadow) 'Starry-Night' software confirmed a transit of Europa - the two other moons I could see off to the right (to left in my view, as I was using a diagonal) were Ganymede, close-in, and Callisto further out. Io was nowhere to be see, but 'Starry Night' showed me it was behind Jupiter from our point of view. By 1:30, Europa had passed right across the planet's disk, and off to the right to join Ganymede and Callisto. I also spotted a faint double-star, off to the left (to the right, in my view) - very tight together. I tried to use it to get best focus for Jupiter (focusing a star to a pinpoint, gets a telescope to it's sharpest possible focus) But no matter what I tried, it always looked slightly 'elongated' - so I whacked up the magnification to 350x, and confirmed my suspiscion - a tight double-star. Slightly de-focused them at this high magnification, to accentuate any colours - and one of them appeared to be bluish, the other pure white. Gonna stop there, because it's starting to feel a bit like I'm writing up an observing session ![]() Having satisfied myself with a little astro 'fix' - I packed up and came in for a piping hot 'cup-a-soup' |
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#965 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Birmingham
Posts: 5,831
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Are these still about tonight?
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#966 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 19,567
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Quote:
Are these still about tonight?
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#967 |
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Inactive Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Alacant
Posts: 7,773
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Nice pic of naked Saturn here.
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#968 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,927
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And now for some wild planet stories...
Research to be published in Astrophysics Journal [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8197683.stm] has indicated the discovery of a new extra-solar planet in retrograde orbit, i.e. it goes round its parent sun in the opposite direction to the parent star's own rotation.
This is interesting as planets so far have appeared to orbit in the same direction as their sun's rotation as in our own solar system. Retrograde motion might be the result of catastrophic events or capture and if I recall correctly, one or two likely captured moons of Jupiter pull this same stunt. Tonight's second weird planet story is altogether more destructive - it appears that NASA's Spitzer infrared space telescope has identified a young solar system where two protoplanets have collided making a ring of debris. More on this story here http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8195467.stm. |
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#969 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Clydebank
Posts: 182
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Oh I would find it very hard to put a figure on it but very high indeed. It is the point where there is enough atmosphere to burn up the particles.
At a guess 50 miles. Interesting question. Not one I have seen discussed before. |
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#970 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Bishop-Auckland / Darlington
Posts: 6,636
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Quote:
Yes of course. Maybe not quite so many but they will be about.
Also saw a meteor heading roughly North through Andromeda - Wrong direction to be a Perseid, right direction to be an Alpha Capricornid. ![]() Enjoyable few hours - some nice star clusters on show tonight - also the two nearest spiral galaxies to ours (Andromeda and Triangulum) - and ticked off some more from my double-star list... But also watched Jupiter on and off, as two of it's moons (Io and Ganymede) swapped positions - Io heading out, as Ganymede headed back in towards the planet |
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#971 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Scotland
Posts: 3,937
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Quote:
www.astrochat.co.uk/forum
That one is my forum BTW - there are a fair few others too... 'Sky at Night' has a forum - there's the 'Stargazer's Lounge', 'SPA' (society for Popular Astronomy' and 'UKastroimagers' All UK-based. |
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#972 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 2,407
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Can anyone explain to me why we sometimes see the moon during the day? And can anyone explain when i would know in advance whether you would be able to see it during the day?
My daughter is fasinated by seeing it and we had a few days of seeing it about 430pm but we havent seen it for ages. |
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#973 |
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Inactive Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Alacant
Posts: 7,773
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Quote:
Can anyone explain to me why we sometimes see the moon during the day? And can anyone explain when i would know in advance whether you would be able to see it during the day?
My daughter is fasinated by seeing it and we had a few days of seeing it about 430pm but we havent seen it for ages. |
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#974 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 19,567
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Quote:
Can anyone explain to me why we sometimes see the moon during the day? And can anyone explain when i would know in advance whether you would be able to see it during the day?
My daughter is fasinated by seeing it and we had a few days of seeing it about 430pm but we havent seen it for ages. Even better start looking for the crescent moon on Saturday 22nd (the start of Ramadan) and then follow it backwards day by day as it moves around the sky. |
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#975 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Newcastle Upon Tyne
Posts: 53,213
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I saw the moon in a half moon phase in the morning last week
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