DS Forums

 
 

Space and Astronomy Thread


Reply
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 22-06-2013, 22:12
HenryGarten
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 19,567
Supermoon visible* tonight in UK. Moon at perigree (closest point to Earth) so will appear 30% bigger and brighter.

Some info on BBC Website on how best to view moon.


* Not available in Scotland due to weather conditions.
We used to have "supermoons" about every 18 years. Now we have one every year. Has there been inflation in supermoons?
HenryGarten is offline   Reply With Quote
Please sign in or register to remove this advertisement.
Old 22-06-2013, 22:44
balthasar
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Osaka
Posts: 2,007
As expected - chucking it down.
Maybe we should ditch this astronomy lark and take the study of clouds instead....
balthasar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2013, 22:46
f_196
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: West Yorkshire
Posts: 11,055
Maybe we should ditch this astronomy lark and take the study of clouds instead....
Cloudgazing LIVE!

My, that's a spiffing cumulus there.
f_196 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2013, 23:50
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916
Maybe we should ditch this astronomy lark and take the study of clouds instead....
Cloudgazing LIVE!

My, that's a spiffing cumulus there.
Perhaps the British Astronomical Association and the Cloud Appreciation Society ought to offer some kind of joint membership for those of who watch the skies and who are so frequently disappointed. (it's wall to wall cloud where I am)

You can now see why the Isaac Newton Telescope was moved lock, stock, and barrel from Sussex to La Palma in the Canary Islands: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton_Telescope
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 00:47
Fizgig
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,016
Have they found that rogue planet yet?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/sc...t-2213119.html
Fizgig is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 01:22
Gordie1
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: England
Posts: 6,317
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a3...die30/moon.jpg
Gordie1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 02:08
f_196
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: West Yorkshire
Posts: 11,055
Finally managed to see it through a break in the clouds. Absolutely beautiful. Brilliant white!
f_196 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 09:09
Fio Montoya
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,041
Apparently we should get a good view of the supermoon tonight?
Fio Montoya is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 10:29
HenryGarten
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 19,567
Apparently we should get a good view of the supermoon tonight?
There is no supermoon. It is just a media creation.

See Did you see the moon last night?
HenryGarten is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 11:55
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916
However, there's currently no evidence to indicate that such a large planet exists that far out. In contrast, it is likely that more ice asteroids like Pluto and Eris will be discovered beyond the orbit of Neptune.

Apparently we should get a good view of the supermoon tonight?
The forecast for this evening does seem a bit better and there's more about this phenomenon here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermoon

I'm quite relaxed about the media coverage because at least it gets people out and looking at celestial objects in the night sky.

Thanks for posting the pic, Gordie1, and it's good to see that there were some clear skies last night!
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2013, 14:00
Gordie1
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: England
Posts: 6,317
However, there's currently no evidence to indicate that such a large planet exists that far out. In contrast, it is likely that more ice asteroids like Pluto and Eris will be discovered beyond the orbit of Neptune.



The forecast for this evening does seem a bit better and there's more about this phenomenon here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermoon

I'm quite relaxed about the media coverage because at least it gets people out and looking at celestial objects in the night sky.



Thanks for posting the pic, Gordie1, and it's good to see that there were some clear skies last night!
A slight cheat there, as that was Friday night.

Not very good quality, but then i just pointed and shot, im sure if i messed with the settings i could get a really good shot.
Gordie1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-06-2013, 00:29
Fizgig
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,016
However, there's currently no evidence to indicate that such a large planet exists that far out. In contrast, it is likely that more ice asteroids like Pluto and Eris will be discovered beyond the orbit of Neptune.

The forecast for this evening does seem a bit better and there's more about this phenomenon here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermoon

I'm quite relaxed about the media coverage because at least it gets people out and looking at celestial objects in the night sky.

Thanks for posting the pic, Gordie1, and it's good to see that there were some clear skies last night!
Have you not seen anything weird near the sun? Like a tail from a planet? This is what I've read can be seen, but there's so much BS online.
Fizgig is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-06-2013, 00:53
Skyclad
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 3,833
Not managed to see anything much at the moment - the clouds are not playing game.

Managed to polar align the other night and then they rolled in and I had to pack up
Skyclad is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 30-06-2013, 19:14
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916
Have you not seen anything weird near the sun? Like a tail from a planet? This is what I've read can be seen, but there's so much BS online.
Sorry, there's no direct observational evidence or circumstantial evidence, such as gravitational perturbation, that indicates that anything untoward is present, or happening, in the solar system and the websites below are pretty good for getting factual updates on astronomy and space matters:

http://www.astronomynow.com/
http://www.space.com/news/
http://www.spacedaily.com/


There are plenty of really interesting things going on anyway such as the latest planetary news:

Scientists discover three new planets
Scientists have discovered three new planets they say could carry water because of where they are in relation to their star. The planets have been spotted surrounding a star called Gliese 667C, which is 22 light-years away. Just as Earth is the right distance from our sun to support life, these three planets may also be the right distance from the star they orbit.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23047504
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2013, 01:02
Fizgig
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,016
Sorry, there's no direct observational evidence or circumstantial evidence, such as gravitational perturbation, that indicates that anything untoward is present, or happening, in the solar system and the websites below are pretty good for getting factual updates on astronomy and space matters:

http://www.astronomynow.com/
http://www.space.com/news/
http://www.spacedaily.com/


There are plenty of really interesting things going on anyway such as the latest planetary news:

Scientists discover three new planets
Scientists have discovered three new planets they say could carry water because of where they are in relation to their star. The planets have been spotted surrounding a star called Gliese 667C, which is 22 light-years away. Just as Earth is the right distance from our sun to support life, these three planets may also be the right distance from the star they orbit.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23047504
Glad to hear nothing untoward from someone who actually has had a look. Thanks for the links, I will peruse.
Fizgig is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2013, 02:45
archiver
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Closed
Posts: 7,796

The energy of 300 trillion stars! That's bright. Would need to be to emit photons visible billions of light years away, in every direction. Imagine the surface area of a sphere of light that old. It's the same for the light from UDFy-38135539 of course, except much less energy.

It's strange how there's a stream of photons for every observer, no matter how far away they are. Light waves, of course, but is still attracted to mass. All very strange.
archiver is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-07-2013, 20:23
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916
The energy of 300 trillion stars! That's bright. Would need to be to emit photons visible billions of light years away, in every direction. Imagine the surface area of a sphere of light that old. It's the same for the light from UDFy-38135539 of course, except much less energy.

It's strange how there's a stream of photons for every observer, no matter how far away they are. Light waves, of course, but is still attracted to mass. All very strange.
Yes, these quasi-stellar objects were a complete mystery when they were first observed and their energy output is enormous and that's all down to the supermassive black holes that are at the heart of these radio galaxies. They feature in this BBC Horizon documentary here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b036bv0z

On the subject of astronomy media, the Sky at Night is on tonight on BBC1, repeated BBC4 Thursday and BBC2 early Saturday morning: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006...casts/upcoming

There's also a range of free astronomy podcasts out there too and the links are provided below:

http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HT...sts/astronomy/
http://www.astronomyclubs.co.uk/astronomy-podcasts
http://www.astronomycast.com/
http://www.universetoday.com/category/podcasts/
http://www.ast.cam.ac.uk/astropod/episodes.php
https://www.slackerastronomy.org/cat...udio-podcasts/
http://hubblesite.org/explore_astronomy/skywatch/
http://keckobservatory.org/education/podcast
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/podcasts.html


...and now for some astro news:

UK astronomers to co-ordinate their search for alien signals
British scientists are to make a concerted effort to look for alien life among the stars. Academics from 11 institutions have set up a network to co-ordinate their Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (Seti)...The group is asking funding agencies for a small - about £1m a year - sum of money to support listening time on radio telescopes and for data analysis.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23202054
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2013, 02:05
atg
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: London
Posts: 4,020
Yes, these quasi-stellar objects were a complete mystery when they were first observed and their energy output is enormous and that's all down to the supermassive black holes that are at the heart of these radio galaxies. They feature in this BBC Horizon documentary here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b036bv0z
That programme was a massive disappointment to me when I finally sat down to watch it. For a start the subject of the size of galaxies being governed by the size of the black hole at their centre was covered by another programme years ago. Possibly even a Horizon programme.

Then the dialogue, not only along the infantile lines of the black hole "sitting down to dinner", but delivered so slowly that I was virtually throwing things at the screen to move it along.

Anyway, I reckon the gas cloud entering the SMBH is even more exciting than Shoemaker-Levy smashing into Jupiter all those years ago. Maybe they should have waited until then to do a Horizon.
atg is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-07-2013, 17:27
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916

Tonight, BBC4, 8pm:

Seeing Stars
Around the world, a new generation of astronomers are hunting for the most mysterious objects in the universe. Young stars, black holes, even other forms of life. They have created a dazzling new set of super-telescopes that promise to rewrite the story of the heavens.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b013pnv4

Planetary Radio
Each week, Planetary Radio visits with a scientist, engineer, project manager, astronaut, advocate or writer who provides a unique and exciting perspective on the exploration of our solar system and beyond. We also showcase regular features that raise your space IQ while they put a smile on your face.
http://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/

Let's catch up with the latest astro & space news:

Cassini probe takes image of Earth from Saturn orbit
Nasa has released photos of the Earth and Moon taken by a spacecraft orbiting Saturn - nearly a billion miles away. Our planet and its only satellite appear only as dots in the picture, which was taken by the Cassini spacecraft on 19 July.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23419543

Hubble finds Neptune moon
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has discovered a new moon orbiting distant Neptune, the 14th known to be circling the giant gas planet. The moon, designated S/2004 N 1, is estimated to be no more than 12 miles across, making it the smallest known moon in the Neptunian system.
http://www.astronomynow.com/news/n13.../#.Ue6uGKxlhac
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-07-2013, 16:16
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916
BBC News have done a How to put a human on Mars special hosted by Kiss FM DJ and physicist Martin Archer about the design of a spacecraft that can get to Mars and back. It's next on at 8.30pm this evening on the BBC News channel.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23349496
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b037yjvn


Around the world, a new generation of astronomers are hunting for the most mysterious objects in the universe. Young stars, black holes, even other forms of life. They have created a dazzling new set of super-telescopes that promise to rewrite the story of the heavens.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode..._Seeing_Stars/

...and now for some astro news:

Snow signature found in an infant planetary system
A snow line has been imaged in a far-off infant planetary system for the very first time. The snow line, located in the disc around the Sun-like star TW Hydrae, promises to tell us more about the formation of planets and comets, the factors that decide their composition, and the history of the Solar System.
http://www.astronomynow.com/news/n13.../#.UfU1bKxlhac
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 16-08-2013, 23:45
Carlos_dfc
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Bishop-Auckland / Darlington
Posts: 6,636

I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned here yet, but a 'new' star has appeared in the constellation 'Delphinus' (the dolphin)

3 days ago, there was nothing at this position, on charts that plot stars down to 13th magnitude. Tonight, it's blazing at magnitude 4.5.
That's an increase of at least 9 magnitudes, which means it is now at least 4000 times brighter than it was 3 days ago.

It was first noticed 2 nights ago, by a Japanese amateur, at 6th magnitude - last night it was up to mag 5 - and I've just got in from viewing it tonight, it's just a little brighter than nearby 4.8 mag star 29 Vulpeculae - I reckon it to be about mag 4.5

http://www.astronomynow.com/news/n1308/15nova/

A nova of this type occurs when a dead 'White dwarf' star is in a very close binary system, and can leech material from the companion star.
The material builds up on the surface of the white dwarf until it eventually erupts like this one has. Brightness increases of between 7 and 12 magnitudes, over a period of 3 to 5 days are typical
Carlos_dfc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 21-08-2013, 01:17
afcbfan
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 5,288
Gutted. My best chance of seeing it was a few days ago, clear skies - except for one rogue slow moving black cloud exactly where I was looking.

No chance of clear skys methinks. Hope ISON is worth it now.
Don't get too excited; latest reports suggest ISON might be a bit of a dud: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/commu...ampaign=Buffer
afcbfan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2013, 16:39
balthasar
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Osaka
Posts: 2,007
Has anyone got the latest on Comet Ison.
balthasar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2013, 21:47
TelevisionUser
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Storbritannia
Posts: 28,916
Has anyone got the latest on Comet Ison.
And now, as if by magic, I have a very recent update:

Comet ISON Approaching Mars: How To See It Through A Telescope
A starry messenger is looming on the horizon. While it’s not yet bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, Comet ISON is rushing closer to Earth with every passing day, and if you break out the telescope, you might be able to catch a glimpse of it. ISON is a sun-grazing comet, meaning that it will pass very close to our sun on its orbit. Come November, ISON could be bright enough to see in broad daylight.
http://www.ibtimes.com/comet-ison-ap...escope-1403014

Comets do tend to be variable in behaviour but, like the meteor showers, they often tend to get hyped up as well leading to disappointment . The safest thing to say is that it will probably be visible in binoculars and hopefully be clearly visible with the naked eye. We shall just have to wait and see.
TelevisionUser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2013, 23:58
balthasar
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Osaka
Posts: 2,007
[quote=TelevisionUser;68496051]And now, as if by magic, I have a very recent update:

Comet ISON Approaching Mars: How To See It Through A Telescope
A starry messenger is looming on the horizon. While it’s not yet bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, Comet ISON is rushing closer to Earth with every passing day, and if you break out the telescope, you might be able to catch a glimpse of it. ISON is a sun-grazing comet, meaning that it will pass very close to our sun on its orbit. Come November, ISON could be bright enough to see in broad daylight.
http://www.ibtimes.com/comet-ison-ap...escope-1403014

Comets do tend to be variable in behaviour but, like the meteor showers, they often tend to get hyped up as well leading to disappointment . The safest thing to say is that it will probably be visible in binoculars and hopefully be clearly visible with the naked eye. We shall just have to wait and see.[/QUOTET
Thank you, I did wonder if it had dropped off the radar...!
balthasar is offline   Reply With Quote
 
Reply




 
Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 13:53.