From jane at whiteoaks.com Fri Apr 6 15:17:39 2001 From: jane at whiteoaks.com (Jane Houston Jones) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Anyone going to the AANC Conference tomorrow? Message-ID: <3ACE4083.31FC71C8@whiteoaks.com> There are quite a few SJAA members going to the AANC conference tomorrow - in fact the largest contingent of all the 25 clubs represented is coming from the SJAA. Anyway, if one of you who are planning to go tomorrow are able to stop by the Cupertino Orion Store this afternoon, could you pick up a stack of red light key chains? Ask for Marshall, and tell them they are for me. Thanks a bunch, if any of you commute past the Orion Store. If we get them, we'll hand them out for use at the indoors messier marathon in the morning. Thanks again, Jane Jane -- Jane Houston Jones San Rafael, CA jane@whiteoaks.com http://www.whiteoaks.com From koopm at best.com Fri Apr 6 17:08:42 2001 From: koopm at best.com (Michael Koop) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Anyone going to the AANC Conference tomorrow? In-Reply-To: <3ACE4083.31FC71C8@whiteoaks.com> Message-ID: I just sent my brother Ken over there to pick them up since he lives about a mile and a half from there. I'll let you know when I get them. Mike Koop On Fri, 6 Apr 2001, Jane Houston Jones wrote: > Note: replies go to chat@sjaa.net > _______________________________________________ > There are quite a few SJAA members going to the AANC conference tomorrow > - in fact the largest contingent of all the 25 clubs represented is > coming from the SJAA. > > Anyway, if one of you who are planning to go tomorrow are able to stop > by the Cupertino Orion Store this afternoon, could you pick up a stack > of red light key chains? Ask for Marshall, and tell them they are for > me. Thanks a bunch, if any of you commute past the Orion Store. If we > get them, we'll hand them out for use at the indoors messier marathon in > the morning. > > Thanks again, Jane > > Jane > > -- > Jane Houston Jones > San Rafael, CA > jane@whiteoaks.com > http://www.whiteoaks.com > > > _______________________________________________ > SJAA-announce mailing list > SJAA-announce@sjaa.net > http://www.sjaa.net/mailman/listinfo/sjaa-announce > From koopm at best.com Tue Apr 10 15:37:12 2001 From: koopm at best.com (Michael Koop) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] !!!! Aurora Alert !!!! Message-ID: Greetings All, Here's another Aurora Alert! Note theses flares were not as large as the one which caused the Aurora of March 30th, but they still are large flares which may produce mid-latitude activity (That's us!). Here are a few clues to help you monitor the activity: a) Listen to Talk Radio. I was talking to a SJAA member at the auction, who was up in Northern California (Redding) on March 30th. He was listening to Art Bell who had many callers describing the Aurora and where they were watching from. It caused him to go out to a dark site and enjoy the show. I think most real time talk or news shows said something about it. Try KGO, KCBS, or KSFO. b) Look around the NORTH sky, from N-NE to N-NW, from the horizon, up to 30 degrees. When we were at Houge Park, the first bright patch was just below the Big Dipper to the N-NE, 20 degrees up. I had a friend up in the Sierras who was listening to the radio, went outside, and looked south. He missed the whole event behind the house! (Gee, why do you think they call them the NORTHERN LIGHTS? DUHO!) Also, we only saw them at Houge for about an hour and 15 minutes. So, check often! c) Get under dark skies. As with most astronomical events, the darker your site, the more you will see. However, even if you are at home, I would still look. Find a dark spot facing north. Try going to a local park or in your backyard between trees, anything to find a dark spot that is north facing. After seeing the Aurora from Houge Park with the moon up, anything is possible! d) Use the internet to monitor the Aurora: Try Here for General Info on Auroras: http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/Curtis/curtis.html This one has some real time data: http://www.sel.noaa.gov/pmap/ IRC Chat area at http://www.spacew.com/irc Cool Solar Info: http://www.lmsal.com/solarsites.html Let us know if you have any success! Good Luck and Clear Skies, Mike Koop President, San Jose Astronomical Association Email: koopm@best.com Moon Rise Times at San Jose, CA Tue, April 10: 22:46 Wed, April 11: 23:49 Fri, April 13: 00:47 Here are 4 postings from the Spacewatch list server (which I received from the solar-observers@yahoogroups.com) (Remember that we are in Daylight savings time, so subtract 7 Hr to convert GMT to PDT) ************************************************************************** Flare #1: M7.9 solar x-ray flare (the small one, may hit us tonight) From: STD Listserver Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2001 21:06:48 -0600 (MDT) To: jim@kendrick-ai.com Subject: AURORA WARNING: Middle Latitude Auroral Activity Warning - 11-12 Apr /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ MIDDLE LATITUDE AURORAL ACTIVITY WARNING ISSUED: 02:00 UTC, 10 APRIL 2001 /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ *** POTENTIAL FOR MODERATE TO HIGH ACTIVITY EXISTS *** VALID BEGINNING AT: 21:00 UTC ON 10 APRIL VALID UNTIL: 19:00 UTC ON 12 APRIL HIGH RISK PERIOD: 11 APRIL (UTC DAYS) MODERATE RISK PERIOD: 11 - 12 APRIL PREDICTED ACTIVITY INDICES: 12, 40, 30, 12 (10 APRIL - 13 APRIL) POTENTIAL MAGNITUDE OF MIDDLE LATITUDE AURORAL ACTIVITY: MODERATE TO HIGH POTENTIAL DURATION OF THIS ACTIVITY: MAIN BELT = 12 TO 18 HOURS MINOR BELT = 18 TO 24 HOURS ESTIMATED OPTIMUM OBSERVING CONDITIONS: PRIOR TO AND NEAR LOCAL MIDNIGHT EXPECTED LUNAR INTERFERENCE: NONE PRIOR TO MIDNIGHT, HIGH AFTER MOONRISE OVERALL OPPORTUNITY FOR OBSERVATIONS FROM MIDDLE LATITUDES: FAIR TO GOOD AURORAL ACTIVITY *MAY* BE OBSERVED APPROXIMATELY NORTH OF A LINE FROM... SOUTHERN OREGON TO NORTHERN UTAH TO NORTHERN COLORADO TO NEBRASKA TO NORTHERN MISSOURI TO SOUTHERN ILLINOIS TO KENTUCKY TO VIRGINIA. ACTIVITY *MAY* ALSO BE OBSERVED APPROXIMATELY NORTH OF A LINE FROM... EXTREME NORTHERN FRANCE TO CENTRAL GERMANY TO CENTRAL POLAND TO BELARUS TO NORTH-CENTRAL RUSSIA (NORTH OF A ROUGH LINE FROM SMOLENSK TO MOSCOW TO KIROV, ETC). NEW ZEALAND AND EXTREME SOUTHERN COASTAL REGIONS OF AUSTRALIA (PARTICULARLY SOUTHEAST AUSTRALIA) MAY ALSO BE ABLE TO SPOT PERIODS OF ACTIVITY. SYNOPSIS... A heavily Earth-directed and fairly high velocity coronal mass ejection was observed erupting from the Sun today in association with a major class M7.9 solar x-ray flare at 15:34 UTC on 09 April. Confidence is high that this disturbance will impact the Earth. However, most forecasters do not believe it will produce as strong an auroral storm as was observed on 31 March (when activity was observed into the low latitude regions of the Gulf coast states and Mexico over North America). The realistic picture is for a minor to major auroral storm capable of producing fairly widespread observations of activity from many middle latitude regions. But activity as grand as was observed on 31 March is unlikely to occur with this disturbance. Nevertheless, no one will know for certain what will happen until after the disturbance reaches the Earth. Therefore, caution is advised. Plan for a big display but expect something less. Impact of this disturbance is expected to occur sometime during the early UTC day of 11 April. North American observers may be lucky enough to spot the initial impact after darkness falls and before the moon rises. However, the window of opportunity is small. New Zealand and Australian observers may be the best positioned witness the main stormy phase of this disturbance (as well as Northern Russia). European observers may also be well positioned, particularly if the arrival of this disturbance occurs during the mid to latter part of the UTC day of 11 April. Observers are encouraged to watch the skies during the nights of 11 and 12 April for possible activity. Moonrise occurs near local midnight over most regions on these dates. As a result, optimal observing conditions will occur after the sun sets and before the moon rises. The near-full phase of the rising moon will heavily drown out the fainter signatures of auroral activity. Additional Earth-directed coronal mass ejections are possible over the next several days. This warning will remain in effect until 19:00 UTC on 12 April. It will then be updated or allowed to expire. For Real-Time News and Discussions, visit: http://www.spacew.com/irc and join the #aurora channel (type /join #aurora) WE HAVE A DISCUSSION FORUM FOR AURORA ENTHUSIASTS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.spacew.com/aurora/forum.html PLEASE REPORT OBSERVATIONS OF AURORAL ACTIVITY TO: http://solar.spacew.com/www/auroras.html * OR * Use the STD AURORA MONITOR Software to monitor conditions and report sightings. It is available at: http://www.spacew.com/aurora ** End of Warning ** ********************************************************************* Flare #2: X2.2/3B solar flare, (This one is more likely to produce something for us) From: STD Listserver Date: Tue, 10 Apr 2001 06:12:26 -0600 (MDT) To: jim@kendrick-ai.com Subject: AURORA WARNING UPDATE: Mid-Latitude Auroral Activity Warning - 10 Apr /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ MIDDLE LATITUDE AURORAL ACTIVITY WARNING UPDATED: 11:45 UTC, 10 APRIL 2001 /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ *** POTENTIAL FOR MODERATE TO HIGH ACTIVITY EXISTS *** MAJOR X2.2/3B SOLAR FLARE AND CME PROMPTS ADJUSTMENT TO FORECAST VALID BEGINNING AT: 21:00 UTC ON 10 APRIL VALID UNTIL: 19:00 UTC ON 13 APRIL HIGH RISK PERIOD: 11 - 12 APRIL (UTC DAYS) MODERATE RISK PERIOD: 11 - 13 APRIL PREDICTED ACTIVITY INDICES: 12, 60, 50, 15 (10 APRIL - 13 APRIL) POTENTIAL MAGNITUDE OF MIDDLE LATITUDE AURORAL ACTIVITY: MODERATE TO HIGH POTENTIAL DURATION OF THIS ACTIVITY: MAIN BELT = 18 TO 24 HOURS MINOR BELT = 24 TO 36 HOURS ESTIMATED OPTIMUM OBSERVING CONDITIONS: PRIOR TO AND NEAR LOCAL MIDNIGHT EXPECTED LUNAR INTERFERENCE: NONE PRIOR TO MIDNIGHT, HIGH AFTER MOONRISE OVERALL OPPORTUNITY FOR OBSERVATIONS FROM MIDDLE LATITUDES: FAIR TO GOOD AURORAL ACTIVITY *MAY* BE OBSERVED APPROXIMATELY NORTH OF A LINE FROM... NORTHERN TO POSSIBLY CENTRAL CALIFORNIA TO NEVADA TO NORTHERN ARIZONA TO NEW MEXICO TO NORTHERN TEXAS TO OKLAHOMA TO SOUTHERN ARKANSAS TO MISSISSIPPI TO ALABAMA TO GEORGIA TO SOUTH CAROLINA (*IF* AND *ONLY IF* FAVORABLE SOLAR WIND CONDITIONS DEVELOP OVER NORTH AMERICA PRIOR TO MOONRISE). A MORE REALISTIC EXPECTATION MAY BE A LINE ROUGHLY NORTH OF OREGON TO SOUTHERN IDAHO TO SOUTHERN WYOMING TO NEBRASKA TO IOWA TO ILLINOIS TO INDIANA TO KENTUCKY TO WEST VERGINIA TO CENTRAL VIRGINIA. ACTIVITY *MAY* ALSO BE OBSERVED APPROXIMATELY NORTH OF A LINE FROM... NORTHERN SPAIN TO SOUTHERN FRANCE TO NORTHERN ITALY TO SLOVENIA TO NORTHERN CROATIA TO NORTHERN YUGOSLAVIA TO ROMANIA TO SOUTHERN UKRAINE TO SOUTH-WESTERN RUSSIA APPROXIMATELY NORTH OF A LINE FROM VORONEZH TO SARANSK TO KAZAN TO PERM AND EAST-CENTRAL RUSSIA (*IF* AND *ONLY IF* FAVORABLE SOLAR WIND CONDITIONS DEVELOP OVER EUROPE AND RUSSIA PRIOR TO MOONRISE). A MORE REALISTIC EXPECTATION MAY BE A LINE ROUGHLY NORTH OF NORTHERN FRANCE TO CENTRAL GERMANY TO SOUTH-CENTRAL POLAND TO SOUTHERN BELARUS TO SOUTH OF MOSCOW TO KIROV TO OTHER NORTHERN TO NORTH-CENTRAL RUSSIAN REGIONS. SYNOPSIS... Addendum: A major class X2.2/3B solar flare was observed at 05:27 UTC on 10 April. Although there was no complementary SOHO data to analyze at the time of this addendum, observed features suggest this event may have been associated with a halo CME travelling at a velocity up to perhaps twice the velocity of the CME observed on 09 April. If this holds true, a major to severe auroral storm may develop during the mid to late UTC hours of 11 April following the arrival of this second major disturbance (sometime near or after 06:00 to 15:00 UTC on 11 April, or 2 am to 11 am EDT on 11 April). These are preliminary times and may be adjusted when more data becomes available. Major to severe auroral storming is still contingent upon favorable solar wind conditions behind the shock front of the disturbance as well as observing the intense phase of activity prior to moonrise. In addition to the above, a heavily Earth-directed and fairly high velocity coronal mass ejection was observed erupting from the Sun in association with a major class M7.9 solar x-ray flare at 15:34 UTC on 09 April. Impact of this disturbance is expected to occur sometime during the early UTC day of 11 April followed some hours later by the potentially larger impact of the X-class flare associated CME. Observers are encouraged to watch the skies during the nights of 11 and 12 April for possible activity. Moonrise occurs near local midnight over most regions on these dates. As a result, optimal observing conditions will occur after the sun sets and before the moon rises. The near-full phase of the rising moon will heavily drown out the fainter signatures of auroral activity. Additional Earth-directed coronal mass ejections are possible over the next several days. This warning will remain in effect until 19:00 UTC on 13 April. It will then be updated or allowed to expire. For Real-Time News and Discussions with Experienced Aurora Photographers: http://www.spacew.com/irc and join the #aurora channel (type /join #aurora) WE HAVE A DISCUSSION FORUM FOR AURORA ENTHUSIASTS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.spacew.com/aurora/forum.html PLEASE REPORT OBSERVATIONS OF AURORAL ACTIVITY TO: http://solar.spacew.com/www/auroras.html * OR * Use the STD AURORA MONITOR Software to monitor conditions and report sightings. It is available at: http://www.spacew.com/aurora ** End of Warning ** ********************************************************************* More Info on the Bigger Solar Flare From: STD Listserver Date: Tue, 10 Apr 2001 06:19:37 -0600 (MDT) To: jim@kendrick-ai.com Subject: ALERT: Major X-Class Solar Proton Flare Alert - 10 April /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ MAJOR SOLAR FLARE ALERT ISSUED: 11:50 UTC, 10 APRIL 2001 A major class X2.2/3B solar flare was observed erupting from Region 9415 at 05:27 UTC on 10 April. Characteristics of this flare suggest it may have accelerated additional protons Earthward (a minor increase in > 10 MeV protons to above event levels has already been observed). A major Type II sweep was also observed with this event. Estimated shock velocity was at or above about 2,000 km/sec. There has been no confirming SOHO data at the present time to indicate the presence of a halo CME. However, this assumption is expected to be accurate given the favorable position of the flaring source at S23 W09 near the central meridian. Additional major solar flares from this region will probably be observed during the next 5 days. As the region moves into the western hemisphere, the potential for prompt and higher amplitude proton enhancements will increase should major proton flares erupt. ** End of Notice ** ********************************************************************* More Cool Stuff.Free Energy for Quebec! From: STD Listserver Date: Tue, 10 Apr 2001 06:16:14 -0600 (MDT) To: jim@kendrick-ai.com Subject: WARNING: Potential Geomagnetic Storm Warning Update - 10 Apr /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ POTENTIAL GEOMAGNETIC STORM WARNING UPDATED: 11:45 UTC, 10 APRIL 2001 /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ (See Appended Comments for Synoptic Information) * REVISED DUE TO OCCURRENCE OF LARGE X2.2/3B SOLAR FLARE AND CME * VALID BEGINNING AT: 00:00 UTC 11 APRIL VALID UNTIL: 19:00 UTC 13 APRIL HIGH RISK PERIOD: 11 - 12 APR (UTC days) MODERATE RISK PERIOD: 11 - 13 APR POTENTIAL LOW-MIDDLE LATITUDE STORM INTENSITY: MAJOR TO SEVERE POTENTIAL HIGH LATITUDE STORM INTENSITY: SEVERE POTENTIAL DURATION OF GEOMAGNETIC STORM: APPROX 36 TO 48 HOURS DURATION OF MAIN BELT OF ACTIVITY: 18 TO 36 HOURS POTENTIAL PEAK LOW-MIDDLE LATITUDE K-INDEX VALUES: 8 POTENTIAL PEAK HIGH LATITUDE K-INDEX VALUES: 9 EXPECTED DOMINATING LOW-MIDDLE LATITUDE K-INDEX: 5 - 6 EXPECTED DOMINATING HIGH LATITUDE K-INDEX: 6 - 7 POTENTIAL FOR LOW LATITUDE HF DEGRADATION: LOW POTENTIAL SEVERITY OF HF DEGRADATION: MINOR EXPECTED HF PROPAGATION CONDITIONS: GOOD - FAIR POTENTIAL FOR MIDDLE LATITUDE HF DEGRADATION: HIGH POTENTIAL SEVERITY OF HF DEGRADATION: STRONG MINOR TO MAJOR EXPECTED HF PROPAGATION CONDITIONS: FAIR TO OCCASIONALLY VERY POOR POTENTIAL FOR HIGH LATITUDE HF DEGRADATION: HIGH POTENTIAL SEVERITY OF HF DEGRADATION: STRONG MINOR TO MAJOR EXPECTED HF PROPAGATION CONDITIONS: POOR TO OCCAS. VERY POOR POTENTIAL RISK FOR GEOSYNCHRONOUS MAGNETOPAUSE CROSSINGS: 70% SUSPECTED SOURCE OF OBSERVED/EXPECTED ACTIVITY: TWO Earth-directed coronal mass ejections of potential high velocity. --------------------------------- --------------------------------- EST. POTENTIAL GEOMAGNETIC IMPACT EST. POTENTIAL IONOSPHERIC IMPACT --------------------------------- --------------------------------- SEVERE STORM : 30 % LOW LATITUDES : MINOR MAJOR STORM : 35 % MIDDLE LATITUDES : MINOR TO MAJOR MINOR STORM : 30 % HIGH LATITUDES : MINOR TO MAJOR ACTIVE OR LESS : 5 % POLAR LATITUDES : MINOR TO MAJOR --------------------------------- --------------------------------- PROBABLE SI ASSOCIATION : 80% ESTIMATED GLOBAL IMPACT: MINOR TO MAJOR ESTIMATED FORECAST PEAK PLANETARY 24-HOUR A-INDEX DURING STORM: 50-80 ---- --------------- COMMENTS: The potential exists for major to severe geomagnetic storming with these disturbances. ** End of Warning ** From koopm at best.com Wed Apr 18 15:38:30 2001 From: koopm at best.com (Michael Koop) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Dr. Brian Greene Lecture at Stanford April 25th Message-ID: The American Institute of Mathematics & The Stanford Mathematics Department present "The Elegant Universe" A special lecture by Brian Greene . . .How did space come into being? . . .How did time come into being? . . .Is there something more basic than space and time? These questions are asked by Dr. Greene, professor in Physics and Mathematics at Columbia University, and best-selling author who, as one of the world's leading experts, explains the cosmic significance of strings and how they could answer some of humanity's deepest questions. His book, "The Elegant Universe" was on the New York Times Bestseller List for months, reaching number four. The book was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Dr. Greene has lectured in more than 20 countries and has appeared on numerous talk shows, including an hour-long Nightline presentation special on ABC. Wednesday, April 25, 2001 7:30 p.m. Dinkelspiel Auditorium -- Stanford University Tickets: $8.00 Stanford Ticket Office (650) 725-ARTS All proceeds from tickets sales will be donated to Bay Area Mathematical Adventures (BAMA). This talk is intended for a general audience. For more information visit http://www.aimath.org Just got 2 tickets myself via will call at the box office. There are 254 tickets remaining of 710. You might want to get them quickly before they sell out. FYI, Mike Koop President, SJAA From north at znet.com Fri Apr 27 02:12:39 2001 From: north at znet.com (Dave North) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Moon Class Tonight Message-ID: <3AE937F0.2FAFECFC@znet.com> Due to unavoidable difficulties, last month's Moon Observing class was cancelled and will take place tonight (Friday) at 7:30 pm. There is a plan (depending on the sky) to be set up a little early to see if it's possible to catch an occultation during daylight around 7:12 pm. This is optional, but if you decide to try it, bring your own scope to set up (this is not the kind of view that can be shared...) The class will begin out front anyway, since the first thing we will be doing is showing the class how to observe the Moon in daylight! See you there... Dave North From mojo at whiteoaks.com Mon Apr 30 23:19:54 2001 From: mojo at whiteoaks.com (Morris Jones) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] May issue of SJAA Ephemeris online Message-ID: The May issue of the SJAA Ephemeris, newsletter of the San Jose Astronomical Association, is now available online in PDF and HTML formats. Lots of good pictures as well as great articles this month. http://ephemeris.sjaa.net Mojo -- Morris Jones <*> San Rafael, CA mojo@whiteoaks.com http://www.whiteoaks.com From mojo at whiteoaks.com Mon Apr 30 23:19:54 2001 From: mojo at whiteoaks.com (Morris Jones) Date: Fri Jul 29 03:57:03 2005 Subject: [SJAA-announce] May issue of SJAA Ephemeris online Message-ID: The May issue of the SJAA Ephemeris, newsletter of the San Jose Astronomical Association, is now available online in PDF and HTML formats. Lots of good pictures as well as great articles this month. http://ephemeris.sjaa.net Mojo -- Morris Jones <*> San Rafael, CA mojo@whiteoaks.com http://www.whiteoaks.com