From koopm at koopm.best.vwh.net Mon Apr 3 15:07:29 2006 From: koopm at koopm.best.vwh.net (Michael Koop) Date: Mon Apr 3 15:08:06 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Astro Auction and Swap this Sunday! Message-ID: <20060403160415.H96088@koopm.best.vwh.net> 2006 SJAA Astronomical Auction and Swap Meet XXVI Sunday, April 9, 2006 Register Material: 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Preview Material: 12:30 PM 1:00 PM Auction: 1 PM to about 3 PM Swap: 3 PM to about 4 PM Houge Park Building 1, San Jose (Near 85 and South. Bascom) ************************************************************************ It's spring and time for the annual migration of astronomical paraphernalia from one garage to another! On Sunday, April 9, 2006, an astronomical auction and swap meet will be conducted at Houge Park in San Jose, sponsored by the San Jose Astronomical Association. It's an even year, so Kevin Medlock will be our auctioneer. Those who have observed his performance in previous auctions have learned to appreciate his skillful evaluation of classical astronomical items on the spot. Great entertainment for all! The SJAA Auction is a great opportunity for beginners to purchase their first telescope at a great price! Experienced observers often find equipment they need for their next observing project, from OIII filters to finders to star charts. Telescopes, eyepieces, mountings, mirrors, lenses, clock drives, books, camera equipment, star charts, finders, tubes, diagonals, photographs, space art everything you need to make your hobby more enjoyable. You name it, it's likely to be there! Check your garage and closets for anything astronomical you would like to sell. Anyone can buy and sell! It's fun and easy! This is the 26th year for the auction. For more information and details on how to participate see the recent article in the Ephemeris. http://ephemeris.sjaa.net/0603/h.html The SJAA offers free advertising if you preregister your items for the auction. Please email the auction team at auction@sjaa.net with a description of the item and a picture if possible. All items submitted by 6 PM on Saturday, April 8th will be added to this website. This allows the bidders to find out how much that APO scope is really worth, so you will be more likely to sell it. In addition, we are limiting the auction to 100 items with preference given to preregisted items. Click Here to see the items which have been preregistered!: http://www.sjaa.net/Auction2006/auction06.htm Part of running a successful auction is to make sure that there are people who are new to astronomy in attendance. We can use your help to make this so! Download and print a swap poster to display. Post them at the bulletin boards at work, at church, at your local library, or where you think people might be interested. Hand it out to a friend who has expressed interest in getting a telescope. You get the idea! We also have cards you can print out. Thanks for your assistance! Poster: http://www.sjaa.net/Auction2006/SJAAAuctionPoster06.pdf Cards: http://www.sjaa.net/Auction2006/AuctionCards06.pdf We could use a few volunteers to help set up, work the auction desk, helping sellers move and register equipment. Last year, we started a half hour late due to the lack of volunteers, so please consider helping out this year. You can still fully participate even if you volunteer. Please contact me at koopm _at_ best.com if you are interested. Finally, if you have some easily transportable chairs, please bring them. It seems that the park has been losing chairs over time. ***************************** Directions to Houge Park: Houge Park is in San Jose, near Campbell and Los Gatos. >From Hwy.17, take the Camden Avenue exit. Go east 4/10 mile, and turn right at the light, onto Bascom Avenue. At the next light, turn left onto Woodard Road. At the first stop sign, turn right onto Twilight Drive. Go three blocks, cross Sunrise Drive, then turn left into the park. >From Hwy.85, take the Bascom Avenue exit. Go north 0.2 miles, and turn right at the first traffic light, onto White Oaks Road. Run another 0.2 miles to the first stop sign, then turn left onto Twilight Drive. You will now be passing the park. Turn right at the first driveway, into the parking lot. See Map at http://www.sjaa.net/img/houge.jpg *********************************** Clear Skies, Mike Koop President, SJAA Email any comments, questions, or flames to Koopm at best.com From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Tue Apr 4 18:54:00 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Tue Apr 4 18:54:18 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: [AANC Contacts] Benjamin Dean Lecture Monday April 10th Message-ID: <005101c65853$cf90a1d0$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> Subject: [AANC Contacts] Benjamin Dean Lecture Monday April 10th What: Benjamin Dean Lecture Series on Monday, April 10. ?How Stars Are Made" Dr. Steve Stahler, University of California, Berkeley When & where: Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, 3200 California Street, in Kanbar Hall at 7:30pm. Tickets are available at the door for $4. On a clear night, the sky is filled with countless stars. These objects must be the natural outcome of processes that occur all the time, throughout our Galaxy and others. Indeed, images taken with radio and infrared telescopes show us new stars forming relatively nearby. The progenitor objects are large clouds permeating interstellar space. These clouds undergo gravitational collapse to form primitive stars, which then evolve to become mature objects like our own Sun. A large body of research, mostly undertaken within the past few decades, has led to a good understanding of the basic evolutionary process. Nevertheless, deep mysteries remain in this active and exciting field. Dr. Steven Stahler is an astrophysicist at U. C. Berkeley. Raised in Maryland,he attended graduate school at Berkeley in physics. He was a professor at MIT before returning to the Bay Area in 1992. He research centers on the problem of star formation, and he recently coauthored the first comprehensive textbook in the field ("The Formation of Stars," Stahler & Palla, Wiley-VCH, 2004). Trained as a theoretical physicist, Steve especially delights in the aesthetic aspect of his research, which he tries to convey in his numerous public talks. ____________________ Katie J. Berryhill Lecturer Coordinator, Benjamin Dean Lecture Series Morrison Planetarium California Academy of Sciences 875 Howard Street San Francisco, CA 94103 kberryhill@calacademy.org _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Thu Apr 6 12:00:55 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Thu Apr 6 12:01:11 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] "Nova" episode devoted to the NASA Cassini-Huygens mission Message-ID: <20060406190055.45616.qmail@web80331.mail.yahoo.com> PBS has a new episode of their series "Nova", devoted to the NASA Cassini-Huygens mission and especially to Saturn's moon, Titan. This looks like something you won't want to miss. Voyage to the Mystery Moon (#3309Z) Duration: 56:46 CC Stereo DVS TVG Follows a heart-pounding voyage of discovery, from the laboratory to the control room to the surface of Titan itself. Orbiting Saturn, more than a half-billion miles from Earth, an orange moon named "Titan" keeps many secrets that may hold the key to the origins of life. This mysterious moon is one of only four astral bodies in the solar system to have an atmosphere, and the only one believed to resemble that of early Earth. Scientists have set their sights on Titan with the hope of understanding the past of our own planet. It is a bold mission that gambles a lifetime of work on a single satellite. Now, eight years after its launch, the Huygen space probe is about to touch down. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/titan/ Channels and Air dates: KQED offers several programming channels in addition to their normal Channel 9 broadcast. The KQED HD, Encore and World channels are available if you subscribe to Comcast digital cable, or if you have an antenna and over-the-air digital television tuner. KQED Channel 9 Fri, Apr 7, 2006 -- 3:00 am KQED HD (Comcast HD subscribers) Thu, Apr 6, 2006 -- 11:00 pm Mon, Apr 10, 2006 -- 9:00 pm KQED Encore (Comcast digital cable subscribers) Wed, Apr 5, 2006 -- 7:00 am Wed, Apr 5, 2006 -- 3:00 pm Sun, Apr 9, 2006 -- 4:00 pm KQED World (Comcast digital cable subscribers) Thu, Apr 6, 2006 -- 8:00 am Thu, Apr 6, 2006 -- 11:00 am Sat, Apr 8, 2006 -- 10:00 pm KTEH (Ch. 54, San Jose) Thursday, April 13, 8:00pm Monday, April 17, 12:00am _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.sjaa.net/pipermail/sjaa-announce/attachments/20060406/728bcf4f/attachment.html From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Fri Apr 7 10:30:23 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Fri Apr 7 10:30:42 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: [AANC Contacts] The View From the Center of the Universe at CAS Message-ID: <001801c65a68$f3dd19d0$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> What: California Academy of Sciences Lecture Series The View From the Center of the Universe Who: Joel Primack and Nancy Abrams When: April 25, Tuesday 2 & 7:30 pm Where: Sequoia Boardroom, California Academy of Sciences 875 Howard Street San Francisco Cost: $8 if you're not an Academy member. http://www.calacademy.org/lectures/#universe For more information, call (415) 321-8000 or e-mail lectures@calacademy.org _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Fri Apr 7 10:35:02 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Fri Apr 7 10:35:13 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: [AANC Contacts] NOVA program on Cassini-Huygens probe to Titan Message-ID: <003901c65a69$9ad257a0$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> PBS has a new episode of their series "Nova", devoted to the NASA Cassini-Huygens mission and especially to Saturn's moon, Titan. This looks like something you won't want to miss. Voyage to the Mystery Moon (#3309Z) Duration: 56:46 CC Stereo DVS TVG Follows a heart-pounding voyage of discovery, from the laboratory to the control room to the surface of Titan itself. Orbiting Saturn, more than a half-billion miles from Earth, an orange moon named "Titan" keeps many secrets that may hold the key to the origins of life. This mysterious moon is one of only four astral bodies in the solar system to have an atmosphere, and the only one believed to resemble that of early Earth. Scientists have set their sights on Titan with the hope of understanding the past of our own planet. It is a bold mission that gambles a lifetime of work on a single satellite. Now, eight years after its launch, the Huygen space probe is about to touch down. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/titan/ Channels and Air dates: KQED offers several programming channels in addition to their normal Channel 9 broadcast. The KQED HD, Encore and World channels are available if you subscribe to Comcast digital cable, or if you have an antenna and over-the-air digital television tuner. KQED Channel 9 Fri, Apr 7, 2006 -- 3:00 am KQED HD (Comcast HD subscribers) Thu, Apr 6, 2006 -- 11:00 pm Mon, Apr 10, 2006 -- 9:00 pm KQED Encore (Comcast digital cable subscribers) Wed, Apr 5, 2006 -- 7:00 am Wed, Apr 5, 2006 -- 3:00 pm Sun, Apr 9, 2006 -- 4:00 pm KQED World (Comcast digital cable subscribers) Thu, Apr 6, 2006 -- 8:00 am Thu, Apr 6, 2006 -- 11:00 am Sat, Apr 8, 2006 -- 10:00 pm KTEH (Ch. 54, San Jose) Thursday, April 13, 8:00pm Monday, April 17, 12:00am _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts From robhawley at earthlink.net Sat Apr 8 07:55:18 2006 From: robhawley at earthlink.net (Rob Hawley) Date: Sat Apr 8 07:55:44 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Photos from Libya Total Solar Eclipse now available Message-ID: I published my photos and report on the S&T/TravelQuest Total Solar Eclipse to Libya this morning at www.robhawley.net/libya06 Please feel free to share this link with others. I will probably rev the site again near the end of April since some of the more technical information was not complete Rob Hawley From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Wed Apr 12 17:22:23 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Wed Apr 12 17:22:46 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: [AANC Contacts] "Small Worlds in the Distant Solar System" Saturday, April 29, 8:30 pm Mountain Theater with Dr. Dale Cruikshank NASA-Ames Message-ID: <002a01c65e90$564323a0$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> >From Tinka Ross of MTIA ( Mt. Tamalpias Interpretive Association) Hope Spring Eternal . . . . Yes, the rains will end. Yes, we will have clear nights on Mt Tam. So, our first program on April 1 was weathered out. But don?t loose the faith. We?ll try again! Saturday, April 29, at 8:30 in the Mountain Theater with Dr. Dale Cruikshank from NASA-Ames. The outer solar system is getting a lot of attention right now, including results from the Cassini Mission currently visiting Saturn and the New Horizons Mission on its way to Pluto. Dr. Cruikshank is a return speaker to the Mountain who has enthralled us before. Come hear his report on "Small Worlds in the Distant Solar System". Our programs are FREE and open to the general public. We encourage families, students and youth groups to attend. The Madrone Picnic area is reserved from 6:30pm and the talk will be followed by telescope viewing in the Rock Spring Parking Area until around 11:30pm. Dress warmly and bring a flashlight. Carpool if possible. If you can volunteer to help call Tinka at 415-454-4715. Sponsored by your State Park, assisted by the Mount Tamalpais Interpretive Association and telescopes courtesy of the San Francisco Amateur Astronomers. I hate to even suggest it, but if the weather is iffy the day of the program, call the hotline 415-455-5370. The message changes around 3:00pm, but only if there is a cancellation. If the programs will go as scheduled the tape will not be updated. You can also check with SFAA at 415-289-NOFOG. Thank you for sharing this information with others. The full season is listed at www.mttam.net _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Wed Apr 12 17:23:21 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Wed Apr 12 17:23:35 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: REMINDER: ASTRONAUT LECTURE Wednesday 4/12 at 7 p.m. Message-ID: <003801c65e90$78fb6240$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> REMINDER: ASTRONAUT LECTURE Wednesday 4/12 at 7 p.m.Subject: REMINDER: ASTRONAUT LECTURE Wednesday 4/12 at 7 p.m. What: Free Public Lecture by local astronaut Steve Robinson Date: April 12, 2006 Time: 7:00 PM Place: NASA Ames Research Center, Building 943, Eagle Room. (This is in the complex at the entrance to Moffett Field, just off Moffett Blvd. Turn right at the stop sign just before the Moffett Field entry gate.) Free to the Public NASA Astronaut Steve Robinson will give a free public lecture at NASA Ames Research Center on April 12 to mark the celebration of the 25th Anniversary of STS-1, the first orbital flight of the space shuttle, and the boldest test flight in history. The lecture will be in the Eagle Room of Building 943, located adjacent to the Exploration Center. Seating is limited, so please arrive early to participate in this special event (the capacity of the Eagle room is 320). During his talk, Robinson will discuss: * Working at Ames in aeronautics before and during STS-1. * His recent experience flying on the STS-114 "Return to Flight" mission, July 26-August 9, 2005. * The new opportunities faced by NASA with advent of the new Crew Exploration Vehicle and the Crew Launch Vehicle. Before the lecture you can visit the NASA Exploration Center and NASA gift shop that will be open until 7 p.m. The Exploration Center will feature new exhibits and a special video about NASA Ames' contributions to the Shuttle program. Dr. Stephen Robinson, a San Francisco Bay Area native, began his NASA career in 1975 as a co-op student at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., while attending the University of California at Davis. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical/aeronautical engineering, he joined NASA Ames as research scientist working in numerous areas including fluid dynamics and aerodynamics. While at Ames, Robinson earned masters and doctorate degrees in mechanical engineering from Stanford University. Robinson joined the astronaut corps in 1995 as a mission specialist. He has flown on three shuttle missions and has logged more than 830 hours in space including more than 20 extra vehicular activity (EVA) or space walking hours. His most notable space walk occurred on his last mission, STS-114, the Return-To-Flight mission, where Robinson became the first astronaut to inspect the bottom of the space shuttle while attached to the vehicle's robotic arm. For more information about this event, and NASA Ames' contributions to the shuttle program, please visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/events/2006/shuttleanniversary.html To reach NASA Ames, take the Moffett Field exit off U.S. 101 and drive east toward the main gate. Before you reach the gate, turn right into the large parking lot near the NASA Exploration Center, the large white dome. Building 943 is located directly across the street from the dome. To receive notices about NASA lectures in the San Francisco Bay Area, send an e-mail with the word "subscribe" in the subject line to: NASA-lectures-request@lists.arc.nasa.gov. To unsubscribe, send an e-mail to the same address with "unsubscribe" in the subject line. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.sjaa.net/pipermail/sjaa-announce/attachments/20060412/65bfc133/attachment.html From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Sat Apr 15 19:55:42 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Sat Apr 15 19:55:57 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: [AANC Contacts] Ancient Galaxies Talk at Foothill College April 26th Message-ID: <003a01c66101$41472140$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> Wednesday, April 26th, 2006, 7 pm: Astronomer Ron Marzke of San Francisco State University will give a non-technical, illustrated talk on: News from the Distant Past: How Galaxies Tell Their Stories --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- in the Smithwick Theater, Foothill College, El Monte Road and Freeway 280, in Los Altos Hills, California. Free and open to the public. Parking on campus costs $2. Call the series hot-line at 650-949-7888 for more information and driving directions. No background in science will be required for this talk. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Marzke will discuss how astronomers are taking advantage of the "time machine" built into the travel time of light in the universe to understand how galaxies like our own Milky Way formed and evolved. Light from distant galaxies can take billions of years to reach our telescopes. But when the light finally arrives, it brings us news of ancient cosmic events as they unfold. Dr. Marzke is part of a team of astronomers who have recently found major surprises in the light of galaxies from far away and long ago. In particular, they discovered a surprisingly large population of massive galaxies which were already fully assembled when the universe was less than half its current age. Dr. Marzke is an associate professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at San Francisco State. He specializes in measurements of the structure of galaxies and the stars they contain, as well as the large-scale distribution of the galaxies. He is a member of the Gemini Deep-Deep Survey team, which is probing the history of galaxies. Co-sponsored by: * NASA Ames Research Center * The Foothill College Astronomy Program * The SETI Institute * The Astronomical Society of the Pacific. ================================ Andrew Fraknoi, Chair, Astronomy Program Foothill College, 12345 El Monte Rd., Los Altos Hills, CA 94022, USA Telephone: (650) 949-7288 E-mail: fraknoiandrew@fhda.edu ================================ _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Mon Apr 17 19:33:23 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Mon Apr 17 19:33:58 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Fw: [AANC Contacts] 2006 Shingletown Star Party Invites You! Message-ID: <003c01c66290$774a5290$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> What: You are invited to attend the 5th Annual Shingletown Star Party in northern California. Where: This star party is situated at 4,000 feet on the slopes of the southern Cascade Mountains, 17 miles from Mount Lassen Volcanic National Park. The park is one of the hidden treasures of the national park system. The star party itself takes place on the runway of a closed airport, five minutes outside the town of Shingletown, where groceries, gas, restaurants, necessities and not so necessities are close at hand. Additionally, we provide a shower truck on-site as part of the admission price. This year we are applying an organic bonding agent to the dirt perimeter of the runway, to offer the most dust free star party environment as possible; a 30 foot center section will be open as a driving lane. When: The star party runs June 21 to June 26, 2006. First night we have a pot luck dinner at the hospitality tent. It is a great way for attendees to get to know each other. Friday night a BBQ dinner is brought in from Redding. The dinner can be purchased when paying your registration fees. Saturday night is a public star party. Why: This star party is a wonderful family destination that combines astronomy with a truly quiet and serene national park. SSP is a tradition that goes back over ten years in the area, when amateur astronomers would gather annually at Mt. Lassen, for dark skys. People come from all over northern California for afternoon festivities, BBQ, music and a guest speaker, then as darkness falls, everyone goes to the telescopes. It is a favorite day for everyone, every year. More info: www.shingletownstarparty.org Questions? Please e-mail us from the web-page. Hope to see you there! SSP 2006 Organizing Committee _______________________________________________ Contacts mailing list Contacts@aanc-astronomy.org http://mail.aanc-astronomy.org/mailman/listinfo/contacts From koopm at koopm.best.vwh.net Thu Apr 20 16:56:09 2006 From: koopm at koopm.best.vwh.net (Michael Koop) Date: Thu Apr 20 16:56:37 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Astro Class Friday: Galaxies with Mark Wagner Message-ID: <20060420174729.V98896@koopm.best.vwh.net> SJAA Events Tomorrow night! A) Beginning Astronomy Class: Observing Galaxies with Mark Wagner B) Houge Park Star Party Friday, April 21, 2006 ********************************************************** A) Beginning Astronomy Class Tonight! Observing Galaxies with Mark Wagner Have you observed all the nearby objects in the Milky Way and are ready to explore outside the neighborhood? Has Markarian been pulling your Chain? The San Jose Astronomical Association Observational Astronomy Class is here to help you! This informal monthly series will teach basic astronomy, the constellations, the movement of the sky, and the use of the telescope. It occurs every third quarter moon Houge Park Star Party Night thru out the year. No Reservations are needed and you can join the class at any time. The class is a free public service provided by the SJAA. The class is held regardless of the weather. Tomorrows (Friday, April 21) class starts at 7:30 PM in the hall at Houge Park. Mark Wagner is a long time member of the club and is the Creator of TAC, The Astronomy Connection (www.observers.org). He is one of the local experts on hunting down faint galaxies with his telescope. One of his favorite projects is to view Galactic Clusters, seeing how many Galaxies he can observe in a single eyepiece field. Mark will start with some background and theory for a little perspective, and then we'll get into the practicalities of how to hunt down the light from those distant island universes. Hear about the basic skills and tools you need, specifically as they apply to hunting down galaxies -- including charts, finders, eyepieces, and telescopes. The class starts with a "Sky Tour" by SJAA President Mike Koop, pointing out how to find the constellations and planets. Weather permitting, after the class we will be pointing out the constellations, planets, and other deep sky wonders through telescopes. (Including a Galaxy or two) A Sample of Mark's Observing Reports: http://observers.org/reports/2005.04.05.5.html http://observers.org/reports/99.09.04.3.html See some of Marks Out There Articles for the Ephemeris: http://ephemeris.sjaa.net/0403/i.html http://ephemeris.sjaa.net/0405/g.html ************************************** B) Houge Park Star Party Fri April 21th, Weather Permitting, 9 PM to Midnight Tomorrow, the SJAA hosts public observing session on the grounds at Houge Park. Families are welcome to attend. Feel free to bring your scope and share views with others. Its not looking too good for weather right now. Maybe the front will speed up and get out of here! Regardless of weather, the Beginning Astro class will be held. Clear Sky Clock for San Jose: http://cleardarksky.com/c/SanJoseCAkey.html?1 NRL Monterey East Pacific & US West Coast Images http://www.nrlmry.navy.mil/sat-bin/epac_westcoast.cgi Sunset: 7:48 PM PDT Civil Twilight: 8:16 PM PDT Nautical Twilight: 8:48 PM PDT Astronomical Twilight: 9:23 PM PDT Moonrise: 03:38 on 4/22/2006 10 Cool Things to Observe Tonight! 1) Comet Schwassmann-Wachmann 3. Will we be able to see this broken up comet from Houge Park? http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/comets/article_1704_1.asp 2) The Planets! Mars, Jupiter, Saturn are all visible. 3) A nice ISS Pass. The space station will be near Denebola at 9:03 PDT around Mag. -0.9. 4) M81 and M82: This pair of interacting galaxies are easy to observe in any scope or binocular. 5) The Sombrero Galaxy M104 .The Famous Edge on Spiral Galaxy 50 Million Light Years Away 6) M 13: Globular Cluster, 23,000 LY, > 300,000 stars, 140 LY across. First recorded by Edmund Halley. 7) M44: Open Cluster: Praesepe (Latin for "manger"), or the Beehive cluster, 577 ly, about 350 Stars 8) Gamma Virginis: Double Star Par of mag 3.5 yellow white stars. Orbit=169 years Closest in 2005 9) NGC3242: Planetary: Ghost of Jupiter, Mag 11 Central Star, 2600 Ly away 10) M 3: Globular Cluster, 33,900 LY, > 500,000 stars, 180 LY across. Large Number of Blue Stragglers ************************************** Directions to Houge Park: Houge Park is in San Jose, near Campbell and Los Gatos. >From Hwy.17, take the Camden Avenue exit. Go east 4/10 mile, and turn right at the light, onto Bascom Avenue. At the next light, turn left onto Woodard Road. At the first stop sign, turn right onto Twilight Drive. Go three blocks, cross Sunrise Drive, then turn left into the park. >From Hwy.85, take the Bascom Avenue exit. Go north 0.2 miles, and turn right at the first traffic light, onto White Oaks Road. Run another 0.2 miles to the first stop sign, then turn left onto Twilight Drive. You will now be passing the park. Turn right at the first driveway, into the parking lot. See Map at http://www.sjaa.net/img/houge.jpg *********************************** Clear Skies, Mike Koop President, SJAA Email any comments, questions, or flames to Koopm at best.com From bhavner at sbcglobal.net Wed Apr 26 19:07:30 2006 From: bhavner at sbcglobal.net (Bob & Brenda Havner) Date: Wed Apr 26 19:07:42 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Lick Observatory Concert Series Message-ID: <005001c6699f$57b14630$60d9fea9@Turtlerock> Lick Observatory presents a summer concert series which benefits the Lick Observatory Visitors Program. Talks by our famous research astronomers begin right after the music. Viewing through the 36-inch telescope follows, weather permitting. Amateur astronomer volunteers provide additional outside viewing and informal talks. For complete Information about the Music of the Spheres Program including Dates, Speakers, and Performances go to: http://www.ucolick.org/public/music.html Only 160 seats are available each night. Concerts sell out quickly and ticket requests are filled in the order received. Tickets sold through UCSC Ticket Office UCSC Ticket Office Hours: Tues. - Sat., 12 - 4 pm To purchase tickets Phone: 831-459-2159 For more information: Phone: 831-459-2159 Email: tickets@ucsc.edu VIP and Preferred tickets available May 2, 2006 Standard tickets available May 9, 2006. 2006 Ticket Pricing Ever wonder how modern astronomy is done? What an astronomer does all night? How a telescope moves? VIP ticket entitles you to a behind-the-scenes tour of the Shane 120-inch reflecting telescope before the concert. The Shane telescope is used in world-famous research, for example, the search for extrasolar planets. This private walking tour includes a light buffet and begins promptly 2 hours prior to the concert. This unique opportunity is limited to 20 VIP ticket holders per concert. VIP Tickets are $150 ($100.00 tax deductible) private tour of the 120-inch reflecting telescope light buffet reserved seating at concert astronomy talk viewing through the 36-inch refracting telescope commemorative wineglass or coffee cup 20 percent discount in our gift shop Preferred tickets are $100.00 ($73.00 tax deductible) reserved seating at concert astronomy talk viewing through the 36-inch refracting telescope commemorative wineglass or coffee cup 20 percent discount in our gift shop Standard tickets are $40.00 ($15.00 tax deductible) concert astronomy talk viewing through the 36-inch refracting telescope commemorative wineglass or coffee cup A handling fee of $1 per ticket, up to a maximum of $6 per order, will be charged. Tickets are non-refundable. From jvn at svpal.org Thu Apr 27 19:59:00 2006 From: jvn at svpal.org (Jim Van Nuland) Date: Thu Apr 27 20:17:14 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] Telescopes for sale Message-ID: <445184F4.1CD6@svpal.org> Hi, Paul, Here's a "for sale" ad for two telescopes. Since it's also going to some mailing lists, it's possible that it will see before publication time. Any buyer: please let Paul know, ephemeris at sjaa dot net. FOR SALE LX-200, 10 inch, motorized GO-TO scope. Great condition, superb optics. $1500. Celestron C-5, excellent condition, great optics. Table plus tripod. 9-volt drive. $700 Dan and Edie Stokes. Call 831-751-9704, in Salinas. -- Jim Van Nuland, San Jose (California) Astronomical Association JVN's web site From pkohlmil at best.com Sun Apr 30 22:12:33 2006 From: pkohlmil at best.com (Paul Kohlmiller) Date: Sun Apr 30 22:13:02 2006 Subject: [SJAA-announce] May Ephemeris Online Message-ID: <00b801c66cdd$dac23250$0300a8c0@eclipsys.lan> The May Issue of the SJAA Ephemeris is now available online at: http://ephemeris.sjaa.net/ Note that you can follow hyperlinks from the PDF version. Paul Kohlmiller -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.sjaa.net/pipermail/sjaa-announce/attachments/20060430/12e750e3/attachment.html