9
The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society P.O. Box 50581, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87181-0581 www.TAAS.org S ince 1959 INSIDE 2....... President’s Message 3....... Under the Dome 4....... Astrophoto: The California Nebula 5....... Observing Venus in Daylight, Telescope Loan Program 6.......Astrophoto: Thor’s Helmet 7 ........ TAAS Reports & Notices 8....... TAAS Directors & Staff continued on page 2 . . . continued on page 2 . . . May 2020 Observe—Educate—Have Fun The Sidereal Times TAAS FABULOUS FIFTY SERIES! By Lynne Olson The Fabulous Fifty, or Fab 50 as it’s known, is another of the excellent TAAS programs for members and the public as an introduction – or refresher – to fifty of the major naked-eye targets, broken down into the four seasons. This long-running series started by Dee Friesen years ago, and ran at his home in the Heights for some time be- fore being passed on to several other generous members, all of whom have carried on the tradition in fine fashion. At present, the Fab 50 coordinator is Phil Fleming, who holds the gatherings at the All Saints Orthodox Church facility, 10440 4 th Street NW in Albuquerque. At times, this program is presented at star parties or even as an As- tronomy 101. Adult Night at the Explora Science Center By Lynne Olson Although the Adult Night is not a TAAS event per se, our members have been participating in support of this Explora program for many years. Our members take their telescopes to the observing deck of the build- ing and give guests views of the night sky wonders, as well as regaling them with information about what they are seeing, both of which are well appreciated. In return, Explora provides them with refreshments, assists in transporting the scopes and gives TAAS excel- lent exposure to the public by featuring our cards and information sheets to visitors. This has been a beneficial relationship for all con- Editors Note: Due to the ongoing coronavirus emergency, the TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks, through at least May 15 and possibly longer. Our GNTO observatory remains available for TAAS members, with a limit of no more than five individuals at each session. See TAAS_talk email postings for further information.

The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

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Page 1: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical SocietyPO Box 50581 Albuquerque New Mexico 87181-0581 wwwTAASorg

S i n c e 1959

I N S I D E2 Presidentrsquos Message3 Under the Dome

4 Astrophoto The California Nebula5 Observing Venus in Daylight Telescope Loan Program 6Astrophoto Thorrsquos Helmet

7TAAS Reports amp Notices8 TAAS Directors amp Staff

continued on page 2 continued on page 2

May 2020 ObservemdashEducatemdashHave Fun

The Sidereal Times

TAAS FABULOUS FIFTY SERIESBy Lynne Olson

The Fabulous Fifty or Fab 50 as itrsquos known is another of the excellent TAAS programs for members and the public as an introduction ndash or refresher ndash to fifty of the major naked-eye targets broken down into the four seasonsThis long-running series started by Dee Friesen years ago and ran at his home in the Heights for some time be-fore being passed on to several other generous members all of whom have carried on the tradition in fine fashionAt present the Fab 50 coordinator is Phil Fleming who holds the gatherings at the All Saints Orthodox Church facility 10440 4th Street NW in Albuquerque At times this program is presented at star parties or even as an As-tronomy 101

Adult Night at the Explora Science Center

By Lynne OlsonAlthough the Adult Night is not a TAAS event per se our members have been participating in support of this Explora program for many years Our members take their telescopes to the observing deck of the build-ing and give guests views of the night sky wonders as well as regaling them with information about what they are seeing both of which are well appreciated

In return Explora provides them with refreshments assists in transporting the scopes and gives TAAS excel-lent exposure to the public by featuring our cards and information sheets to visitors

This has been a beneficial relationship for all con-

Editors Note Due to the ongoing coronavirus emergency the TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks through at least May 15 and possibly longer Our GNTO observatory remains available for TAAS members with a limit of no more than five individuals at each session See TAAS_talk email postings for further information

Page 2

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observe ndash Educate ndash Have Fun

P r e s i d e n t rsquo s M e s s a g e Jim Fordice

Join Us for the Virtual Observing SessionsWhen we were forced to cancel all of our events due to the COV-ID-19 Pandemic we started a se-ries of Virtual Observing Events with the idea of staying engaged in amateur astronomy as a clubWe began with the Messier Mar-athon and followed that with the Day 11 and 12 Lunar Observing event As I write this message we are in the middle of the Globe at Night event If you have par-ticipated in one or more of these events thanks If you have not participated please join usIn the midst of the Virtual Events I have been working on the Astronomical Leaguersquos Urban

Observing Program (httpsww-wlastroleagueorgalobsclubsurbanurbanhtml) It is a great list for what you can observe in an urban area The program is based on using a 6rdquo telescope and allows the use of Go-To The program includes an excel-lent list of tips for observing in light polluted areas It would be great to have Becky Ramatowski handing out some certificates and pins from this program in a few monthsCan GNTO Be UsedWhile we are not opening GNTO for regular observing events it is still open to all TAAS members The procedure for using the site on your own is available at httpwwwtaasorgGNTODocu- Each session features a lecture time

to acquaint all with the objects to be discussed and later observed a viewing aided by telescopes brought by our members and a social period for talking over the experience and for meeting fellow enthusiasts (To read about the program in depth click on the item ldquoFabulous 50rdquo on the left column of our webpage)Our spring session was canceled due to the COVID-19 health crisis and the summer event may be as well But as things open up you will be able to find the information on our webpage and calendar at wwwtaasorg on our Facebook page and pub-licized with various organizations We look forward to offering this to you again very soonContact Phil by email at wp-flem2010gmailcom

T A A S F a b u l o u s F i f t y c o n t i n u e d f r o m p a g e 1

mentshtml Look for the GNTO Observing Field Access Proce-dure and ChecklistWhether you use GNTO or not is a personal decision Please keep in mind that the governorrsquos Stay-at-Home order places a limit of no more than five people participating in a group activitySo if you plan to use GNTO you need to comply with that limit The best way to accomplish that is to determine via TAAS_Talk in advance who will attendKeep safe out there and keep Observing Educating (your-self) and Having Fun

A d u l t N i g h t a t E x p l o r a c o n t i n u e d f r o m p a g e 1

cerned ndash Explora enjoys having the telescopes there and our friendly and knowledgeable members are truly exhibiting our motto ndash ldquoOb-serve Educate Have Funrdquo

At present Bob Hufnagel orga-nizes this activity between the sci-ence center and TAAS every other month on a Friday and encourages all who enjoy interacting with the public to bring their scopes for a great evening

The next Explora Adult Night which had been scheduled for May 15 has been postponed When our

current health crisis has passed TAAS will be back on the job so stay tuned for further information

Page 3

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Under the DomeNotes from and about GNTO Jim Fordice

April 16 - Special Observing Session

I was the Opener I was joined by Vance Ley Bridget de Saint Phalle Boris Venet and Susan Evans We enjoyed good observing conditions once the wind settled down after sunset

Vance imaged M64 He battled some equipment issues but pre-vailed in the end Bridget was re-learning how to use her Losmandy mount Boris was doing nightscapes of Virgo Susan was using the tried and true method of laying on her back and looking at interesting ob-jects both naked eye and with bin-oculars I was using an 8rdquo SCT with a ZWO camera to learn how to do live imaging of interesting objects I made some progress in that direc-tion

Vance Susan and I slept at the site and departed in the morning All-in-all a pretty good night at our Dark Sky site One picture attached showing well-spaced telescopes No coronavirus sharing here

Possible Upcoming Events

Some or all of these events may be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Watch the website for additional information See my Presidentrsquos Message concerning how GNTO can be used while we

are under the Stay-at-Home order bull May 16 3rd Quarter Moon Ob-

serving (I am the Opener)bull May 23 New Moon Observing

(Vance Ley is Opener)bull June 13 3rd Quarter Moon

Observing (Mike Fuge is the Opener)

bull June 20 New Moon Observing (Mark Goodman is Opener)

Donrsquot forget that the GNTO Observ-ing Field is available for use by TAAS members anytime Check the TAAS website for the procedure to follow Contact me if you have any questions

ldquoProper distancingrdquo at GNTO Photo by Jim Fordice

As always check TAAS_Talk and the TAAS website for last-minute changes and updates GNTO events are open to all TAAS members and their guests Contact GNTO Director GNTOTAASorg or 505-803-3640

Page 4

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

The California Nebula NGC 1499 without stars It is sometimes easier to see the intricacies of neb-ulosity without the distraction of a dense star field I have attempted to remove the stars surrounding the California Nebula ndash except one which is believed primarily respon-sible for lighting up this enormous nebula covering more than 25 degrees in the sky in Perseus and resembling the shape of the state of California It is only 12 degrees from the Pleiades but it is very difficult to see visually since the surface brightness is so low Note the beautiful deli-cate structure in the nebularsquos surface another example of Fine Art created by Mother Naturersquos physics

Discovered by E E Barnard in 1884 this nebula is a cloud of hydrogen atoms that is emitting mostly deep red light from excitation by the neighboring blue giant star Menkib (aka Xi Persei) estimated to be 300 light years behind the nebula This is one of the hottest and most massive stars visible to the naked eye (magnitude 41) Its surface tem-perature is 37000 K and its visual luminosity is 13000 times greater than our sun (330000 times greater count-ing the UV spectrum) The powerful UV from Menkib

excites the hydrogen in the nebula which appears to be just hanging out in the cosmos about 1600 ly from Earth

I made this image from 34 eight-minute exposures (4 hours 32 minutes) on February 1 2019 from my back-yard in northeast Albuquerque using the auto-guided Takahashi Epsilon 180ED telescope and Nikon D850 camera at ISO 800

I also used a special narrowband filter by Cyclops Op-tics loaned to me by my friend and fellow TAAS member Eric Toops from Magdalena The filterrsquos two bands pass only light in the blue green (501 nm) near the hydrogen beta emission and the Oxygen III emission and in the deep red at the hydrogen alpha emission (656 nm) It is difficult to color balance the file made through this filter but it essentially eliminates light pollution while maintaining some star color and is ideal to use with a one-shot color camera The image files were processed in PixInsight I used the awesome neural net trained Starnet script to remove the stars mdashBob Fugate

Page 5

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observing Venusin Daylight

For the Astronomical Leaguersquos Solar System

Observing AwardBy Alan Scott

One of the lists one needs to complete to acquire an Astro-nomical League Observer Award is the Solar System Observing Award You must complete 25 dif-ferent observations one of which is to observe Venus in the day-time This is generally done with a computerized telescope so there is no chance of looking into the sun

To quote the Astronomical League ldquoCHOOSE THIS PROJECT ONLY IF YOU HAVE A TELESCOPE PROPER-LY POLAR ALIGNED AND CAPABLE OF LOCATING THE PLANET WITH-OUT ENDANGERING EITHER THE

INSTRUMENT OR YOURSELF ndash USE EXTREME CAUTION ndash EYE DAM-AGE COULD RESULTrdquo

Turns out it can also be done safely naked eye - but only when Venus is in the west

On April 15th at about 6 PM I tried it Sunset was about 747 PM so the sun was about 20 degrees above the western horizon Skies were crystal blue without a cloud in sight transparency was spectacular seeing was unknown (it was still daytime) and light pollution was insane

Venus was in the west about 63 degrees above the horizon in Tau-rus There are three tricks needed to see Venus naked eye in daylight 1) You have to make sure you are observing safely 2) Venus has to be bright enough 3) and you have to find it

Venus was magnitude -45 so was possibly visible in daylight I went to the east side of my garage deep enough in shadow that there was no possibility the sun could ac-cidentally be seen Using an iPad and SkySafari and using Compass mode I found where Venus should be I then used a pair of Cannon IS 10x30 binoculars to locate it

The planet was surprisingly big bright and beautiful I then moved towards the garage placing Ve-nus just above the ridge of the roof Lowering the binoculars and knowing exactly where to look I saw nothing But after a few minutes of effort Venus blinked into view for a second disap-peared and blinked back into view for a second I then verified I had seen Venus with the binoculars once again

You can see Venus in the daytime Give it a try ndash safely

Telescope Loan Program UpdateBy Rick Vergas Telescope Loan Program Coordinator

The Loan Program remains suspended for now no other news this month

Loan Program Statistics

of Scopes on Loan Available

on Loan

35 28 7 80 Type Reflectors Refractors Catadioptrics

23 7 12

Size Large (gt8rdquo) Medium (5rdquo-8rdquo) Small (lt5rdquo) 12 17 13

Tracking Manual Push-To Go-To Tracking 26 5 7 11 As of 32120

Page 6

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Thorrsquos Helmet NGC 2359 A Wolf-Rayet star in the center excites a large molecular cloud creating an emission nebula The Wolf-Rayet star is believed to be in a ldquopre-supernovardquo stageThis object is approximately 12000 light-years away in the constellation Canis Major and is about 30 light-years across It is difficult to image because itrsquos pretty dim and never gets very high in the skyThe data was obtained on 2-15-2020 using the imaging dome equipment at GNTO The C-14 hyperstar instrument operating at f19 together with the SBIG ST8300 C camera enabled me to capture this image in only one hourThe objectrsquos small size ndash only 12rsquox 12rsquomdashrequired substantial cropping of the 91rsquo x 69rsquo field of view 60 x 60rdquo subframes were acquired calibrated and stacked in PixInsight mdashVance Ley

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 2: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 2

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observe ndash Educate ndash Have Fun

P r e s i d e n t rsquo s M e s s a g e Jim Fordice

Join Us for the Virtual Observing SessionsWhen we were forced to cancel all of our events due to the COV-ID-19 Pandemic we started a se-ries of Virtual Observing Events with the idea of staying engaged in amateur astronomy as a clubWe began with the Messier Mar-athon and followed that with the Day 11 and 12 Lunar Observing event As I write this message we are in the middle of the Globe at Night event If you have par-ticipated in one or more of these events thanks If you have not participated please join usIn the midst of the Virtual Events I have been working on the Astronomical Leaguersquos Urban

Observing Program (httpsww-wlastroleagueorgalobsclubsurbanurbanhtml) It is a great list for what you can observe in an urban area The program is based on using a 6rdquo telescope and allows the use of Go-To The program includes an excel-lent list of tips for observing in light polluted areas It would be great to have Becky Ramatowski handing out some certificates and pins from this program in a few monthsCan GNTO Be UsedWhile we are not opening GNTO for regular observing events it is still open to all TAAS members The procedure for using the site on your own is available at httpwwwtaasorgGNTODocu- Each session features a lecture time

to acquaint all with the objects to be discussed and later observed a viewing aided by telescopes brought by our members and a social period for talking over the experience and for meeting fellow enthusiasts (To read about the program in depth click on the item ldquoFabulous 50rdquo on the left column of our webpage)Our spring session was canceled due to the COVID-19 health crisis and the summer event may be as well But as things open up you will be able to find the information on our webpage and calendar at wwwtaasorg on our Facebook page and pub-licized with various organizations We look forward to offering this to you again very soonContact Phil by email at wp-flem2010gmailcom

T A A S F a b u l o u s F i f t y c o n t i n u e d f r o m p a g e 1

mentshtml Look for the GNTO Observing Field Access Proce-dure and ChecklistWhether you use GNTO or not is a personal decision Please keep in mind that the governorrsquos Stay-at-Home order places a limit of no more than five people participating in a group activitySo if you plan to use GNTO you need to comply with that limit The best way to accomplish that is to determine via TAAS_Talk in advance who will attendKeep safe out there and keep Observing Educating (your-self) and Having Fun

A d u l t N i g h t a t E x p l o r a c o n t i n u e d f r o m p a g e 1

cerned ndash Explora enjoys having the telescopes there and our friendly and knowledgeable members are truly exhibiting our motto ndash ldquoOb-serve Educate Have Funrdquo

At present Bob Hufnagel orga-nizes this activity between the sci-ence center and TAAS every other month on a Friday and encourages all who enjoy interacting with the public to bring their scopes for a great evening

The next Explora Adult Night which had been scheduled for May 15 has been postponed When our

current health crisis has passed TAAS will be back on the job so stay tuned for further information

Page 3

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Under the DomeNotes from and about GNTO Jim Fordice

April 16 - Special Observing Session

I was the Opener I was joined by Vance Ley Bridget de Saint Phalle Boris Venet and Susan Evans We enjoyed good observing conditions once the wind settled down after sunset

Vance imaged M64 He battled some equipment issues but pre-vailed in the end Bridget was re-learning how to use her Losmandy mount Boris was doing nightscapes of Virgo Susan was using the tried and true method of laying on her back and looking at interesting ob-jects both naked eye and with bin-oculars I was using an 8rdquo SCT with a ZWO camera to learn how to do live imaging of interesting objects I made some progress in that direc-tion

Vance Susan and I slept at the site and departed in the morning All-in-all a pretty good night at our Dark Sky site One picture attached showing well-spaced telescopes No coronavirus sharing here

Possible Upcoming Events

Some or all of these events may be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Watch the website for additional information See my Presidentrsquos Message concerning how GNTO can be used while we

are under the Stay-at-Home order bull May 16 3rd Quarter Moon Ob-

serving (I am the Opener)bull May 23 New Moon Observing

(Vance Ley is Opener)bull June 13 3rd Quarter Moon

Observing (Mike Fuge is the Opener)

bull June 20 New Moon Observing (Mark Goodman is Opener)

Donrsquot forget that the GNTO Observ-ing Field is available for use by TAAS members anytime Check the TAAS website for the procedure to follow Contact me if you have any questions

ldquoProper distancingrdquo at GNTO Photo by Jim Fordice

As always check TAAS_Talk and the TAAS website for last-minute changes and updates GNTO events are open to all TAAS members and their guests Contact GNTO Director GNTOTAASorg or 505-803-3640

Page 4

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

The California Nebula NGC 1499 without stars It is sometimes easier to see the intricacies of neb-ulosity without the distraction of a dense star field I have attempted to remove the stars surrounding the California Nebula ndash except one which is believed primarily respon-sible for lighting up this enormous nebula covering more than 25 degrees in the sky in Perseus and resembling the shape of the state of California It is only 12 degrees from the Pleiades but it is very difficult to see visually since the surface brightness is so low Note the beautiful deli-cate structure in the nebularsquos surface another example of Fine Art created by Mother Naturersquos physics

Discovered by E E Barnard in 1884 this nebula is a cloud of hydrogen atoms that is emitting mostly deep red light from excitation by the neighboring blue giant star Menkib (aka Xi Persei) estimated to be 300 light years behind the nebula This is one of the hottest and most massive stars visible to the naked eye (magnitude 41) Its surface tem-perature is 37000 K and its visual luminosity is 13000 times greater than our sun (330000 times greater count-ing the UV spectrum) The powerful UV from Menkib

excites the hydrogen in the nebula which appears to be just hanging out in the cosmos about 1600 ly from Earth

I made this image from 34 eight-minute exposures (4 hours 32 minutes) on February 1 2019 from my back-yard in northeast Albuquerque using the auto-guided Takahashi Epsilon 180ED telescope and Nikon D850 camera at ISO 800

I also used a special narrowband filter by Cyclops Op-tics loaned to me by my friend and fellow TAAS member Eric Toops from Magdalena The filterrsquos two bands pass only light in the blue green (501 nm) near the hydrogen beta emission and the Oxygen III emission and in the deep red at the hydrogen alpha emission (656 nm) It is difficult to color balance the file made through this filter but it essentially eliminates light pollution while maintaining some star color and is ideal to use with a one-shot color camera The image files were processed in PixInsight I used the awesome neural net trained Starnet script to remove the stars mdashBob Fugate

Page 5

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observing Venusin Daylight

For the Astronomical Leaguersquos Solar System

Observing AwardBy Alan Scott

One of the lists one needs to complete to acquire an Astro-nomical League Observer Award is the Solar System Observing Award You must complete 25 dif-ferent observations one of which is to observe Venus in the day-time This is generally done with a computerized telescope so there is no chance of looking into the sun

To quote the Astronomical League ldquoCHOOSE THIS PROJECT ONLY IF YOU HAVE A TELESCOPE PROPER-LY POLAR ALIGNED AND CAPABLE OF LOCATING THE PLANET WITH-OUT ENDANGERING EITHER THE

INSTRUMENT OR YOURSELF ndash USE EXTREME CAUTION ndash EYE DAM-AGE COULD RESULTrdquo

Turns out it can also be done safely naked eye - but only when Venus is in the west

On April 15th at about 6 PM I tried it Sunset was about 747 PM so the sun was about 20 degrees above the western horizon Skies were crystal blue without a cloud in sight transparency was spectacular seeing was unknown (it was still daytime) and light pollution was insane

Venus was in the west about 63 degrees above the horizon in Tau-rus There are three tricks needed to see Venus naked eye in daylight 1) You have to make sure you are observing safely 2) Venus has to be bright enough 3) and you have to find it

Venus was magnitude -45 so was possibly visible in daylight I went to the east side of my garage deep enough in shadow that there was no possibility the sun could ac-cidentally be seen Using an iPad and SkySafari and using Compass mode I found where Venus should be I then used a pair of Cannon IS 10x30 binoculars to locate it

The planet was surprisingly big bright and beautiful I then moved towards the garage placing Ve-nus just above the ridge of the roof Lowering the binoculars and knowing exactly where to look I saw nothing But after a few minutes of effort Venus blinked into view for a second disap-peared and blinked back into view for a second I then verified I had seen Venus with the binoculars once again

You can see Venus in the daytime Give it a try ndash safely

Telescope Loan Program UpdateBy Rick Vergas Telescope Loan Program Coordinator

The Loan Program remains suspended for now no other news this month

Loan Program Statistics

of Scopes on Loan Available

on Loan

35 28 7 80 Type Reflectors Refractors Catadioptrics

23 7 12

Size Large (gt8rdquo) Medium (5rdquo-8rdquo) Small (lt5rdquo) 12 17 13

Tracking Manual Push-To Go-To Tracking 26 5 7 11 As of 32120

Page 6

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Thorrsquos Helmet NGC 2359 A Wolf-Rayet star in the center excites a large molecular cloud creating an emission nebula The Wolf-Rayet star is believed to be in a ldquopre-supernovardquo stageThis object is approximately 12000 light-years away in the constellation Canis Major and is about 30 light-years across It is difficult to image because itrsquos pretty dim and never gets very high in the skyThe data was obtained on 2-15-2020 using the imaging dome equipment at GNTO The C-14 hyperstar instrument operating at f19 together with the SBIG ST8300 C camera enabled me to capture this image in only one hourThe objectrsquos small size ndash only 12rsquox 12rsquomdashrequired substantial cropping of the 91rsquo x 69rsquo field of view 60 x 60rdquo subframes were acquired calibrated and stacked in PixInsight mdashVance Ley

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 3: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 3

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Under the DomeNotes from and about GNTO Jim Fordice

April 16 - Special Observing Session

I was the Opener I was joined by Vance Ley Bridget de Saint Phalle Boris Venet and Susan Evans We enjoyed good observing conditions once the wind settled down after sunset

Vance imaged M64 He battled some equipment issues but pre-vailed in the end Bridget was re-learning how to use her Losmandy mount Boris was doing nightscapes of Virgo Susan was using the tried and true method of laying on her back and looking at interesting ob-jects both naked eye and with bin-oculars I was using an 8rdquo SCT with a ZWO camera to learn how to do live imaging of interesting objects I made some progress in that direc-tion

Vance Susan and I slept at the site and departed in the morning All-in-all a pretty good night at our Dark Sky site One picture attached showing well-spaced telescopes No coronavirus sharing here

Possible Upcoming Events

Some or all of these events may be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Watch the website for additional information See my Presidentrsquos Message concerning how GNTO can be used while we

are under the Stay-at-Home order bull May 16 3rd Quarter Moon Ob-

serving (I am the Opener)bull May 23 New Moon Observing

(Vance Ley is Opener)bull June 13 3rd Quarter Moon

Observing (Mike Fuge is the Opener)

bull June 20 New Moon Observing (Mark Goodman is Opener)

Donrsquot forget that the GNTO Observ-ing Field is available for use by TAAS members anytime Check the TAAS website for the procedure to follow Contact me if you have any questions

ldquoProper distancingrdquo at GNTO Photo by Jim Fordice

As always check TAAS_Talk and the TAAS website for last-minute changes and updates GNTO events are open to all TAAS members and their guests Contact GNTO Director GNTOTAASorg or 505-803-3640

Page 4

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

The California Nebula NGC 1499 without stars It is sometimes easier to see the intricacies of neb-ulosity without the distraction of a dense star field I have attempted to remove the stars surrounding the California Nebula ndash except one which is believed primarily respon-sible for lighting up this enormous nebula covering more than 25 degrees in the sky in Perseus and resembling the shape of the state of California It is only 12 degrees from the Pleiades but it is very difficult to see visually since the surface brightness is so low Note the beautiful deli-cate structure in the nebularsquos surface another example of Fine Art created by Mother Naturersquos physics

Discovered by E E Barnard in 1884 this nebula is a cloud of hydrogen atoms that is emitting mostly deep red light from excitation by the neighboring blue giant star Menkib (aka Xi Persei) estimated to be 300 light years behind the nebula This is one of the hottest and most massive stars visible to the naked eye (magnitude 41) Its surface tem-perature is 37000 K and its visual luminosity is 13000 times greater than our sun (330000 times greater count-ing the UV spectrum) The powerful UV from Menkib

excites the hydrogen in the nebula which appears to be just hanging out in the cosmos about 1600 ly from Earth

I made this image from 34 eight-minute exposures (4 hours 32 minutes) on February 1 2019 from my back-yard in northeast Albuquerque using the auto-guided Takahashi Epsilon 180ED telescope and Nikon D850 camera at ISO 800

I also used a special narrowband filter by Cyclops Op-tics loaned to me by my friend and fellow TAAS member Eric Toops from Magdalena The filterrsquos two bands pass only light in the blue green (501 nm) near the hydrogen beta emission and the Oxygen III emission and in the deep red at the hydrogen alpha emission (656 nm) It is difficult to color balance the file made through this filter but it essentially eliminates light pollution while maintaining some star color and is ideal to use with a one-shot color camera The image files were processed in PixInsight I used the awesome neural net trained Starnet script to remove the stars mdashBob Fugate

Page 5

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observing Venusin Daylight

For the Astronomical Leaguersquos Solar System

Observing AwardBy Alan Scott

One of the lists one needs to complete to acquire an Astro-nomical League Observer Award is the Solar System Observing Award You must complete 25 dif-ferent observations one of which is to observe Venus in the day-time This is generally done with a computerized telescope so there is no chance of looking into the sun

To quote the Astronomical League ldquoCHOOSE THIS PROJECT ONLY IF YOU HAVE A TELESCOPE PROPER-LY POLAR ALIGNED AND CAPABLE OF LOCATING THE PLANET WITH-OUT ENDANGERING EITHER THE

INSTRUMENT OR YOURSELF ndash USE EXTREME CAUTION ndash EYE DAM-AGE COULD RESULTrdquo

Turns out it can also be done safely naked eye - but only when Venus is in the west

On April 15th at about 6 PM I tried it Sunset was about 747 PM so the sun was about 20 degrees above the western horizon Skies were crystal blue without a cloud in sight transparency was spectacular seeing was unknown (it was still daytime) and light pollution was insane

Venus was in the west about 63 degrees above the horizon in Tau-rus There are three tricks needed to see Venus naked eye in daylight 1) You have to make sure you are observing safely 2) Venus has to be bright enough 3) and you have to find it

Venus was magnitude -45 so was possibly visible in daylight I went to the east side of my garage deep enough in shadow that there was no possibility the sun could ac-cidentally be seen Using an iPad and SkySafari and using Compass mode I found where Venus should be I then used a pair of Cannon IS 10x30 binoculars to locate it

The planet was surprisingly big bright and beautiful I then moved towards the garage placing Ve-nus just above the ridge of the roof Lowering the binoculars and knowing exactly where to look I saw nothing But after a few minutes of effort Venus blinked into view for a second disap-peared and blinked back into view for a second I then verified I had seen Venus with the binoculars once again

You can see Venus in the daytime Give it a try ndash safely

Telescope Loan Program UpdateBy Rick Vergas Telescope Loan Program Coordinator

The Loan Program remains suspended for now no other news this month

Loan Program Statistics

of Scopes on Loan Available

on Loan

35 28 7 80 Type Reflectors Refractors Catadioptrics

23 7 12

Size Large (gt8rdquo) Medium (5rdquo-8rdquo) Small (lt5rdquo) 12 17 13

Tracking Manual Push-To Go-To Tracking 26 5 7 11 As of 32120

Page 6

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Thorrsquos Helmet NGC 2359 A Wolf-Rayet star in the center excites a large molecular cloud creating an emission nebula The Wolf-Rayet star is believed to be in a ldquopre-supernovardquo stageThis object is approximately 12000 light-years away in the constellation Canis Major and is about 30 light-years across It is difficult to image because itrsquos pretty dim and never gets very high in the skyThe data was obtained on 2-15-2020 using the imaging dome equipment at GNTO The C-14 hyperstar instrument operating at f19 together with the SBIG ST8300 C camera enabled me to capture this image in only one hourThe objectrsquos small size ndash only 12rsquox 12rsquomdashrequired substantial cropping of the 91rsquo x 69rsquo field of view 60 x 60rdquo subframes were acquired calibrated and stacked in PixInsight mdashVance Ley

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 4: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 4

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

The California Nebula NGC 1499 without stars It is sometimes easier to see the intricacies of neb-ulosity without the distraction of a dense star field I have attempted to remove the stars surrounding the California Nebula ndash except one which is believed primarily respon-sible for lighting up this enormous nebula covering more than 25 degrees in the sky in Perseus and resembling the shape of the state of California It is only 12 degrees from the Pleiades but it is very difficult to see visually since the surface brightness is so low Note the beautiful deli-cate structure in the nebularsquos surface another example of Fine Art created by Mother Naturersquos physics

Discovered by E E Barnard in 1884 this nebula is a cloud of hydrogen atoms that is emitting mostly deep red light from excitation by the neighboring blue giant star Menkib (aka Xi Persei) estimated to be 300 light years behind the nebula This is one of the hottest and most massive stars visible to the naked eye (magnitude 41) Its surface tem-perature is 37000 K and its visual luminosity is 13000 times greater than our sun (330000 times greater count-ing the UV spectrum) The powerful UV from Menkib

excites the hydrogen in the nebula which appears to be just hanging out in the cosmos about 1600 ly from Earth

I made this image from 34 eight-minute exposures (4 hours 32 minutes) on February 1 2019 from my back-yard in northeast Albuquerque using the auto-guided Takahashi Epsilon 180ED telescope and Nikon D850 camera at ISO 800

I also used a special narrowband filter by Cyclops Op-tics loaned to me by my friend and fellow TAAS member Eric Toops from Magdalena The filterrsquos two bands pass only light in the blue green (501 nm) near the hydrogen beta emission and the Oxygen III emission and in the deep red at the hydrogen alpha emission (656 nm) It is difficult to color balance the file made through this filter but it essentially eliminates light pollution while maintaining some star color and is ideal to use with a one-shot color camera The image files were processed in PixInsight I used the awesome neural net trained Starnet script to remove the stars mdashBob Fugate

Page 5

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observing Venusin Daylight

For the Astronomical Leaguersquos Solar System

Observing AwardBy Alan Scott

One of the lists one needs to complete to acquire an Astro-nomical League Observer Award is the Solar System Observing Award You must complete 25 dif-ferent observations one of which is to observe Venus in the day-time This is generally done with a computerized telescope so there is no chance of looking into the sun

To quote the Astronomical League ldquoCHOOSE THIS PROJECT ONLY IF YOU HAVE A TELESCOPE PROPER-LY POLAR ALIGNED AND CAPABLE OF LOCATING THE PLANET WITH-OUT ENDANGERING EITHER THE

INSTRUMENT OR YOURSELF ndash USE EXTREME CAUTION ndash EYE DAM-AGE COULD RESULTrdquo

Turns out it can also be done safely naked eye - but only when Venus is in the west

On April 15th at about 6 PM I tried it Sunset was about 747 PM so the sun was about 20 degrees above the western horizon Skies were crystal blue without a cloud in sight transparency was spectacular seeing was unknown (it was still daytime) and light pollution was insane

Venus was in the west about 63 degrees above the horizon in Tau-rus There are three tricks needed to see Venus naked eye in daylight 1) You have to make sure you are observing safely 2) Venus has to be bright enough 3) and you have to find it

Venus was magnitude -45 so was possibly visible in daylight I went to the east side of my garage deep enough in shadow that there was no possibility the sun could ac-cidentally be seen Using an iPad and SkySafari and using Compass mode I found where Venus should be I then used a pair of Cannon IS 10x30 binoculars to locate it

The planet was surprisingly big bright and beautiful I then moved towards the garage placing Ve-nus just above the ridge of the roof Lowering the binoculars and knowing exactly where to look I saw nothing But after a few minutes of effort Venus blinked into view for a second disap-peared and blinked back into view for a second I then verified I had seen Venus with the binoculars once again

You can see Venus in the daytime Give it a try ndash safely

Telescope Loan Program UpdateBy Rick Vergas Telescope Loan Program Coordinator

The Loan Program remains suspended for now no other news this month

Loan Program Statistics

of Scopes on Loan Available

on Loan

35 28 7 80 Type Reflectors Refractors Catadioptrics

23 7 12

Size Large (gt8rdquo) Medium (5rdquo-8rdquo) Small (lt5rdquo) 12 17 13

Tracking Manual Push-To Go-To Tracking 26 5 7 11 As of 32120

Page 6

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Thorrsquos Helmet NGC 2359 A Wolf-Rayet star in the center excites a large molecular cloud creating an emission nebula The Wolf-Rayet star is believed to be in a ldquopre-supernovardquo stageThis object is approximately 12000 light-years away in the constellation Canis Major and is about 30 light-years across It is difficult to image because itrsquos pretty dim and never gets very high in the skyThe data was obtained on 2-15-2020 using the imaging dome equipment at GNTO The C-14 hyperstar instrument operating at f19 together with the SBIG ST8300 C camera enabled me to capture this image in only one hourThe objectrsquos small size ndash only 12rsquox 12rsquomdashrequired substantial cropping of the 91rsquo x 69rsquo field of view 60 x 60rdquo subframes were acquired calibrated and stacked in PixInsight mdashVance Ley

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 5: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 5

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Observing Venusin Daylight

For the Astronomical Leaguersquos Solar System

Observing AwardBy Alan Scott

One of the lists one needs to complete to acquire an Astro-nomical League Observer Award is the Solar System Observing Award You must complete 25 dif-ferent observations one of which is to observe Venus in the day-time This is generally done with a computerized telescope so there is no chance of looking into the sun

To quote the Astronomical League ldquoCHOOSE THIS PROJECT ONLY IF YOU HAVE A TELESCOPE PROPER-LY POLAR ALIGNED AND CAPABLE OF LOCATING THE PLANET WITH-OUT ENDANGERING EITHER THE

INSTRUMENT OR YOURSELF ndash USE EXTREME CAUTION ndash EYE DAM-AGE COULD RESULTrdquo

Turns out it can also be done safely naked eye - but only when Venus is in the west

On April 15th at about 6 PM I tried it Sunset was about 747 PM so the sun was about 20 degrees above the western horizon Skies were crystal blue without a cloud in sight transparency was spectacular seeing was unknown (it was still daytime) and light pollution was insane

Venus was in the west about 63 degrees above the horizon in Tau-rus There are three tricks needed to see Venus naked eye in daylight 1) You have to make sure you are observing safely 2) Venus has to be bright enough 3) and you have to find it

Venus was magnitude -45 so was possibly visible in daylight I went to the east side of my garage deep enough in shadow that there was no possibility the sun could ac-cidentally be seen Using an iPad and SkySafari and using Compass mode I found where Venus should be I then used a pair of Cannon IS 10x30 binoculars to locate it

The planet was surprisingly big bright and beautiful I then moved towards the garage placing Ve-nus just above the ridge of the roof Lowering the binoculars and knowing exactly where to look I saw nothing But after a few minutes of effort Venus blinked into view for a second disap-peared and blinked back into view for a second I then verified I had seen Venus with the binoculars once again

You can see Venus in the daytime Give it a try ndash safely

Telescope Loan Program UpdateBy Rick Vergas Telescope Loan Program Coordinator

The Loan Program remains suspended for now no other news this month

Loan Program Statistics

of Scopes on Loan Available

on Loan

35 28 7 80 Type Reflectors Refractors Catadioptrics

23 7 12

Size Large (gt8rdquo) Medium (5rdquo-8rdquo) Small (lt5rdquo) 12 17 13

Tracking Manual Push-To Go-To Tracking 26 5 7 11 As of 32120

Page 6

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Thorrsquos Helmet NGC 2359 A Wolf-Rayet star in the center excites a large molecular cloud creating an emission nebula The Wolf-Rayet star is believed to be in a ldquopre-supernovardquo stageThis object is approximately 12000 light-years away in the constellation Canis Major and is about 30 light-years across It is difficult to image because itrsquos pretty dim and never gets very high in the skyThe data was obtained on 2-15-2020 using the imaging dome equipment at GNTO The C-14 hyperstar instrument operating at f19 together with the SBIG ST8300 C camera enabled me to capture this image in only one hourThe objectrsquos small size ndash only 12rsquox 12rsquomdashrequired substantial cropping of the 91rsquo x 69rsquo field of view 60 x 60rdquo subframes were acquired calibrated and stacked in PixInsight mdashVance Ley

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 6: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 6

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Thorrsquos Helmet NGC 2359 A Wolf-Rayet star in the center excites a large molecular cloud creating an emission nebula The Wolf-Rayet star is believed to be in a ldquopre-supernovardquo stageThis object is approximately 12000 light-years away in the constellation Canis Major and is about 30 light-years across It is difficult to image because itrsquos pretty dim and never gets very high in the skyThe data was obtained on 2-15-2020 using the imaging dome equipment at GNTO The C-14 hyperstar instrument operating at f19 together with the SBIG ST8300 C camera enabled me to capture this image in only one hourThe objectrsquos small size ndash only 12rsquox 12rsquomdashrequired substantial cropping of the 91rsquo x 69rsquo field of view 60 x 60rdquo subframes were acquired calibrated and stacked in PixInsight mdashVance Ley

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 7: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 7

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

M e m b e r s h i p S e r v i c e s

forbullMembership InquiriesbullEvents InformationbullVolunteer Opportunities

Contact Bob Anderson at membershipTAASorg

forbullMembership DuesbullAddresse-mail changes

Contact Doug LeGrand at treasurerTAASorg

TAASPO Box 50581

Albuquerque NM 87181

Courtesy Pete Eschman

E x p l a n a t i o n o f D u e s a n d M e m b e r s h i p R e n e w a l D a t e

New memberships are registered immediately if you pay online If you pay by check your membership is registered when your check is re-ceived by the treasurer

Renewal notices will be sent out via e-mail beginning 60 days before your membership expires If your membership is renewed before it expires or with in 90 days after it ex-pires your new expiration date will be advanced one year from the previous expiration date and your membership will be continuous

If dues payment is received more than 90 days after the expiration date you will be reinstated as a mem-ber with an expiration date set as one year from the receipt of payment

D o n a t i o n s t o T A A S

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society is a 501(c)(3) organization Donations are deduct-ible as charitable contributions on the donorrsquos federal income tax return

Ricky AdamsPeter Eschman

Jim FordiceJohn Hatton

Chet amp Amara McLeesAngie RichmanThe United Way

T A A S R e p o r t s amp N o t i c e s

E d i t o r rsquo s N o t e The deadline for the next issue of The Sidereal Times is Monday May 25 The newsletter editorsrsquo e-mail address is editorTAASorg

W e l c o m e t o N e wo r R e t u r n i n g

T A A S M e m b e r s

Anthony Bonanno

Robert Fesen

Albert Franco

Alberto Franco

Dante Franco

Pamela Franco

Sofia Franco

Ronald Mori

L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o n L o c a t i o nbull Chaco Canyonbull

6185rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 36˚ 01rsquo 50rdquoN 107˚ 54rsquo 36rdquoW

3603˚ -10791˚ 36˚ 183rsquo -107˚ 5460rsquo

bull Oak Flatbull 7680rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 34˚ 59rsquo 48rdquoN 106˚ 19rsquo 17rdquoW

3499˚ -10632˚ 34˚ 5980rsquo -106˚ 1928rsquo

bull UNM Campus Observatorybull 5180rsquo elevation Latitude Longitude 35˚ 5rsquo 29rdquoN 106˚ 37rsquo 17rdquoW

3509˚ -10662˚ 35˚ 548rsquo -106˚ 3729rsquo

For security reasons GNTO location is available by request only so please contact

Jim Fordice GNTO Director for GNTO information e-mail GNTOTAASorg

M o n t h l y M e m b e r s h i p R e p o r tA p r i l 2 0 2 0

Membership Current Past Change Month Month

Regular 242 247 -5Family 140 143 -3Educator 16 16 0Student 10 10 0Military 2 3 -1Honorary 5 5 0Total Members 415 425 -10

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 8: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

Page 8

The Sidereal Times May 2020

The Official Newsletter of The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Jim Fordice PresidentpresidentTAASorg505-803-3640

steve sNider Vice PresidentvpTAASorg505-249-4066

doug LegraNd TreasurertreasurerTAASorg505-559-0252

carL LarsoN Secretary secretaryTAASorg408-623-4717

robert aNdersoN DirectorMembership CoordinatormembershipTAASorg505-275-1916

Jim Fordice DirectorGNTO Director gntoTAASorg505-803-3640

mark goodmaN DirectorEducation Outreach Directoreducation_coordTAASorg505-328-6157

bob havLeN Directorrhavlenearthlinknet505-856-3306

boris veNet DirectorChaco Events Coordinator UNM Observatory Coordinator venetbsprintmailcom505-507-7838

rick vergas DirectorTelescope Loan Coordinatortelescope_loansTAASorg505-620-2832

Astronomical League Coordinator Becky Ramotowski 505-286-8334 AL_coordinatorTAASorg ATM Coordinator Ray Collins 505-344-9686 atmTAASorg Chaco Events Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 venetbsprintmailcom Education Outreach Mark Goodman 505-328-6157 education_coordTAASorg Explora Adult Night Coordinator Bob Hufnagel 505-890-8122 rhufnagel2comcastnet Fabulous Fifty Coordinator Phil Fleming 505-870-5604 fab50TAASorg GNTO Director Jim Fordice 505-803-3640 gntoTAASorg Membership Chair Bob Anderson 505-275-1916 membershipTAASorg Nametag Coordinator Billie Sue Patrick 575-937-1659 nametagTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Content Bruce Meyer 917-449-0700 editorTAASorg Newsletter Co-Editor Design Gary Cooper 505-227-3974 editorTAASorg Public Events Coordinator Steve Snider 505-249-4066 events_coordinatorTAASorg Publicity Coordinator Lynne Olson 505-856-2537 prTAASorg Scout Coordinator Chaz Jetty 505-350-7949 scout_coordinatorTAASorg Telescope Loan Coordinator Rick Vergas 505-620-2832 telescope_loansTAASorg UNM Observatory Coordinator Boris Venet 505-507-7838 UNM_coordTAASorg Webmaster John Purnell 209-355-5166 webmasterTAASorg

2 0 2 0 T A A S B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s S t a f f

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom

Page 9: The Sidereal Times The Official Newsletter of ... - taas.org · TAAS General Meeting for May and all other regular TAAS events and gatherings are cancelled for the next several weeks,

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoEditorrsquos Pick 2013 Best of the Cityrdquo award from Albuquerque Magazine

BEST PLACE TO STARGAZECELESTIAL EDITION

TAAS was honored to receive an ldquoOUT-OF-THIS-WORLDrdquo AWARD 2011

from Astronomy Magazine for Outstanding Public Programming

MEMBERSHIP

You can join TAAS or renew your membership online Just go to wwwtaasorg and select ldquoJoin Usrdquo or ldquoRenew Your Membershiprdquo from the main menu on the left side Annual dues are $30 for a regular membership $15 for educators and active military and $5 for students Only regular members are eligible to vote in society matters Our new member information packet can be viewed or downloaded from the same location on the website You can pay your dues on line through PayPal by Visa MasterCard or American Express To pay by check mail your check to TAAS PO Box 50581 Albuquerque NM 87181-0581 or give it to the treasurer at one of our meetings

MAGAZINES

TAAS no longer offers magazine subscriptions

ARTICLESADVERTISEMENTS

Articles personal astronomical clas-sified advertisements and advertise-ments for businesses related to as-tronomy must be submitted by the deadline shown on the Society calen-dar (generally the Friday near the new Moon) Rates for commercial ads (per issue) are $120 per page $60 per half page $30 per quarter page $7 for business card size The newsletter edi-tor reserves the right to include andor edit any article or advertisement E-mail attachments in Microsoft Word or compatible word processor format ASCII and RTF are acceptable One space between paragraphs is pre-ferred One column is approximately 350 words Contact the Newsletter Editor at editorTAASorg for more in-formation

Note that the Sidereal Times is no longer mailed It is posted on the TAAS website wwwTAASorg

Send submissions or correspondence to editorTAASorg

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

PO Box 50581Albuquerque NM 87181-0581

taas ONLINE

TAAS website httpwwwTAASorg

The TAAS website includes

bull Programs bull taas 200 bull TAAS Fabulous Fiftybull Educational Outreach School Star

Parties Solar Astronomy Outreachbull Equipment Trader bull Telescope Loaner Programbull Telescope Making and Maintenance And more

bull Online Sidereal Timesbull Calendar of TAAS Eventsbull Membersrsquo Guidebull Links to Astronomy Resources and

Membersrsquo Blogs

E-mail TAASTAASorg

Membersrsquo Google GroupTAAS_talkgooglegroupscom