Hey Dale, were you able to use the Barska 15 X 70's much before the
flood hit Tidewater? I believe you were the one who got a good deal
on them online (Jan. meeting). What have you seen in them? Are you
happy with them? I've been kicking around getting a pair, but I'm not
much of an "equipment person" though they might come in handy in
getting my Lunar Cert.

Rick Bish

Kent,

Please add my name.

Rob






From: "kentblackwell <kent@...>" <kent@...>
Reply-To: backbayastro@...
To: backbayastro@...
Subject: [backbayastro] Observing this weekend
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2003 02:41:19 -0000

It looks like the weekend is shaping up to be a cloudy one. Can you
belive it? I mean we've had such a cloud-free winter season. Yea,
right. Let's hope we have better luck next new moon, and better luck
at the East Coast Star Party.

If anyone isn't already on my ECSP email list but wishes to be please
let me know.

Thanks.

Kent Blackwell



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We just need to coordinate all our scope deliveries for the day of the full moon....

Rob





From: "joseph_piotrowski <joepiotrowski@...>" <joepiotrowski@...>
Reply-To: backbayastro@...
To: backbayastro@...
Subject: [backbayastro] Mea Culpa
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2003 02:00:42 -0000

All,
I accept full responsibilty for the bad weather of late.I had the
audacity of offending the Gods of astronomy by getting a new scope.I
think someone Ptol on me.There may be something to that geocentric
model too.Please accept my humble apologies.
Joe



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开云体育

Kent,
I originally was able to arrange for the May weekend off but when the
date was finalized for March I will unfortunately be on call. Wish I
could be there. Maybe, however since I won't be there you can be
assured of good weather.
Joe Piotrowski

If anyone isn't already on my ECSP email list but wishes to be

please

let me know.

Thanks.

Kent Blackwell

You are not alone my friend, for I too have surely offended these same Gods ...?since last September when?my new scope arrived.? Please add my humble apologies to the pot!

Mike (Collins)? Not yet a bona fide member of the BBAA

?"joseph_piotrowski " wrote:

All,
I accept full responsibilty for the bad weather of late.I had the
audacity of offending the Gods of astronomy by getting a new scope.I
think someone Ptol on me.There may be something to that geocentric
model too.Please accept my humble apologies.
Joe



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---

Do you Yahoo!?
- forms, calculators, tips, and more

It looks like the weekend is shaping up to be a cloudy one. Can you
belive it? I mean we've had such a cloud-free winter season. Yea,
right. Let's hope we have better luck next new moon, and better luck
at the East Coast Star Party.

If anyone isn't already on my ECSP email list but wishes to be please
let me know.

Thanks.

Kent Blackwell

All,
I accept full responsibilty for the bad weather of late.I had the
audacity of offending the Gods of astronomy by getting a new scope.I
think someone Ptol on me.There may be something to that geocentric
model too.Please accept my humble apologies.
Joe

That works for me... I guess it's an issue of how much storage space she has.

Rob






From: twforte@...
Reply-To: backbayastro@...
To: backbayastro@...
Subject: Re: [backbayastro] Re: Newsletter
Date: Tue, 25 Feb 2003 17:36:19 EST

Great, guys and gals!? We are really coming UPTOWN!?

I am proud to be a member of this fine group.

George

?twforte@... wrote:

In a message dated 2/24/03 8:15:40 PM Eastern Standard Time,
robschonk@... writes:

<< They can be uploaded to our Yahoo group under "files"
? >>

Just looked at the page Marla built and it has some distinct advantages over
the file section here ... its flashy and professional looking and she can
maintain it from work (she cannot access this site from the school).?

You gotta see it, looks great!? I'll build a link from our site, (she has a
link on the page that takes you back to the BBAA site.).? I think this will
work wonderfully.? What I suggest is that we keep six months on her site for
promotional purposes and as the issues rotate off we can archive them here on
Yahoo.? Sort of for an "historical" record.

Ted


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George Reynolds, Deputy Commander, Tidewater South Section Royal Rangers

Visit my Web page:? ?

"Solar System Ambassador" for South Hampton Roads, Virginia

?Member, Back Bay Amateur Astronomers (BBAA)?

---

Do you Yahoo!?
- Powerful. Affordable.

Sorry, I'll be out of town. I've heard that lecture and it's most
interesting. Good luck.

Kent Blackwell

Hey guys,

I'm also a member of this association. This is great stuff. It
combines both my profession and my hobby. I am forwarding this info
to see if any of my fellow BBAA's would like to attend this with me.

Let me know.

Eric

Egiles1@...


Hampton Roads AITP (Assoc. of Information Technology Professionals)


March Meeting Preview

Prasun Desai, NASA

Our March speaker will be Prasun N. Desai from the NASA Langley
Research Center. Mr. Desai will speak on "The Mars Exploration
Project."

Over the coming decade, NASA plans to send a multitude of missions to
the Red planet. The missions will consist of various types: Landers,
Orbiters, Rovers, and maybe even Airplanes. The goal of these
missions is to perform scientific investigations of Mars to help
determine and understand it's geologic, climatic, and mineralogic
history and identify where the conditions may have been favorable to
the preservation of evidence of pre-botic or biotic processes.
Simply stated, the motto of these missions is to "follow the water."
This presentation will include an overview of past missions that have
flown to Mars, current missions that are being developed, and future
mission the are being planned and their goals.

*

Our Next Meeting is Tuesday, March 4th, 2003
Point Plaza Suites & Conference Hotel (formerly the Ramada Inn) at I-
64 & US 17, Newport News, Va.
Social Hour - 5:30 PM, Dinner - 6:30 PM, Program - 7:30 PM
Members - $16, Spouse/Significant Other - $19, Guests - $19,
Students - $13
If you will be joining us for the speaker and not for dinner, we
request a donation of $5.
For Reservations: Call Digital Applications Inc., at 827-1250 no
later than noon on the Friday preceding the meeting.

Full Newsletter is at www.aitp-hr.com

*

In a message dated 2/24/03 8:15:40 PM Eastern Standard Time,
robschonk@... writes:

<< They can be uploaded to our Yahoo group under "files"
>>

Just looked at the page Marla built and it has some distinct advantages over
the file section here ... its flashy and professional looking and she can
maintain it from work (she cannot access this site from the school).

You gotta see it, looks great! I'll build a link from our site, (she has a
link on the page that takes you back to the BBAA site.). I think this will
work wonderfully. What I suggest is that we keep six months on her site for
promotional purposes and as the issues rotate off we can archive them here on
Yahoo. Sort of for an "historical" record.

Ted

Lelane Arneson sent me this, thought Id put it out here due to the short time
frame:

Item Name Sale-Lot Number Current
Bid State Number of
Bidders Close Time
(*) Possible Extension. See Bidding Rules.
MODEL, SPACE TELESCOPE 31FBPI03032002 180 USD per lot VA 5 03/01 07:28 PM

CST *

Item Description

Bidding Details

Bidding Rules

Bid History

Completed Trades



ONE LOT CONSISTING OF MODEL, SPACE TELESCOPE SPACE TELESCOPE MOUNTED ON

WOODEN BOARD HAS ONE BROKEN SOLARPANEL. 12" X 18" X18", DATE MFG: 19870101,
(1 EA); EXHIBIT COMPOSITES THIS COMPOSITES EXHIBIT WAS ON LONG TERM LOAN TO
THE VIRGINIA AIR AND SPACE CENTER. IT IS NOW EXCESS TO THE NEED OF THE
TRAVELING EXHIBITS PROGRAM. (1 EA); -USED- *NON-US CITIZENS WILL NOT BE
AUTHORIZED ON NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER TO INSPECT OF PICKUP SURPLUS
PERSONAL PROPERTY. (803301/2308,S016/2318,S015) MAKE: ECHELON TECH MODEL:
1/25

If this auction is scheduled to close on or after March 2, 2003, new Terms

& Conditions apply. The new terms and conditions require that all registered
users must provide credit card information. Beginning March 2 when you log
in, you will automatically be prompted to provide credit card information

Special Inspection Information:
ONE DAY INSPECTIONWEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 26, 20039:00AM-2:30 PM

Please contact the custodian for additional information about this item(s)

and for inspection dates and times.

Successful bidders are cautioned that they will be responsible for loading

and removal of any and all property awarded to them from the exact place
where the property is located, as indicated below

Property Location and Custodian Information:
NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER
MAIL STOP 381
4 SOUTH MARVIN STREET
HAMPTON,VA 23681-0001

Contact: LOLIA DEAL
phone:757-864-8307 ext: 0000000
fax:757-864-3388

For additional inquiries about payment and pickup of this item(s), contact:
US General Services Administration
The Strawbridges Bldg.
20 North 8th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3191
Phone: 215-446-5065
FAX: 215-446-5117
GSAAuctions.MidAtlantic@...

Marla,

You are a wonder!? A real gem!? You put out a masterpiece every month, and now you are adding archives.? I think that's great!? Thank you for all you do.

George

?"Marla " wrote:

Thanks, Georgie! I appreciate all you do to get the hard copy
newsletters out too!! I know you're at my mercy every month as to
when you can do your part. I try hard to accommodate your schedule!!

I'm working on a new site with the archived newsletters too... it
just takes me awhile. I'll not put the current ones on for public
viewing until they are dated a couple months. The url for it is
if any of you newer
members would like to read some of the older newsletters. I have
November and December on the site as of today. I'll probably put
about 6 months worth on it at a time.

It is great that we have so many articles for our newsletter that I
can't fit them all in. I hope the font size didn't make any of you
have to get new glasses in order to read it! I was just trying to
get as much in it as possible.

And it is good to get articles from the new members, and they were
very good articles.? But since I'm still too new at the
astronomy "stuff," I'll just leave the writing to you guys for
awhile (quite awhile probably) and I'll just do what I do best.

I do like reading all of the information that is going back and
forth from you guys who know what you're talking about. Maybe some
of it will sink in!!!

Thanks again!
Marla

--- In backbayastro@..., "Georgie "
wrote:
> WOW!? Another great BBAA newsletter!
>
> It's GREAT to see articles written by some of our new members.?
Way
> to Go Joe Piotrowski and Rick Bish!?
>
> What a great article on Bob Hitt's African Safari and eclipse trip
> also!
>
> georgie :)



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George Reynolds, Deputy Commander, Tidewater South Section Royal Rangers

Visit my Web page:? ?

"Solar System Ambassador" for South Hampton Roads, Virginia

?Member, Back Bay Amateur Astronomers (BBAA)?

---

Do you Yahoo!?
- Powerful. Affordable.

Well, there are no less than six comets crudding up our skies, and I
hope you take an opportunity this weekend to view at least two of
them. If you're observing under a 5th magnitude sky or darker and
have a 4" you should have no problems seeing the brightest, C/2001
RX14 (LINEAR). Located in UMa, it rides high in the sky after 9:00pm.
It's quite bright (10.7 mag) and rather large, with a wide tail
fanning westward. I tried to see it in my 10x40 finder but it was too
close to a bright star to resolve it.

Another fairly good comet, and one culminating even earlier at 8:00pm
EST is C/2001 HT50 (LINEAR-NEAT). The comet has remained stable at
magnitude 11.5 magnitude, only 1/10 magntidue brighter than when I
first observed it on Jan 25, 2003. It's should be quite nice in a 8"
or larger scope; and at 100x should appear large, and round. I
detected a faint but fairly wide tail extending about 5' ENE.

Oh, one other object I'd like to suggest viewing. It's often
overlooked, but shouldn't be. Have you ever observed two galaxies in
collision? Now's your chance. NGC 4038 in Corvus, nicknamed the
Antennae, or Ring Tail lies some 60 million light years distance.
You'll be hard pressed to see the Antennae, but the Ring Tail should
be no problem. It has always reminded me of a shrimp, because of its
curved shape. This "curved" portion is actually the collision galaxy,
NGC 4039.

N4038 shines brightly at 10.9 magnitude, but actually has a high
surface brightness so is quite easy to see in small telescopes.
Please remind me to show it to you ladies and gents in the 25" at
ECSP. Wow! It's stunning. You might hear me say, "It's the best pair
of collison galaxies I've ever seen". That's all for now, I'm going
to bed. If one could observe in one's sleep I'd probably do so.

Here's some positions for the objects mentioned. The comet positions
are those for Saturday, March 1.

C/2001 RX 14
RA 11h 39m 27.1s
DEC +39 14' 06s
UMa
10.7 magnitude

Comet C/2001 HT50
RA 06 24m 45.5s
DEC +03 51' 55s
Monoceros
Magnitude 11.5

Antennae/Ring Tail Galaxy NGC 4038/4039
12h 01m 52.8s
DEC -18 51' 54s
Corvus
Magnitude 10.9


Kent Blackwell

Dale,
Thanks for going all that way to help us all out. Sounds like things
will (slowly) work our way...thanks again.
BTW, were you able to use the Barska 15 X 70's before the flood hit
Tidewater? I believe you were the one who got a good deal on them
online. (Jan. meeting) What have you seen in them? I've been kicking
around getting a pair, (maybe I shouldn't say this...)but I'm not
much of an equipment person, though they might come in handy in
getting my Lunar Cert.
Hang in there Dale...the lights of Super K-Mart might be dimming soon!

Rick Bish


--- In backbayastro@..., "Dale Carey" <stargaz@e...>
wrote:

Hey gang
Went out to Chippokes and dropped off the application with Saturday

night dates.

It will take 3/4 weeks but Darnett said everything is OK and she

will mail the

permit. Also here is where the trouble started.

She said they (Chippokes staff) have had no problems with us, our

group or our plans. It is with the

security guards that are hired at night. They are the ones that

complained they never knew who

was coming or when ect. ect. Since the park closes at sunset our

activities should remain

in the parking lot. Security said people were "down by the river"

and in unauthorized places.

They also inhabit the house by the parking lot. (The way I see it,

we are a pain for them)

But to bad, They have no say so on the rules or permits issued,

they are hired by the park

as security and do not work for the state (private contractor). We

were the only activity ever allowed

in at night and with no formal permit. So this paperwork will take

care of that. After we have our

permit they can not tell us to leave. That helps both parties.
I still felt the staff is "on our side" and want us to enjoy the

park. They will also let us know about any cost

after they discuss it with regional reps.
So, it looks like we WILL keep Chippokes - We may not make the

March 8th date but should be ok

thru the end of the year. I will endeaver to keep this site for

the club.

Thanks to Gerry for filling out the app. and getting it to me.
More later
Dale

All,
Any plans at alternate sites for Feb 28th?
Joe

Dale,
Great work mending fences(that weren't broken apparrently).
Joe
--- In backbayastro@..., "Dale Carey" <stargaz@e...>
wrote:

Hey gang
Went out to Chippokes and dropped off the application with Saturday

night dates.

It will take 3/4 weeks but Darnett said everything is OK and she

will mail the

permit. Also here is where the trouble started.

She said they (Chippokes staff) have had no problems with us, our

group or our plans. It is with the

security guards that are hired at night. They are the ones that

complained they never knew who

was coming or when ect. ect. Since the park closes at sunset our

activities should remain

in the parking lot. Security said people were "down by the river"

and in unauthorized places.

They also inhabit the house by the parking lot. (The way I see it,

we are a pain for them)

But to bad, They have no say so on the rules or permits issued,

they are hired by the park

as security and do not work for the state (private contractor). We

were the only activity ever allowed

in at night and with no formal permit. So this paperwork will take

care of that. After we have our

permit they can not tell us to leave. That helps both parties.
I still felt the staff is "on our side" and want us to enjoy the

park. They will also let us know about any cost

after they discuss it with regional reps.
So, it looks like we WILL keep Chippokes - We may not make the

March 8th date but should be ok

thru the end of the year. I will endeaver to keep this site for

the club.

Thanks to Gerry for filling out the app. and getting it to me.
More later
Dale

Richard,
Didn't really look long enough to see the red spot. Was just kind of
roaming around til midnight then had to pack it in so I could be
rested(sort of) for work in the AM.
Joe
--- In backbayastro@..., Richard Dickson <dickson@j...>
wrote:

Joe,
Congradulations on your new scope! I was observing Jupiter
last night as well and can assure you the poor view at 293X
was due to the seeing. It was poor 95% of the time. It was even
worse just after sunset than when you were observing. If you
were patient though, the few seconds here and there of OK seeing
made up for it. Did you catch the red spot? It was rotating
off just about as the moon's shadow entered. It seems redder
this year than I ever remember, but it's still far from "red".
Enjoy your scope. I've heard really great things about those
C9.25 tubes.

Richard

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--
Richard Dickson
Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility
dickson@j...
(757)269-5082