Dale,
Thanks.I can't make the March meeting. I will be speaking at the
April meeting and would love to look at it.Since the general opinion
is that Rukl's is the best but it is out of print, the one you
mention sounds like the next best choice from what I can see on the
net.
Joe
--- In backbayastro@..., "Dale Carey" <stargaz@e...>
wrote:

Joe
We have a large hard back book called "Atlas of the Lunar

Terminator."

It brakes down every mnt. and crater one by one. Good way to get

your

"lunar cert." I can bring it to next meeting on the 6th or catch

up with

me at home near Super K on Holland rd.
Dale
----- Original Message -----
From: joseph_piotrowski <joepiotrowski@c...>
To: backbayastro@...
Sent: Friday, February 21, 2003 11:18 PM
Subject: [backbayastro] Moon map/atlas


What's the best moon atlas/map to use to explore the moon? Does

the

club library have any? How about stuff from the Internet?That is

if

we ever see the moon or stars again.Sigh!
Joe


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Theres a great freeware atlas called Virtual Atlas of the Moon available at:



Rob






From: twforte@...
Reply-To: backbayastro@...
To: backbayastro@...
Subject: Re: [backbayastro] Moon map/atlas
Date: Sat, 22 Feb 2003 09:57:19 EST

Thanks Ted and Kent! Your different perspectives were very
complimentary and helpful. Also I'll keep my nose burried in my copy
of Wil Tirion's book: The Cambridge Star Atlas.
One of these evenings I'm going to go over to Jarvis Road, and
actually find Uranus using it's RA / Dec!

Rick Bish

If we can't observe at Chipokes or Northwest River Park next
Firday. Has anyone consider going to Lands Ends?

There is a book considered THE definitive atlas of the moon. It's aptly
titled "Atlas of the Moon" (strange, huh?) by Antononin Rukl, published by
Astronomy magazine. Now for the bad news. It's out of print, and I've seen
them go for as much as $100 on Astromart (a great source of used astro
goodies). Supposedly a new edition is on the way, but I've heard that rumor
for more than a year and still haven't see the book. If you see one at a
used book store grab it!

www.astromart.com

Kent Blackwell

Hello Rick. Think of Right Ascension and Declination this way. When we draw
a map of the earth we use latitude and longitude lines. This greatly
assists in finding an accurate location. The same is done in the sky. We
draw imaginary lines across the sky. Those line running north and south are
called RA, or Right Ascension. Lines running east and west are DEC, or
declination. If you look at any detailed map of the sky you'll see these
marked on sky maps. I suggest you go to a library or bookstore near you and
see if any books are offered with good sky maps.

A couple of especially good star atlases for beginners are listed below. I
doubt you'll find either at a library or any local bookstores, but each can
be ordered. The Edmund is especially recommended for a beginner, and besides
the star maps is crammed with much useful information. It's beautifully
written by the late Sam Brown in the 1950s. In the late 1970s it was updated
by Terence Dickinson, and again in the late 1990s. I still refer to mine and
I've been observing more years than I care to remember.

Kent Blackwell

The Edmund Mag 5 Star Atlas
ID30091-18 $6.95
www.scientificsonlin.com
800-728-6999

Wil Tirion's Bright Star Atlas 2000
@$10
Wilmann-Bell
Richmond, VA
www.willbell.com
804-320-7016

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In a message dated 2/22/03 10:21:51 AM Eastern Standard Time,
channelf@... writes:

<< If we can't observe at Chipokes or Northwest River Park next
Firday. Has anyone consider going to Lands Ends?
>>

We probably won't be able to use Chippokes, and we don't want to use NWRP, we
would have to be out by midnight ... a real waste of an almost new moon. The
officers were considering either Land's End or Pettigrew.

Ted

Could you (or anyone out there in BBAA Land, for that matter!)explain

the terms "Right Ascension and Declination" as if you were explaining
them to a 10-year-old? How do I find celestial objects this way?

Another way to visualize Right Ascension and Declination is to imagine a
sphere surrounding the earth at a distance, so that all of the sky is
represented at a single distance on that sphere.

Now imagine the latitude and longitude lines on the earth projected out to
that sphere. The Earth's equator would form a circle around the center of
the sphere, and since the Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees on its axis, that
"celestial equator" is also tilted and so will appear at different elevations
at different times of the year. The equator projected to the celestial
sphere marks 0 degrees declination.

We then mark off equal increments (degrees) of declination from that equator
to the "poles" that are defined by the Earth's axis of rotation. Polaris,
near the north celestial pole is (almost) at 90 degrees declination, but as
we know, is not at the "top" of the sky known as the "Zenith" but is at an
elevation equal to the observer's earthly latitude due to that tilt of the
Earth. Orion's belt is very nearly at zero degrees declination.

On Earth we start the lines of Longitude from an arbitrary point called the
"prime meridian" selected because it goes through the Greenwich Observatory.
In the sky we arbitrarily mark the zero-hour of Right Ascension at the "first
point of Aries" which refers to the point where the "Ecliptic" (apparent path
of the sun) crosses the celestial equator and known as the "Vernal Equinox,"
the day (March 21), that marks the start of spring and is one of the two
dates of about equal day and night. (The other being the Autumnal equinox
about 23 September) By the way, it is called "the first point of Aries"
because that is the constellation that contained the Vernal Equinox at the
time the system was conceived. Due to precession, it is no longer in that
constellation. Look for zero hour R.A. along the Eastern edge of the great
square of Pegasus.

The Earth turns on its axis every 24 hours. It, therefore, takes 24 hours
for the sky to make a complete revolution around an observer on Earth,
advancing 15 degrees an hour. So we divide the sky into 24 segments of 15
degrees each and call the segments "hours." Extending the "clock analogy,"
we divide the hours into minutes and the minutes into seconds.

As Kent already explained, you then use these coordinates in the sky to
define an objects position exactly the way you define the location of a spot
on the earth.

Hope that helps.

Ted

In a message dated 2/21/03 11:19:46 PM Eastern Standard Time,
joepiotrowski@... writes:

<< What's the best moon atlas/map to use to explore the moon? Does the
club library have any? How about stuff from the Internet?That is if
we ever see the moon or stars again.Sigh! >>

Yes, this weather is depressing me!

Asking for the "best" anything in this hobby will evoke enough disagreement
to make the United Nations look like a mutual admiration society.

Rukl's Atlas of the Moon is very well regarded but is unfortunately out of
print. It is sometimes available on the used book market. I used the
Hatfield Photographic Lunar Atlas and found it quite easy to use and learn
from. I also found a large format fold out map of the moon by George Phillip
for just a few dollars at Barnes and Noble. I removed the map from its
binder and pasted it to a Styrofoam poster board that I could take out to the
scope. I found that to be a big help when I completed the Lunar Club
certificate.

There are several shareware/freeware moon-related software available and
dozens of sites dedicated to lunar observing. A. L. P. O. has a lunar
section on their website You might also
consider getting the league's lunar club pamphlet.

Good luck.

Ted

What's the best moon atlas/map to use to explore the moon? Does the
club library have any? How about stuff from the Internet?That is if
we ever see the moon or stars again.Sigh!
Joe

Hey Kent,
My name is Rick. I joined the BBAA in November and am still learning
some of the terminology. You and I have actually never met, but I did
have a question about the terms "Right Ascension and Declination."
The reason I'm asking you, is because you used those terms in you're
note about current comets.
At the end of the note, I was unable to imagine where those comets
would be (not your fault at all).
I've taken a couple of college astronomy courses and that's one thing
I needed more time to understand. I've heard lot of "sage" scientists
and astronomy people using those terms.
Could you (or anyone out there in BBAA Land, for that matter!)explain
the terms "Right Ascension and Declination" as if you were explaining
them to a 10-year-old? How do I find celestial objects this way?
Thanks!

Rick Bish

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Orions 5" Mak-Cass 1540mmFL F12.1
14.5" long standard equipment - 6 x 26 finder
25mm plossl 45* correct angle diagonal and
fully padded case with acc. pockets. I'm including
a Badder solar filter and case that I made.
New from Orion $349.00 + ship not incl. filter
This one is $295.00
or will take a Pentax 10.5 eyepiece + 100
or 120/127mm F5 refractor OTA
Need faster lens for photography This is a great scope.

Looks brand new.

I'll bet that caught your eye. No, the 25" is not up for sale (yet).
I do have the following. The mirror has a fine figure, and the scope
is in very good condition. It's about 5 years old. I've included
current prices as a reference. The package price is $375.

8" f/6 Dobsonian (white tube) ($449 for the current model, plus $50
shipping)

7.5mm & 26mm eyepieces

6x30 Orion finder on twin ring mount. This is far better than on the
new Orion 8" Dobs. Those finders are single ring-mounts which often
get out of alignment.

Orion Reflex Finder (currently sells for $35)

Orion Collimating Eyepiece (currently sells for $35)

Cover (currently sell for $40)

Kent Blackwell

Actually, it took all of five minutes.

Thank Ted for suggesting it.

Rob



From: twforte@...
Reply-To: backbayastro@...
To: backbayastro@...
Subject: Re: [backbayastro] Re: Seeing/Saturn
Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2003 16:36:09 EST

Hey Joe,

I am George Reynolds (not to be confused with Georgie June, our ALCOR).? Let me add my "welcome to the club" greetings.

When I first started in amateur astronomy, way back in . . . oh, I guess it was back in '01 (that's 2001, not 1901!), I had started on the Messier list,?but I got frustrated -- with the lousy seeing, with my eyes, with the light pollution,?my inability to see "faint fuzzies" in the city (especially with a bright moon),??my inability to see "faint fuzzies" in the country, when everyone else could see them, etc., etc.? I was beginning to get discouraged.? Then I decided to look for something I couldn't miss -- the Moon!? And earning the Lunar Certificate rekindled my interest and bolsterd my bruised ego.? It was fun, as well as exciting, and I learned a lot.? I?became the first?"Lunatic" in the club, and inspired others to earn their Lunar Club pin.?

Be careful not to offend the ALCOR, however.? She may?fine you!? ? Well, maybe not, but she'll make you write an essay!? You can read my essay on the BBAA "Articles" page: "".? It takes at least a month to earn, and that's if almost every night is cloudless.? If you get a week of bad weather, it will take another month for those particular lunar features to become visible again along the lunar terminator.? I bought a couple of good moon books and charts.? There's a decent one in the Cambridge Star Atlas, but you may want more detail if you really get into it.

Have a great time, no matter which list you pursue.? And once again, welcome to the BBAA!

George Reynolds (a.k.a. "George '3', or just "G3")

?"joseph_piotrowski " wrote:

Thanks George,
Have downloaded their requirements after my first e mails with Ted
welcoming me to the group. I plan on starting with my Messier
certificate first. I may do the lunar one on days the moon is
particularly anoying. The planetary ones look more rigorous but
worthwhile.There really is no end to them(thank god).
Joe Piotrowski
--- In backbayastro@..., "Georgie "
wrote:
> Hey folks,
>
> Just wanted to let you know, the 2003 ALCON is going to be hosted
by
> the Barnard-Seyfert Astronomical Society in Nashville, TN this year
> on July 9-12th.? If you'd like more information, please check out
> the Astronomical League Website at:
>
>
>
> Also, we have so many new members now that may be interested in
> earning a certificate thru the Astronomical League (AL).? A few of
> the certificates you can earn are:? The Lunar Club, The Messier
> Club, The Urban Club, and The Sunspotters Club.? There are others
> that may interest you also so check out the website to get all the
> details and requirements to earn the certificates.? Once completed
> with all of the requirements, you can turn your observation log
over
> to me and I'll order your certificate and pin.? (same website as
> listed above.? Look on the left hand side under Astro-Info and
click
> Observing Clubs.)? If you have any questions or need additional
> information regarding the Astronomical League or any of it's
> Observing Clubs, please let me know.
>
> Georgie June, Astronomical League Correspondant
> doublestarjune@m...
>



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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)?

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Thanks George,
Have downloaded their requirements after my first e mails with Ted
welcoming me to the group. I plan on starting with my Messier
certificate first. I may do the lunar one on days the moon is
particularly anoying. The planetary ones look more rigorous but
worthwhile.There really is no end to them(thank god).
Joe Piotrowski
--- In backbayastro@..., "Georgie <doublestarjune@m...>"
<doublestarjune@m...> wrote:

Hey folks,

Just wanted to let you know, the 2003 ALCON is going to be hosted

by

the Barnard-Seyfert Astronomical Society in Nashville, TN this year
on July 9-12th. If you'd like more information, please check out
the Astronomical League Website at:



Also, we have so many new members now that may be interested in
earning a certificate thru the Astronomical League (AL). A few of
the certificates you can earn are: The Lunar Club, The Messier
Club, The Urban Club, and The Sunspotters Club. There are others
that may interest you also so check out the website to get all the
details and requirements to earn the certificates. Once completed
with all of the requirements, you can turn your observation log

over

to me and I'll order your certificate and pin. (same website as
listed above. Look on the left hand side under Astro-Info and

click

Observing Clubs.) If you have any questions or need additional
information regarding the Astronomical League or any of it's
Observing Clubs, please let me know.

Georgie June, Astronomical League Correspondant
doublestarjune@m...

开云体育