ASTRONOMY CLUB OF TULSAOBSERVER June 2002 ACT, Inc. has been meeting continuously since 1937 and was incorporated in 1986. It is a nonprofit; tax deductible organization dedicated to promoting, to the public, the art of viewing and the scientific aspect of astronomy. WhatThe Astronomy Club of Tulsa Club When Friday, June 14, 2002 at 7:30 PM WhereClub Observatory near Mounds, OK. It is best to arrive before sundown. If you arrive after dark remember to dim your lights since some may be taking photos.
President’s Message Denny MishlerDuring the warmer months of Summer many ACT club members and their guests enjoy gathering at the club's observatory near Mounds, OK for an evening of observing and visiting with friends. During this month's Star Party (Friday June 14th) many of us will Picnic by bringing food, drink and chairs while the club provides an outdoor grill, ice and paper plates. If we have any business to transact we can do so around the picnic table. As darkness falls, our acre and a half lot can fill to near capacity with cars and telescopes. For newcomers to Astronomy, this is a great chance to see different types of telescopes and enjoy a variety of celestial objects. Our observatory features a 16 inch telescope and a classroom and several members who purchased the latest Meade GPS telescopes may have their new equipment on hand. For anyone interested in a challenge, this is a good time to begin work on one of the observing certificate programs offered by the Astronomical League. A nice breeze is almost always assured up on the RMCC Observatory hilltop, but if it should rain or be cloudy then we will try again the next night, Saturday the 15th. The gate will be open by 6pm either evening. Our regular meetings with a speaker will resume at TU in September, but until then our highly successful summer Star Parties and Picnics will be our monthly gathering. Come on Everybody! (an old Dwayne Eddy Song).
Solar Eclipse A partial solar eclipse is to take place on Monday June 10th. First contact is to occur around 7:30 PM and the eclipse will end for us when the sun sets shortly after 8:30 PM. A good place to observe the eclipse will be the RMCC observatory since our western horizon is as good as it gets. Denny Mishler
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS Tentatively scheduled dates below are bracketed with question marks. The number of persons expected is in parenthesis. EVENTS AT RMCC OBSERVATORY: JUN 06-10-02 Mon 07:30 Solar
Eclipse JUL 07-07-02 Sun 08:15 BS
Troop 970 (25) AUG 08-08-02 Thu 07:45
Sheridan Rd Baptist Ch (20) Gerry Andries
2002 Calendar of events
RMCC Observatory by K.C. Lobrech
Astronomical League Observing ClubsBy Rod Gallagher One of the benefits of being a member of the Astronomy Club of Tulsa is the membership in the Astronomical League. The Astronomical League’s basic goal is to encourage an interest in astronomy (and especially amateur astronomy). They do this through educational and observational programs for the amateur astronomer. The Astronomical League Observing Clubs offer a way to view a variety of objects while acquainting you with various aspects of astronomy. Each Club offers a certificate based upon achieving certain observing goals. These are usually in the form of a specific number of objects of a specific group with a given type of instrument. Occasionally there are multiple levels of accomplishment within the club. There is no time limit for completing the required observing, but good record keeping is required. The current Observing Clubs are: Learner
Binocular
Telescopic
Topical
The Observing Club program has been a very rewarding experience for me. I have just recently completed the Asteroid Observing Club, Double Star Club and Lunar Club. I am currently working on the Messier Club and Binocular Messier Club. After being out of amateur astronomy for several years, it has been exciting to get reacquainted with it. The Observing Club program has given me a systematic method for learning the sky and recording my observations while improving my observing skills. This makes observation time even more enjoyable! If you would like to find out more information about the Astronomical League Observing Clubs check out the information at: http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/obsclub.html.
Ghostly Ice balls in the Sky By John Land After a very hot but productive workday Saturday June 1st at the Club’s Observatory, several people stayed after to do some observing. Venus and Jupiter were close together in the west, with Venus changing to a fiery orange as it set along the horizon. After witnessing a spectacular –7 mag flare of a Iridium communications satellite, several of us observed Comet Ikeya-Zhang. It is still an easy binocular object in the head of the constellation Sepens. I also could just make it out naked eye using averted vision. The comet still looks like an extended round fuzzy ball without a tail or distinct nucleus, very much like the image in the May 2002 newsletter but smaller. KC Lobrecht located it with her 11 inch telescope and reported seeing a hint of TWO faint nuclei. It will stay in the area of Serpens Caput ( Seperant’s head ) all month. To find Serpens around 10 PM – FACE SOUTHEAST. Look about 50 degrees up above Bright Orange Antares in Scorpius. Look for an small Equilateral Triangle of 4th Mag. stars about 3 degrees across with a fainter star making the point. On June 26 to 28 the comet lies within one degree of the 7th mag globular cluster M 5. The whole path of the comet for June covers only 20 degrees so slow sweeps with binoculars should pick it up along with M 5. http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/comets We need your E-mail for the club rosters! If you haven’t been getting updates of club news events by e-mail, the last few months, send your name and E-mail address to our Club Membership chairman John Land. astroland@gbronline.com Several of you have made changes in your E-mail providers and we have been getting errors when messages are sent out. Please send us an update of your address. Recent club guests may also receive our e-mail notices. Also if you have made changes in your postal address or phone number, please forward those to John also. Since we have Club Star Party meetings at the observatory during the summer its easy to loose contact with the club. Summer is a great time to keep up with new events and discoveries and we don’t want you left out. John Land - Phone < John Land e-mail >
Astronomy Club of Tulsa Membership Application / Renewal Form Name: ________________________ Phone: ( ) ____ _______ Address: ___________________________________________________ City / State / Zip____________________/____________/_____________ ________________________________________________________ E-mail address - print clearly Check Lines below for YES ____ I would prefer to receive E-mail notification when club newsletter is posted to the web. ____ I choose to receive my newsletter by E-mail ONLY instead of postal mail. (Usually 3 or 4 days earlier * Must have web access ) ____ Notify me by E-mail of late breaking Astronomy Events Please check all that apply: ___ New Membership ($25) ___ Student Membership ($15) ___ Membership Renewal ($25) ___ Student Member Renewal ($15) ___ Sky & Telescope Subscription ($30) / year also includes 10% discount on most Sky & Tel products ___ Astronomy Subscription ($29) / year ($55) / two years * Magazine rates may change / prices available with membership only. Please bring this application along with a check for the total amount made out to the Astronomy Club of Tulsa to the next meeting or mail the payment and application to: Astronomy Club of Tulsa / 25209 E. 62nd St / Broken Arrow, OK 74014 For questions contact John Land How did you hear of the Astronomy Club of Tulsa? ___________________________________________________________ How long have you been interested or active in astronomy? ___________ Do you have a telescope? _______ Type __________________________ Have you been a member of other astronomy clubs? ____ Where / when ________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ What astronomy club activities would you like to participate in? ____________________________________________________________
Astronomy Club of Tulsa, 918.688.MARS President: Dennis Mishler Vice President: Teresa Kincannon Treasurer: Nick Pottorf Assistant Treasurer: John Land Secretary:Aaron Coyner RMCC Observatory Manager: Gerry Andries Observing Chairman: David Stine Web Master: Tom McDonough New Membership: Dennis Mishler |
