Pine View School (4 hours)
The night of the observation had a lot of clouds and so it was more difficult to observe objects then usual. Although there was less time to observe than usual, I got to observe more celestial objects because there were only 2 other people that showed up to the observation. I got to see Capricorn, Jupiter and its four biggest moons, a Satellite headed north west, 2 more objects, which may have been satellites, moving to the east very close to each other, Casseopia, the Great Square of Pegasus, the Pleaties cluster both with the naked eye and through a telescope, tauros, fomalhaut and piscis austrinus, the summer triangle, Alberio(a double star), M15 which is in Pegasus, Hyades, the Belt of Orion, Andromeda, and NGC 884 which contained lots of stars.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
APOD 2.4
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091123.html
This article interested me because it talks about a spacecraft built by ESA to land on a comet known as Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The spacecraft is called Rosetta Spacecraft and it plans to land on this comet in the year 2014. Also, last year, the spacecraft passed the asteroid, 2867 Steins and next year, it is expected to pass the egnimatic asteroid 21 Lutetia whose composition has puzzled astronomers.
This article interested me because it talks about a spacecraft built by ESA to land on a comet known as Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The spacecraft is called Rosetta Spacecraft and it plans to land on this comet in the year 2014. Also, last year, the spacecraft passed the asteroid, 2867 Steins and next year, it is expected to pass the egnimatic asteroid 21 Lutetia whose composition has puzzled astronomers.
Friday, November 20, 2009
APOD 2.3
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091115.html
This picture is of the ring nebula. It shows a much more detailed view of the nebula then you can see with a normal telescope from earth. It shows the colors of the gases that are in the nebula, blue in the middle with red on the outside. This nebula was probably created at the end of a star's life, probably one very similar to our own. The nebula is about 500 times the size of our solar system in diameter and is 4,000 light years away.
This picture is of the ring nebula. It shows a much more detailed view of the nebula then you can see with a normal telescope from earth. It shows the colors of the gases that are in the nebula, blue in the middle with red on the outside. This nebula was probably created at the end of a star's life, probably one very similar to our own. The nebula is about 500 times the size of our solar system in diameter and is 4,000 light years away.
APOD 2.2
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091108.html
This picture is of M7, an open star cluster in the constellation Scorpius. M7 contains about 100 stars that are mostly blue and is about 200 million years old. The cluster spans across 25 light years. What really interested me in this picture were the incredible amount of stars that you could see in the background of the picture. These millions of stars are part of a dark dust cloud toward the center if our galaxy.
This picture is of M7, an open star cluster in the constellation Scorpius. M7 contains about 100 stars that are mostly blue and is about 200 million years old. The cluster spans across 25 light years. What really interested me in this picture were the incredible amount of stars that you could see in the background of the picture. These millions of stars are part of a dark dust cloud toward the center if our galaxy.
Friday, November 6, 2009
APOD 2.1
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091102.html
This picture shows the Ares rocket test launch that happened just a few days ago at NASA. Ares is the first non-shuttle rocket to be launched from the Kennedy Space Center since the Saturn launched humans into Earth's orbit and the Moon in the 60s and 70s. The rocket can go from 0 km/hour to 100 km/hour in 8 seconds or less. The picture also shows a cloud that has formed on the outside of the rocket due to a sudden drop in air pressure.
This picture shows the Ares rocket test launch that happened just a few days ago at NASA. Ares is the first non-shuttle rocket to be launched from the Kennedy Space Center since the Saturn launched humans into Earth's orbit and the Moon in the 60s and 70s. The rocket can go from 0 km/hour to 100 km/hour in 8 seconds or less. The picture also shows a cloud that has formed on the outside of the rocket due to a sudden drop in air pressure.
Friday, October 23, 2009
APOD 1.8
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091022.html
This picture interested me because it showed the two things that we were asked to observe in astronomy class for the past two weeks. It shows the three planets, Venus, Mercury, and Saturn, and it shows the moon. The reason that these objects are of interest currently is because they are all very close to each other in the sky, currently. In the picture, it shows mercury very close to the horizon and the sun.
This picture interested me because it showed the two things that we were asked to observe in astronomy class for the past two weeks. It shows the three planets, Venus, Mercury, and Saturn, and it shows the moon. The reason that these objects are of interest currently is because they are all very close to each other in the sky, currently. In the picture, it shows mercury very close to the horizon and the sun.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
APOD 1.7
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091017.html
I choose this article because it shows a high quality image of a nebula that creates stars. This nebula is known as M33 or the Triangulum Galaxy and is a spiral galaxy. This nebula is known for forming very massive, but short-lived stars. M33 is one of the largest known star nurseries, spanning over 50,000 light-years long. M33 is 3 million light-years away from earth
I choose this article because it shows a high quality image of a nebula that creates stars. This nebula is known as M33 or the Triangulum Galaxy and is a spiral galaxy. This nebula is known for forming very massive, but short-lived stars. M33 is one of the largest known star nurseries, spanning over 50,000 light-years long. M33 is 3 million light-years away from earth
Observation 2
October 18, 2009
Observation Time: 4 hours
Time: Approx. 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Viewing Conditions: Very good, clear skies.
I observed the stars at Pine View school. The magnitude of stars that we could see was 5. While at Pine View, I observed 3 of messier's objects: M11-the wild duck cluster, M13-the andromeda cluster, and M57-The ring nebula. I also observed some constellations: saggitarus, pegasus, Cepheus, Cygnus, Aquila, and Scorpio. I also observed 4 of Jupiter's moons and the dark red spot on Jupiter. I also saw an iridium flare from a satellite, a double star system, a double-double star system, a shooting star, several planes, and a flock of birds.
Observation Time: 4 hours
Time: Approx. 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Viewing Conditions: Very good, clear skies.
I observed the stars at Pine View school. The magnitude of stars that we could see was 5. While at Pine View, I observed 3 of messier's objects: M11-the wild duck cluster, M13-the andromeda cluster, and M57-The ring nebula. I also observed some constellations: saggitarus, pegasus, Cepheus, Cygnus, Aquila, and Scorpio. I also observed 4 of Jupiter's moons and the dark red spot on Jupiter. I also saw an iridium flare from a satellite, a double star system, a double-double star system, a shooting star, several planes, and a flock of birds.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Tycho Brahe Research Paper
Tycho Brahe is one of the most renowned astronomers for the accuracy of his observations. Tycho Brahe owned many magnificent observatories and made a catalogue of over 1000 stars. One of his observatories was on an island given to him by King Fredrik II. He had the most accurate methods, of his time, for charting the astronomical sky of the time and did so by inventing his own instruments. He also accurately charted the path of a comet as it traveled around the sun. He also mentored Johannes Kepler in Astronomy and when he died, Kepler received some of his observations and created laws of physics based upon these observations.
Tycho Brahe’s star catalogue was not only one of the largest star catalogues of its time, but was also the most accurate of all of the catalogues. The catalogue contains 1,028 individual stars. The catalogue also contains the description of the star’s position within its constellation figure, the star’s ecliptic longitude in degrees and arc minutes, the ecliptic latitude, also given in degrees and arc minutes but designated as North or South of the Ecliptic, and the brightness of the star, expressed in magnitudes from 1 to 6. The stars were also put into three separate groups, North, Zodiacal, and South.
Tycho Brahe was given an observatory by the king of Denmark, where he grew up as a child. With this observatory, the King of Denmark also gave Tycho Brahe sufficient funds to establish and maintain his observatory. The observatory was the best astronomical facility in Europe. The observatory contained a library which had a brass globe that had a diameter of five feet. Etched in the globe were the exact positions of fixed stars as Tycho Brahe had observed them. Also on the 2,000 acre island were several workshops where Tycho Brahe made his astronomical instruments. Tycho also built an underground observatory to protect the instruments from the wind and also allowed the roof to be opened to gain a clear view of the sky from inside the observatory. Tycho Brahe periodically checked his instruments for accuracy and would recalibrate his instruments periodically. Tycho Brahe revolutionized astronomical instrumentation.
Tycho Brahe also made careful observations about a comet in 1577. From this comet, Tycho learned that comets are above the atmosphere of the earth. He also observed that the tail of the comet always pointed away from the sun. Sketches in Tycho Brahe’s notebook indicate that the comet passed close to Venus. He observed that the comet also passed further away from the earth than the moon was, but could not accurately measure how far away the comet was.
Tycho also mentored the future famous astronomer, Johannes Kepler, who developed many laws about planetary motion. Tycho Brahe was an observationalist while Johannes Kepler was a theorist. From Tycho Brahe’s observations, Kepler was able to come up with three laws of planetary motion: The orbit of every planet is an ellipse with the sun at a focus, a line joining a planet and the sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time, and The square of the orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit.
Tycho Brahe, one of the ‘big five’ of astronomy, set the stage for future astronomers to observe and chart the stars with the astronomical data that he collected, and the inventions that he created for charting the stars and other astronomical objects. Tycho also created the most accurate star catalogue of the time, and although he incorrectly hypothesized the movement of the planets by saying that all the planets and the sun revolved around the earth, he was still able to make accurate predictions and observations of the movement of the planets. Tycho Brahe contributed enormously to our understanding of the universe through his observations of the stars, a comet, and the planets of our solar system.
Tycho Brahe’s star catalogue was not only one of the largest star catalogues of its time, but was also the most accurate of all of the catalogues. The catalogue contains 1,028 individual stars. The catalogue also contains the description of the star’s position within its constellation figure, the star’s ecliptic longitude in degrees and arc minutes, the ecliptic latitude, also given in degrees and arc minutes but designated as North or South of the Ecliptic, and the brightness of the star, expressed in magnitudes from 1 to 6. The stars were also put into three separate groups, North, Zodiacal, and South.
Tycho Brahe was given an observatory by the king of Denmark, where he grew up as a child. With this observatory, the King of Denmark also gave Tycho Brahe sufficient funds to establish and maintain his observatory. The observatory was the best astronomical facility in Europe. The observatory contained a library which had a brass globe that had a diameter of five feet. Etched in the globe were the exact positions of fixed stars as Tycho Brahe had observed them. Also on the 2,000 acre island were several workshops where Tycho Brahe made his astronomical instruments. Tycho also built an underground observatory to protect the instruments from the wind and also allowed the roof to be opened to gain a clear view of the sky from inside the observatory. Tycho Brahe periodically checked his instruments for accuracy and would recalibrate his instruments periodically. Tycho Brahe revolutionized astronomical instrumentation.
Tycho Brahe also made careful observations about a comet in 1577. From this comet, Tycho learned that comets are above the atmosphere of the earth. He also observed that the tail of the comet always pointed away from the sun. Sketches in Tycho Brahe’s notebook indicate that the comet passed close to Venus. He observed that the comet also passed further away from the earth than the moon was, but could not accurately measure how far away the comet was.
Tycho also mentored the future famous astronomer, Johannes Kepler, who developed many laws about planetary motion. Tycho Brahe was an observationalist while Johannes Kepler was a theorist. From Tycho Brahe’s observations, Kepler was able to come up with three laws of planetary motion: The orbit of every planet is an ellipse with the sun at a focus, a line joining a planet and the sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time, and The square of the orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit.
Tycho Brahe, one of the ‘big five’ of astronomy, set the stage for future astronomers to observe and chart the stars with the astronomical data that he collected, and the inventions that he created for charting the stars and other astronomical objects. Tycho also created the most accurate star catalogue of the time, and although he incorrectly hypothesized the movement of the planets by saying that all the planets and the sun revolved around the earth, he was still able to make accurate predictions and observations of the movement of the planets. Tycho Brahe contributed enormously to our understanding of the universe through his observations of the stars, a comet, and the planets of our solar system.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Observation 1
October 14 2009
Observation Time: 4 hours
Time: Approx. 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Viewing Conditions: Partly cloudy
I observed the sky at siesta key beach for 2 hours. I observed 4 of the moons of Jupiter which was in the south and observed an eclipse (probably from Europa according to Mr. Percival's FB post) on the surface of Jupiter. I also observed the summer triangle and the constellations that the three stars consisted of, Aquila, Lyra, and Cygnus. I also observed the constellation Sagittarius, Capricorn, Equuleus, Delphius(and job's coffin), Hercules(the keystone) and Pegasus. I observed many M objects including M11(in scutum), M13(in Hercules), and M53.
Observation Time: 4 hours
Time: Approx. 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Viewing Conditions: Partly cloudy
I observed the sky at siesta key beach for 2 hours. I observed 4 of the moons of Jupiter which was in the south and observed an eclipse (probably from Europa according to Mr. Percival's FB post) on the surface of Jupiter. I also observed the summer triangle and the constellations that the three stars consisted of, Aquila, Lyra, and Cygnus. I also observed the constellation Sagittarius, Capricorn, Equuleus, Delphius(and job's coffin), Hercules(the keystone) and Pegasus. I observed many M objects including M11(in scutum), M13(in Hercules), and M53.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
APOD 1.6
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap091010.html
This image of the LCROSS mission was very interesting to me because of how recently this mission took place. Many of the people that I know have been talking about this mission and it was interesting to see some photos of it. The LCROSS mission was a mission to try to uncover whether there was water in the moon and how much of it there was. They ran an old spacecraft into the moon to put debris into the air which a second spacecraft scanned to see what the debris was made of. This may be useful to mankind if they decide to use the moon for natural resources or other things.
This image of the LCROSS mission was very interesting to me because of how recently this mission took place. Many of the people that I know have been talking about this mission and it was interesting to see some photos of it. The LCROSS mission was a mission to try to uncover whether there was water in the moon and how much of it there was. They ran an old spacecraft into the moon to put debris into the air which a second spacecraft scanned to see what the debris was made of. This may be useful to mankind if they decide to use the moon for natural resources or other things.
Friday, October 2, 2009
APOD 1.5
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090930.html
This picture was very interesting to me because it shows how thin Saturn's rings really are. It shows the rings from two different views, one where you can clearly see the rings and the other where the rings are pointed almost directly at the earth and the sun. When the ring is parallel to the plane of the earth and sun, it is known to be at equinox. When the rings are at equinox, they are difficult to see but this image clearly shows the ring.
This picture was very interesting to me because it shows how thin Saturn's rings really are. It shows the rings from two different views, one where you can clearly see the rings and the other where the rings are pointed almost directly at the earth and the sun. When the ring is parallel to the plane of the earth and sun, it is known to be at equinox. When the rings are at equinox, they are difficult to see but this image clearly shows the ring.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Astronomer Research Project Sources-Tycho Brahe
- Tycho Brahe Pioneer of Astronomy by Dan Nardo
- http://galileo.rice.edu/sci/brahe.html
- http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/history/brahe.html
- http://astronomyhistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/tycho_brahes_astronomy
- http://www.nada.kth.se/~fred/tycho/index.html
- Astronomy: Looking At The Stars by Susan and Steven Wills
- http://galileo.rice.edu/sci/observations/comets.html
- http://www.projectpluto.com/almagest.htm
Friday, September 25, 2009
APOD 1.4
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090923.html
The CoRoT-7b is a newly discovered planet that is very similar to the earth because it has a very similar mass and radius. CoRoT-7b is 500 light years away from the earth. This planet also has a similar parent star to the sun, but the planet is much closer than the earth, which makes its peak temperature much hotter than the earths. It is closer to its star than Mercury is to the sun. This planet orbits its star in just 20 hours. Further research will likely show that this is one of the first rocky planets to be discovered outside of our solar system.
The CoRoT-7b is a newly discovered planet that is very similar to the earth because it has a very similar mass and radius. CoRoT-7b is 500 light years away from the earth. This planet also has a similar parent star to the sun, but the planet is much closer than the earth, which makes its peak temperature much hotter than the earths. It is closer to its star than Mercury is to the sun. This planet orbits its star in just 20 hours. Further research will likely show that this is one of the first rocky planets to be discovered outside of our solar system.
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