November 2002 One Mile Nearer the Stars Page 1

N O V E M B E R S K I E S 2 0 0 2

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Schedule of Events ................... 2

Officers ................................... 2

NASA’S Space Place................. 3

AstroTrivia .............................. 3

Colorado Astronomy Day Post-

Game Coverage .................... 4,5

Participation Prize Winner...... 6

DSS Information .................. 6,7

Membership Info. ............... back

The Denver

Newsletter of the Denver Astronomical SocietyOne Mile Nearer the Stars

NOVEMBER 2002

O B S E R V E R

A Perfect Storm?The 2002 Leonids

are Coming!

This month we are deep into the dark skiesof fall—hunting season is underway. The

autumn constellations are high overhead early inthe evening, while the constellations of summerand the Milky Way are hanging in our western skywaiting for the final call of winter to leave us. Highin the sky is the winged horse Pegasus, also knownas the “Great Square.” Pegasus contains some greatdeep-sky objects like the giant edge-on spiral gal-

axy NGC 7331 and the quintet of galaxies, “Stephan’sQuintet.” Nearby in Andromeda is the planetarynebula known as the “Blue Snowball” (NGC 7662).Andromeda and Triangulum contain the closest andlargest galaxies to our Milky Way—the Great An-dromeda Galaxy (M31) with its two companions—and the Triangulum Galaxy (M33). Very large butfaint because the light is spread over a large area,M33 is a good test of observing skill and your sky.M31 can be seen naked-eye from a dark site or evenobserved from the city with binoculars or a telescope.Find them on your star charts and hunt them down.You won’t need an orange vest or camouflage, but abit of skill in reading your chart with a red flashlightwill help. Of course, the greatest quarry of Novem-ber will come from the king of the early morningsky, Leo the Lion. Read more about the Leonidsabove and on page 7. Happy hunting.—Ron Pearson

On the morning of Nov. 19 you have achance to witness one of the great astro-nomical events of the 21st century. No,don’t run out to buy that telescope withfive terabytes of deep-sky object com-puter data in it to see this. All you needdo is find a dark site away from city lightsand use your own two eyes, a lawn chairor recliner and warm blanket. Amateur

Continued on page 7

4 ........................................... New moon11 ............................. First quarter moon,

Double shadow transit on Jupiter18-19 ......... Leonid meteor shower peaks19 .......................................... Full moon,

Penumbral lunar eclipse (Firstcontact at 4:32 P.M. MST)

27 .............................. Last quarter moon

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Page 2 The Denver Observer November 2002

DAS Officers

DAS Information Line:(303) 986-5255

DAS Correspondence:Denver Astronomical Societyc/o Larry Brooks3686 South Depew, #8Denver, Colorado 80235

Van Nattan Scholarship FundP.O. Box 150743Lakewood, Colorado 80215-0743

Webmistress:Patti KurtzEmail: pkurtz@starfirecreations.comNewsletter:Denver Observer editor, Patti KurtzStarFire Creations Unlimited(303) 948-5825The Observer is available in colorPDF format from the DAS website.

The Executive Board conducts thebusiness of the DAS at 8 P.M. at

Chamberlin Observatory. Please seethe Schedule of Events for meetingdates. All members are welcome.

www.denverastrosociety.org

PRESIDENT’SCORNER

I’m sad to announce that we’ve tem-porarily lost our president and myclose friend, Larry Brooks.

Sometime after 10 P.M. on October 20thhe suffered a major stroke. Unfortu-nately, living alone, he was not founduntil the evening of the 21st. His daugh-ter Shawna went to his house to checkon him when he failed to respond to hisphones. The clot was caused by a boutof arrythmia that hospitalized him twoweeks prior. The stroke has affected hisspeech and his right side. He is unableto move his right arm but his leg reactsto stimulus. After almost two weeks heis now eating on his own and trying tocommunicate. The words just don’tcome out right and he is frustrated. Oc-casionally he can make us understand

but answers “yes” to ev-erything. He is inSwedish Hospital andwill soon be moved tothe rehab area. Our

hope is that he will re-cover and once again be the

President:Larry Brooks (303) 986-5255Email: LBrooks100@aol.comVice President:Carla Swartz (303) 246-6926Email: CSastrogirl@aol.comSecretary:Ron Pearson (303) 670-1299Email: rpearson@ecentral.comTreasurer:Chuck Carlson (303) 744-7331Email: chcarlso@du.eduALCor:Jerry Sherlin (303) 680-6894Email: SHERLINJ@aol.comChief Observer:Jack Eastman

Executive Board MembersTed CoxJack EastmanJoe GaffordPatti Kurtz

Sandy ShawDavid Shouldice

Steve SolonDan Wray

George Jones, Past President

Chuck Carlson (left) and Larry Brooksduring Colorado Astronomy Day’s OpenHouse at Chamberlin Observatory.

Image: © Steve Solon, 2002

Larry we all know, bad jokes included.This will be a long process and he willneed lots of help. His progress alreadyhas been encouraging and we can onlyhope that it will continue at a steady rate.On a lighter note, one of his first mealswas lasagna and he was trying to scrapeoff the cheese. He severely restricts thefats in his diet and this tells me that theLarry I know is in there somewhere.—Dan Wray (November 2, 2002)

NOVEMBER1-3Dark Sky Site Weekend8 E-Board meeting, 8 P.M.9 Clean-up Day (CANCELLED)

but, Still Happening,Open House (the Open Housebegins at dusk.)

22 General Meeting at Olin Hall, DU,7:30 P.M.—Steve Solon (DAS),“The DAS — Us ‘n Stuff,” andAnnual Membership Show & Tell

28 Happy Thanksgiving!29 Chanukah begins at sunset

Public nights are held every Tuesday and Thursday evenings beginning at the following times:October 1 - March 31 at 7:00 P.M.

April 1 - September 30 at 8:30 P.M. at Chamberlin ObservatoryCosts to non-members are: $3.00 adults, $2.00 children.

Please call (303) 281-9052 for reservations.DA

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DECEMBER6-8Dark Sky Site Weekend13 E-Board meeting, 8 P.M.14 Clean-up Day (4:00 P.M.) and

Open House (the Open Housebegins at dusk.)

21 Holiday Party (takes the place ofthe general meeting. TheDecember Observer will containdetails.)

25 Christmas Day

November 2002 One Mile Nearer the Stars Page 3

u p d a t e s

Black Holes:Feeling theRipples

Astr oTr i v i aAs t r oTr i v i aAs t r oTr i v i aAs t r oTr i v i aAs t r oTr i v i a(Look for the answer in this issue.)

Q. What was Baby Ida?AstroTrivia is contributed by Sandy Shaw.

Note from the editor:Many thanks this month to Ron

Pearson, DAS Secretary, who wrote thetext for the front page of this issue.

Thanks also to Dan Wray who wrotethis month’s President’s Corner andcontinually keeps us updated on LarryBrook’s condition.

Newsletter contributions (ccd and filmastrophotos, members with telescopes, starparty candids, short observing anecdotes,observing and imaging tips, etc.) arewelcome and encouraged. This is yourchance to strut your stuff! Please call mefor submission instructions.

**Patti Kurtz(303) 948-5825

All articles and images are © the author orphotographer, and may not be reproduced

without their written permission—Ed.

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Astronomers have finally confirmedsomething they had long suspected:there is a super-massive black hole inthe center of our Milky Way galaxy.The evidence? A star near the galacticcenter orbits something unseen at a topspeed of 5000 km/s. Only a black hole2 million times more massive than ourSun could cause the star to move sofast. (See the Oct. 17, 2002, issue ofNature for more information.)

Still, a key mystery remains. Wheredid the black hole come from? For thatmatter, where do any super-massiveblack holes come from? There ismounting evidence that such “mon-sters” lurk in the middles of most gal-axies, yet their origin is unknown. Dothey start out as tiny black holes thatgrow slowly, attracting material piece-meal from passing stars and clouds? Orare they born big, their mass increas-ing in large gulps when their host gal-axy collides with another galaxy?

A new space telescope called LISA(short for “Laser Interferometer SpaceAntenna”) aims to find out.

Designed by scientists at NASA and

Artist's rendering of a black hole.

the European SpaceAgency, LISA doesn’tdetect ordinary forms

of electromagnetic radiation such aslight or radio waves. It senses ripplesin the fabric of space-time itself—gravi-tational waves.

Albert Einstein first realized in 1916that gravitational waves might exist.His equations of general relativity,which describe gravity, had solutionsthat reminded him of ripples on apond. These “gravity ripples” travel atthe speed of light and, ironically, donot interact much with matter. As aresult, they can cross the cosmosquickly and intact.

Gravitational waves are created anytime big masses spin, collide or ex-plode. Matter crashing into a blackhole, for example, would do it. Sowould two black holes colliding. If as-tronomers could monitor gravitationalwaves coming from a super-massiveblack hole, they could learn how itgrows and evolves.

Unfortunately, these waves are hardto measure. If a gravitational wave trav-eled from the black hole at the centerof our galaxy and passed through yourbody, it would stretch and compressyou by an amount far less than thewidth of an atom. LISA, however, willbe able to detect such tiny compres-sions.

LISA consists of three spacecraft fly-ing in formation-a giant triangle 5 mil-lion km on each side. One of the space-craft will shoot laser beams at the othertwo. Those two will echo the laser sig-nal right back. By comparing the ech-oes to the original signal, onboard in-struments can sense changes in the sizeof the triangle as small as0.0000000002 meters (20 picometers).

With such sensitivity, astronomersmight detect gravitational waves fromall kinds of cosmic sources. The first,

however, will probably be the weighti-est: super-massive black holes. Will“feeling” the ripples from such objectsfinally solve their mystery, or lead tomore questions? Only time will tell….Scientists hope to launch the LISA mis-sion in 2011.

Sky & Telescope sends only one notice beforesubscriptions end. The DAS sends only oneissue of The Denver Observer after duesexpire. The cost of magazines (Astronomyand Sky & Telescope) is in addition to theannual dues. For questions concerningmemberships, please contact DAS Treasurer,Chuck Carlson (chcarlso@du.edu). See theback page of this newsletter for moreinformation.

Page 4 The Denver Observer November 2002

colorado astronomy day

Colorado Astronomy Day in PicturesPhotos by Steve Solon and Dan Wray

The Cryogenics Cart at the Denver Museumof Nature & Science (Or, how cold is spaceanyway?), left.Look, Ma! If I keep this up, I’ll soon have nohands! Sarah Strand, Nick Kurtz, and NeilPearson (clockwise in photo) regaled theiraudiences with the cool magic of liquidnitrogen and anything they could dip into itwith their gloved, or ungloved hands. They hadso much fun (as did the visitors) that they ranout of the precious liquid. They’ve beenpromised twice as much next year!Daytime activities at the museum also includedterrific speakers, South American tales, theStarlab, comet-making, and solar observingon the Sky Terrace. Counterclockwise fromthe photo below: Club members Bill Ornsby,Tim Pimentel, and Mark Vincent on the SkyTerrace; Tim Pimentel with a mother and herdaughter; and Ted Cox helps a visitor see ourown star while Bill looks on.

Photo Courtesy: Denver Museum of Nature & Science

November 2002 One Mile Nearer the Stars Page 5

colorado astronomy day

After enjoying many of the museumactivities, almost 500 people joinedDAS members at Chamberlin for anevening under the stars. Clockwisefrom the top: A crowd throngsaround Wayne Kaaz’s telescope;Mother shares the sun with herdaughters; Neil, Marilyn, and RonPearson man the DAS table at themuseum; inside Chamberlin duringthe star party, solar observing on theSky Terrace; a brazen shot in thedark at Chamberlin, and Dan Wraychecks out the sun.

Photo Courtesy: Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Page 6 The Denver Observer November 2002

The DAS Edmund G. Kline Dark Siteis about 60 miles east of the “mouse-trap” in downtown Denver.

Take I-70 east to the Deer Trail exit(exit 328), turn left at the end of theexit ramp, and turn left again on CR217 (after the Texaco station). TakeCR 217 just over 1/2 mile, and turnright (east) onto CR 34. Stay on CR34 about 6 miles until you get to CR241. Turn left (north) onto CR 241and continue about 1.5 miles – you’llsee a culvert with a wide gate on theright (east) side of the road.

Directions to the site from Denver, arrivalfrom the North (for after-dark arrivals):

Take I-70 eastbound to exit 316(Byers). Turn left at end of ramp whichputs you on eastbound US-36. TakeUS-36 east 17.2 miles to CR 241. Turnright (south) onto CR 241 and con-tinue for 6.2 miles. The DSS entranceis on the left between two tall posts.

Note: Travel distance from Denverusing the North route is actually 3.9miles shorter than the traditional route.The first 5 miles of CR 241 going southfrom US-36 is narrow and somewhatrough. Be careful.

• The last people on the site mustturn off the lights and the heat.

• A microwave will be provided forwarming food. Please clean up afteryourself.

• No pots and pans, appliances, or othersupplies are to be left in the shed.

• No personal supplies are to be leftin the shed overnight.

• Do not donate furniture or otherthings unless you clear it with theD.S.S. committee first.

• No food left overnight in the shed.• No sleeping overnight in the shed.• Quick naps are permitted if you feel

you might fall asleep on the wayhome. We would prefer you get yournap rather than falling asleep on theroad. However, we don’t want it tobecome a tent for camping.

• Clean up after yourself before youleave the site.

• Please clean up all food that dropsor is spilled, otherwise it will attractmice and insects.

Warming Hut Rules

Directions to theE.G. Kline Dark Site

o b s e r v e r s d e c k

Astro-Trivia AnswerA. On its mission to Jupiter, Galileo flew by andextensively photographed two asteroids in theearly 1990s. Later analysis of the photos re-vealed a surprise beyond asteroid 243 Ida ? atiny spherical satellite, the first asteroid moondiscovered. Nicknamed Baby Ida, it was giventhe provisional designation 1993 (243) 1 (1993for the year of discovery, 243 after Ida, and 1 asthe first asteroid moon observed). Baby Idawas later given its permanent name, Dactyl, af-ter mythical beings called ?Dactyli? who livedon Mount Ida with Zeus.

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Welcome New Members!The following folks joined the DenverAstronomical Society during the lastfew months. Welcome new members!

• Steve Bailey• Laurie Budke• Alan Cartwright• Jim Dare• Bryce Faulkner• Richard M.

Goering• Lisa Judd• Michael P.

Koenig• Dennis C. Norris• James F. Oakley

• David Polsley• Daniel & Kathi

Rake• Chris

Rasmussen• Ken R. Shelby,

Jr .• Earl Staelin• Greg Wimpey• Leonard

Winograd• David Wright

Congratulations to Bill Ornsby, theDAS’s first participation prize winner!

As a long-term member of the DAS,the contributions Bill has made over theyears make up quite an impressive andlong list. Operating the 20" AlvanClark, lecturing to public night groups,working at open houses and assisting innumerous receptions, annual picnicsand banquets are just a few activities towhich Bill has devoted his time andknowledge. Formally recognizing hisdedication to the DAS is long overdue.

Prior to developing a hobby in as-tronomy, he was an air traffic control-ler at Stapleton Airport. As a child, Billwitnessed the atrocious attack on Pearl

Harbor, later joining the service him-self for five years. Bill is also an ex-perienced Hamm radio operator andspends time every month as an ex-aminer for those wishing to test fortheir licenses.

Bill owns an 8-inch Dob, a short tube80, a 4-inch refractor and as a buddingastrophotographer, the $30 gift certifi-cate to S&S Optika will come in handyto purchase much-needed accessories.The next DAS participation prizedrawing will be held at the annual ban-quet on December 21st and the prizewill be one of the following: yearly DASmembership dues or a subscription toSky and Telescope or Astronomy. Byvolunteering for public nights, openhouses, school star parties, clean updays at Chamberlin or work days at theEdmond G. Kline Dark Site you, too,can become eligible for a participationprize.

DAS participation prize slips areavailable at DAS functions. Pleasesee an E-board member for a slip andtheir signature to become eligible forthe next drawing. Remember themore you volunteer, the morechances you have at winning a prize.

Thanks again Bill, for your continu-ous volunteerism to the DAS and themany lives that have been touched byyour interest in astronomy. Also, specialthanks to Bill’s wife Grace, for her con-tinual support of his astronomy hobby.

P A R T I C I P A T I O N P R I Z E W I N N E R !

November 2002 One Mile Nearer the Stars Page 7

edmund g. kline dark site

Positions of Moon:(Moon @ magnitude -11.9)

TIME ALTITUDE AZIMUTH2 A.M. 47 2473 A.M. 36 2593:30 A.M. 30 2654 A.M. 24 270 (due west)4:40 A.M. 07 284 (tail of

predicted peaks)Other relevant data:� Moonset at 6:24am

� Start of twilight about 6am; astronomical twilight about5:35am

� Sunrise: 6:52am

A Perfect Storm?

astronomy doesn’t get any better or cheaper than this! Meteors willbe coming from an area near the head of Leo, high in the southeast,but will be seen all over the sky.

On the morning of Nov. 19 the Earth will pass through a coupleof debris trails left in space by a comet hundreds of years ago.Over the past few years we have seen two major showers as Earthpassed through parts of the trails. This year is the last time ourpaths will cross in space for many many years. In past years NorthAmerica got the “tail-end” of the trails with the lesser of the two,but we still saw hundreds per hour last year. This year N. Americais favored, as the Earth rotates into the oncoming stream, by thegreater mass of comet debris. But, (there always seems to be a“but”), the nearly full moon will be up at the same time. Thismeans we won’t see as many as we could have, but predictions arethat we will still see many hundreds or even thousands per hour.So, starting about 2-3 A.M. on Tues. Nov. 19, find your way out ofcity lights and perhaps a place where the moon will be behind amountain, forest or hills, and enjoy the spectacle. Take your kidsor grandkids, it will be something they can pass on to theirgrandkids to watch for in the next century.

For details about the predictions and peak times go to: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2002/images/leonidsforecast/Denver.gif

Continued from page 1

Dark Sky Site CourtesyPlease remember that white light disrupts the eye’s dark adaptation

and can ruin astrophotography. Following these simple guidelines willimprove the experience for all:★ Upon arrival at the site, check to see if sign in has been instituted at

the warming hut. We hope this will help alleviate problems membersmay be experiencing in trying to find a place to set up.

★ Drive carefully on the road, there are blind spots in the low areaand you will find cattle on the road at times.

★ Try to arrive before dark.★ If you have to arrive after dark, turn off headlights when turning

into site.★ Turn off all dome and trunk lights. If a light can’t be turned off,

pull the fuse, use layered red brake light tape or just duct tapeover it.

★ When you drive in, position your car so you can drive out directlyinstead of using your back up lights.

★ Use only dim red flashlights. Never shine a flashlight in someone’sface or on their scope.

★ Please wipe your feet carefully before using the warming hut.★ Please chip in and do some cleaning up in the hut or at the observing

sites. It is the responsibility of all users to keep the place nice.★ Serious astrophotographers may wish to use the South field since

it is somewhat isolated from the rest of the area.★ If you are the last person to leave the site, turn off the lights and

the heaters in the warming hut. Then, lock the warming hut and

close the gate to the site.★ Members are responsible for educating their guests as to the rules.★ Prospective members, out of town astronomers, and others

may be guests one time.★ Members can bring family any time and personal friends on a

limited basis, but should not abuse the privilege.★ Groups of five or more guests must be cleared through the

President or Vice President prior to visiting the Dark Sky Site.★ There is no sleeping in the warming shed overnight. However if you

need to nap for a short period, you can use the shed. We wouldrather you fall asleep there rather than at the wheel on the way home.

★ You may warm drinks in the microwave—it is not there forwarming food and cooking since we have no water to clean up.If you spill, please clean up after yourself

OTHER SUGGESTIONS:★ Wear warm clothing. The nights can be extremely cold in the

winter and surprisingly cold in the summer.★ Bring your own power such as a battery and/or an inverter

since the power sites are limited. Also bring extension chords.★ Hot drinks can help you survive the night!★ When approaching the telescope of someone who does not know

you, introduce yourself and ask before looking through the scope.Most members (with the exception of astrophotographers whenthey are taking pictures) will be happy to share their scopes.

★ Bring your own toilet paper in case that in the porta-potty runs out.

Follow local weather forecasts and satellite images to keep up withweather predictions. Remember, the DAS E-board is not respon-sible for bad weather. It’s up to you to find that “sucker hole.”

If you go to the DAS Ed Kline Dark Site, please follow all therules of courtesy listed in this newsletter. It could be very crowdedout there and we all need to be extra courteous so as not to spoil aperfect storm for others, by turning on lights or starting cars orlights in the middle of it. Help to make this a perfect storm for yourfriends and fellow storm chasers.—Ron Pearson

Page 8 The Denver Observer November 2002

j o i n u s

Denver Astronomical Societyc/o Chamberlin Observatory2930 East Warren AvenueDenver, Colorado 80208

About the Denver Astronomical SocietyThe DAS is a group of amateur and professional astronomers

that share a mutual interest in the heavens. The DAS operatesthe University of Denver’s Chamberlin Observatory, along withits prized 1894 Alvan Clark 20-inch refracting telescope. Ourmembers have been involved with the first public planetariumat the Denver Museum of Science and Nature and theSmithsonian Astrophysics Observatory’s “Moon Watch”program. The DAS successfully petitioned to have theChamberlin Observatory listed on the National Register ofHistoric Places.

Our Credo is to provide members a forum for increasingand sharing their knowledge, to promote and educate the publicabout astronomy, and to preserve the historic telescope andobservatory in cooperation with the University of Denver. Tothese ends we have established three tax deductible funds: theVan Nattan Scholarship Fund, the Chamberlin RestorationFund, and the DAS Dark Sky Site Fund. This last fund wasestablished in order to construct and maintain observingfacilities near Deer Trail in eastern Colorado.

Please call our Info Line at (303) 871-5172 and drop by theGeneral Membership meetings. Become a member and enjoyspeakers, facilities, events, and our monthly newsletter, TheDenver Observer.

APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP TO THE

DENVER ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY

New RenewalName:Address:City, State, Zip:Phone numbers: Home ( ) Work ( )E-mail Address:Occupation:Other Interests:(Associates Only) School: Grade:Do you want to download the newsletter in PDF format fromour website instead of by postal mail?

Yes NoDo you want the above information excluded from the yearlyroster? Yes No

Please Circle All That Apply:Regular Membership: $30 Associate: $10 (Age 22 and younger)...................................................................................... $

Astronomy Magazine/$29Sky & Telescope Magazine/$29.95...................................................................................... $

Van Nattan Scholarship Fund ........................................ $Chamberlin Restoration Fund ....................................... $Total Amount Paid ........................................................ $Please mail Dark Sky Site donations to: DAS Treasurer, Chuck Carlson,at the address below. (Make checks payable to the Dark Sky Site Fund).Please complete this form, or a copy, and mail it with your check or moneyorder payable to The Denver Astronomical Society:DAS Treasurer, Chuck Carlson; 1521 So. Vine St.; Denver, CO 80210

NOVEMBER’S MEETING

NOVEMBER 22:Steve Solon (DAS), “The DAS —Us ‘n Stuff,” *and* the AnnualMembership Show & Tell.

S & S OPTIKAColorado’s Premier Astronomical Supply Store

(303) 789-1089www.sandsoptika.com