The Objective View
NorthernColorado
Astronomical
Society June1995
Meetingsfirst Tuesdayof eachMonth(except,July meetingis 1 1th!)
Next Meeting: June 6 7pm Shelter2, RollandMoorePk, 2021 S ShieldsSt, Ft Collins
If it's cloudy,meet at Lee Youngblood's
in Loveland.TakeTaft Ave to W45th St. Go 5
blocksEastto Brookwood.Turn North,Znd houseon left, #45?7. FromFt. Collins,
take US287to 57th St, West 1 mileto Co Rd 17, Southabout0.5 milero 45th St. 5
bfocksEastto Brookwood.
669-83?1.
NCAS Star Party May 27
Find fellow stargazers at the US
Forest
Service Crow Valley
Campground. From l-25 at Fort
Collins,39 mi East on ColoradoHwy
14 to Road77 (about 1 mile west of
BriggsdaleCO). Go North about 1/4
mi and turn West about 0.4 mile.
Look for the group along the North
edge of the park, North of the
campground. Highlights will be
Jupiter near opposition,and Saturn
minusrings,before dawn.
P u b l i c Star Pa r ty June 6
Bring scopes, and any other astro
gear you wish to demonstrateto the
west end of RollandMoorePark. The
park is west of ShieldsSt, 0.4 miles
North of Drake St in Fort Collins.
Drive 0.4 miles into the park and
see Shelter 2 to the South. Find
parking North or
East of the
shelter. The First Quarter Moon
will make a fine target for small
telescopes, weather permitting.
Regular
meeting
Lee
at
Youngblood's,
if we are cloudedout.
F a m i ly Star P arty for the
L a r i mer M e d ica l S ociety, June
1
D o n n aWh ittin g ton(225-1099) is
coordinatingan evening under the
stars for charity donors and their
families. A group of about 50 is
expectedat Pine RidgePark in Fort
Collins. Take Drake St to its West
end and turn North on Overland
Trail. Turn West on Road 42C
opposite the drive-in theatre. At
0.9 miles,see the entranceto the
park on the left. No electricity or
other facilities.
L A 5 Star Parties at Deadman Site
June 24, July ?9, Aug 26
Meet the Longmont AstronomicalSociety under dark skies in the
mountainsnorthwest of Fort Collins. Go about 20 miles North of Fort
Collinsto Livermore,turn West on RedFeatherLakesRoad. Continue
straight on #162, DeadmanRoad (dirt) from Red Feather Lakes.
Between Milepost 15 and 16 from Red Feather Lakes,turn North on
Fore s t
group.
Rd
303,
lo o k
for
39 Miles East
Colorado14
E Mulberry St
Rolland Moore
Park Entrance
CollegeAve
"Shelter 2
Scopesite }'
Deadman
Rd
Road
303
dirt r
road
1"5+
m iles
Red
Feather r
Lakes
Livermore
I
US 287
To Fort
Collins
U p c o m i ng Eve n ts:
NCASMeetings
LunarDomes,Bob Ross
July 1 1
August1
StellarSpectra,Steve Emmons
August26
Star Party, Hermit Park
September 5 CSUObservatory,Dr. RogerCulver
CCDAstronomy,Lee Youngblood
October 3
FRASC
and other Events:
Jun 23-25 Cheyenne Astro Soc at Curt Gowdy St
P ar k
Jun 27-28 Denver Astro Society at Canyonlands,
Utah
Jul 25-30 Nebr Star Party,SandHills,30 mi SW of
Valentine NE featuring 30"Obsession
Newtonian
Jul ?7 Star Stare at BadgerFlats, Colo Spgs Astro
Society
Aug 25-26 StarParty,FoxPark,CheyenneAstr Soc
LongmontAstronomicalSociety Star Parties:
C a ri b o u
May ?7
Deadman
June24, July 29, Aug 26
Deadman,with NCAS,FRASC
Sept22-23
LongmontAstronomicalSocietyPrograms:
3rd Thu of Month, New Creation Church, 550
Coffman St
Tom Johnston NGC Max Computer
June 15
System
JohnAstalos Eclipses?Denver Astro
July 20
Society
Aug 1TTom MelshiemerDrivestor 1-? meter scopes
Sep 21ARCSoftware Danceof the Planets
B asic A ssumptio n s in
Ma y ' s M e e ti ng :
A s t r o no m y, Br ad Jarvis
Astronomicaldistance measurementswere the focus
of Brad's discussionof basic assumptions. He
outlinedgeneralscientificmethods,from observation
to explanation, and finally prediction and
manipulationof naturalprocesses.Astronomersrely
on data conveyed by the electromagneticspectrum,
from radio frequenciesto gamma rays, plus various
subatomic particles. Interpretation of the data
dependson knowledgeand experience,and the basic
assumption that the same conditions prevail over
billionsof light-years. He illustratedhow estimates
of astronomicaldistancesrely on the parallaxmethod
for only about 700 stars, about 7 billionthsof the
stars in our galaxy. The stream parallaxmethod
permits estimates for star clusters to about 6000
light-years. Beyond there, distance estimates rely
on estimatesof luminosity,basedon photometry and
spectroscopy. Precisionis compromisedby lightabsorbinginterstellardust and gas. Cepheidand RR
Lyrae stars act as a reference for distances to
globularclusters and nearby galaxies. From there,
the spectroscopic redshift is used to estimate
intergalacticdistances. We continue to witness
substantialswingsin the intergalacticdistancescale,
based on the latest determinationsof the galactic
velocity/distance relationship. Brad concludedthat
astronomyis an evolvingdiscipline.He advisedthat
we be critical yet preparedto revise our beliefs.
Clu b T e le s c o p e
669-8321,
ContactNCASPresidentLee Youngblood,
for times to work on the 10" blank. Roughgrinding
is proceeding. Participantsinclude Jim Haneberg,
Steve Emmons,Mike McCarthy,Harold Porter, and
BradJarvis,underdirectionof Thom Peck.
A s t ro n o my B B S g o e s F irs t Cla s s : 9 7 0 - 6 3 5 1845
BBS. Recentnew files include
Try out the CAP-SAR
The Gems of Hubble, Hypercard image stack for
Macintosh,and the latest satelliteorbital data. The
service can be accessedwith your modem software,
up to 19,200-8N1. For an easilynavigatedpointand-click interface, download FirstClassBBS client
software. Expect no charge for local calls; your
normal toll charges will apply if you're outside
Loveland'slocal calling area. CAP-SARBBS is in
beta testing and is generallyavailable5-1OpmMDT;
daytimeweekends.
Overhead in June: Spica Occultation night of
8 -9
The dark limb of the waxinggibbousMoonwill cover
is
Spica about 0045 am June 9th. Reappearance
grazing
will
occultation
about 0130 in our area. A
occur along a line through extreme southern
California.Arizona. New Mexico,throuqh Texas to
southernArkansas.
Best Looks
Mercury:
NearAldebaranafter 6/24
Venus:
Bright all month before dawn
PassesAldebaranmidmonth
Mars:
In Leo at dusk,fading
Antares,
Bright
near
Jupiter:
opposition5/31
View the dark side of rings all
Saturn:
month
Mag 6 in W Capricornus-E
Uranus:
Sagittarius
Neptune:
Mag I in E Sagittarius
Pluto:
Magnitude13.7 in Libra
Mir; nearly every dav has a visible pass,
see a few below:
(STS docking launch after June 20, call D
La s z l o with ?'s)
Elev Mir Event
Date MDT Azimuth
41
Ou t o f
a
m
321
03
1
0
6/?
Shadow
41
llluminat e dMa x
03 1 0 32 6
1
llluminatedSet
0315 50
30
Ou t o f
2350 5
6/ 1 O pm
Shadow
llluminatedSet
1
?352 49
1
? 2 4 7 238
6/1 lpm
llluminatedRise
llluminat e dMa x
68
?252 3?O
llluminat e d
1
Set
??57 5?
1
? 1 5 2 22?
6 / 1 2 om
llluminatedRise
llluminat e dMa x
56
2 1 5 7 12 5
lllumina t e d
1
Set
220? 57
1
2 1 3 9 239
6 / 1 4 om
llluminatedRise
llluminatedMax
64
2144 316
1
llluminatedSet
21 4 9 57
From:
NorthernColoAstronomicalSociety
c/o Dr. DanLaszlo
AspenMedicalCenter
2001 S Shields,Ft CollinsCO 80526
TO: