October 2003 - astronomy@lists.redbrick.dcu.ie

[Astronomy Ireland] Another BIG aurora for Halloween? Lectures & Astro-Expo to Book!
by Astronomy Ireland 31 Oct '03

31 Oct '03

WEDNESDAY AURORA Following the last alert that I emailed to you on Tuesday night about the aurora possibly occurring on Tuesday to Thursday night(s) hundreds of you saw it on Wednesday night and have emailed and TEXTed sightings. It was quite a spectacular show at times and was greeted by clear skies over much of Ireland on Wednesday night. Most of the time the aurora was just a glow in the north but on several occasions from 6pm to 4am activity flared dramatically with bright rays, curtains, and reds seen. I even saw rays converging at the zenith (overhead point) and the aurora extended a little beyond the zenith at times. A very good show but not as good as was to come the next night (Thursday night), of which more in a moment. People in cities were disappointed if they just took a quick look at the sky in the north and they happened to view during a 'quiet' patch but I saw rays from brightly lit parts of Dublin after midnight, when the aurora was active. So do persevere and watch for hours (at least a half an hour anyway). Try to get away from city lights - at the very least the aurora will look better. We got extensive media coverage on Wednesday and made the front cover/page10 of the Irish Times on Thursday morning plus we were on the RTE TV news at 5pm, 6pm, 9pm and 11pm on Wednesday. RTE even despatched a crew with a satellite link up to film the aurora with us from a dark site in north county Dublin. They got great footage using a camera that can shoot 3 frames a second in very low light levels. See http://www.rte.ie/news/2003/1029/9news/9news56_5a.smil RTE did a great job and you saw genuine 'Irish' footage and not some imported report. I did lots of other radio reports least notably being on Today FM with Ray D'Arcy who was more interested in matters sartorial, asking if the young ladies interviewed on TV about the "colours" were commenting on the aurora or my colourful ski suit! (Only joking Ray if you're reading this :-) THURSDAY AURORA BIGGER Then on Thursday night an even BIGGER aurora was seen from the southwest of Ireland! From emails, TEXTs, calls received it looks like most of Kerry, a bit of Limerick(its SW) and west Cork had clear skies (satellite images confirmed this). Reports from the second night of the "Great October 2003 Aurorae" say the landscape was lit up by the brightness of the display, corona (where the rays meet up overhead and look like a 'crown') were seen, movement was clearly seen in real time on a second-to-second timescale, and the aurora stretched from the north, overhead and down to within 15 degrees of the South horizon! I was in Dublin and checked the skies every few hours on Thursday night but it was always cloudy, and raining most of the time. If anyone else saw the massive Thursday show do email observe(a)astronomy.ie A longer report will appear in our magazine, along with some stunning images (subscribe NOW if you don't already, so you will get this 'aurora souvenir issue'). We are especially seeking pictures of the Thursday aurora yet, so send NOW if you got any! NEXT AURORA! Almost unbelievably, Halloween (Friday night) looks set for yet another aurora. Will it be better than Wednesday? Or as good as Thursday? it could be! Or will it occur at all? You'll have to go out and see, but there was a second huge solar flare on Wednesday night (our time) that hurled more material toward the Earth that should keep the aurora going on Friday night. More explosions on the Sun are likely incoming days so do expect more aurorae in the coming days, possibly every night until the end of next week, which will bring us up to the Total Eclipse Nov. 8! If you see an aurora do TEXT 086 081 99 86 giving your name and location. Then email a fuller report to observe(a)astronomy.ie as soon as you can while it is still fresh in your memory. Please email photos to that address also (you can post prints to our P.O.Box below) Don't forget to take a look at the huge sunspots causing all this activity! Make sure you put AstroSolar filter in front of your binoculars or telescopes of course! Call and we can post a sheet. AND FINALLY, All this activity is distracting us from three huge terrestrial gatherings on Irish soil! Nov. 8 - Total Eclipse of the Moon. We have Watches all around Ireland, see www.astronomy.ie. ORDER the eclipse issue of our magazine NOW so we can post it to you in time, and support Astronomy Ireland. Go to www.astronomy.ie/sub and select "current issue for 5euro" or call or drop in to our Shop in Artane. Nov. 10 & 11 - Our INTERNATIONAL SPEAKER this year is J. Tate director of SpaceGuard UK who will talk about "The Threat from Space" and what is being done about it as you are more likely to be killed by an asteroid than in a plane crash! Dublin City University Mon. Nov. 10 and Jury's Hotel Cork Nov. 11. Ticket only so you must call to book seats now. Nov. 15 and 16 - ASTRO-EXPO 2003 in Dublin City University. Ireland's biggest annual astronomy event where everyone in Ireland travels to Dublin for the biggest astronomy and space exhibition and a weekend of talks. The guests of honour at the Dinner Saturday evening are the Beagle 2 team who are landing their craft on Mars on Christmas Day. Book the weekend pass (20euro) and the Dinner - you owe it to yourself! See http://www.astronomy.ie/astroexpo.html NOTE: The Sunday keynote speaker is Gerry Hogan from Coronado Solar Filters USA - very appropriate with the unprecedented sunspots! Also, as well as the Beagle 2 team from the UK on Saturday we have managed to get Prof Susan McKenna-Lawlor Ireland's most popular space scientists who has agreed to tear herself away from 8 spacecraft experiments she is building or has launched! If you are NOT coming to Astro-Expo this year please tell me why! Aurora and Sunspot reports will feature at all of the above events, especially Astro-Expo. P.S. If you would like to help run our non-profit society (as one of our volunteers - there are a whole host of activities) please let me know as we are snowed under at present! (allow a few days for me to reply but do email now!) ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open until 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie (Subscribe FREE to AI's Events emailing list) Email: info(a)astronomy.ie

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[Astronomy Ireland] Aurora and Giant Sunspots!
by Astronomy Ireland 28 Oct '03

28 Oct '03

The Sun is an incredible sight right now. Three huge groups of sunspots are on view. The newest sunspot spawned one of the biggest solar flares ever seen at 11:10am Tuesday and sent material hurtling towards Earth. We are getting conflicting reports about when the aurora, which it must surely produce, will occur. One source at NASA says it could happen tonight (Tuesday) and another says Thursday. Jonathan King has already texted to say he thinks he can see "bright white green glow in the north" through intermittent breaks in the clouds from Dublin around 8:15pm Tuesday. It will be an unwise astronomer who does not check the sky every night this week therefore. I am to be interviewed on Morning Ireland around 8:30-9am Wednesday about all this.(If you miss it, listen later at http://www.rte.ie/news/morningireland.html) If you do see an aurora please a) immediately TEXT 086 081 99 86 give your location and time you first saw the aurora b) email a report of what you saw to observe(a)astronomy.ie so we can report it in the Observers Log column of our magazine By the way, last Friday's aurora alert resulted in one report of a possible aurora seen from Co. Clare, but it now appears the aurora was a minor affair with some weak sightings in Germany. As for this week's event it looks far more likely to produce a major aurora. You can see the sunspots causing all this hullabaloo at either of the following sites: SOHO: http://150.144.30.101/data/realtime/realtime-update.html BigBear: http://www.bbso.njit.edu/cgi-bin/LatestImages but nothing can compare to the 'live' view through binoculars or telescopes with proper filters fitted. If you haven't got AstroSolar filters made for your scope or binoculars yet then you may never get a chance like this again, so call and we can post AstroSolar to you. Note that the impressive H-alpha images you see are made with filters like those sold and popularised by Coronado Solar Filters (USA) who will be coming to Astro-Expo Nov. 15 & 16 in D.C.U. Have you booked your place let? It's Ireland's biggest astronomy event each year, with speakers flying in from USA, UK (and Ireland!). It's the one event each year when all members of Astronomy Ireland get together in Dublin so don't miss it! The dinner on the Saturday night will effectively be our 'Christmas Party' with the Beagle 2 Mars Lander team being our guests of honour so do book for the meal also. Details and the booking form were on the insert with your November issue of A&S or go to http://www.astronomy.ie/astroexpo.html for details and download the booking form from there. MY ADVICE: book the WEEKEND PASS and the DINNER. P.S. Don't forget to book THIS WEEK for our "International Speaker" Lecture on Nov. 10 (Dublin) and Nov. 11 (Cork) as booking has been heavier than ever and it is expected to be sold out. Details at http://www.astronomy.ie/nextlecture.html and http://www.astronomy.ie/corklec.html then call to book. ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open to 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie Email: info(a)astronomy.ie

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[Astronomy Ireland] Aurora, last Lecture online, 8000th member
by Astronomy Ireland 24 Oct '03

24 Oct '03

1. AURORA WATCH There is a strong possibility of an aurora being visible from Ireland tonight, Friday October 24. A solar flare ejected material towards Earth that is expected to hit us around 8pm. Watch the northern sky all night long, and check Saturday night also. If you see the aurora please TEXT a message to 086-081 99 86 (available 24 hours) saying where you are located and the time you first saw it. Please also email a report to observe(a)astronomy.ie as we are re-starting our Observers Log page in the December issue due out in a couple of weeks time. This activity comes from a colossal sunspot group now crossing the centre of the Sun (as we warned on our 1550-111-442 Newsline on Monday). You can see it by carefully projecting the Sun's image through a pair of binoculars or a small telescope on to a white card, Or you can look directly at it but only if you use our AstroSolar filter sheet (which we can post to you). The sunspot is enormous and was an amazing sight yesterday, looking like a large black hole in the dead centre of the Sun as seen in 10x50 binoculars fitted with AstroSolar. A sight I will never forget. Today FM (around 6pm) and 2FM (around 7:30pm-8pm) are both interviewing me this evening about this event! 2. LECTURE ONLINE Mark Sweetnam, the senior lecturer from Schull Planetarium, gave the annual Astronomy Ireland Lecture/Debate on October 13 in D.C.U. to a packed audience of almost 150 people. Whether you agree with Creationism or you're a "Big Banger" Mark is certainly an accomplished public speaker and a 'healthy' Q&A session followed. The Lecture has been digitised by new equipment we are experimenting with and is online for you to view right now at our website www.astronomy.ie (click on Lecture Webcasts at the left-hand side). In response to the query I put out a few weeks ago we were asked to make the lectures 'downloadable'. You can now, for the first time, download the entire lecture and watch it offline. Remember though that this is strictly for private use as the copyright notice on the Lecture Webcast page says: "Private viewing only. No re-transmission or public display allowed unless prior permission in writing is granted by Astronomy Ireland." 3. INTERNATIONAL SPEAKER Advance booking is strongly recommended for the next Public Lecture in D.C.U. (Nov. 10) and Cork (Nov. 11 in Jury's Hotel) when we will be bringing in J. Tate from SpaceGuard UK to speak about his organisation and "The Threat from Space". Already there have been more bookings for this talk than any other talk we have ever held so please call soon (number below) if you want to get a seat at either venue as it seems likely this lecture will sell out. Don't forget to book your "weekend pass" for Astro-Expo on Nov. 15&16 also - details and booking forms were posted to members and can be found on our website too. Speaking of which, our Administrator Tom Finnegan is looking for volunteers to help run the event . Please email tom(a)astronomy.ie if you might be available any time from Friday Nov. 14 to Sunday Nov. 16. 3. SPONSOR People have been joining Astronomy Ireland at a phenomenal rate this year and the society is about to celebrate the 8,000th person signing up as a member. Traditionally we have given a prize to the each "thousandth" member so we are seeking sponsors for a prize. In the past we've been donated satellite dishes, TVs, trips etc. Please ask your company if they would be interested in sponsoring a prize in the next few weeks. We will be promoting the event very heavily with our friends in the media and there will certainly be a feature published in our own magazine. It would be nice to announce the happy event at Astro-Expo, the one time each year when we hope to get all members together from around Ireland. Hopefully we have made this year's Astro-Expo programme exciting enough for you with USA, UK and key Irish speakers, not to mention all those exhibits! We are also seeking sponsors for Astro-Expo if you can help with this too? Please support Astronomy Ireland and our efforts to promote interest in astronomy in Ireland if you are not already a member by signing up at www.astronomy.ie/sub ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open until 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie Email: info(a)astronomy.ie

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[Astronomy Ireland] Impact Craters in Ireland & Britain
by Astronomy Ireland 14 Oct '03

14 Oct '03

We have just received notice of this interesting event. I hope to be there: THE JOHN JOLY COLLOQUIUM 2003: Impact Craters Date and Venue: Friday 17th October at 5.30pm Thomas Davis Lecture Theatre, Arts Building, Trinity College, Dublin. Entry is free. SCHEDULE 5.30 INTRODUCTION: Professor Nicky White 5.35-6.05: Mike Simms (Ulster Museum): Searching for hidden impact craters. 6.05-6.35: Joanne Morgan (Imperial College, London): Chicxulub: where do we stand and where are we going? 6.35-7.05: Simon Stewart (IBP Azerbaijan): Silverpit multi-ringed Crater, North Sea. It is aimed very much at a non-specialist audience, and the first talk (Mike Simms) will, amongst other things, describe recent discoveries in Co Antrim and across the UK. Best wishes Dr. Mike Simms Curator of Palaeontology Department of Geology Ulster Museum Botanic Gardens Belfast BT9 5AB tel. 028-9038 3133 FAX 028-9038 3103 michael.simms.um(a)nics.gov.uk www.burrenkarst.com'' ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open until 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie (Subscribe FREE to AI's Events emailing list) Email: info(a)astronomy.ie P.S. We had a huge attendance (approx 150) at our lecture/debate in D.C.U. on Monday night. The video of the talk should be online at www.astronomy.ie by the end of the week. P.P.S. Don't forget we'll be launching the new Waterford Branch of Astronomy Ireland tomorrow night (Wednesday) in the Granville Hotel at 8pm P.P.P.S. If you are in Dublin, can you come to our office/Shop in Artane to help us get the November issue of A&S in to the post on Thursday (and maybe Friday)? It features all the details of the Total Eclipse of the Moon on Nov. 8 and the booking form for Astro-Expo 2003, Ireland's biggest astronomy event. Email if so and we'll send details.

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[Astronomy Ireland] The Great Creationism Debate
by Astronomy Ireland 12 Oct '03

12 Oct '03

Once a year Astronomy Ireland organises a major public lecture/debate on an interesting topic. Last year engineer Dr Al Kelly questioned the Big Bang. In just a few hours it will be CREATIONISM that comes under scrutiny. Over 200 Irish scientists have been invited to come and hear Mark Sweetnam speak on "Creationist Cosmology". Mark Sweetnam has a degree in mathematics from Trinity College Dublin he will suggest that the Big Bang is not necessarily the answer to how the universe was created. Many other scientists believe this too. After his presentation you will get a chance to question him and hear others do so. Our annual 'debate' promises to be a very lively, entertaining, and thought provoking event, just like last year. ALL WELCOME. Please bring as many friends as possible to Dublin City University in the main lecture hall of the Henry Grattan Building (behind The Helix). Admission is 5euro (3euro concessions). (details and map http://www.astronomy.ie/nextlecture.html ) Please forward this email on to everyone you think might be interested. ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open until 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie (subscribe there to AI's emailing list) Email: info(a)astronomy.ie P.S. For any of you in the Waterford, Wexford, Kilkenny area: I will be giving "The Universe" lecture in Granville Hotel, Waterford at 8pm Wed. Oct. 15 to launch our new Waterford Branch. All welcome.

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[Astronomy Ireland] Carlow "The Universe", Dublin "Creationism" debate, Astro-Expo 2003
by Astronomy Ireland 07 Oct '03

07 Oct '03

1. "Creationism" Astronomy Ireland Public Lecture / Debate Monday October 13 "Creationist Cosmology" by Mark Sweetnam 8:00pm in main lecture hall of the Henry Grattan Building, Dublin City University. Doors open 7:30pm. *** ALL WELCOME *** SUMMARY: Mark Sweetnam graduated with a degree in Mathematics from Trinity College Dublin and was Director of the Schull Planetarium in West Cork. We are inviting everyone to come and hear him present and debate the case for Creationism. Many people believe (some prominent scientists amongst them, including a recent Director of one of the two Professional Observatories on this island) that the Universe was 'created' exactly as it says in the Old Testament of the Bible, and 6,000 years ago, a date carefully calculated from records in the Bible, by an Irishman. This is to be a major public debate and it's sure to be a lively evening so I look forward to seeing you on Monday October 13th - please bring some friends. All welcome. Admission 5euro (3euro to concessions, including members - bring the latest issue of your magazine as proof of membership). You can book seats at this talk by calling the Shop on (01) 847 0777 or reply to this email (to info(a)astronomy.ie) saying how many 5euro and 3euro seats you need. You can then pay on the night, please bring exact change to speed the admissions process (and a few euro for our raffle on the night). Doors open at 7:30pm and reserved seats can only be held until 7:45pm. There is ample parking in the multi-storey car park just a very short walk from the Henry Grattan Building. Excellent public transport too. Everyone is welcome so do bring friends. 2. Carlow Branch of Astronomy Ireland Public Lecture "The Universe" by David Moore This week I will give the first of two public lectures about our place in the Universe. On Wednesday Oct. 8 I will speak in the main lecture hall of the Institute of Technology in Carlow at 8pm. Everyone is welcome and I do hope you will come along. One week later on Wednesday Oct. 15 I will repeat this talk as the inaugural lecture for our new Waterford Branch. Come along to the Granville Hotel in Waterford on the Quay at 8pm. 3. Astro-Expo 2003 - Ireland's biggest every exhibition Nov. 15+16 Plans are now well advanced for the biggest every display by the Irish professional and amateur astronomy community that has ever been held in Ireland: Astro-Expo 2003. This is Astronomy Ireland's flagship annual national event. It will be our 14th annual exhibition, and astronomy weekend. This year Astro-Expo 2003 will be held in the huge 5,000 square feet venue "The Hub" in Dublin City University. The European Space Agency will be sending large spacecraft and rocket models up to 5-metres tall. Most of the research institutions and colleges around Ireland will be there also. A new webpage was launched last month at http://www.astronomy.ie/astroexpo.html giving details of some of the exhibitors. It already needs updating so keep an eye on it for regular updates as this is just the tip of the ice berg so far. There will be a programme of 6 lectures (3 on each day) with national and international speakers being flown in. Planetarium shows. A dinner on Saturday night (and observing afterwards if clear). Even Neil Armstrong will be in town and he has been invited. So it promises to be a major event that everyone in Ireland will be converging on. Details and lecture/dinner booking forms are going out in the post next week to members with the November issue of our magazine. Astro-Expo 2003 runs on Saturday and Sunday November 15 and 16 from 12pm to 6pm. Admission to the exhibition is just 3euro for adults and FREE to children. (Lectures separate, see webpage next week.) Anyone who would like to set up a display or man a stand for their institution (NO charge for stand space) should email our administrator Thomas Finnegan now at tom(a)astronomy.ie Everyone else simply has to plan to be there, thousands are expected.! Please join Astronomy Ireland online and support us in our efforts to promote Irish astronomy at: www.astronomy.ie/sub ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open until 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie (subscribe to our free Events email list) Email: info(a)astronomy.ie

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[Astronomy Ireland] I.S.S. on TV3 Thursday 7:15am
by Astronomy Ireland 01 Oct '03

01 Oct '03

TV3 have invited me on to Ireland AM to talk about the International Space Station blazing across the sky every night until October 8th, and also to talk about the Carlow (Oct. 8), Dublin (Oct. 13) and Waterford (Oct. 15) Astronomy Ireland Branch lectures (details of which will soon be posted on www.astronomy.ie click on "club events" in the sidebar menu on the left of the screen). Did you see I.S.S. last night at 7:57pm? It was extremely bright from Dublin, perhaps magnitude -3 and so far outshining Mars and Vega. Tonight it flies over at 8:33pm. Drop an email to observe(a)astronomy.ie if you see it. (Those in South Dublin will see I.S.S. pass in front of the lovely double star Albireo - what a sight that could be in a telescope if ISS passed between both components!). Remember, you can see I.S.S. every night until October 8th, but at a different time each night so call our Newsline on 1550-111-442 every day after 12 noon for the time to watch that evening (calls cost 74c/min). Those in the U.K. can call 09001-88-1950 (calls cost 60p/min). Please forward this message on to everyone in your address book and let's get the whole country out watching space this week! If you're not up at 7:15am normally, set your video and watch the show later! ===== David Moore BSc FRAS, Chairman, Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 5. Editor, "Astronomy & Space" magazine. ASTRONOMY SHOP: open until 6pm Mon.-Sat. Tel (01) 847 0777. Fax (01) 847 0771. www.astronomy.ie (Subscribe FREE to AI's Events emailing list) Email: info(a)astronomy.ie

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