1. The
International Space Station will blaze across Irish skies every night this week
and next week until May 5th.
It looks like the brightest 'star' in the sky for the 1 or
2 minutes that it takes to cross the sky travelling, as it does at 28,000
km/hour
On board I.S.S. are two astronauts, Pavel Vinogradov and
Jeffrey Williams. They will stay on board for 2 months having arrived on March 31st for a 6 month tour of duty
that will see them make two space walks and welcome two space shuttle
flights.
The time to see I.S.S. every evening until May 5th is
different every night so we will update our premium rate Newsline each day with
the exact time to go out and watch and other details.
(Not everyone has access to the net so we still do it this
way! It's only a short call and the minor proceeds we receive help us promote
astronomy in Ireland anyway):
Call 1550-111-442
(calls cost 95 cent per minute from landlines) each day
after 12 noon for the time to watch that evening. (call 09001 88 1950 in U.K.
for 60p/min)
As seen from Ireland I.S.S. will pass very
close to bright planets in the sky this time round and the Newsline
will tell you where you need to be to see this.
I.S.S. looks like an extremely bright star in the sky for
just 1 or 2 minutes. It's so bright you don't need to know where to look, just
go outdoors at the time given on the Newsline and you' will not miss
it.
See the I.S.S. page (left hand menu) on our website for
background info on I.S.S. www.astronomy.ie
2. The following
talk organised by Prof Petros Florides and John Stalker from Trinity College
Dublin should be a very good talk. I'll be there!
(Sorry it's in Dublin but that is beyond AI's control -
see Cork event next!)
THE EIGHTH J L SYNGE PUBLIC
LECTURE
entitled
GRAVITATIONAL WAVES: GEOMETRY IN
MOTION
by Professor BERNARD SCHUTZ
(Director of Astrophysical
Relativity at the Albert Einstein Institute
of the
Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics, Potsdam)
The
MacNeill Lecture Theatre 3, Hamilton Building, Trinity
College,
Tuesday, 2nd May, 2006, at 8.00 p.m.
Petros kindly notes "Any
member of Astronomy Ireland would, of course, be welcome to attend the
lecture."
3. Cork Astronomy
Meeting
The next ASGI (Astronomical Science Group
of Ireland) meeting will take place in University College Cork on May 3rd and
4th.
This event will be of great interest to anyone interested in studying
astronomy, especially those already at third level.
While ASGI events are primarily aimed at serious researchers, amateurs such
as most Astronomy Ireland members (AI is a paying member of ASGI) are welcome as
long as the research nature of the event is respected (i.e. you're welcome to
sit in and watch).
4.
Star-B-Q
The annual "barbecue under the stars" for
everyone in Ireland
- fun, food, talks and see the wonders of
the universe up close.
See the new comet first! (due to reach
naked eye visibility next week - see May issue of our magazine www.astronomy.ie/sub)
See Mars, Saturn and
Jupiter up close in powerful telescopes.
All the food and soft drinks
you can eat.
It's Ireland's largest
annual gathering of telescopes for the general
public! So don't miss it!
I.S.S. will blaze over that night,
passing very close to Saturn as it does!
The weather forecast looks good for Friday, so remember
you must book tickets in advance
Joins lots of others who have already booked and go to www.astronomy.ie to book before
Friday!
--------------------------------------------
Astronomy Ireland (01) 847
0777
SUPPORT IRELAND'S BIGGEST TELESCOPE SHOP (open til
9pm Thurs & Fri)
( FREE delivery nationwide. FREE advice. 01-847 0777
Mon-Sat incl)