Astronomy Cafe – Jan 16, 2023

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of meeting

Dr. Laurie Rousseau-Nepton is an astronomer in residence at the Canada France Hawaii Telescope (CFHT). She received her PhD from Université Laval and is the principal investigator for the SIGNALS project. This is a large survey program aiming at observing over 50,000 resolved star-forming regions in nearby galaxies.

  • Resident astronomer at CFHT for the last 6 years
    • Started at Mont Megantic with SpIOMM instrument – spectral imager
  • SITELLE – Spectral imager
    • Started building the instrument in 2010
    • Acquires both spectra and an image of each object
    • 2017 – Instrument shipped to Hawai’i
  • Canada-France-Hawaii telescope
    • Some issues with weather (snow, clouds), earthquakes (volcanoes), but lots of clear and stable nights
    • Timelapse of telescope operation
  • Science
    • Big Bang
    • First stars formed
    • New elements
    • First galaxies formed
    • Stellar clusters form into stars
    • Stellar Initial Mass Function – stable through the whole Universe?
    • OB massive stars in H2 regions – Laurie’s study area
  • SITELLE – how it works
    • Michelson Interferometer – emission lines
    • Data cube has both imagery and spectra
  • SIGNALS – Star formation, Ionized Gas, and Nebular Abundances Legacy Survey
    • Large, multinational group of researchers
    • Star Formation Rate & Efficiency
    • Stellar Initial Mass Function
    • 9 fields to cover M33
    • More than 30,000 HII regions currently in the survey
    • Supernova remnants as well
  • U of T – new job at a development lab
    • Building a new generation of SITELLE
    • Imaging spectrograph at much higher resolution
    • The resulting instrument needs a large aperture telescope
  • Q&A
    • A dynamical Model – stellar winds affect dense molecular clouds – clumping and finger structures
    • Each pixel of data has their own interferogram
    • Initial Mass Function – huge amount of data
    • Changing instruments and telescope time at CFHT – ranking of proposals – technical and science
    • Mauna Kea Spectra Explorer – an upgrade to CFHT
      • Bigger aperture instrument
      • Using 20,000 optical fibres are part of the plan
    • Culture of astronomy – accommodating diversity and promote inclusivity
      • Mauna Kea is a sacred site
      • Include local aboriginal teachings in presentations at local astronomy groups
      • Learn some of the language used by first nations when they talk about the night sky
    • Is SITELLE technology used elsewhere?
      • Straight IR is being used in other instruments
      • The “perfect” beam splitter used by SITELLE is unique
      • Software to analyze the SITELLE data is unique
      • Size of the SITELLE detector and data throughput is also unique
    • DAO work being used by CFHT?
      • Spectroscopy innovations and staff
      • Adaptive optics systems
    • How did you get involved in astronomical research?
      • Asked a lot of questions about astronomy as a child
      • Enjoyed physics at the university

Silent Sky  at Langham Court Theatre – performances Jan 25 to Feb 11

  • Story of Henrietta Leavitt and her astronomical research done a century ago
  • Jim Hesser is the scientific advisor
  • Members of RASC urged to enjoy this performance
  • Special presentation by Sara Ellison at the Feb 5th afternoon performance

Observing Notes – Randy Enkin

  • Observers Handbook – Conjunction of Venus & Jupiter – Jan 21/22 – half a degree from Saturn just after sunset. In fact, the conjunction should be visible before sunset.
  • Sat 28th at 8PM – Uranus being occulted by the Moon
  • Comet C/2022 E3 ZTF – observable in the early morning hours – Sky At Night

Makers SIG – meeting online this Thursday – David Lee

RASC Publications for sale – contact Lauri Roche by email

  • 2023 Night Sky Almanac – good for planning your observing
  • Explore the Moon $10
  • Explore the Universe $10
  • 2023 RASC Observers Calendar – 2 left at $15 each

Observatory Hill road update – Lauri Roche

  • Probably another couple of months before the road is open to the public

Astronomy Cafe – Dec 19, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of meeting

  • Artemis, the film – Nathan Hellner-Mestelman
  • RASC Robotic Telescope – David Lee
    • Science Team will be observing variable stars
    • Education – classroom outreach
    • Buying time on the scope or the datasets is available for members
  • Mars – Brock Johnston, Bill Weir & David Lee
    • Dec 15th – Brock’s photo and Bill’s sketch
    • Occultation of Mars by the Moon
    • Bill is observing Mars monthly
  • Rimouski observing conditions – Michel Michaud
    • Observatory equipment is working well
    • Waiting for better conditions when colder weather arrives
  • Buy & Sell review – items for sale on Victoria Centre’s website – Joe Carr
  • Astrophotography SIG – Dec 28th – Dave Payne
  • Discussion
    • A deep field taken by James Webb Space Telescope – 9 days, 100,000 galaxies
    • GAIA dataset
    • Speakers for next year?
  • The Human Cosmos, Civilization and the Stars by Jo Marchant – at Munro’s Books for $10 – Mary Anne Gervais loves this book – Author’s website
  • Apodizing Mask – used to observe the bright planets – Bill Weir
    • Boosting Performance by Apodization by Ernest Pfannenschmidt (April 2003 JRASC)
    • Old Dec 2003 issue of our SkyNews has Ernie’s obit in it with an image of the refractor. Also there’s an image of a Mars map that he did. It inspired me to do the same in 2005 because in my arrogance I thought, Pfffftt, how difficult could that be? Turned out it was. Takes a lot of luck too to get all of the phases.
  • Next meeting – Jan 9, 2022 starting at 7:00PM

Astronomy Cafe – Dec 5, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of meeting

  • Beginning in Astrophotography – Ron Fisher
    • 2018 Dobsonian telescope for Christmas
    • Joined the Astrophotography SIG when it started up during the pandemic
    • Climbed the “learning curve”
    • Acquired an EQ6 mount, mounted 300mm telephoto lens and a dSLR
    • Learned PixInsight
    • Andromeda (1st photo), Orion Nebula (2nd photo)
    • New gear acquired in April 2022
      • Askar 500mm 90mm apo refractor
      • 50mm Guidemaster scope & guide camer
      • ASI Air Pro powers and controls all the gear
    • M81, M82
    • Pelican Nebula
    • PixInsight used for processing
    • With a focal reducer
      • North American Nebula
      • Elephant Trunk Nebula
      • Soul Nebula
    • Heart and Soul Nebula
    • Ron’s astrophoto gallery
  • Astronomical Holiday Gifts – Randy Enkin
    • Starting in astronomy – David Lee
      • Stars and Planets – Smithsonian handbook
      • RASC Almanac
      • Deep Sky Wonders – Sue French – good for beginners with small scopes or binoculars
      • Binocular Highlights – Garry Seronik
    • History of Hubble – Chris Gainor has a few copies at his house ($25)
    • For sale – used from Randy Enkin’s bookshelf
      • Apollo Murders – Chris Hadfield
      • Silent Spring – Rachael Carson
      • Planets – Dava Sobel
      • The Day the World Discovered the Sun – transects of Venus in the 18th century
  • Edmonton Centre– Alistair Ling
    • Finally staging hybrid meetings – Planetarium at Telus World
    • What’s up in the sky – based on Edmonton’s sky
    • The hybrid meetings have only attracted limited members to attend in-person
    • Observatory at Black Nugget Lake – installing a 32″ telescope – unofficial first light by this summer
      • Visual telescope – looking forward to observing the celestial splendors
      • Designed to be an imaging scope, if needed in future
      • Public access is planned
    • Weekly public outreach at The Science Centre
    • Helping people use their telescopes – by Alistair
    • Have a full slate of officers
  • Occultation of Mars – Randy Enkin
  • Mars photo from yesterday evening – Brock Johnston
  • Observing techniques – discussion
  • SIGs – David Lee email
    • Beginners tomorrow night – magnitude basics
    • Electronically-assisted Astronomy on Thursday, then on request only
    • Citizen Science SIG – coming up in January
    • Aaron Bannister request: astrophotography for school kids
      • Capture brighter objects when weather permits
      • Processing data sets
      • Astrophotographers?
  • Last Astro Cafes for 2022 – Dec 12th, 19th
  • First Astro Cafe of the New Year – Jan 9, 2023 starting at 7:00PM instead of 7:30PM
  • Sunshine Coast Centre – Peter Broughton presentation on J.S. Plaskett – Dec 9 Friday 7PM – Victoria Centre members welcome
  • Winter Solstice Star Party – Dec 17th – Nathan is presenting
  • Status of national Observers Calendars – haven’t arrived yet
  • Artemis I update – Chris Gainor
    • Close pass to the Moon this morning
    • On its way home – Dec 11th arrival
    • Crescent Earthrise photo
  • Watching the final Apollo launch to the Moon – flashback tomorrow night – Chris Gainor
  • David Bennett memories from members – next week

Astronomy Cafe – Nov 14, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of the meeting

  • Island Star Party – Dave Payne
    • RASC Victoria will be hosting ISP in 2023, not Cowichan Valley Starfinders
    • Debriefing from CVSF will happen soon
    • Bright Angel Park will need to be reserved soon with CVRD
    • Volunteers from Victoria Centre will be needed – contact Dave Payne dapayne@shaw.ca
      • Insurance
      • Speakers
      • Advertising
      • Setup on Friday – tents, parking, observing field
      • Cleanup and teardown on Sunday
    • Council approved our participation a year ago
    • Date for 2023 star party needs to be decided upon
      • Nearest New Moon in August is the 16th
      • Good dates for star party is probably Aug 11-13
      • Mt. Kobau Star Party – Aug 12-20
      • Perseid meteor shower peaks on Aug 13
    • Previous star parties attracted a wide selection of amateur astronomers
    • At least 50 attended each night at this year’s star party
    • Discussion
    • Photos from 2016
  • Space Mission Reports – Chris Gainor
  • Observing Mars near Opposition – Bill Weir
    • Weather is clear and stable this week
  • Ken McGill’s observing van conversion
  • RASC National website – problems for members – Bill Weir
    • When renewing membership, subscribing to the email lists can happen involuntarily – Dave Payne
    • Centre affiliation choices are not working properly – Chris Purse
    • Large order for calendars from Victoria Centre placed 3 weeks ago has not arrived – Lauri Roche
    • Brendon Roy from National gave an update on shipping publication orders
  • RASC Victoria Centre Council Meeting tomorrow night – Jill Sinkwich
  • Malcolm from Toronto introduced himself as a new Victoria Centre member
  • Website tour – Special Interest Groups & email lists – Joe Carr
    • SIGs – click on the name beside the one that interests you to sign up
    • Email lists – descriptions on the Members Only area of the website
      • Members Only area is behind a shared password – contact Joe Carr, Webmaster
      • HillObs – special requirements for signup for members who are Active Observers to observe and acquire astrophotos from the Victoria Centre Observatory
  • Public Observing at Observatory Hill – Lauri Roche
    • Public restricted to 150 on Saturday nights – sign ups go quickly when the event is posted
    • Currently scheduled monthly
      • Nov 26 – next star party
      • Dec 17 – Nathan will be presenting
    • Friends of the DAO membership is $25
    • Hosting groups of students and teachers at the Centre of the Universe during the day
    • How school programs work – new team needed from RASC – contact Lauri for info
    • Road construction on Observatory Hill is still underway – be cautious, especially at night
  • UVic Astronomy Open House – Bob Wright Building observatory every Wednesday evening
  • Astrophotography – Dave Payne
  • Gonzales Observatory – query from Larry Manuel
    • Originally a solar transit observatory for time keeping and the historic Noon Gun – Joe Carr
    • Environment Canada weather station
    • Gonzales Hill Regional Park

Astronomy Cafe – Oct 3, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of the meeting

  • DART spacecraft impact – Kelly Fast, presenter for Oct 17th Astro Cafe- Jeff Pivnick
    • Last 2.5 minutes of mission
  • Astrophotos from the VCO – Reg Dunkley
    • Didymous – looks like Albert Einstein
    • Had an MIC training session with poor attendance. We need a couple more sessions scheduled longer in advance.
      • Operating the telescopes and the observatory
      • All the equipment is working very well
      • Can also bring along a dSLR
    • David’s planetary imager was used to image the Io transit of Jupiter over the Great Red Spot – LRGB channels – 40,000 frames
    • Couldn’t get Registax to work, so used AstroSurface software
    • We are now allowed to have up to 15 members, 3 in VCO wearing a mask with new protocols in place
  • Astrophotos – Brock Johnston
    • Io transit of Jupiter over the Great Red Spot
    • 4700mm of focal length
    • Saturn – Sep 25th
    • Jupiter – GRS on the edge
    • Using AstroSurface – uses R-L deconvolution and wavelets
    • Links to weather conditions and forecasts – Jetstream & ClearDarkSky for Victoria & Upper Winds
  • Imaging using the Plaskett – Dan Posey
    • Just past imaging session happened on Sep 30th
    • gPrime & rPrime – good for imaging emission nebulae
    • Next Plaskett sessions: Oct 29, Dec 22
    • Can have up to two people with Dan in the control room
    • No updates on the new camera, which will be about 20′ wide and more square FOV. Jim Hesser expects the camera replacement will take months, but it is progressing.
    • Imaging done: Cocoon, Stephan’s Quintet, North America and Dumbbell nebula
    • Cruise tour of 30 crashed into the dome – thanks to Dan for interrupting the imaging – Lauri
  • SIGs – David Lee
    • Beginner’s SIG this Tuesday
    • Electronically-assisted Astronomy this Thursday
  • Sky Brightness Survey – David Lee
    • Consolidation and cleanup of the data is progressing
    • Project meetings on Tuesday 7:00-7:30PM and Wednesday 7:00-8:00PM evenings with the team
    • David will show some graphics depicting the data and problems
    • Need some people who are colour blind to participate
    • Does Jupiter skew the dark sky readings? Bill Weir
    • About half the volunteers were new to SQM measurements, the others had done
    • How about taking more readings during New Moon in October? – maybe
  • 2023 RASC Calendars – Lauri Roche
    • Place an order – email Lauri
    • No up-front payment required
    • See the RASC website for information about the 2023 calendar. We anticipate the cost will be similar to last year which was $15 each; this is a considerable savings over ordering directly from the RASC eStore
  • Future of Hubble – Chris Gainor
    • 13 years since last servicing mission
    • 535 kms above Earth, so good until 2036-37
    • NASA and SpaceX may use a Dragon spacecraft to boost Hubble into a higher orbit – 6 month technical study
    • Polaris flights being privately funded for next year to high orbit – a second flight might be used to boost Hubble
    • Chris’ Space Review article – NASA-SpaceX study opens final chapter for Hubble Space Telescope
  • Bill Weir
    • Vixen 114mm Newtonian telescope donation
      • Parabolic mirror, good quality optics
      • Two school programs might want to use this telescope – Lauri
    • Sidewalk astronomy at Metchosin Market
  • Next Astro Cafe is in 2 weeks on Oct 17th

President’s Message – August 2022

Posted by as President's Message

Summer Outreach

Saturn
Saturn

I had the pleasure of spending a Saturday evening with Sherry Buttnor, demonstrating the 16 inch reflector up at the Centre of the Universe. It is humbling being in the dome with her, as Sherry has been operating and demonstrating the 16 inch since 1987! For most of the time, we had the telescope trained on the moon. Once the moon got too low, we moved to M13 – the Hercules cluster. Everybody who looked in the eyepiece exclaimed some version of “Wow!” Sherry often told the people, “You’ll never look at the moon the same way from now on.”

Brock Johnston that night had one of the 8″ Dobsonians set up behind the Plaskett Telescope, with a steady stream of people coming for a glimpse of Saturn. A woman who had never before seen Saturn through a telescope said she was in tears afterwards, she was so awestruck.

Astronomy outreach is fun! The people who come to star parties and other
outreach events are keen to learn, and they appreciate our efforts to help them see the sky. Sometimes it feels like a lot of work, but once you are at it, it is a real high.

So make the decision to help out at our outreach events!

  • We need people for Saturday nights at the Centre of the Universe (contact Garry Sedun, vp2@victoria.rasc.ca); especially if you are willing to set up your telescope.
  • We need volunteers for the Vancouver Island Star Party, an hour north of Victoria at Bright Angel Park, August 26-27 (contact Dave Payne, vp@victoria.rasc.ca). Also, plan to go to the star party – Dave has been working with the Cowichan Valley Starfinders Astronomy Club to create an excellent program of speakers and events.
  • We need volunteers for the Saanich Fair at the Saanich Fairgrounds, September 3-5 (contact Lauri Roche, roche.lauri@gmail.com).
  • We need volunteers for the Fall Fairfield, Sept. 25, right outside our Astro Cafe venue at the Sir James Douglas School yard (contact Reg Dunkley, pastpres@victoria.rasc.ca).

At these events, you can typically take a shift of a couple of hours and answer questions from the eager public. I have seen members with the whole range of background and experience taking on these roles, and everybody has done well. Just show a bit of the enthusiasm that I know all RASC Victoria Centre members have.

Look Up,
Randy Enkin, President@Victoria.RASC.ca

Astronomy Cafe – May 30, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of the meeting

  • Telescopes – David Lee on behalf of Sid Sidhu
    • There are telescopes for loan to RASC VIctoria Centre members
    • Members who have spare eyepieces, please contact Sid, since we need more selection for loaners
  • Kitt Peak – David Lee
    • PixInsight workshop review
    • Kitt Peak is reopening, offering remote telescope images
    • OGS 12.5″ telescope, Paramount ME and 294MC OSC imaging camera – available for rent approximately US300/night for exclusive use
    • McMath Pierce Solar Telescope – now a public outreach facility, supporting Noirlab feeds
  • Brave New World – New Scientist – Ken Atkinson
    • TESS images – citizen science opportunities
    • zooinverse.org – see planet hunters
  • Astronomy Public Outreach – Randy Enkin
    • Island Star Party – last weekend in August at Bright Angel Park in southern Cowichan Valley – will be co-sponsored by Cowichan Valley Starfinders, RASC Victoria
    • Saanich Fair astronomy outreach – need volunteers
  • Meteor Storm Tonight – May 30, 2022 – Randy Enkin
    • Debris from Comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3, a Jupiter family comet
    • No observations after 1930, until 1979 again
    • Period: 6.5 years
    • In 1995 brightened 400x – Hubble Space Telescope imaged the pieces of the comet
    • In 2006 Spitzer Space Telescope imaged
    • 2022 apparition could be spectacular
    • How about observing this apparition? Cloud cover may be a factor.
  • Star Parties at the DAO/CU – Lauri Roche
    • June 4 – next star party
      • Need some volunteers with telescopes
      • Speaker: White Dwarfs – Simon Blouin
    • Last Star Party – thanks to Dave Payne and David Lee for working on the Celestrons, Sherry Buttnor operated the 16″, solar telescopes were operating early in the evening.
    • Centre of the Universe displays – many are disabled due to old age. Needs a refresh, but requires funding. Skilled volunteers would be very welcome.
  • RASC General Assembly – June 24, 2022 – Lauri Roche
    • Tickets are now available – $20 for members for 4 days
    • Lots of interesting speaker, workshops, social events, and AGM business meeting
    • For those of us who live in the Pacific Time Zone – runs between 9AM and 4PM
    • Some sessions will be recorded, to be viewed later
  • Last Astronomy Cafe 
    • Thanks to the volunteers who have hosted Astronomy Cafe
    • Need volunteers when Astro Cafe restarts in the Fall
    • Hybrid format is working – in-person and Zoom
    • Sep 12th – first Astro Cafe meeting
    • Alex Schmid laptop (from UVic), external speakers and microphone
  • Galactic Poster – Nathan Hellner-Mestelman 

Astronomy Cafe – May 16, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of meeting

  • Special General Meeting for RASC Victoria Centre – Randy Enkin
    • Have a quorum of over 25 Victoria Centre members in attendance
    • Changes to ensure our bylaws are consistent with the national bylaws and BC Society’s Act requirements
    • Call for volunteers to work on more revisions to Victoria Centre bylaws over the next few months
  • Need volunteers for Astronomy Cafe – contact Randy Enkin
    • Zoom host – recording and posting the video transcripts online
    • Meeting host – tracks and runs the meetings
  • Star parties at Observatory Hill – Lauri Roche
    • May 21, Jun 4, 18 – hybrid party in-person and online on Zoom & Youtube
      • May 21 – Early Discoveries made by the Plaskett Telescope – Jim Nemec
    • Every Saturday night after the July 1st break for the summer
    • Volunteers needed: telescopes in the parking lot, RASC welcome table, Plaskett dome tour hosts, 16″ telescope operators, other roles – contact Lauri
    • Electronically-Assisted Astronomy – start planning to use at the Star Parties in future – contact Dave Lee
  • Nanaimo Astronomy – Janeane MacGillivray
    • Astronomy From Kitt Peak – David Lee presenting at upcoming meeting
    • RASC Victoria members are welcome – send an email
  • Total Lunar Eclipse reports from members – May 15/16, 2022
    • Cloudy photos from Saanich after being skunked at Cattle Point – David Lee
    • HDR smartphone photos through eyepiece, join observations from Cosmic Generation group – Nathan Hellmen-Mestleman
    • Lunar Crater transits & mare cookies – Randy Enkin
    • Cloudy photos from Sidney – Chris Gainor
    • Observed from Brentwood Bay while raining – Lauri Roche
    • Just a glimpse from Taylor Beach in Metchosin, but spotted ISS – Bill Weir
  • Plaskett Images – Dan Posey
    • Composite image of the images over last few years 
    • Whirlpool Galaxy, Whale Galaxy, Deer Link Group NGC 7331, Fireworks Galaxy NGC 6946, M100, M63 Blackeye, NGC 3718 Arp galaxy, Hickson 44
    • Plaskett nights are for enjoyment and a reward for RASC Victoria members and volunteers
    • Review of techniques to process Plaskett image data into nice images
  • Skynews magazine – Bruce Lane
    • Review of upcoming articles
    • Please send Total Lunar Eclipse observing reports to Bruce (Editor)
  • Black Holes – Randy Enkin
    • M87 Black Hole – April 22, 2019 – Event Horizon Telescope
    • Sagittarius A* Supermassive Black Hole – May 16, 2022 – BBC Science Focus article
    • Galactic nucleus observed by Karl Jansky in 1931 – published in Nature, 173, 985-987, 1954
    • Angular resolution problem solved by the Event Horizon Telescope
    • Motion analysis of objects and energy near the Event Horizon of a black hole
    • Lauri Roche’s “black hole” birthday gift

Astronomy Cafe – May 9, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Meeting video transcript

  • Astronomy Day thank you’s to volunteers – Lauri Roche & David Lee
    • The in-person interaction was an engaging experience 
    • The younger volunteers were a real delight
    • Sidewalk astronomy from the museum plaza, with very good weather
    • History of Astronomy Day at the Royal BC Museum – Sid Sidhu
    • UVic, Camosun, Victoria High School, Shawnigan Lake School was a good collaboration
    • Galileo Moments
      • Daytime at the RBCM: more than 800 – 231 outside, 654 inside
      • Evening on Observatory Hill: 29 volunteers and more than 100 members of the public
    • A lessons learned meeting with leads – David Lee
    • Publicity worked pretty well – Chris Gainor
    • Hubble history book will be available at Astronomy Cafe next week – Chris Gainor
    • Public lectures – about 40 attendees for each of 4 presentations – Randy Enkin
    • Video recording for lunar observing national feed – David Lee recorded Randy Enkin and Bill Weir
    • Attendance compared with previous Astronomy Days? 
      • Despite a shorter day at RBCM, attendance was very good
      • Previous attendance was between 1,700-2,000 at our bigger events
    • A high quality experience for attendees and children’s activities front-and-centre was a good idea – Jim Hesser
    • Met some interesting people who were very interested in astronomy – Dave Payne
    • Offered to help people to make use of their telescopes – Dave Robinson
    • Astronomy Day – event info and photo gallery
  • M33 Triangulum Galaxy image – Randy Enkin & John McDonald
    • HII star formation region
    • Compared with Barnard’s Loop shock wave (10º)
    • Bubble is the form the shock wave takes caused by multiple stars
    • M33 is a floculant galaxy – clumping of hydrogen material
    • What is a “typical” galaxy? – Dorothy Paul
    • April 2017 Skynews article (PDF) – Orion’s Aura – Orion Eridanis Super Bubble – Reg Dunkley
  • James Webb Space Telescope progress report – Chris Gainor’
    • Image sharpness check completed for all instruments
    • Instrument Modes Check Off – happening next
    • Images will likely start in June or July
    • Diffraction spikes in the images – causes?
    • Difference fields of view for each camera/sensor
  • Special General Meeting at May 16th Astronomy Cafe – Randy Enkin
    • Need a quorum of 25 Victoria Centre members in attendance
    • Changes to ensure our bylaws consistent with the national bylaws
    • Our Secretary Jill Sinkwich is finding several parts of Victoria Centre bylaws that will need to be changed
    • Proposed changes are already sent out to members
  • Need volunteers for Astronomy Cafe – Randy Enkin
    • Zoom host – recording and posting the video transcripts online
    • Meeting host – tracks and runs the meetings
  • Star parties at Observatory Hill – Lauri Roche
    • May 21, Jun 4, 18
    • Every Saturday night after the July 1st break for the summer
    • Volunteers needed: telescopes in the parking lot, RASC welcome table, Plaskett dome tour hosts, 16″ telescope operators, other roles
    • Electronically-Assisted Astronomy – start planning to use at the Star Parties in future – contact Dave Lee
  • National General Assembly – June 24-27 (online) – Lauri Roche
    • Speakers, co-current sessions, virtual field trips
    • AGM
    • Seeking submissions from members to give half hour talks about their passion – submit form by May 15th – contact Lauri

Astronomy Cafe – May 2, 2022

Posted by as Astro Cafe

Video transcript of meeting

  • Intro – Randy Enkin
  • Astronomy Day – David Lee
    • Final check-in this Wednesday evening for leads before Saturday events
    • International Astronomy Day – May 7, 2022
  • Vancouver Island Science Fair intro to awardees – Randy Enkin
  • VI Science Fair: Light At Night – Beata Ariana-Minniti (Cedar Hill Middle School student)
    • Creating a bus stop light using natural resources
    • Parts: Thermoelectric generator, voltage regulator, LED light
    • Heat storage: sand in an insulated box
  • Canada-wide Science Fair: Lower CubeSat orbit could Protect Space Infrastructure – Nathan Hellner-Mestelman
    • CubeSats collide, creating dangerous space debris that orbits the Earth – Kessler Syndrome
    • Quantifying the collisions
    • Lowering the hazard: choosing best orbits, adding micro-thrusters to CubeSats to change orbit or de-orbit
  • Astrophotos from southern Arizona – John McDonald & Garry Sedun
    • Caldwell 30 galaxy
    • M33 Triangulum Galaxy
    • NGC 2903 barred spiral galaxy
    • IC 433 Jellyfish Nebula
  • Eclipse Crater Timing – Randy Enkin
  • James Webb Space Telescope Update – Chris Gainor
    • All onboard instruments are now in focus
    • Commissioning of instruments next, then science projects begin