This weeks last apod blog is based off "Black Holes in Merging Galaxies"which is an illustration of galaxies that merge and have the ability to feed on supermassive balck holes.As a result, there is an intense emission from regions near the supermassive black holes. Therefore, it creates some of the most luminous objects in the universe. These optical images are from the Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona. At top center is NGC 7319 and the compact galaxy group known as Stephan's Quintet. I would also like to add that this has been a great year, thank you for taking the time to enlighten all of us on the wonders of space, and in the future I will look to apod just for enjoyment.
Thanks again,
Sheila
Friday, June 4, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
apod 4.7
This weeks apod blog is about the photo labeled: "Calm, Cresent Moon, and Venus." The moon and venus are seen relatively close to each other. The photo is taken in the conjunction from Sweden, located about the calm lake of Vallentuna. On May 16th, the moon is occulted in front of Venus. For many of citizens, they occultation can also be seen during the daylight hours. My favorite aspect of the photo will be the colors of the sky line beyond Venus and the moon. Being able to witness this on a clear night would be such an amazing opportunity.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1005/MoonVenus_heden.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1005/MoonVenus_heden.jpg
Friday, May 14, 2010
apod 4.6
This weeks apod is based of the photo of the Halo of the Cat's Eye. This amazing photo was taken by the Nordic Optical Telescope. This nebula is one of the best known nebulae in the sky today. There is symmetries that are seen in the central region of this photo. Keep in mind however, that this photo is false-colored in order for you to grasp the details and amazing aspects of this nebula. The false-colors also reveal the faint halo that spans over three light-years across.It is very common for the planetary nebula phase to be thought to last for around 10,000 years, astronomers estimate the age of the outer filamentary portions of this halo is about 50,000 to 90,000 years. This photo still amazes me, and the gaseous halo is extremely photogenic.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1005/catseye2_not_big.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1005/catseye2_not_big.jpg
Thursday, May 6, 2010
apod 4.5
The title of this weeks apod blog is "Mars in a Manger". The opposition in late January has Mars shone very brightly in Earths night sky. This stands among the stars of the constellation Cancer, the Crab. Since the photo snapshot, the Red Planet has been fading. However, it still lingers in Cancer during the months of April and May. During mid-April, Mars wandered close to Cancer's star cluster of M44. This is also known as the Beehive Cluster. M44 is also known by the older name, Praesepe which is latin for cradle of manger. This awesome photo was captured in a 60 second time exposure made on April 14, a yellow-tinged Mars and M44 are near the center of the field, seemingly just beyond the reach of a pine tree. The photo is a little dark, but I still think it meets its purpose and is extremely interesting, especially against the starry night in the back round.
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/MarsandM44ambrose-60S-1024.jpg
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/MarsandM44ambrose-60S-1024.jpg
apod 4.4
This apod is titled: "Sunset on a Golden Sea". This photo was taken on April 17th, by Pete Lawrence. This was an amazing telescopic view that captured the sun's swollen and distorted shape fro the southern coat of the UK. The photo reflects the bright column of the sunlight, and the sea from this photo also appears to be golden. The horizon is marked by the city of Portsmouth. The clear sky is a major reason why the atmosphere is clean and the sun is viewed near the horizon. The color of the water, and the size of the sun are my favorite aspects of this photo. I think that this photo portrays the amazingness of a setting sun.
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/2010-04-17_C_IMG_0949.jpg
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/2010-04-17_C_IMG_0949.jpg
apod 4.3
This weeks apod blog is titled: "Dust Pillar of the Carina Nebula". The photo is very interesting. The apod photo is located inside the head of the interstellar monster, which has a star that is slowly destroying it. Located on the right side is an inanimate pillar of gas and dast that measures over a light year in length. The star that is destroying the nebula is not visible through the opaque dust. The photo illustrates the ejecting energetic beams of particles. If we fast forward about 100,000 years from now we will see the star destroy the pillars of creation. This will cause a new open cluster of stars. The image also shows pink dots that surround the newly formed stars that have been freed fro this nebula. This photos detail keeps me in awe, I think that it is extremely amazing the type of photos that can be taken in todays era. I am excited to see what other photos will emberge in the years to come.
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/carina08_hst_big.jpg
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/carina08_hst_big.jpg
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Observations
March 15th, 2010 11:58
Location: The moon was not visible in the sky tonight. It was completely dark, making it apparent that there was a new moon out tonight.
Description: The fact that there was a new moon tonight made it easier for me to identify some constellations and see some nice stars from the streets of my neighborhood. I was able to identify the constellations of cancer and canis Minor. I used the star lab we received and I may have been mistaken, but I was able to see the stars out.
Weather: The night was almost cloudless that night. It was a bit windy, but it was a warmer night then the other days that I tried to observe the sky.
March 16th, 2010 12:00
Location: While I was going outside to get my backpack out of my car I was able to observe the night sky for about 30 minuets, unfortunately. There was a new moon, so I was able to record some very interesting observations.
Description: The new moon gave me the opportunity to observe vela, cancer, and lynx. Theses constellations where easier to identify based on the general location that was researched after I was outside for an excited period of time.
Weather: The whether was very similar to the night before when I was observing. The temperature was warmer outside, despite the light wind. The sky was bright enough from the stars for me to make accurate observations.
March 29th, 2010 10:49
Location: The moon was located high in the sky in the northern part of the night sky. Tonight there was a full moon, which made observing stars difficult due to the brightness.
Description: The moon was very beautiful tonight. I was outside for about an hour. The moons features were very nice, and I felt that the sky was very inviting for observing. I felt as if I could see all of the moons craters and features as it stood very high in the sky.
Weather: The temperature was very inviting. It was a little cold, due to the wind. The clouds were visible and at times would cover the moon, but for the most part the clouds would drift away and I was able to see the beautiful moon. The was an enjoyable observation session. I even attempted to take a photo f the moon tonight.
April 1st, 2010 9:30
Location: The moon was a Maxing Gibbous tonight. It stood towards the middle of the sky.
Description: The moon in the sky is almost a full moon. However, the waxing gibbous was still too bright for me to make any accurate observations of the stars. I am almost sure I saw the north star. I was a nice night, so I was able to look up at the moon and its shape for about 30 minuets.
Weather: The weather is getting warmer progressively through out my observations. It was windy, but not enough to cause a hassle when I was recording. The clouds posed very little of an issue. There was cluds, but they seemed to avoid the moon all together.
April 14th, 2010 11:00
Location: tonight there was a new moon. The location of the moon is therefore not possible to present. The location of the constellations on the other hand was something that was easy based on the perfect condition of the sky.
Description: The night was a great place for me to observe the constellations of leo and ursa major. The sky offered me a great deal of observation time. I spent about an hour and a half while I observed and walked my dogs. It was very enjoyable, and it was rather easy for me to spot these constellations due to the fact that I knew where they were generally located in the sky.
Weather: the night was fairly cloudy when I was outside, but I was still able to observe the constellations that I recorded. The temperature was warm, and was not as windy as my previous observation encounters.
Location: The moon was not visible in the sky tonight. It was completely dark, making it apparent that there was a new moon out tonight.
Description: The fact that there was a new moon tonight made it easier for me to identify some constellations and see some nice stars from the streets of my neighborhood. I was able to identify the constellations of cancer and canis Minor. I used the star lab we received and I may have been mistaken, but I was able to see the stars out.
Weather: The night was almost cloudless that night. It was a bit windy, but it was a warmer night then the other days that I tried to observe the sky.
March 16th, 2010 12:00
Location: While I was going outside to get my backpack out of my car I was able to observe the night sky for about 30 minuets, unfortunately. There was a new moon, so I was able to record some very interesting observations.
Description: The new moon gave me the opportunity to observe vela, cancer, and lynx. Theses constellations where easier to identify based on the general location that was researched after I was outside for an excited period of time.
Weather: The whether was very similar to the night before when I was observing. The temperature was warmer outside, despite the light wind. The sky was bright enough from the stars for me to make accurate observations.
March 29th, 2010 10:49
Location: The moon was located high in the sky in the northern part of the night sky. Tonight there was a full moon, which made observing stars difficult due to the brightness.
Description: The moon was very beautiful tonight. I was outside for about an hour. The moons features were very nice, and I felt that the sky was very inviting for observing. I felt as if I could see all of the moons craters and features as it stood very high in the sky.
Weather: The temperature was very inviting. It was a little cold, due to the wind. The clouds were visible and at times would cover the moon, but for the most part the clouds would drift away and I was able to see the beautiful moon. The was an enjoyable observation session. I even attempted to take a photo f the moon tonight.
April 1st, 2010 9:30
Location: The moon was a Maxing Gibbous tonight. It stood towards the middle of the sky.
Description: The moon in the sky is almost a full moon. However, the waxing gibbous was still too bright for me to make any accurate observations of the stars. I am almost sure I saw the north star. I was a nice night, so I was able to look up at the moon and its shape for about 30 minuets.
Weather: The weather is getting warmer progressively through out my observations. It was windy, but not enough to cause a hassle when I was recording. The clouds posed very little of an issue. There was cluds, but they seemed to avoid the moon all together.
April 14th, 2010 11:00
Location: tonight there was a new moon. The location of the moon is therefore not possible to present. The location of the constellations on the other hand was something that was easy based on the perfect condition of the sky.
Description: The night was a great place for me to observe the constellations of leo and ursa major. The sky offered me a great deal of observation time. I spent about an hour and a half while I observed and walked my dogs. It was very enjoyable, and it was rather easy for me to spot these constellations due to the fact that I knew where they were generally located in the sky.
Weather: the night was fairly cloudy when I was outside, but I was still able to observe the constellations that I recorded. The temperature was warm, and was not as windy as my previous observation encounters.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Apod 4.2
This amazing Apod photo of the day may give some people the impression that the sun is going out of control. However, the photo was taken on March 30th by the Solar Dynamics Observatory. This photo of the sun is a depiction of the flase-colored sun is the composite view that covers the extreme ultraviolet wavelengths that traces the hot plasma at temperature that reach 1 million Kelvin. The SDO will send about 1.5 terabytes of data back to each each day. the recent data released includes a high-reslution movie of the large and eruptive provinces that are quite apparent along the solar limb at the upper left of the photo. This also photo shows the sun in a discolored version is an extremely interesting way to examine details of the sun that you may have missed once before.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/SunSDOfulldisk.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/SunSDOfulldisk.jpg
Karl Jansky
Sheila Heiman
Karl Guthe Janky was born in Norman, Oklahoma on October 22nd, 1905. He was raised by this Dad, Cyril M. Janky who was the Dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Oklahoma at Norman. Dean was an extremely intelligent at a very young age. He was an engineer with interests in physics that was passed on to Karl. Karl Jansky was named in respects to Dr. Karl Guthe, a person that was an amazing mentor to Cyril M. Jansky. Nee Nellie Moreau was the mother of Karl Jansky, and Cyril Jansky Jr., the brother of Karl was ten years older then his brother. He too was exceptionally bright man. He was a major contributor to building some of the earliest radio transmitters in the country. Karl Jansky attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received his BS in physics in 1927.
In 1928, Karl joined the Bell Telephone Laboratories in Holmdel, New Jersey. The investigation of the atmospheric and ionosphere properties using “short waves” for the use in transatlantic radiotelephone services. Jansky acted as a radio engineer. His job was to investigate source of static that possibly interfered with the radio voice transmission. At the Bell Telephone Laboratories, Jansky built an Atenna that received radio waves at a frequency of 20.5 Mhz. The antenna was mounted on a turntable that allowed it to rotate in any direction, which is the source of its earned nickname: “Jansky’s Merry-go-round.” The rotating of the antenna allowed one to find what direction was any radio single coming from.
Janksy worked on recording singles from all directions for several months. His work caused him to identify about three different types of static. The static he identified was: nearby thunderstorms, distant thunderstorms, and faint steady hiss of unknown origins. The rise and fall of the radiation he was detecting for the third type of static lead Jansky to believe that the radiation was from the sun for about a year. Eventually, Jansky learned that the radiation source was from the Milky Way and was strongest in the direction that originated at the center of the galaxy in the constellation of Sagittarius.
On May 5th, 1922 the discovery that Jansky made about the radiation waves were published in the New York Times. Jansky decided that a follow up on this discovery was necessary, and he investigated the radio waves in more explicate detail. Jansky recommend to Bell Labs that the construction of a 100 foot diameter dish antenna was of vital importance. However, Bell Labs believed that the antenna was not necessary. He claimed that the static was not a problem for transatlantic radio communication. Jansky was then assigned to another project which required no more radio astronomy. Many scientists were interested in this discovery, but no one followed up on their own research due to the fact that the great depression was caused major financial hardships.
It was not until 1933 that two men who researched on Jansky, developed a new study of radio astronomy. Grote Rever and John Krause both were a great influence in the recent day radio astronomy research.
Jansky made many publications from the year 1932 to the year 1937. For example, 1932: "Directional studies of atmospherics at high frequencies", and 1933: "Electrical disturbances apparently of extraterrestrial origin.” Jansky also left a legacy behind him, and in honor of this amazing man, the unit that is used by radio astronomers for the strength of radio sources is the jansky. The crater Jansky on the moon is also named on his behalf. The Karl Jansky is also a NRAO postdoctoral fellowship program. A replica of the original rotating telescope was created on the NRAP site in Green Bank, West Virginia. Jansky noise is the high frequency static disturbance of the cosmic origin that has also been named in his honor. Karl Janskys life was cut short at the age of 44 from a heart condition. His life may have been shirt, but the advancements he made in radio astronomy has left a huge impact on the world forever.
Works Cited
"Karl Jansky | This Day In Tech | Wired.com." Wired News. Web.
25 Apr. 2010.
"Karl Jansky." NNDB: Tracking the Entire World. Web. 25 Apr.
2010.
Sullivan, Woodruff Turner. The Early Years of Radio Astronomy:
Reflections Fifty Years after Jansky's Discovery. Cambridge
[Cambridgeshire: Cambridge UP, 1984. Print.
Karl Guthe Janky was born in Norman, Oklahoma on October 22nd, 1905. He was raised by this Dad, Cyril M. Janky who was the Dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Oklahoma at Norman. Dean was an extremely intelligent at a very young age. He was an engineer with interests in physics that was passed on to Karl. Karl Jansky was named in respects to Dr. Karl Guthe, a person that was an amazing mentor to Cyril M. Jansky. Nee Nellie Moreau was the mother of Karl Jansky, and Cyril Jansky Jr., the brother of Karl was ten years older then his brother. He too was exceptionally bright man. He was a major contributor to building some of the earliest radio transmitters in the country. Karl Jansky attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received his BS in physics in 1927.
In 1928, Karl joined the Bell Telephone Laboratories in Holmdel, New Jersey. The investigation of the atmospheric and ionosphere properties using “short waves” for the use in transatlantic radiotelephone services. Jansky acted as a radio engineer. His job was to investigate source of static that possibly interfered with the radio voice transmission. At the Bell Telephone Laboratories, Jansky built an Atenna that received radio waves at a frequency of 20.5 Mhz. The antenna was mounted on a turntable that allowed it to rotate in any direction, which is the source of its earned nickname: “Jansky’s Merry-go-round.” The rotating of the antenna allowed one to find what direction was any radio single coming from.
Janksy worked on recording singles from all directions for several months. His work caused him to identify about three different types of static. The static he identified was: nearby thunderstorms, distant thunderstorms, and faint steady hiss of unknown origins. The rise and fall of the radiation he was detecting for the third type of static lead Jansky to believe that the radiation was from the sun for about a year. Eventually, Jansky learned that the radiation source was from the Milky Way and was strongest in the direction that originated at the center of the galaxy in the constellation of Sagittarius.
On May 5th, 1922 the discovery that Jansky made about the radiation waves were published in the New York Times. Jansky decided that a follow up on this discovery was necessary, and he investigated the radio waves in more explicate detail. Jansky recommend to Bell Labs that the construction of a 100 foot diameter dish antenna was of vital importance. However, Bell Labs believed that the antenna was not necessary. He claimed that the static was not a problem for transatlantic radio communication. Jansky was then assigned to another project which required no more radio astronomy. Many scientists were interested in this discovery, but no one followed up on their own research due to the fact that the great depression was caused major financial hardships.
It was not until 1933 that two men who researched on Jansky, developed a new study of radio astronomy. Grote Rever and John Krause both were a great influence in the recent day radio astronomy research.
Jansky made many publications from the year 1932 to the year 1937. For example, 1932: "Directional studies of atmospherics at high frequencies", and 1933: "Electrical disturbances apparently of extraterrestrial origin.” Jansky also left a legacy behind him, and in honor of this amazing man, the unit that is used by radio astronomers for the strength of radio sources is the jansky. The crater Jansky on the moon is also named on his behalf. The Karl Jansky is also a NRAO postdoctoral fellowship program. A replica of the original rotating telescope was created on the NRAP site in Green Bank, West Virginia. Jansky noise is the high frequency static disturbance of the cosmic origin that has also been named in his honor. Karl Janskys life was cut short at the age of 44 from a heart condition. His life may have been shirt, but the advancements he made in radio astronomy has left a huge impact on the world forever.
Works Cited
"Karl Jansky | This Day In Tech | Wired.com." Wired News. Web.
25 Apr. 2010.
"Karl Jansky." NNDB: Tracking the Entire World. Web. 25 Apr.
2010.
Sullivan, Woodruff Turner. The Early Years of Radio Astronomy:
Reflections Fifty Years after Jansky's Discovery. Cambridge
[Cambridgeshire: Cambridge UP, 1984. Print.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Apod 4.1
This weeks Apod blog is on the photo of an oxygen tank that has exploded and has damaged the service module in the year 1970. The astronauts that were part of the the Apollo 13 were forced to leave and change the plans to make the 3rd manned lunar landing due to this event. The entire panel on the side of the module has been obviously been blown away and there is an intense internal damage that is apparent. In April 17th, 1970 the three astronauts returned safely to Earth. This is a very interesting photo, and I think it sheds a lot of light to events that happened in the past for people that were not completely aware. All in all the photo, although grainy still gives us an idea of the extensive damage done to the service module.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/AS13-59-8500HR.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1004/AS13-59-8500HR.jpg
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Observations
3/6/10
On Saturday march 6th, 2010 I had the privilege of helping conduct the astronomy night viewing for many parents, students, and astronomy inspired observers. I was there for a total of about 5 hours I believe. This was a great experience, and I was truly surprised how much I could remember when it cam time for me to do this without the complete assistant of my teacher. I was able to direct telescopes to m45, and also explain the location in the telescopes of Jupiter. My favorite moment of the night had to be the Jupiter viewing; it was possible to see the rings of the planet as it just slanted within the sky. It was also possible to see about 2 of the moons that hung bright, and extremely close to this amazing planet. A lot of people showed up, and regardless of the cold chill; people were generally excited and stayed for the entire night. The hours I spent at astronomy night strengthen my confidence to identify constellations, and have the ability to spread my knowledge with others as well. It was very interesting to also have a lesson with the laser pointer, and it seemed a lot of people were excited every point of the night when you used it to explain something. I had an enjoyable night, and learned more from my own abilities then I ever thought.
On Saturday march 6th, 2010 I had the privilege of helping conduct the astronomy night viewing for many parents, students, and astronomy inspired observers. I was there for a total of about 5 hours I believe. This was a great experience, and I was truly surprised how much I could remember when it cam time for me to do this without the complete assistant of my teacher. I was able to direct telescopes to m45, and also explain the location in the telescopes of Jupiter. My favorite moment of the night had to be the Jupiter viewing; it was possible to see the rings of the planet as it just slanted within the sky. It was also possible to see about 2 of the moons that hung bright, and extremely close to this amazing planet. A lot of people showed up, and regardless of the cold chill; people were generally excited and stayed for the entire night. The hours I spent at astronomy night strengthen my confidence to identify constellations, and have the ability to spread my knowledge with others as well. It was very interesting to also have a lesson with the laser pointer, and it seemed a lot of people were excited every point of the night when you used it to explain something. I had an enjoyable night, and learned more from my own abilities then I ever thought.
apod 3.8
This weeks apod posting is a photo called “Phobos from Mars Express.” The origins of Phobos is the larger of the two moons that orbit Mars . The photo above is Phobos in a flyby shot of the ESA Mars Express. This is a robotic spacecraft that began orbiting Mars In the year 2003. Phobo has a very irregular shape and is about 25 kilometers in length. Phobos does not have enough gravity to compress into a ball. The orbit is so close to mars that in the next 20 million years there will ne a tidal deceleration, and it will break up the rubble moon into a ring whose pieces will spiral downwards and crash onto the red planet. The Photobo –Brunt is a Russian space mission and is scheduled to launch the land on Phobos some day next year, this will give every a better understanding of this oddly shaped moon. As the photo expresses, the moon is strangely dark and has numerous unusual grooves. It is a true spectacular chain of craters that crosses across the image presented in front of us. This is truly a very interesting photo, and I think it is a very good idea for the moon to be labeled with a north pole, so that it is easier to put yourself in the perspective of observer. The odd shape makes this an even more interesting moon. I am very happy that I had the chance to do my apod blog on this particular photo of the day.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100317.html
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100317.html
Friday, March 19, 2010
APOD 3.7
This Apod blog is titled: Deep Auriga. This photo is the plane of ourMiley Way Galazy that is extedning though the Chatiteer constillation.There are some star clusters, that are labled by the M numbers.For example this perticular apod has the star Elanath that lies near the bottom right portion of the photo. This links Auriga to the Taururs constillation.Charles Massier's M36, M37, and M38 are the three open star clusters. To identify the Auriga M numbers this awesome photo allows you to wave your cursor over the image to reveale the correct lableing. I truly love the photo, and the cool features that it is composed of. This allows the student or person to be interactive. I feel that more APOD photos should be like this one.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100305.html
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100305.html
Monday, March 1, 2010
Apod. 3.6
This is considered the jewel of the southern sky which is known as the NGC 3372, or more familiar as the Great Carina Nebula. This nebula spans over 300 light-years. The Carina Nebula is one of the galaxy’s largest star-forming regions. The Eta Carinae makes its home in this galaxy. The Eta Carina is an extremely massive star which is well over 100 times the mass of our own sun. Located in the lower left of the cosmic canvas is a large star forming region, which is most known for the title: The Running Chicken Nebula. Towards the center of the nebula is a 10 degree wide fields that includes the star clusters: NGC 5576 and NGC 3603. This photo is a interesting and beautiful photo. The sheer size makes this just unreal to me.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Henry Draper
Sheila Heiman
Mr. Percival
Astronomy honors
21 Feb. 2010
Barker, George F. “Memoir of Henry Draper; 1837-1882”. New
York: National Academy, 1888.
"Henry Draper." Cambridge Encyclopedia. 21 Feb. 2010.
Henry Draper Catalogue (astronomy) -- Britannica Online
Encyclopedia." Encyclopedia - Britannica Online
Encyclopedia. 21 Feb. 2010.
"Henry Draper." NNDB: Tracking the entire world. 21 Feb. 2010.
Mr. Percival
Astronomy honors
21 Feb. 2010
Henry Draper
Henry Draper was born in March 7th, 1837 in Prince Edward County in Virginia to a privileged home. A son of English parents, Draper had a very educated home life while growing up. Draper’s dad, John William Draper was a successful doctor, chemist, and a professor at New York University. He was particularly interested in the chemical effects of light, and was known for taking the first daguerreotypes of the moon in the winter of 1839-1840, and human portraits in 1840. William also invented photochemistry, and invented other photographic techniques. Draper’s Mom was named: Antonia Coetana de Pavia Pereira Gardner who came from a prominent family, with a Dad who was the personal physician to the emperor of Brazil. Draper’s older brother was a noted physician and chemist, and his younger brother who distinguished himself in meteorology. Around the year 1850,William started to involve his son with his research. When Henry was about 13 he helped his Dad in photographing microscope slides for a textbook. Henry studied at medical school until 1857. Unfortunately, he was only 20 and could not receive a degree before he turned the age of 21. Draper decided to spend a year abroad until he came of age. Draper’s travels focused mostly on astronomy, especially to the Lord Rosse’s observatory in Ireland. At that time it held the largest telescope, about 72-inhes with a “Leviathan” reflection. When Draper returned to his hometown, he was determined to pursue his goals of photography and astronomical interests. He even built an observatory at Hastings-on-Hudson estate with his own glass mirror telescope. These activities did not prevent Draper from fulfilling his other interests that he went to the university to accomplish. He was physician at Bellevue Hospital in 1859. Then in 1866 as a professor, he becomes the dean of the medical faculty of the University of the City of New York.
His historic astronomical research career really took off in the year 1873. Before that time he was making preliminary studies of the spectra of the more common elements, and spent time photographing the solar system. In the year 1864 to 1865 took photos of the Moon using a 40 cm reflector, which he built himself. In 1867 he married Anna Mary Palmer, a wealthy socialite. He begins the design and building of his remarkable telescopes. He took the first stellar spectrum in 1872 that showed absorption lines, and directed an expedition to photograph the 1874 transit of Venus,
After 1873 he produced a spectrograph, which he clarified with spectral lines by using a slit and incorporating a reference spectra to make the elements identifiable. Draper researched the spectroscopic studies of Lockyer and Huggins stimulated his work. He did a lot of pioneering work in astrophotography and photographing of the Moon, planets, comets, stars and nebulae as well as over 100 spectra of these objects. Among his photos was the first-ever photograph of a nebula, the Orion Nebula, in September 30, 1880 using his 11-inch Clark Brothers photographic refractor he took a 50-minute exposure. In March 14th, 1882 a much improved, 137-minute exposure of that nebula was developed and publicized by Draper. He continued his astronomical interests until the last years of his life that he spent attempting to acquire high quality spectra of celestial objects.
Henry Draper received many awards for his contributions. He was awarded honorary law degrees from NYU and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, elected to the National Academy of Sciences and Aatomische Gesellschaft, and a Congressional medal for directing the U.S. expedition to photograph the 1874 transit of Venus. Draper held a membership to the American Photographic society, the American Philosophical Society, American Association for the Advancements of Science, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences all the way until his death.
Henry Draper lost his life from double Pleurisy in November 20, 1882. His widow founded a fund on his behalf called: The Henry Draper Medal for contributions to astrophysics, which was also used to prepare the Henry Draper Catalog of stellar spectra which was created in 1886 by a team at Harvard College Observatory to classify scheme for stars and a catalogue of spectra. The Harvard project was completed in 1897, and resulted in the first comprehensive classification of stars according to their spectra. A small crater on the Moon is also named in Draper’s honor. His wife also dedicated a telescope, which was used to prepare the Henry Drape Catalog. The telescope is is now in at the ToruĊ Centre for Astronomy, at Piwnice in Poland.
Henry Draper was born in March 7th, 1837 in Prince Edward County in Virginia to a privileged home. A son of English parents, Draper had a very educated home life while growing up. Draper’s dad, John William Draper was a successful doctor, chemist, and a professor at New York University. He was particularly interested in the chemical effects of light, and was known for taking the first daguerreotypes of the moon in the winter of 1839-1840, and human portraits in 1840. William also invented photochemistry, and invented other photographic techniques. Draper’s Mom was named: Antonia Coetana de Pavia Pereira Gardner who came from a prominent family, with a Dad who was the personal physician to the emperor of Brazil. Draper’s older brother was a noted physician and chemist, and his younger brother who distinguished himself in meteorology. Around the year 1850,William started to involve his son with his research. When Henry was about 13 he helped his Dad in photographing microscope slides for a textbook. Henry studied at medical school until 1857. Unfortunately, he was only 20 and could not receive a degree before he turned the age of 21. Draper decided to spend a year abroad until he came of age. Draper’s travels focused mostly on astronomy, especially to the Lord Rosse’s observatory in Ireland. At that time it held the largest telescope, about 72-inhes with a “Leviathan” reflection. When Draper returned to his hometown, he was determined to pursue his goals of photography and astronomical interests. He even built an observatory at Hastings-on-Hudson estate with his own glass mirror telescope. These activities did not prevent Draper from fulfilling his other interests that he went to the university to accomplish. He was physician at Bellevue Hospital in 1859. Then in 1866 as a professor, he becomes the dean of the medical faculty of the University of the City of New York.
His historic astronomical research career really took off in the year 1873. Before that time he was making preliminary studies of the spectra of the more common elements, and spent time photographing the solar system. In the year 1864 to 1865 took photos of the Moon using a 40 cm reflector, which he built himself. In 1867 he married Anna Mary Palmer, a wealthy socialite. He begins the design and building of his remarkable telescopes. He took the first stellar spectrum in 1872 that showed absorption lines, and directed an expedition to photograph the 1874 transit of Venus,
After 1873 he produced a spectrograph, which he clarified with spectral lines by using a slit and incorporating a reference spectra to make the elements identifiable. Draper researched the spectroscopic studies of Lockyer and Huggins stimulated his work. He did a lot of pioneering work in astrophotography and photographing of the Moon, planets, comets, stars and nebulae as well as over 100 spectra of these objects. Among his photos was the first-ever photograph of a nebula, the Orion Nebula, in September 30, 1880 using his 11-inch Clark Brothers photographic refractor he took a 50-minute exposure. In March 14th, 1882 a much improved, 137-minute exposure of that nebula was developed and publicized by Draper. He continued his astronomical interests until the last years of his life that he spent attempting to acquire high quality spectra of celestial objects.
Henry Draper received many awards for his contributions. He was awarded honorary law degrees from NYU and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, elected to the National Academy of Sciences and Aatomische Gesellschaft, and a Congressional medal for directing the U.S. expedition to photograph the 1874 transit of Venus. Draper held a membership to the American Photographic society, the American Philosophical Society, American Association for the Advancements of Science, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences all the way until his death.
Henry Draper lost his life from double Pleurisy in November 20, 1882. His widow founded a fund on his behalf called: The Henry Draper Medal for contributions to astrophysics, which was also used to prepare the Henry Draper Catalog of stellar spectra which was created in 1886 by a team at Harvard College Observatory to classify scheme for stars and a catalogue of spectra. The Harvard project was completed in 1897, and resulted in the first comprehensive classification of stars according to their spectra. A small crater on the Moon is also named in Draper’s honor. His wife also dedicated a telescope, which was used to prepare the Henry Drape Catalog. The telescope is is now in at the ToruĊ Centre for Astronomy, at Piwnice in Poland.
Barker, George F. “Memoir of Henry Draper; 1837-1882”. New
York: National Academy, 1888.
"Henry Draper." Cambridge Encyclopedia. 21 Feb. 2010.
Henry Draper Catalogue (astronomy) -- Britannica Online
Encyclopedia." Encyclopedia - Britannica Online
Encyclopedia. 21 Feb. 2010
"Henry Draper." NNDB: Tracking the entire world. 21 Feb. 2010.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Apod 3.5
Tis is a WISE Infrared Andromeda.This infrared light from the spiral Andromeda Galaxy. Dust is heated by the Adromeda's star that is shown here in the red and yellow colors.This Andromeda is twice the diameter of our own Milky Way. Andromeda is the largest galaxy in the local group that we have observed. The WISE launched in December 2009, and it began a six month long infrared survey of the entire sky on January 14. It is expected to discover near-Earth asteroids as well as explore the distant universe, it has sensitive infrared detectors that are cooled by frozen hydrogen. I think this photo is amazing. It has to be one of my favorite APOD photos. I love the way the colors added in this photo pull out every detail.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/andromeda_wise2048.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/andromeda_wise2048.jpg
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Apod 3.4
This week’s apod posting is about the 32nd shuttle mission to take off to the international space station. The shuttle was named the STS-130. It was launched into orbit on February 8th, from the Kennedy Space Center. This amazing photo shows the arc’s reflection against the water. I love the colors, and the ability for you to detect the time of day, and how much the shuttle light up the sky. This is right over the Intercostals waterway Bridge in Ponte Vedra in Florida. A beautiful Waning Cresent moon can be seen in the rear of this photo, and cant seem to be outdone by the amazing event in front of me. The star trail near the moon was made by red supergiant Antares. It is known as an alpha star of the constellation Scorpius. I love this photo very much, and the fact that the reflection is shown makes it worthy of an Apod of the week.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/launch_vernacotola_s.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/launch_vernacotola_s.jpg
Observations
January 29th, 2010 12:15 A.M.
Location: The moon was extremely high in the sky. I believe it was situated in the upper west potion of the sky.
Description: I went outside when I was walking my dogs. This was the first time I saw the moon that night. I was automatically in shock; I was able to walk my dogs in the complete darkness with no issue at all. I was not aware yet that it was considered the largest, and brightest moon of the year. I saw each and every feature of the moon. It completely lit up the entire sky as I stood there with my dogs. The moon was of course a full moon. I was able to identify a few stars when I was outside. I saw Orion, Cetus, and what I believe was Triagulum. I was outside for about one and a half hours. It was phenomenal.
Weather: It was almost a cloudless night. The moon was so bright that I had no issue seeing the moon even with a light cloud overhead. There was a nice breeze, but perfect setting for stargazing.
February 1st, 2010 10:50 P.M.
Location: The moon this week was in the northern potion of the sky, it appeared. The moon stood very bright, and every appeared to be towards the center of the sky after I took a few more glances.
Description: the moon was a waning gibbous. At first I thought it was a full moo, but I could tell that a part of the right side was a little slanted. The sky was clear enough for me to identify stars for about 20 minuets with my little brother. I saw Tarus, and I believe I also observed the constellation of Aries. I believe I saw Jupiter in the lower part of the horizon, towards the south.
Weather: the weather was nice, it is getting colder every day. It was breezy enough to puss the clouds far enough that it was out of view.
February 16th, 2010 9:50 P.M.
Location: The waxing crescent was in the western portion of the sky. It was nearly a tiny sliver. There was not much to observe tonight with the moon.
Description: The moon was not very bright due to the small size. The sky was mostly clear so I could see the stars, but not quite well enough to identify some of the constellations. I wish moon was bigger tonight, because I spent a lot of time outside trying to identify stars. I say Orion and the big dipper. Jupiter is moving lower each day, and seems to be moving behind the sun. It is expected that it will complete this prediction in the end of the month. About an hour was spent outside.
Weather: The weather was pleasant, and clouds hung low in the sky. I was not able to see many of the features of the sky. I know that Venus is towards the south of Jupiter, but it was not bright enough for me to identify for sure.
January 29th, 2010 12:15 A.M.
Location: The moon was extremely high in the sky. I believe it was situated in the upper west potion of the sky.
Description: I went outside when I was walking my dogs. This was the first time I saw the moon that night. I was automatically in shock; I was able to walk my dogs in the complete darkness with no issue at all. I was not aware yet that it was considered the largest, and brightest moon of the year. I saw each and every feature of the moon. It completely lit up the entire sky as I stood there with my dogs. The moon was of course a full moon. I was able to identify a few stars when I was outside. I saw Orion, Cetus, and what I believe was Triagulum. I was outside for about one and a half hours. It was phenomenal.
Weather: It was almost a cloudless night. The moon was so bright that I had no issue seeing the moon even with a light cloud overhead. There was a nice breeze, but perfect setting for stargazing.
February 1st, 2010 10:50 P.M.
Location: The moon this week was in the northern potion of the sky, it appeared. The moon stood very bright, and every appeared to be towards the center of the sky after I took a few more glances.
Description: the moon was a waning gibbous. At first I thought it was a full moo, but I could tell that a part of the right side was a little slanted. The sky was clear enough for me to identify stars for about 20 minuets with my little brother. I saw Tarus, and I believe I also observed the constellation of Aries. I believe I saw Jupiter in the lower part of the horizon, towards the south.
Weather: the weather was nice, it is getting colder every day. It was breezy enough to puss the clouds far enough that it was out of view.
February 16th, 2010 9:50 P.M.
Location: The waxing crescent was in the western portion of the sky. It was nearly a tiny sliver. There was not much to observe tonight with the moon.
Description: The moon was not very bright due to the small size. The sky was mostly clear so I could see the stars, but not quite well enough to identify some of the constellations. I wish moon was bigger tonight, because I spent a lot of time outside trying to identify stars. I say Orion and the big dipper. Jupiter is moving lower each day, and seems to be moving behind the sun. It is expected that it will complete this prediction in the end of the month. About an hour was spent outside.
Weather: The weather was pleasant, and clouds hung low in the sky. I was not able to see many of the features of the sky. I know that Venus is towards the south of Jupiter, but it was not bright enough for me to identify for sure.
February 14th, 2010 11:00 P.M.
Location: There was a new moon today, so the moon was not located in any specific part of the sky.
Description: When I went outside today, I was not able to identify any moon. There was a new moon today, which made everything seem a lot darker when I was outside. I spent most of the time searching for stars.
I believe I saw Gemini, and a shooting star. It was a very beautiful night, but it felt unreal without the moon out. I was outside for about one hour as I walked my two dogs.
Weather: the air was very cold for me, but I stayed outside as long as I could. I wish I could have identified more constellations, but it was vary cloudy. Clouds would pass eventually. However, it took much to long to wait.
February 15th, 2010 8:30 P.M.
Location: The waning crescent was found in the right corner of the sky towards the northern part.
Description: There was not much to observe, the moon is starting to form into a whole once again. I was able to see Tarus in the sky while I was looking up, as well as orion.
Weather: It was lightly chilled, but I was able to stay out for about an hour to observe a few aspects of the sky. I tried to take some photos of the sky, but nothing came up. The clouds were light and didn’t really hinder my viewing ability while I was outside.
Location: The moon was extremely high in the sky. I believe it was situated in the upper west potion of the sky.
Description: I went outside when I was walking my dogs. This was the first time I saw the moon that night. I was automatically in shock; I was able to walk my dogs in the complete darkness with no issue at all. I was not aware yet that it was considered the largest, and brightest moon of the year. I saw each and every feature of the moon. It completely lit up the entire sky as I stood there with my dogs. The moon was of course a full moon. I was able to identify a few stars when I was outside. I saw Orion, Cetus, and what I believe was Triagulum. I was outside for about one and a half hours. It was phenomenal.
Weather: It was almost a cloudless night. The moon was so bright that I had no issue seeing the moon even with a light cloud overhead. There was a nice breeze, but perfect setting for stargazing.
February 1st, 2010 10:50 P.M.
Location: The moon this week was in the northern potion of the sky, it appeared. The moon stood very bright, and every appeared to be towards the center of the sky after I took a few more glances.
Description: the moon was a waning gibbous. At first I thought it was a full moo, but I could tell that a part of the right side was a little slanted. The sky was clear enough for me to identify stars for about 20 minuets with my little brother. I saw Tarus, and I believe I also observed the constellation of Aries. I believe I saw Jupiter in the lower part of the horizon, towards the south.
Weather: the weather was nice, it is getting colder every day. It was breezy enough to puss the clouds far enough that it was out of view.
February 16th, 2010 9:50 P.M.
Location: The waxing crescent was in the western portion of the sky. It was nearly a tiny sliver. There was not much to observe tonight with the moon.
Description: The moon was not very bright due to the small size. The sky was mostly clear so I could see the stars, but not quite well enough to identify some of the constellations. I wish moon was bigger tonight, because I spent a lot of time outside trying to identify stars. I say Orion and the big dipper. Jupiter is moving lower each day, and seems to be moving behind the sun. It is expected that it will complete this prediction in the end of the month. About an hour was spent outside.
Weather: The weather was pleasant, and clouds hung low in the sky. I was not able to see many of the features of the sky. I know that Venus is towards the south of Jupiter, but it was not bright enough for me to identify for sure.
January 29th, 2010 12:15 A.M.
Location: The moon was extremely high in the sky. I believe it was situated in the upper west potion of the sky.
Description: I went outside when I was walking my dogs. This was the first time I saw the moon that night. I was automatically in shock; I was able to walk my dogs in the complete darkness with no issue at all. I was not aware yet that it was considered the largest, and brightest moon of the year. I saw each and every feature of the moon. It completely lit up the entire sky as I stood there with my dogs. The moon was of course a full moon. I was able to identify a few stars when I was outside. I saw Orion, Cetus, and what I believe was Triagulum. I was outside for about one and a half hours. It was phenomenal.
Weather: It was almost a cloudless night. The moon was so bright that I had no issue seeing the moon even with a light cloud overhead. There was a nice breeze, but perfect setting for stargazing.
February 1st, 2010 10:50 P.M.
Location: The moon this week was in the northern potion of the sky, it appeared. The moon stood very bright, and every appeared to be towards the center of the sky after I took a few more glances.
Description: the moon was a waning gibbous. At first I thought it was a full moo, but I could tell that a part of the right side was a little slanted. The sky was clear enough for me to identify stars for about 20 minuets with my little brother. I saw Tarus, and I believe I also observed the constellation of Aries. I believe I saw Jupiter in the lower part of the horizon, towards the south.
Weather: the weather was nice, it is getting colder every day. It was breezy enough to puss the clouds far enough that it was out of view.
February 16th, 2010 9:50 P.M.
Location: The waxing crescent was in the western portion of the sky. It was nearly a tiny sliver. There was not much to observe tonight with the moon.
Description: The moon was not very bright due to the small size. The sky was mostly clear so I could see the stars, but not quite well enough to identify some of the constellations. I wish moon was bigger tonight, because I spent a lot of time outside trying to identify stars. I say Orion and the big dipper. Jupiter is moving lower each day, and seems to be moving behind the sun. It is expected that it will complete this prediction in the end of the month. About an hour was spent outside.
Weather: The weather was pleasant, and clouds hung low in the sky. I was not able to see many of the features of the sky. I know that Venus is towards the south of Jupiter, but it was not bright enough for me to identify for sure.
February 14th, 2010 11:00 P.M.
Location: There was a new moon today, so the moon was not located in any specific part of the sky.
Description: When I went outside today, I was not able to identify any moon. There was a new moon today, which made everything seem a lot darker when I was outside. I spent most of the time searching for stars.
I believe I saw Gemini, and a shooting star. It was a very beautiful night, but it felt unreal without the moon out. I was outside for about one hour as I walked my two dogs.
Weather: the air was very cold for me, but I stayed outside as long as I could. I wish I could have identified more constellations, but it was vary cloudy. Clouds would pass eventually. However, it took much to long to wait.
February 15th, 2010 8:30 P.M.
Location: The waning crescent was found in the right corner of the sky towards the northern part.
Description: There was not much to observe, the moon is starting to form into a whole once again. I was able to see Tarus in the sky while I was looking up, as well as orion.
Weather: It was lightly chilled, but I was able to stay out for about an hour to observe a few aspects of the sky. I tried to take some photos of the sky, but nothing came up. The clouds were light and didn’t really hinder my viewing ability while I was outside.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Apod 3.3
This amazing photo was taken in a very appealing manner. The halo that is seen above the sun in Cambodia. The explanation goes into greater detail about this phenomenon. The thin clouds that are around the sun contain millions of small ice crystals that cover the sky, and each crystal acts like a lens around the sun. The mini lens is similar to a hexagonal shape that deposits the cool halo effect when the light enters the crystal; refracting at 22 degrees. The photo is located in the ancient Bayon temple in Angkor. This photo is beautiful, and I feel that the black and white component of this photo comes off amazing, and was a great choice. The halo around the sun seems nearly perfect, and I love this photo.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/sunhalo_attila_big.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/sunhalo_attila_big.jpg
Apod 3.2
This Apod blog is about the dust storms on mars. This photo truly captures what the explanation is depicting. The storm forms in the northern hemisphere. The season of spring usually hints to an abundance of dust storms on the planet. This photo is an extremely sharp image and shows he evolving dust storm that is growing from the large dark region called the Mare Acidulous that is located below the polar cap. This particular dust storm was recorded on February 2nd with the Pic Du Midi telescope that Is 1 meter. The observation spot was in the French Pyrenees. This photo is diffidently more vivid then I would ever imagine, and just adore this photo.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/MarsDust_picdumidi.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/MarsDust_picdumidi.jpg
Monday, February 8, 2010
APOD 3.1
This photo is titled: “Mars and a Colorful Lunar Fog Bow,” and the main reason that this photo is such a beautiful spectacle is due to the fact that Mars is dazzling bright sitting on the left corner of this photo. About 2 weeks about, Mars was especially noticeable; especially when this photo was taken. The lower potion of this photo is a fog bow. A fog bow is unlike a rainbow, it is created by the moonlight that is reflected by the water drops that are composed by the fog in the atmosphere. This is especially an amazing fog bow because of the rainbow colors found within it. Most fog bows remain white in the sky. However, all the colors of the rainbow where visible in this fogbow, making it similar to a rainbow. This photo was taken on top of Haleakala, which is a volcano in Hawaii. This photo really is amazing. There is so much beauty in this photo, and truly captures the amazing features if you just look up upon the sky.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/marsbow_pacholka_big.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/marsbow_pacholka_big.jpg
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Observations
December 12th, 2009
I went with my house with a couple of my friends that are not in astronomy. We went out to the celery field and sat out for about 3 hours to look at the stars. We headed out at around 11 and left two o’clock. I was extremely tired, but it was worth it to an extent. I was able to catch about 13 Geminid meteors. Only about half of them were bright, and the rest were medium. It was exciting to see them. However, a fog was developing which made the viewing experience limited. We left, but I had a good time and was able to let my friend see meteors for the first time.
December 17th, 2009 11:50 p.m.
Location: There was no moon is my view. The moon was a new moon so I suspect that is the reason.
Description: The moon was not visible tonight due to the phase of the moon.
Weather: It was minutely chilly out tonight. It was due to the fact that it was chilly outside. The clouds would not be distorting the sky based on the fact that it was not an obvious moon outside. Although I do like new moons, the stars in the sky were beautiful. I saw orions belt in the sky.
December 30th, 2009 10:30 p.m.
Location: The moon was high in the sky. It was a full moon tonight. It was I the northern portion of the sky.
Description: The moon as extremely beautiful tonight. I saw it extremely clear and bright up in the sky. I could pick up on different craters and features on the moons face.
Weather: The clouds did not hinder the full moon at all. It was kind of cold, but it did not stop me from gazing up at the moon for a while. I enjoyed the time I spent and the weather that surrounded me.
December 31st, 2009 12:00 a.m.
Location: It was the second day of the new moon. The moon appeared in the northern part of the sky, but it was more in the center this time.
Description: the new moon was beautiful. It was still as beautiful as yesterday. It seemed fuller this time compared to yesterday.
Weather: the weather was so nice. It was a bit more cold then yesterday for me, but it did not stop me from being out there for an extended amount of time. It was such a nice night, and he clouds hung n a light fog so when it covered the moon; it did not last for longer then a couple moments.
December 1st, 2010 a.m.
Location: The full moon was more towards the left this time, I believe. It was new years day and I was outside able to see the moon and the sky all around me.
Description: The moon was beautiful. I was not able to see the stars unfortunately, there was just too much light from the streets and the buildings around me.
Weather: There was a light mist that seemed to be considered a shower. The day was chilly. And there was a moderate visibility. The moon shone brightly so there was no issue there. However, the stars were very hard to see from the locations I was at the entire night.
January 14th, 2010 8:00 p.m.
Location: There is a new moon out tonight so I do not have the ability to detect that
Description: The moon is a new moon. I do not have any ability to see it. The stars are out tonight though, and they are very nice. I can see Ornion, Gemini, and Persus. I truly enjoyed the observation.
Weather: Its pretty cold out, but the weather has warmed up from the last couple of nights. I have the ability to see up into the sky, even though it appears to be a little foggy out. A few scattered clouds, but the wind pushes them past fairly quickly.
There has been a total of about 9 hours from all the observations combined. I saw my first meteor this semester, and have had a wonderful time identifying stars and the moon.
I went with my house with a couple of my friends that are not in astronomy. We went out to the celery field and sat out for about 3 hours to look at the stars. We headed out at around 11 and left two o’clock. I was extremely tired, but it was worth it to an extent. I was able to catch about 13 Geminid meteors. Only about half of them were bright, and the rest were medium. It was exciting to see them. However, a fog was developing which made the viewing experience limited. We left, but I had a good time and was able to let my friend see meteors for the first time.
December 17th, 2009 11:50 p.m.
Location: There was no moon is my view. The moon was a new moon so I suspect that is the reason.
Description: The moon was not visible tonight due to the phase of the moon.
Weather: It was minutely chilly out tonight. It was due to the fact that it was chilly outside. The clouds would not be distorting the sky based on the fact that it was not an obvious moon outside. Although I do like new moons, the stars in the sky were beautiful. I saw orions belt in the sky.
December 30th, 2009 10:30 p.m.
Location: The moon was high in the sky. It was a full moon tonight. It was I the northern portion of the sky.
Description: The moon as extremely beautiful tonight. I saw it extremely clear and bright up in the sky. I could pick up on different craters and features on the moons face.
Weather: The clouds did not hinder the full moon at all. It was kind of cold, but it did not stop me from gazing up at the moon for a while. I enjoyed the time I spent and the weather that surrounded me.
December 31st, 2009 12:00 a.m.
Location: It was the second day of the new moon. The moon appeared in the northern part of the sky, but it was more in the center this time.
Description: the new moon was beautiful. It was still as beautiful as yesterday. It seemed fuller this time compared to yesterday.
Weather: the weather was so nice. It was a bit more cold then yesterday for me, but it did not stop me from being out there for an extended amount of time. It was such a nice night, and he clouds hung n a light fog so when it covered the moon; it did not last for longer then a couple moments.
December 1st, 2010 a.m.
Location: The full moon was more towards the left this time, I believe. It was new years day and I was outside able to see the moon and the sky all around me.
Description: The moon was beautiful. I was not able to see the stars unfortunately, there was just too much light from the streets and the buildings around me.
Weather: There was a light mist that seemed to be considered a shower. The day was chilly. And there was a moderate visibility. The moon shone brightly so there was no issue there. However, the stars were very hard to see from the locations I was at the entire night.
January 14th, 2010 8:00 p.m.
Location: There is a new moon out tonight so I do not have the ability to detect that
Description: The moon is a new moon. I do not have any ability to see it. The stars are out tonight though, and they are very nice. I can see Ornion, Gemini, and Persus. I truly enjoyed the observation.
Weather: Its pretty cold out, but the weather has warmed up from the last couple of nights. I have the ability to see up into the sky, even though it appears to be a little foggy out. A few scattered clouds, but the wind pushes them past fairly quickly.
There has been a total of about 9 hours from all the observations combined. I saw my first meteor this semester, and have had a wonderful time identifying stars and the moon.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Apod 2.8
This is a very interesting photo of a roll cloud. It was shot above the Las Olas Beach in Maldonado, Uruguay. The photo was taken on January 2009. The roll clouds are rare clouds that appear very long in the sky. The clods form near advancing cold fronts. The roll cloud actually has the ability to have a circulation of air along the long horizontal axis of the cloud. The roll cloud is truly formed when a downdraft from a occurring storm causes the moist air that is warm to rise, and cool below its dew point to form this awesome spectacle. This photo had my double taking a couple times. It almost appears that these roll clouds can make people fear of a tornado occurring. However, it is reported that tornados do not form from these clouds at all. All in all I hope that I have the ability to see one of these rare roll clouds across the sky, it was surly amazing to see in a photo; it will be more awesome to see in person.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1001/rollcloud_eberl_big.jpg
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1001/rollcloud_eberl_big.jpg
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Joseph Langrang
Sheila Heiman
Mr. Percival
Astronomy
02 Jan. 2009
Joseph Langrang
Giuseppe Lodovico Langrangia was born on January 1736, more formally known as Joseph-Louis Langrang. Langrang was born in Turin, Italy which was the capital of the kingdom of Sardinia. Langrang was born to a Dad named Giuseppe Francesco Lagrangia and a mother by the name of Teresa Grosso. Lagrang’s Dad was the Treasurer of the Office of Public Workers and Fortifications in their home city. Teresa was well known from being the daughter of a doctor from Cambiano. Although Langrang’s family held some importance to the king of Sardinia, the family was not wealthy due to the Dad’s failure in unsuccessful financial speculations. Lagrang was the eldest of 11 children born to his parents; however he was one of only two children to actually reach adulthood.
As Joseph grew a career in the law field was preplanned for his future. Joseph accepted this keenly, and was sent to the College of Turin. While studying in this college, Langrang’s favorite subject was classical Latin. Langrang had little interest for mathematics do to the fact that Greed geometry was considered dull to him. It was not till later in his life that he cultivated an interest in math and the mathematical equations involved in astronomy. A curiosity in math began after Joseph read a copy of Halley, a 1963 work on the algebra used in optics. Langrang lived part of his life in Prussia and then another portion of his life in France; where he made most of his significant contributions to the fields of: analysis, number theory, classical, and celestial mechanics. Physics was another interest of Joseph that first got his attention after an inspiring class taught by Beccaria at his college.
Langrang dedicate himself to his love of math, but for the most part he was self-taught. His first mathematical piece of work was published on July 23rd 1754. This published piece of work drew similarities between the derivatives of functions and analogies of binomial theorem. After his first publication he began his work on the tautochrone, which is the curve which a weighted particle will arrive at a fixed point at the same independent as the initial position. Towards the ending of 1754, the discovery Lanrang made on tautochrone assisted on the new subject of calculus of variations.
Langrang was particularly interested in the math that was associated with astronomy. He is mostly known in the field of astronomy for the various problems that he did on published papers. In the year 1764 he began to work on the reason why the same side of the Moon continuously faced Earth.
Also researching the satellites of Jupiter in 1766. Most of the attributes that he had in the astronomical field was between the years of 1772- 1793. In 1772 Joseph attempted to solve the three-body problem which resulted in the finding of the Lagrangian points, which can detect the two body systems in space. He focused directly on the Earth, Sun, and Moon. Joseph wrote papers on the attraction of ellipsoids in 1772, the secular equation of the Moon written in 1773, the motion of the nodes of the orbit of the planet in 1774, and the stability of the planetary orbit in 1776. Lagrang also did work covering the orbit of a comet that he witnessed three times; as well as the determination of the secular and periodic variations of the elements of the planets in our solar system. In 1780 he proved his solution by discovering the idea of generalized equation of motion. In the years 1778 and 1783 he found a method in determining the orbit of a comet.
By the year 1786, it was known that Joseph moved to Paris where he was given the title of senator and a count in the first empire of France. This is where he became the member of the French academy of science. Langrang met his second wife Renee-Francoise-Adelaide Le Monnie and stayed married to her until his death. Napoleon in 1808 made Langrang the Grand officer of the Legion of Honor and Comte of the empire. Langrang was also awarded the Grand Croix of the Order Imperial de la Reunion. The death of Joseph Langrang is said to be caused by his frequent bouts of depression. Langrang died on April 10th, 1813 in Paris, France. He was laid to rest in the Pantheon in Paris. A street in Paris is named rue Lagrang in his honor. The street Langrang was also born on was named via Lagrang in respect as well.
Works Cited
The Coloumbia Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: : Columbia UP, 2009.
"Joseph-Louis Lagrange Biography." Biography Base Home. 03 Jan. 2010..
"Joseph-Louis Lagrange." Fakulteta za matematiko in fiziko. 03 Jan. 2010..
"Lagrange summary." MacTutor History of Mathematics. 03 Jan. 2010..
Mr. Percival
Astronomy
02 Jan. 2009
Joseph Langrang
Giuseppe Lodovico Langrangia was born on January 1736, more formally known as Joseph-Louis Langrang. Langrang was born in Turin, Italy which was the capital of the kingdom of Sardinia. Langrang was born to a Dad named Giuseppe Francesco Lagrangia and a mother by the name of Teresa Grosso. Lagrang’s Dad was the Treasurer of the Office of Public Workers and Fortifications in their home city. Teresa was well known from being the daughter of a doctor from Cambiano. Although Langrang’s family held some importance to the king of Sardinia, the family was not wealthy due to the Dad’s failure in unsuccessful financial speculations. Lagrang was the eldest of 11 children born to his parents; however he was one of only two children to actually reach adulthood.
As Joseph grew a career in the law field was preplanned for his future. Joseph accepted this keenly, and was sent to the College of Turin. While studying in this college, Langrang’s favorite subject was classical Latin. Langrang had little interest for mathematics do to the fact that Greed geometry was considered dull to him. It was not till later in his life that he cultivated an interest in math and the mathematical equations involved in astronomy. A curiosity in math began after Joseph read a copy of Halley, a 1963 work on the algebra used in optics. Langrang lived part of his life in Prussia and then another portion of his life in France; where he made most of his significant contributions to the fields of: analysis, number theory, classical, and celestial mechanics. Physics was another interest of Joseph that first got his attention after an inspiring class taught by Beccaria at his college.
Langrang dedicate himself to his love of math, but for the most part he was self-taught. His first mathematical piece of work was published on July 23rd 1754. This published piece of work drew similarities between the derivatives of functions and analogies of binomial theorem. After his first publication he began his work on the tautochrone, which is the curve which a weighted particle will arrive at a fixed point at the same independent as the initial position. Towards the ending of 1754, the discovery Lanrang made on tautochrone assisted on the new subject of calculus of variations.
Langrang was particularly interested in the math that was associated with astronomy. He is mostly known in the field of astronomy for the various problems that he did on published papers. In the year 1764 he began to work on the reason why the same side of the Moon continuously faced Earth.
Also researching the satellites of Jupiter in 1766. Most of the attributes that he had in the astronomical field was between the years of 1772- 1793. In 1772 Joseph attempted to solve the three-body problem which resulted in the finding of the Lagrangian points, which can detect the two body systems in space. He focused directly on the Earth, Sun, and Moon. Joseph wrote papers on the attraction of ellipsoids in 1772, the secular equation of the Moon written in 1773, the motion of the nodes of the orbit of the planet in 1774, and the stability of the planetary orbit in 1776. Lagrang also did work covering the orbit of a comet that he witnessed three times; as well as the determination of the secular and periodic variations of the elements of the planets in our solar system. In 1780 he proved his solution by discovering the idea of generalized equation of motion. In the years 1778 and 1783 he found a method in determining the orbit of a comet.
By the year 1786, it was known that Joseph moved to Paris where he was given the title of senator and a count in the first empire of France. This is where he became the member of the French academy of science. Langrang met his second wife Renee-Francoise-Adelaide Le Monnie and stayed married to her until his death. Napoleon in 1808 made Langrang the Grand officer of the Legion of Honor and Comte of the empire. Langrang was also awarded the Grand Croix of the Order Imperial de la Reunion. The death of Joseph Langrang is said to be caused by his frequent bouts of depression. Langrang died on April 10th, 1813 in Paris, France. He was laid to rest in the Pantheon in Paris. A street in Paris is named rue Lagrang in his honor. The street Langrang was also born on was named via Lagrang in respect as well.
Works Cited
The Coloumbia Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: : Columbia UP, 2009.
"Joseph-Louis Lagrange Biography." Biography Base Home. 03 Jan. 2010.
"Joseph-Louis Lagrange." Fakulteta za matematiko in fiziko. 03 Jan. 2010.
"Lagrange summary." MacTutor History of Mathematics. 03 Jan. 2010.
Apod 2.7
This beautiful photo is approximately three thousand light-years away. This photo is of a dyeing star that is producing shells of glowing gas. This image was recovered from the Hubble Space Telescope, and it shaped this photo of a Cat’s Eye Nebula. A Cat’s Eye Nebula is known as one of the most complex planetary nebulas known to man. The bright central object found in this nebula is believed to be a binary star system. These objects presented in this photo appear to be a planet like and round. However, the stars is surrounded by a cocoon of gas blown right off the late stage of stellar evolution. This is an amazing photo, and keeps my eyes captive to the colors and sure size and distance of this object from planet Earth.
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