December 2010
President's Message: December 2010
By Tom ThibaultDear Skyscrapers Members,
Well, there no more denying it, winter is getting set to officially arrive. Less and less leaves remain hanging from the trees and the grass has stopped growing. We even had our first snowfall. Though it was very minor and some may have not seen it, it still happened. We have now turned our clocks back an hour and are now in standard time.
Many people would find this not the best news to be hearing, but for some of us who enjoy the evening skies it provides an opportunity for increased viewing and a chance to see some of the night sky’s best. What a pleasure it can be to begin viewing by 6:00 pm rather than having to wait until past 9:00. It can get a bit chilly, but everything comes at a cost. So bundle up and get out there.
We are continuing our Skyscrapers tradition and will be holding our December Meeting on the Saturday (Dec. 4th) at 7:00 rather than our normal Friday. Our meeting will be at the Scituate Community Center, as it will be from December through April. We are planning to have a Pot Luck Dinner, and past years have proven that many of our members are not only astronomically capable but gastronomically proficient as well.
Now, if you’re like me, a person that should not be allowed near a store, feel free to bring your favorite prepared items from professionals like Sarah Lee or Frito Lay. We have planned on providing the Coffee, Hot Chocolate, Apple Cider, and some pastries. The Saturday date was decided upon years ago to allow those planning a homemade dish sufficient time to prepare them, and to provide our members adequate time to arrive. Let me know what food item you plan to bring so that our efforts can be coordinated and we don’t end up with too much of any one item. You can contact me via e-mail at DeepSpaceViewer@aol.com or call me at 401-489-1957.
We would like to organize Members Night activities at Seagrave in the upcoming year. This month’s newsletter includes a Members Survey. Please take the time to print a copy and answer the survey questions. We will provide a return drop box at our next few meetings or feel free to mail to: Skyscrapers Inc., 47 Peeptoad Rd., N. Scituate, RI., 02857, Attn. Members Survey. We intend on utilizing the returned survey information to develop programs based on our members’ interests. Feel free to provide any suggestions you may have in regards to Members Night activities. We are requesting the return of completed survey’s by the end of February.
Lastly, our society recently showed our commitment to educating the public. Historian Dave Huestis organized a Star Party for the Callahan Elementary School in Burrillville on Nov.12th. It was beautiful night in which 12 member volunteers participated. A chorus of Wow’s and Awesome’s were heard that evening from more than a hundred students and their families. Great job to Dave and all those who participated, I’m sure we’ve recruited a few future Skyscrapers that evening.
Clear Skies
Tom Thibault
Skyscrapers
President
Fun with 6 Billion Pixels: Building a Huge Hydrogen-Alpha Mosaic of the Winter Milky Way
Dennis di CiccoWe have planned on providing the coffee, hot chocolate, apple cider, and some pastries. The Saturday date was decided upon years ago to allow those planning a homemade dish sufficient time to prepare them, and to provide our members adequate time to arrive. Let me know what food item you plan to bring so that our efforts can be coordinated and we don’t end up with too much of any one item. You can contact me via e-mail at DeepSpaceViewer@aol.com or call me at 401-489-1957.
Last winter the speaker and his colleague Sean Walker tackled their most ambitious joint project yet -- creating an 85-degree-square mosaic of the Milky Way stretching from Canis Major to Perseus made with deep exposures in hydrogen-alpha light. Between October and January the speaker made approximately 130 hours of exposure from his backyard observatory in Sudbury, Massachusetts. In the weeks that followed, Sean spent an equal amount of time assembling the 25-frame mosaic, which, if printed at it's native resolution, would make a print nearly 12 feet square. The image shows many large-scale nebulous structures that are all but unknown to observers. This popular-level talk will explain how the mosaic was made and why it's not the kind of project that sane people should attempt.
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