October - Cincinnati Observatory

OBSERVATORY NEWS
October 2014
513-321-5186
Published by the Friends of the Observatory (FOTO)
Volume 25 No. 10
www.cincinnatiobservatory.org
Bill Cartwright, editor
COMING UP AT
THE OBSERVATORY....
Astronomy Thursday
Oct 2
8p
FOTOKids
Oct 3
7p
Astronomy Friday
Oct 3
8p
Space Day @ iSpace
Oct 4
10am
Scout Pin Night
Oct 4
7-9p
Late Night Date Night
Oct 4
10:30p
FOTO Tour of Mt. Adams Oct 4
1p
Lunar Eclipse
Oct 8
5am
Astronomy Thursday
Oct 9
8p
Astronomy Friday
Oct 10 8p
History Tours
Oct 12 1-4p
*FOTO Member’s Meeting Oct 13 7:30p
Astro Volunteer Training
Oct 14 7-9p
** Stargazing 101
Oct 15 7p
Astronomy Thursday
Oct 16 8p
Astrophoto Workshop
Oct 16 8p
Astronomy Friday
Oct 17 8p
Stonelick Stargaze
Oct 18 dusk
Spring Grove Tour
Oct 18 1p
Twin Lakes Star Party
Oct 18-25
Solar Eclipse @ Ault Park Oct 23 5-7p
Astronomy Thursday
Oct 23 8p
Astronomy Friday
Oct 24 8p
Stonelick Stargaze
Oct 25 dusk
History Tours
Oct 26 1-4p
** Behind the Scenes
Oct 29 7p
Astronomy Thursday
Oct 30 8p
Astronomy Friday
Oct 31 8p
*Note the monthly FOTO Members
Meeting is usually 2nd Mondays - 7:30pm at
the Observatory
** UC Communiversity Course
Save-The-Dates!
Meet a Meteorite
Nov 1
** Ancient Echoes
Nov 5
FOTOKids
Nov 7
Late Night Date Night
Nov 8
*FOTO Member’s Meeting Nov 10
Scout Pin Night
Dec 6
** UC Communiversity Course
7p
7p
7p
10:30p
7:30p
7-9p
THE WORD
By Michelle Lierl Gainey
Hello friends! I know many of you
attended ScopeOut earlier this
month; thanks to all who
volunteered to make this event
such a great success. Of course we
all owe a HUGE Thank You to
Dale Zoller, who has volunteered
to organize ScopeOut for the past
several years. Dale outdid himself
this year, with some excellent new
exhibits and activities. It is an
enormous job to coordinate all the
volunteers,
exhibitors,
and
activities for ScopeOut, and the
thoughtful effort showed. Thanks
also to Denise Mustain who
organized the dinner and caterer,
John Barnes who made the
nametags, and to all the other
volunteers who helped with
parking, registration, running the
telescopes, the children’s activities,
the hands-on science demos, the
information tables, the gift shop,
and all the other activities needed
to make ScopeOut a fun and
educational astronomy fair.
I hope you will all be able to
attend the October FOTO meeting
on Monday, October 13 at 7:30.
Our annual elections will be held
that evening. We always need
enthusiastic members with good
ideas and energy, to help keep
FOTO thriving. Please consider
offering your time and talents to
serve the Friends of the
Observatory.
Anyone over 18 years of age
who has been a FOTO member in
good standing for at least 1 year is
eligible to run for office. Positions
open for election include President,
Vice
President,
Secretary,
Treasurer and 2 of the Trustee
positions. Frank Huss is heading
the Nominating Committee; you
can
contact
him
at:
fhuss3@aol.com.
Nominations
will be taken at the October
meeting before the elections, or
you can contact Frank before the
meeting to nominate yourself or
someone else for a Board position.
Another great reason to attend
our October meeting is to hear
Jerry Black, Chair of the Ohio
Chapter of the Mars Society, speak
on the “Search for Life on Mars
and Beyond”. Mr. Black is an
excellent speaker and very
knowledgeable on this topic.
1
We have two eclipses in October!
There will be a total lunar eclipse
on October 8 early in the morning
(beginning at 5:18 a.m., maximal
eclipse at 6:55 a.m., the Moon will
be near the western horizon, and a
partial solar eclipse on October 23
near sunset. We will be viewing
the partial solar eclipse at Ault
Park Pavilion. If you choose to
view the eclipse from another
location, be SURE to have safe
solar filters to protect your eyes!
Even when it is low on the horizon,
looking directly at the sun can
cause permanent damage to your
retinas.
The safest and most
durable portable solar filter is #14
welder’s glass; we will be offering
welder’s glass filters at the October
FOTO meeting and in the gift shop
for a special price of $4.00 for
members.
Astrophotography
Workshop
Third Thursdays
February through November
Next Session: Thursday October
16th, 8:00-10 pm
Free for Cincinnati Observatory
members.
Space is
limited.
513-321-5186.
ScopeOut 2014
By Dale Zoller
market. The Tesla crew spent the
day surrounded by inquisitive
guests discussing the innovative
technology that will help reduce
our carbon footprint.
On September 13, the Observatory
held its annual open house and
science fair, ScopeOut 2014. To
enhance our effort to push STEM
(Science, Technology, Engineering
& Mathematics) education, we had
two exciting new additions to
ScopeOut.
This year's event began with the
arrival of an R-44 helicopter
courtesy of Stratus Helicopters.
After landing on the parking
circle, the helicopter was on
display providing many visitors
(young and old) their first
opportunity to sit in a helicopter
and learn about how these
remarkable
flying
machines
operate.
Our second STEM star was a Tesla
S provided by Tesla Motors
located at the Kenwood Towne
Centre.
The Tesla S is the
premiere all-electric car built in the
USA and is considered to be one of
the most efficient cars on the
This year we transformed the "kids
area"
into
the
"Science
Adventures" tent. We added more
science-related activities including
"Galileo" experiments (acceleration
ramp, pendulum, tennis ball drop,
etc.); cloud chamber; UC Physics
Dept. demos; and an "inertial
guidance"
exhibit,
which
demonstrated how rockets are
controlled in flight. We also had
the usual activities for the younger
kids, such as a scavenger hunt, art
contest and face painting.
A
special thank you to FOTO-Teen
Katie Burdette, who helped
coordinate the activities.
During the afternoon, the
Mitchel telescope was set up for
solar viewing.
This was
complemented by a solar energy
display from Blue Chip Energy
Services, showing you how to put
the energy from our closest star to
work for you.
In addition, Observatory volunteer
Kirk Schrotel displayed his
2
collection of solar gadgets. FOTO
members Bob and Jerry Stenton
once again had their “meteorite
hunt” set up in front of the Herget
Building and a lot of kids got to go
home with a little piece of space
rock.
Adding to the excitement of our
raffle this year was the new "Ball
Drop" raffle. The top prize was a
private night at the Observatory
for the winner and 10 friends.
Second prize was a gift certificate
for a helicopter tour from Stratus
Helicopters. About 5:45pm the
helicopter took off from the
parking circle and then hovered
over the target area (a clearing on
the west side of the grounds). The
160+ golf balls rained down on the
target to the cheers of the crowd.
The first and second prizes were
won by FOTO members Sam
Vessel
and
David
Kuhl
respectively.
which made this exciting addition
to ScopeOut possible.
The evening activities began
with dinner. This year's dinner
was catered by Bella Luna Italian
Restaurant. A special thank you
goes out to Denise Mustain (and
friends)
who
once
again
coordinated
the
dinner
arrangements.
And thanks to
Lookout Joe’s for providing the
“Observatory Blend” coffee. This
year's keynote talk was presented
by James Albury, Director of the
Kika Silva Pla Planetarium.
Of course, James's other job is cohost of the popular PBS series
"Star Gazers" - along with our
own Dean Regas. After his talk,
"Engaging
the
Public
in
Astronomy," we opened the
domes for evening viewing.
Thanks to the clear skies, we had a
continuous flow of visitors until
11:00pm.
Finally, I would like to thank
the members of the ScopeOut
planning committee, plus all the
volunteers, exhibitors and vendors
who helped make ScopeOut 2014 a
success!
Did You Know….
A huge thank you goes out to
Steve Paquette (and his crew) for
their assistance and generosity
Not all stars caught in the grip of a
black hole are doomed to stay
there, a few break away and are
ejected from that galaxy. They’re
known as high velocity stars as they
travel at 1 to 2 million mph.
FOTO Kids
By Aashi Mital
Eclipses are one of nature’s
grandest events! And lucky for us
that this October is going to be
greeted by both a total lunar
eclipse and a partial solar eclipse.
It’s time to brush up on the umbra,
penumbra and antumbra at the
Cincinnati Observatory.
Our next meeting is on Friday,
October 3rd at 7 pm in the Herget
Building.
Don’t forget to bring your
curiosity and to dress for the
weather. If you have any
questions, please email Aashi
Mital at aashimital@gmail.com or
Aaron
Eiben
at
aaron@cincinnatiobservatory.org.
Until then, keep looking up!
Amazon “Smiles” on the
Observatory
Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price
of your eligible purchases to
Cincinnati Observatory Center
whenever you shop on AmazonSmile.
Next time you shop at Amazon simply
start at
http://smile.amazon.com/ch/311665954
3
Welcome
New & Renewing
Members!
Eric and Josephine Africa
Michael Averdick
Paul Backscheider
Celeste and John Baumgartner
Christine Copeland
Erik and Jackson Evans
Naomi and Bob Gerwin
Steven and Shelley Goldstein
David & Robin Griggs
Rick and Mary Hahn
Matt Haigis
Margaret Hanson and Brian
Kinkle
Consuelo Harris
Anne Von Hoene
Robert LePome
Melisse May
David and Sarah McCallister
Aashi Mital and Chad Geesman
Betty Moscove
Mary Mullen
James Myers and Linda Badovick
Chenglun Na
Gloria Redmond
Mary Ronan and Carl Grueninger
James A Schroer
Harold A. Schuck
Joseph Sims
Michael Sitko
Lisa Stamm
Michael Stoehr
Desiree Willis
Highlights of the September
FOTO Meeting
By John Barnes
The September 8, 2014 FOTO
Meeting, held at the COC, was
called to order by President
Michelle Gainey at 7:30 pm.
The election season is upon us!
We will elect new board members
for their 2014-2015 terms at the
October meeting. Frank Huss is
the
nominating
committee
chairperson. If you would like to
serve the COC by holding an
office, please let Frank know.
We are planning something a
bit different for this year’s
December Members Appreciation
Dinner - a pot luck meal / chili
cooking contest. More to follow at
October and November meetings.
The speaker for the FOTO
Meeting was Jeff Hutton. His
presentation, “More Than a
Telescope”, was the story of how
he constructed his 16 inch f/4.3
reflector. In Jeff’s own words,
“This telescope, like all major projects
I’ve undertaken, bears for me attached
memories of the period of its
construction. More than most things
I’ve built, recollections of Dick
Wessling, who guided me in my
growth in astronomy and who
produced the primary mirror, among
his last, are particularly poignant. It
is used on every available clear night.
I’m sure that the continued
appreciation and use of Dick
Wessling’s many instruments is just
the kind of memorial he would like.”
After a break the business
portion of the meeting was
conducted:
Steve Rismiller has been
helping us set up a webcam
between the two buildings. He
recently tried shooting from a
refractor in the cone room but
found tracking to be a problem.
Future planning meetings will
begin at 7:00 pm instead of the
usual starting time of 6:00 pm.
Tom East announced the Twin
Lakes Star Party will take place
from October 18 – 25 at Kentucky’s
Pennyrile State Park. This could be
an opportunity for members of the
COC to make connections with
fellow amateurs who will have the
good fortune of being in the path
of totality for 2017’s solar eclipse.
The next members meeting,
Monday, October 13 at 7:30 pm
will feature, in addition to the
board
members
election,
a
presentation by Jerry Black
regarding the chances of life on
Mars.
History of the Observatory
October 12 & 26
Drop in anytime between 1-4 pm
The 1904 Clark Telescope
$5 per person suggested donation.
Free for members. Group tours by
appointment.
Did You Know….
Guysers on Enceladus spew out
100,000 times more water than
Yellowstone’s guysers.
4
Mt. Adams Walking Tour
By Aashi Mital
Welcome to Fall! We’ll be enjoying
the lovely weather with a private
historical walking tour around Mt.
Adams on Saturday, October 4th at
1 pm. The group will arrive at Mt.
Adams Bar & Grill (938 Hatch St.
Cincinnati, OH 45202). It is $10 per
person (cash only). Reservations
are required and the deadline to
sign up is October 3rd by 5 pm. The
only way to make reservations is
by signing up at the monthly
FOTO members meeting or
emailing
Aashi
Mital
at
aashimital@gmail.com.
We’ll be visiting the Immaculata
Church, the location of the annual
Good Friday Pilgrimage and learn
where the US Weather Bureau and
American Astronomy were born.
Rookwood Pottery, the Passionist
Monastery, Cincinnati’s oldest
Irish pub and the site of the Mount
Adams Inclined Plane Railroad are
also on the list!
This is going to be a 90 Minute
Walking
Tour
with
stairs,
moderate grades, etc., so wear
comfy clothes and shoes (There’s a
reason why Cincinnati is called the
“San Francisco of the East.”). Bring
your cameras, your adventurous
spirit and be prepared to enjoy
yourself.
FOTO's October 2014
Meeting
By Dave McBride
October is stacking up to be a
fantastic month for sky watchers –
with the “Hunters Moon” on
October 8th being a Total Lunar
Eclipse. The eclipse will be visible
throughout
most
of
North
America, South America, eastern
Asia, and Australia. Following that
will be the Draconids (8th & 9th),
Orionids (22nd & 23rd) and finally
the Partial Solar Eclipse on the
23rd. The partial eclipse will be
visible throughout most of North
and Central America. We are all
hoping for continued crisp, clear
viewing conditions.
Add to that, on October 13th,
Jerry Black will be the presenter at
our 7:30pm membership meeting.
Jerry is the current Chair of the
Ohio Chapter of the Mars Society.
He will be speaking about “The
Search for Life on Mars and
Beyond.” The primary emphasis
of Jerry’s talk will be on the search
for past and present life on Mars,
however the search for life on
other planets and moons in our
solar system – and beyond – will
also be covered.
Over the ages humankind has
been pondering the question: Are
we alone? We are fortunate to be
living in a time when our robotic
probes and telescopes have
progressed to the point that we
have the potential to answer this
question. If life is common in the
universe, then there is an excellent
chance we will find proof of extraterrestrial life within the next 20
years. The chase is on with robotic
probes within our solar system,
with telescopes analyzing the
constituents of the atmospheres of
exoplanets, and with the SETI
efforts
searching
for
extraterrestrial intelligence. This talk
will cover the latest developments
in this search.
On November 10th our program
will feature Terry Flesch telling us
about his private observatory – its
design, construction and use.
Terry’s non-technical presentation
will help everyone relate to his
personal experience.
Information
about
our
December volunteer appreciation
dinner will be coming next month.
Watch for it too!
Monthly Friends of the
Observatory (FOTO)
Planning Meeting
By Michelle Gainey
The next FOTO Planning Meeting
is
scheduled for Thursday,
October 30, 7 PM at the
Observatory.
The planning
meetings are open to all FOTO
members. We encourage your
participation in the discussion of
future FOTO activities.
Did You Know….
Mars and the Earth both tilt at 23
degrees.
5
FOTO Board Members
Terms expire Oct. 2014
Except as noted
President: Michelle Gainey
VP: Aashi Mital
Secretary: John Barnes
Treasurer: JoAnne Pedersen
FOTO Rep: Frank Huss (exp Oct
2016)
Trustees
John Blasing (exp. Oct 2015)
Aaron Eiben (exp. Oct 2015)
Al Scheide
Dave McBride
FOTO Board Candidates
The candidates running for office
in 2015 are:
President: Michelle Lierl Gainey
Vice-president: Aashi Mital
Astro Evenings at the
Observatory
Thursdays October 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Fridays October 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
8:00 pm-9:30 pm
A
core
program
of
the
Observatory are our ongoing Astro
Evenings which take place most
Thursdays and Fridays yearround.
The evenings are all volunteer
staffed and include a short
presentation on ever-changing and
fascinating topics followed by a
guided stargaze through the oldest
telescope in the United States
(weather permitting).
Also included is plenty of time
for Q&A on any astronomy topic
and a historical tour of the
Observatory, where you’ll not only
see how the old telescopes work
but also learn about the role that
Cincinnati has played in the birth
of astronomy.
Free
for
Observatory
members!
For the latest schedule see the
web calendar then sign up online.
Secretary: Dave McBride
Treasurer: Al Scheide
Trustee: Dave Bosse
Chris Keas
Don Peck
Other nominations can be made by
sending the candidate's name and
position sought to Frank Huss
at fhuss3@aol.com.
Also nominations may be made
from the floor at the October 12
FOTO meeting.
Museums and Historic Sites
of Greater Cincinnati
By the time you read this the Great
Outdoor Weekend (GOW) will
have come and gone.
However the GOW website is
up all-year around as a link to
informal education providers like
the Observatory.
www.cincygreatoutdoorweekend.o
rg
By Craig Niemi
MHS is comprised of over 30
participating sites across Greater
Cincinnati. Each site offers a
unique perspective on local history
and culture through public
programs, exhibits, lectures, and
tours.
www.historicgreatercincinnati.org
Volunteers Needed to Assist
Community Shares
By John Ventre
The
Cincinnati
Observatory
benefits from the donations that
the
public
makes
to
the
Community Shares organization,
an organization similar to United
Way. In order to be a participant
and
receive
donations
the
Observatory
is
periodically
required to supply volunteers to
Community Shares. Here is one
volunteer opportunity.
Monday, October 6, setup and
take down chairs and tables at City
Hall from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
If you can volunteer please
contact Dionne Owens, 513-4750475, Owens@cintishares.org , and
also please let John Ventre
know jeventre@ix.netcom.com.
Also,
please tell Dionne that
you are volunteering for the
Cincinnati Observatory (we are
required to put in volunteer hours)
6
A2Z Astronomy Class
Back to School
By Dave Bosse
After nearly a year off recovering
from spine surgery, my doctors
say I’m still slowly getting better,
but I’m about as better as I’m
going to get. With that being said,
it’s time to get the A2Z Astronomy
classes rolling once again; there
has been just way too much
Astronomy going on to just sit
back. Polarization observed in the
Cosmic Background, oops, no,
wait a minute… maybe no
polarization in the CMBR. A new
class of planet; two new kinds of
stars predicted years ago and now
finally observed. We’re landing
on asteroids. We’re landing on
comets. It fortunately, just won’t
stop. WooHoo!
I have often told my students
that I wished that I taught History.
After all, the 17th century is done.
Stick a fork in it; 1650 won’t
happen again and what did
happen won’t change. I apologize
to History aficionados out there
and I know I’m exaggerating, but
by
comparison,
Astronomy
marches on! So, march on we will,
starting again in January and
proceeding monthly (3rd Sunday,
7:00 pm) trying to keep up with
new ideas, new discoveries and
new meanings.
We will be
covering topics old as well as new
across the entire spectrum of
Astronomy.
The A2Z Astronomy classes are
free to any COC member and have
no pre-requisites other than the
desire know more. Pay attention
to this space over the next few
months for details on upcoming
class details. WooHoo!
September has treated us to some
of the best day and night time
skies of the year. Solar observing
has been good with many large
prominences around the edge of
the sun and long black filaments
arcing over the solar surface. A
telescope with an H-alpha filter is
required to see these features.
However, if you have an internet
connection, you can become a
solar observer without having to
purchase a telescope and filter.
The National Solar Observatory
(NSO) has a web page that
updates once every minute with
full disk images. The solar images
are acquired from observatories
around the world in many
different time zones. It is possible
to monitor the sun 24/7 from this
page.
The
link
is
http://halpha.nso.edu/index.html
If you explore the website, you
will find that you can observe
movies and time lapse videos from
these observatories as well as click
on the images and enlarge the area
that interests you.
Just a reminder: October will
have a total lunar eclipse on the
early morning of the 8th, and a
partial solar eclipse in the late
afternoon of the 23rd. Good luck to
all observers!
Looking for one site to find this
summer’s best outdoor recreation
events?
http://meetmeoutdoors.com
Craig’s Corner
By Craig Niemi, Executive Director
We hope you made it to
September’s ScopeOut Astronomy
Fair!
If you didn’t make it you
missed; a helicopter landing and
taking off from the parking circle;
the state-of-the-art Tesla; dozens of
great vendors & exhibitors; hands
on science experiments and demos
- just too many activities to
mention in this short space.
Dean’s PBS Star Gazer co-host,
James Albury gave a humorous
and inspiring keynote lecture.
The weather was ideal. Even
the late day shower of golf balls
was
a
welcomed
event.
Congratulations to Sam Vessel
and Dave Kuhl, winners in our
first annual helicopter golf-ball
drop fundraiser.
Thanks go out to Dale Zoller
and
all
the
hard-working
volunteers who put on an
awesome event.
And a huge thank you to the
UC Physics Department for their
generous support of our annual
celebration of STEM!
Hopefully we inspired many to
a career in the sciences or a lifelong quest as an amateur
astronomer.
7
The Power of Eclipses
By Aashi Mital
As we head into October, we’re
graced with a total lunar eclipse
and a partial solar eclipse, but one
cannot help wondering about how
these astronomical events were
seen
by
various
cultures
throughout the world and how
they influenced history.
Every schoolchild has been taught
that Christopher Columbus came
ashore on an island northeast of
Cuba in 1492, but did you know it
was an eclipse that saved
Christopher Columbus?
On his final voyage, bad luck
struck in the form of worms.
Shipworms ate holes through the
planking, forcing Columbus to
beach his last two leaky caravels
and make repairs on St. Anne Bay
off the coast of Jamaica. These men
intrigued the natives and for over
six months the natives provided
provisions. Unfortunately, the
crew ultimately mutinied, robbed
and murdered several natives. In
turn, the Jamaicans cut off their
food supply.
In order to avoid famine,
Columbus came up with a plan.
Even though he was not a
scholarly man, the explorer had a
copy of Regiomontanus' (the
German
mathematcian
and
astronomer) almanac to help him
navigate the open seas. He
discovered that a total lunar
eclipse would take place on the
evening of February 29, 1504. He
told the native chief that his
Christian god was angry and in
three nights he would all but
remove the Moon from the sky,
bathing it an inflamed wreath to
signify punishment upon the
natives.
On the evening of the eclipse, it
looked as if something was wrongthe Moon was bloody red and the
lower half was missing. The
natives promised to cooperate if
the Moon was restored. Columbus
locked himself in his cabin to talk
with his god and just before the
end of the eclipse Columbus came
out, stating that they had been
pardoned. He and his crew were
well looked after until relief
arrived to take them back to Spain.
Save the Date!
Meet a Meteor!
Saturday, November 1st 7-10 pm
Who’s Who: Spring
Grove Tour
By Aashi Mital
If you want to learn more about
the Observatory’s history, as well
as that of Cincinnati, then come
along on a tour of Spring Grove
Cemetery on Saturday, October
18th at 1 p.m. Weather permitting,
our very own John Ventre shall
lead us on a two hour partial
walking and partial driving tour.
The group will arrive in the
parking area near the main gate
(the entrance is on Spring Grove
Avenue, just SW of Winton
Road). Once you enter at the main
gate, take the first right and park
in the immediate area.
Reservations are required and
the deadline to sign up is October
15th. The only way to make
reservations is by signing up at the
monthly FOTO members meeting
or emailing Aashi Mital at
aashimital@gmail.com.
Greater Cincinnati STEM
Collaborative
Come
check
out
amazing
collections of “rocks from space”
and get ready for November’s
Leonid meteor shower.
$10 Adults, $5.
No reservations are needed.
www.greatercincystem.org
Did You Know…
A star dies in the Milky Way
Galaxy every 50 years on average.
8
UC Communiversity
Enrich Your Life With
Quality Courses
research the history of the
Observatory.
What to learn more about
volunteering at the Observatory or
sign up for the next orientation
session? Contact John Ventre at
513-321-5186.
Total Lunar Eclipse
Wednesday, October 8th
5:15 am - 7:30 am
Late Night Date Night
At the Observatory
Saturday, October 4
Saturday, November 8
One of the Observatory’s longest
running programs,Communiversity
courses offer a unique, more
personal and in-depth investigation
of a variety of astronomical topics.
Ideal for college age and up.
Oct 15 7-9pm
Stargazing 101
Oct 29 7-9pm
A Look Behind the Scenes
Nov 5 7-9pm
Echoes of the Ancient Skies
All classes $22 per person (+ any
materials fees.) To register contact
UC Communiversity at 513-5566932 or
www.uc.edu/ce/commu.html
Astro Volunteer Orientation
Tuesday, October 14th
7:00 pm-9:00 pm
Volunteers are key to the success
of the Observatory! Our talented
and dedicated volunteers host
most of the public programs,
special events and rentals held
throughout the year; assist Dean
and Aaron with school programs;
offer history programs and
10:30 pm to midnight
The Heart Nebula
Are you a night owl? Looking for
a romantic Saturday night out
under the stars? Come see what
the Observatory is like after hours.
You'll get to use the oldest big
telescope in the U.S. to view
astronomical objects that are not
visible until late at night (weather
permitting). Get a sneak preview
of the next season’s planets and
stars a month or two ahead of
everyone else.
For adults only. If the weather
does not permit viewing, we’ll
have fun with some of the crazy
science experiments and show you
around
the
Observatory.
Admission is $10 per person
To make reservations sign up
online or call 513-321-5186.
On your way to work or school
stop by the Observatory to catch
the disappearing moon. Worlds
will align as the Sun, Earth, and
Moon will be perfectly lined up.
The eclipse begins around 5:15am.
By around 6:30am the Moon will
be totally eclipsed and turn a deep
shade of red. Then the Moon will
set at around 7:30 am still in
eclipse.
No
reservations
required
$5
suggested
donation
For more information please call
us at 513-321-5186.
One Planet, Two Stars: New
Research Shows How
Circumbinary Planets Form
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An artist's conception of Kepler-34b
which orbits a double-star system.
Like the fictional Star Wars planet,
Kepler-34(AB)b is a circumbinary
planet, so-called because its orbit
encompasses two stars. Powerful
gravitational perturbations from
the two stars on the rocky building
blocks of planets lead to
destructive collisions that grind
down the material. So, how can
the presence of such planets be
explained?
http://www.sciencedaily.com/rel
eases/2014/01/140131130757.htm
The Sun’s Turn To
Be Eclipsed
Thursday, October 23rd 5-7 pm
Join us at Ault Park
Stargazing at Stonelick
State Park
Saturdays – October 18th & 25th
A Telescopic View of Andromeda
Need help with your telescope?
Bring it for expert tips setting it up
and exploring the night sky.
Stargazing begins at dusk. Open to
all ages.
Stargazes
are
weather
permitting. “Friend” the Stonelick
Lake Stargazers Facebook page for
weather and schedule updates.
NASA's Swift Mission
Observes Mega Flares From
Nearby Red Dwarf Star
NASA's Swift satellite detected the
strongest, hottest, and longestlasting sequence of stellar flares
ever seen from a nearby red dwarf
star. The initial blast from this
record-setting series of explosions
was as much as 10,000 times more
powerful than the largest solar
flare
ever
recorded.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/rel
eases/2014/09/140930171548.htm
How Small Can Galaxies Be?
New Star Gazers
The Moon returns the shadowy
favor from the lunar eclipse and
will block out part of the Sun on
the evening of October 23.
WARNING: Looking at the Sun is
dangerous! It will damage your
eyes unless you use safe, approved
filters. We have these filters and
are excited to share views of the
Sun with you during this rare
event.
No reservations are required
Admission is $5. For more
information and other viewing
locations call 513-321-5186.
Star Gazers airs locally on
channels 14 and 48 and you can
watch each month’s episodes on
our website:
http://www.cincinnatiobservator
y.org/stargazer.html
“Keep
Looking Up!”
Let's explore just how small a
galaxy can be. Our Milky Way
galaxy is about 100,000 light years
across, and contains about 200
billion stars. The largest known
galaxy (IC 1101) is about 6 million
light years across, and has a mass
of about 100 trillion solar masses.
The smallest galaxy? It has about a
thousand
stars.
http://phys.org/news/2014-09small-galaxies.html#jCp
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