May 2004 * Volume 227 www.bintel.com.au

Published monthly byThe Binocular and Telescope Shop55 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000

The Moon gets red-faced ...........2Comet double vision ...................2Star Map for May ........................3Mick ‘n Don .................................4

COMETS, PLUSCOMETS, PLUSCOMETS, PLUSCOMETS, PLUSCOMETS, PLUSAN ECLIPSEAN ECLIPSEAN ECLIPSEAN ECLIPSEAN ECLIPSEKEEN SKY-KEEN SKY-KEEN SKY-KEEN SKY-KEEN SKY-

BUSY MONTHBUSY MONTHBUSY MONTHBUSY MONTHBUSY MONTHAHEAD FORAHEAD FORAHEAD FORAHEAD FORAHEAD FOR

WATCHERSWATCHERSWATCHERSWATCHERSWATCHERS

you can now shop on-line at www.bintelshop.com.au for astronomical telescopes

BILL BRADFIELD MAKES IT EIGHTEEN COMETS!BILL BRADFIELD MAKES IT EIGHTEEN COMETS!BILL BRADFIELD MAKES IT EIGHTEEN COMETS!BILL BRADFIELD MAKES IT EIGHTEEN COMETS!BILL BRADFIELD MAKES IT EIGHTEEN COMETS!

COMET NEATCOMET NEATCOMET NEATCOMET NEATCOMET NEAT COMET LINEARCOMET LINEARCOMET LINEARCOMET LINEARCOMET LINEAR

the best

★ ★ ★

Last month we featured a photo of a‘new’ eyepiece, the Nagler 66mmwith a 132 degree field of view andinfinite eye-relief. We took threeorders from hopeful customers! Wealso received a fax from Al Naglerhimself. Al chided us for releasingthe information incorrectly. He toldus that because we are upside-downin the Southern Hemisphere theeyepiece should actually be referredto as a Nagler 99mm.

Our man at NASA tells us that therovers on Mars surface areperforming so well that NASA isemptying the piggybank to fundanother six months’ worth ofexploration. The rovers don’t spendmoney themselves, but the staff backon Earth have to be paid. Both wereexpected to run out of puff withintwo months. They have keptrunning, after some initial glitches,like clockwork.

Congratulations to SutherlandAstronomical Society’s ColinBembrick for being awarded theBerenice Paige medal, the mostprestigious award an Australianamateur astronomer can win. Hejoins that other winner fromSutherland Peter Williams.

A telescope store was recently askedby a phone enquirer whether siliconspray could be used on a telescopemirror. When the technician askedthe caller why he would want to dothat the caller explained that he’dheard that telescope mirrors were‘covered with silicon’ to protectthem! He then admitted that he’ssprayed his telescope mirror with apopular silicon-based spray! Thetechnician is now receivingcounselling!

Mark this one in your diary: TheCentral West Astronomical Societyis holding an astronomical festivalin mid-July. What better place to seethe wonders of the Southern skies!We’ll cover this astrofest andconference in some detail in nextmonth’s issue of Night Sky, but withguest speakers like David Malin,Fred Watson, Brian Boyle andJessica Chapman plus the ABC’s“Science in the Pub” crew this lookslike a ‘must bethere occasion!More details atwww.parkes.a tn f . cs i r o .au /events/astrofestDon’t miss this one!

Tele Vue

★ ★ ★

★ ★ ★

★ ★ ★

Left above: Comet Bradfield as seen before dawn by amateur astronomer Rolando Ligustri, Italy.Left below: A similar image byJager & Rhemann in Austria as the sky lightens.Centre top: Comet NEAT imaged by Ted Dobosz in Sydney with a new Orion 80 APO telescope.Centre above: Finding Comet Bradfield during May just before dawn. It will be faint. Use binoculars.Right: Bill Bradfield with one of his telescopes. The mount is optimised for the particular sequence ofhorizontal sweeps Bill makes when searching the sky systematically for comets.

CometC/2004 F4 Bradfieldwas discovered by Bill Bradfieldmaking this his eighteenth cometdiscovery. Bill is the world’s mostsuccessful comet hunter in the lastone hundred years and also holds therecord in that all his discoveries weremade and reported by himself; nonehas been co-discovered. Bill first sawthe comet when it was moving slowlyin Cetus, low in the western eveningsky on the 23rd of March. He saw itagain the next day but was unable tosee it again till the 8th of April.

He discovered his first comet in 1972and has averaged one new cometevery 21 months since then!Unfortunate enough to have beenborn in 1928 in New Zealand, BillBradfield rapidly overcame thisdrawback and moved to Australiawhere he spent many years delvinginto the mysteries of rocketpropulsion systems for theGovernment by day. For his ownenjoyment he built telescopes toobserve the dark skies by night atYankalilla, South Australia.

Bill’s fame as a comet discoverer hasallowed him to travel overseas tocomet conferences and on onememorable occasion he lecturedpacked audiences of Japaneseamateur astronomers who reverecomet discoverers with awe-struckdevotion. His last discovery was in1995 (C/1995 Q1) making this newcomet particularly welcome.

His latest discovery hasflown in very close to the Sun and isnow on its way out again to the farreaches of the Solar System.

Although he has access to southernareas of the sky invisible to comet-hunters of the Northern Hemisphere,Bill has managed to discover manyof his comets in northern skies, muchto the chagrin of Japanese andAmerican comet hunters.

His comet reached its closestpoint to the Sun on April 17, insideMercury’s orbit. During May lookfor it between the Andromeda galaxy(M31) and the Pinwheel galaxy(M33) in the north-eastern sky in thehour or two before sunrise.

A number of observatories around theworld search the night skies for asteroids which could pose a threat to Earth.Collectively known as the Near Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) programthis group has made a number of interesting discoveries, not all were asteroids!The 1.2-m Schmidt telescope at Palomar Observatory found a comet in August2001. Calculations showed that this comet should be at its brightest duringthe first half of May. The Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams predicteda maximum magnitude of 0.9. Comet NEAT should be visible in the earlyevening in the North West, movins slowly down towards the North . Lookfor the comet as a faint smudge high above Saturn. Binoculars will be needed.

The LINEAR project discoveredan object on images obtained in October 2002. The IAU announced at theend of the month that it was a comet, not an asteroid. The comet should be atits brightest during the first half of May. The German amateur astronomerAndreas Kammerer noted the apparent brightening of the comet in Octoberlast year and believed that the new trend indicated the comet could becomebrighter than magnitude 0! Several other amateur astronomers suggested thecomet’s magnitude may reach just magnitude 2. If you wish to view thiscomet in May it is an evening object in the second half of May. Its positionin the sky can be seen above Orion in the North West. Scan slowly.

SUBSCRIBE TO THENIGHT SKY FOR $12

Receive your copyevery month for aneyeful of sky news .

Tele Vue

Comet Bradfield: Jager/Rhemann. Austria 24.April

Comet Bradfield: Ligustri Italy

T.Dobosz

© Kym Thalassoudis

The Binocular and Telescope Shop, 55 York Street, Sydney. Tel: 02 9262 1344 web: www.bintel.com.au May 2004 * Volume 227 * Page 2

A RED MOON IS LIKELYA RED MOON IS LIKELYA RED MOON IS LIKELYA RED MOON IS LIKELYA RED MOON IS LIKELY

now open: www.bintelshop.com.au. shop securely onlinenow open: www.bintelshop.com.au. shop securely onlinenow open: www.bintelshop.com.au. shop securely onlinenow open: www.bintelshop.com.au. shop securely onlinenow open: www.bintelshop.com.au. shop securely online

STEREO IMAGES OF COMET !STEREO IMAGES OF COMET !STEREO IMAGES OF COMET !STEREO IMAGES OF COMET !STEREO IMAGES OF COMET !

ASTRONOMY 2004PRICE REDUCTION!PRICE REDUCTION!PRICE REDUCTION!PRICE REDUCTION!PRICE REDUCTION!

$12post $2.50

This month, we take a look at the Total Lunar Eclipse occurring in the early hours of the morning on Wednesday5th May. Lunar eclipses are perhaps one of the most spectacular astronomical events you can watch with nothingmore then your eyes. Unlike solar eclipses they are perfectly safe to watch without the need of special filters.A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the Earths’ shadow. This does not happen every month as theMoon’s orbit is tilted by a little over 5º in relation to the Earth’s orbit around the Sun. So, most of the time the Moonpasses either above or below Earth’s shadow.

Occasionally the Moon does not completely enter the Earth’s shadow and the result is a partial lunar eclipse.The eclipse this month is a total lunar eclipse, so the entire Moon will enter Earth’s shadow. However, the Moon willusually not become completely dark at totality due to dust suspended in our atmosphere. This scatters blue light andallows red light to pass by, so the Moon usually turns a bright coppery red colour for the duration of totality.

For most of Australia, the moon will set before the end of the eclipse. For the eastern states, the Moon will setduring totality. The western part of Australia is the best area to observe the eclipse as the moon will be higher in amuch darker sky. Perth will see the eclipse in its entirety.Time of Eclipse in Capital Cities:

CITY ECLIPSE BEGINS TOTALITY BEGINS TOTALITY ENDS ECLIPSE ENDSPerth 2:48am 3:52am 5:08am 6:12amDarwin 4:18am 5:22am 6:38am 7:42amAdelaide 4:18am 5:22am 6:38am 7:42amMelbourne 4:48am 5:52am 7:08am 8:12amHobart 4:48am 5:52am 7:08am 8:12amSydney 4:48am 5:52am 7:08am 8:12amBrisbane 4:48am 5:52am 7:08am 8:12amCanberra 4:48am 5:52am 7:08am 8:12amA few interesting facts about eclipses:

❈ The maximum number of eclipses, (lunar and solar eclipses) that can occur in one year is seven.The last time was in 1982 with 4 eclipses of the Sun and 3 of the Moon. This will not occur again until 2094.

❈ The rarest eclipse pattern is 3 solar eclipses and no lunar eclipses in one year. This last occurred in 1908 andbefore that in 1535.

❈ The colour of the eclipsed Moon at totality is usually a light coppery-orange. This is due to dust and air inour atmosphere, which scatters blue light and allows red light to pass by. So, if the air is clear we see acoppery coloured Moon.

❈ The eclipsed Moon can occasionally turn darker shades of red, sometimes even completely black as was thecase on October 4th, 1884. This was due to the eruption of Krakatoa.

It is difficult to predict the colour of totality in advance and this is perhaps one of the most magical aspects of totaleclipses of the Moon. So, make sure you set the alarm clock early, make a thermos of your favourite warm beverage,dress warmly and enjoy a spectacular astronomical event, even if you see less than the full show.

T itan is the second largestmoon in the Solar System, onlyJupiter’s Ganymede is larger. BothTitan and Ganymede are in fact largerthan the planet Mercury.

It has been known for sometime that this satellite of Saturnpossesses a reasonably substantialatmosphere, consisting of about nintypercent inert nitrogen plus methaneand argon. Opaque haze shrouds thesurface from our view.

Recent spectroscopic andradar observations indicate that Titanprobably has a surface weather cyclebased on liquid hydrocarbons andmethane. This would mean that Titanprobably has rainfall and thereforecould have surface oceans.The Huygens probe on board theCassini-Huygens spacecraft is aimedfor a descent into Titan’s atmospherewhen it arrives at Saturn in 2005. Theimage above shows the best surfacedetails currently available.

NASA sent the Stardustspacecraft on an intercept course withComet Wild 2 with the intention ofcapturing small particles of the dustand debris that are ejected from thenucleus of the typical comet. At thesame time a camera was installed onboard to photograph the nucleus fromas close as possible.

The result was a spectacularsuccess. The spacecraft interceptedthe comet with great precision. Dustwas collected and stored in a strangematerial called ‘Aerogel’, which isthe lightest and lowest-density solidknown to exist. Aerogel's superlowdensity makes it useful as alightweight structural material tocatch and hold tiny grains of dust andcometary material.

Above: Stereo images of Comet Wild 2. Stare at the centre of the image and allowyour eyes to relax their focus. You may need to move your head backward orforward before the three-dimensional image pops into view.

At the same time the cameratook a series of short exposureimages. These showed details of thesurface structure of the comet. Twoimages, taken a short time apartproduce a stereo effect when viewedtogether.

Long exposure images clearlyshowed dust and gas streaming outfrom the comet’s surface into space,resulting in a tail several millionkilometres in length. The Stardustspacecraft will return to Earth in early2006 and make a soft landing in theUSA. The cometry particles will beexamined with great interest. Moreinformation about this space missionmay be found by logging on to theofficial Jet Propulsion Laboratorywebsite, www.stardust.jpl.nasa.gov.

NASA/JPL

Readers of Sky and Telescope will be well aware of the regular articleswritten by Charles Wood (“Lunar Notebook”). Wood is a selenologist oflong-standing, and has recently published a book “The Modern Moon-aPersonal View” published by Sky Publishing. Wood makes the pointthroughout his excellent book that selenology underwent a quantum leap inthe mid twentieth century. And, that this leap has gone largely unnoticed bymodern amateur astronomers and the public.

One of my most wonderful memories dates from around 1965. I wasthen a teenager, and avid amateur astronomer. One morning a close friend ofmy father’s arrived excitedly at our home. Ron Fletcher worked for theAustralian Weapons Research Establishment based in Adelaide, and he knewof my interest in astronomy. Ron extracted a still damp positive print from acardboard tube; it was about half a meter square, and I gazed in wonder atmy first Lunar Orbiter image. The WRE had just that morning down-loadedthis first image from the Orbiter Satellite. The resolution was unbelievable.I begged him to give it to me, but this was impossible as the image was notyet in the public domain. Lucky twenty-first century amateurs can now down-load the whole incredible Orbiter series of images from the Internet.

Charles Wood’s superb book celebrates the work of the major players,most of whom are now gone, in forming our current understanding of Earth’smoon. There was a pressing need to map the lunar surface accurately priorto attempting manned landings. There was also the need to build lunarsimulators for the training of astronaut pilots who were to “fly” over thelunar landscape. Right up to the Apollo 11 landing (“one giant leap formankind”) selenologists worried that the craft might sink into “bottomless”dust.

Wood’s book deals with the Moon as a series of 18 regions, eachdifferent from the other geologically, and preambles the description of eachregion with a history of the researchers who contributed to the understandingof that region and their theories of its formation. He then follows up with apost-mortem of the theory after the Apollo landings. With any telescope,from a well made 4 inch reflector upwards, the amateur can peruse the regionsand contemplate the landforms Wood describes. In the April “Sky andTelescope” Wood launched his “Lunar 100”, a list of one hundred interestinglunar features for the keen amateur astronomer, with each item on the listsuccessively harder to observe. I believe this is a great concept to raiseinterest in the modern Moon. Amateurs in recent years have largely overlookedthe Moon, pursuing instead deep-sky targets. But for large “Dobs”, as wellas 4 inch Maksutov users, the Moon is a superb target, and Wood’s “100”provides a tantalizing challenge.

In “The Modern Moon” Wood’s 18th region is entitled the WesternRim, and it is dominated by the huge lunar feature Mare Orientale.Paradoxically, this multi-ring basin is almost invisible from Earth, beingcentred five degrees behind the western limb. However, with favourablelibration, some details of the basin can be seen from Earth. In March I hadthe pleasure of using the ASNSW’s 10” f7 Dobson near dawn under clearskies, and searched the lunar SW limb for signs of the Orientale Basin.

At Easter the western rim was wholly illuminated, with no shadowsto indicate surface relief; the view was dominated by the dark mare-filledcrater, Grimaldi. To the south brilliant rays from crater Byrgius-A markedthe southern edge of the Orientale site. Scanning the western limb I wasimmediately struck by the sight of numerous mountain peaks, brilliantly lit,beading the horizon. Realizing these were parts of ring walls of the greatOrientale Basin, I prepared a quick sketch (at 140 magnification) whiledaylight began flooding my observing site. Later I was able to interpret mysketch. The brilliant mountains on the limb were alternately the Cordilleraand the Rook Mountains. A dark hook-shaped mare just inside the limbproved to be Lacus Autumni. This is dark basalt lava that partly floods the

outer ring of Orientale Basin, betweenthe inner range of RookMountains, and the outer ring,the Cordilleras. A darkercoloured edging to the limbsouth of Lacus Autumniproved to be Lacus Veris.This is laval flooding insidethe Rook Mountain ring itself.Accordingly, I was seeing thecomplete eastern faces of bothRook and Cordillera ranges,but without shadow relief. Thenext morning showed only thesouthern mass of Rook peaksnow visible as libration hadcarried Orientale Basinfurther behind the westernlimb. Between Grimaldi andByrgius the western limb isdistinctly flattened, due I guessto the Orientale rim wallsbeing of about constant height.

Look out for theOrientale Basin; though theview may be better when theMoon is almost full, and someshadow relief reveals theconcentric mountain rings.

Clear Skies, Harry Roberts.

NASA/JPL

TITAN DETAILTITAN DETAILTITAN DETAILTITAN DETAILTITAN DETAIL

SOLAR FILTERS

at the B & T Shop

FAINT MARKING FINALLY SEEN

May 2004 * Volume 227 * Page 3The Binocular and Telescope Shop, 55 York Street, Sydney. Tel: 02 9262 1344 web: www.bintel.com.au

αβ

The Moon’s motions for the monthare shown thusly:

5th Full Moon

6th Moon at perigee

11th Last Quarter

19th New Moon

24th Moon at Apogee

27th First Quarter

Total Eclipse on the 5th; some of itwill be visible to Australians. SeePage 2 for more details about thisinteresting occurrence. Next eclipsewill be in October; not visible here.

Saturn is now in Geminiand heading westwards ata rapid clip. Don’t wait if

you want to have a butcher’s hook,It will be gone soon.

Uranus rises aftermidnight and is high inthe sky by sunrise.

Neptune rises around10.30pm and spends thenext eight hoursanonymously creeping

up the Eastern sky.

Pluto is in a quandary.He would like to register

to vote in the November electionsbecause he’s heard something aboutpork barrels and gravy trains. Hasbeen waiting patiently at his localtrain station but hasn’t seen any yet.

Mercury is in themorning sky. It will be

beside the Moon on the 17th.

Venus looking moon-like in the North-Western evening sky.

Extremely bright in Taurus.

Mars is above Venus inGemini. Makes a neattrio with Venus below

and Saturn above.

Jupiter rises earlyafternoon, so is high inthe North by sunset. Anexcellent object for all

telescopes and even binoculars.Cloud bands visible in telescopes,four moons visible in binoculars.

The Southern Cross isnow high enough in the South Eastto be found easily. Train a pair ofbinoculars on it and you’ll just fit itin with 7 x 50’s. Draw an imaginaryline from the lowest Cross star(αCrux) through the left side star(βCrux). Extend the line about tendegrees. You should come across afaint, fuzz ball. It is Omega Centauri,a softly glowing ball of stars. Looksjust like a comet nucleus.

Comet 2001 Q4 NEAT will passthrough the western evening skies.Sharp eyes, good binoculars and atelescope will help.Comet T7LINEAR is also in the evening sky.Because comets can change theirbrightness with rapidity they areconfusing objects to chase. “Cometsare like cats, they do precisely whatthey please.” said a wise man. Anexcellent website to use for more infois :http://comets.amsmeteors.org

Early evening mid May 2004

Jupiter

Saturn

MarsVenus

Comet Bradfield: Jager/Rhemann. Austria 28.April

The Binocular and Telescope Shop, 55 York Street, Sydney. Tel: 02 9262 1344 web: www.bintel.com.au

Night Sky is published monthly byThe Binocular and Telescope Shop Pty Ltd

55 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000.Tel: (02) 9262 1344 Fax: (02) 9262 1884

Mike Smith Editor.Contributions are welcome.

Printed by Omega Creative Communications4 Campbell Street, Artarmon NSW 2064.

This newsletter is available at The Binocular andTelescope Shop and at many astronomical societymeetings and astronomy centres around Australia.Night Sky is delivered monthly to any address in

Australia for $12.00 per year.

May 2004 * Volume 227 * Page 4

THE FALL DOWNFALLSUCCESSFUL NACAA CONFERENCESUCCESSFUL NACAA CONFERENCESUCCESSFUL NACAA CONFERENCESUCCESSFUL NACAA CONFERENCESUCCESSFUL NACAA CONFERENCEQUIZSEVENTY AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS GATHER IN HOBARTSEVENTY AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS GATHER IN HOBARTSEVENTY AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS GATHER IN HOBARTSEVENTY AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS GATHER IN HOBARTSEVENTY AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS GATHER IN HOBART

Above: Conference delegates listen intently to Sydney’s George Smith.Left: Colin Bembrick presents his paper.

SCHOOL OFSCHOOL OFSCHOOL OFSCHOOL OFSCHOOL OFASTRONOMYASTRONOMYASTRONOMYASTRONOMYASTRONOMY

MACQUARIE UNIVERSITYFOUNDATION FOR ASTRONOMYWEEKEND OF 15 16 MAY 2004

EIGHT LECTURES

* SOLAR FLARES* PULSARS* STELLAR OSCILLATIONS* PLANET FORMATION

AND MORE

REGISTRATION:DR. A. E. VAUGHANDEPT OF PHYSICS

MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY 2109

Above: Ted Dobosz of Sydney tried out his new Orion 80mm ED scope in lateApril. The above image, originally in separate red, green and blue images is ofthe Tarantula Nebula. Taken under difficult conditions in suburban Sydney it pointsto the combined abilities of the photographer, the telescope and the softwareused to present the image as we see it here.

Macarthur Astronomical Society Inc: NSW☎ (02) 4627 1424 Ian Cook.skyview@zipworld.com.au.Sutherland Astronomical Society Inc: NSW☎ (02)9832 4082 Brett McMillan.www.sasi.net.auNorthern Sydney Astronomical Society Inc:☎ David (02) 9876 6750 or Kel 9476 1559 www.nsas.ozau.netBritish Astronomical Association (NSW)☎ 9398 9705 Elizabeth Cockingwww.baansw.asn.auThe Astronomical Society of NSW.☎ (02) 9337 3371.Max Gardner.www.asnsw.comThe Western Sydney Amateur Astro Group Inc☎ Dave Gault (02) 4754 4351www4.tpgi.com.au/users/wsaagThe Hawkesbury Astronomical Society: NSW☎ (02) 4572 1568 Adrian Saw .The Wollongong Astronomy Club. NSW☎ (02) 4261 9369 Paul BrownThe Illawarra Astronomical Society: NSW☎ (02) 4276 3199 Peter McKinnonShoalhaven Astronomers: South Coast NSW☎ (02) 4423 2255 Jack Apfelbaum www.shoal.net.au~astronomy/index.htmlThe Astronomical Society of the Hunter: NSW☎ (02) 4937 4664 Col Mayburycolmay@kooee.com.auNewcastle Astronomical Society: NSW☎ (02) 4950 0725 Allan Meehanwww.nas.org.auAstronomical Society of Coonabarabran, NSW☎ (02) 6842 2994 Paul Cass.Port Macquarie Astronomical Association NSW☎ (02) 6583 1933 Jim Daniels.Grafton Astronomical Society, NSW☎ (02) 6642 4130 Jeff AshendedBallaarat Astronomical Society: Vic☎ (03) 5332 7526 John Hastie http://observatory.ballarat.netBendigo District Astronomical SocietyPO Box 164 Bendigo Vic 3552 . Barry McPheeAstronomical Society of Victoria Inc☎ (03) 9888 7130. Linda Mockridgewww.asv.org.auLatrobe Valley Astronomical Society Vic☎ (03) 5174 6453 home.vicnet.net.au/~lvasAstronomical Society of Geelong, Vic☎ 0407 345 070 Frank Baker for details.http://members.optushome.com.au/asogAstronomical Society of Frankston, Vic☎ 0419 253 252 Richard Pollard for details.Astronomical Society of Melbourne, Vic.☎ 0412 - 318 125 Chris Ellisngc4755@i.net.au Canberra Astronomical Society: ACT☎ (02) 6288 7394 Diane Purcell.Brisbane Astronomical Society: Qld☎ (07) 3847 2206 Darryl Mitchellwww.bas.asn.auwww.ozemail.com.au/~nwilliams/basSouthern Astronomical Society:Qld☎ (07)5537 3852 Kevin Dixon.www.sas.org.auAstronomical Association of Queensland, Qld☎ Peter Hall (07) 3378 1173 www.aaq.org.auSouth East Queensland Astronomical Society,☎ (07) 3844 7904 Dave Larkin.www.powerup.com.au/~mcerlean/index.htmlBundaberg Astronomical Soc. Qld☎ (07) 4159 7232 www.interwox.com.auRedlands Astronomical Society Qld☎ (07) 3822 5545 Ross SpenceBundy Skywatchers (South-Central Qld)☎ (07) 4159 9674 Karlene GalwayAstronomical Society of South Australia, SA☎ (08) 8338 1231 Tony Beresford.www.assa.org.auAstronomical Society of Tasmania, Tas☎ (03) 6244 3476 Laurie Priest.www.ast.n3.netAstronomical Society of Alice Springs N.T.☎ (08) 8952 9817 Annette GreenDarwin Astronomy Group NT☎ (08) 8945 9450 Phillip SmithGove Amateur Astronomers, NT ☎ 0417 601 490 Ian Maclean for information.Astronomical Society of Western Australia, WA(now incorporating Murdoch AstronomicalSociety)☎ (08) 9299 6347 Val Semmler.Astronomical Society of The South-West, W.A. ☎ (08) 9721 1586 Phil Smith.

His Fragrant Fabulousness,Professor, His Eminence, Dr. NervoShatterini BGB suggests that hisdevotees from around the globeshould gird their mental loins, so tospeak, and prepare for the comingintellectual battle. The Fall DownfallQuiz is falling, along with theautumnal leaves. Here are thequestions, prepare your answers. Ifyou are declared the winner, fameand fortune must surely follow inyour path. A gratuity for theProfessor’s favourite charity “TheShatterini Home for DownFallenBlondes” will surely make the GreatOne see things more favourably inyour direction... if you see what hemeans. The following questions areculled, with infinite care, from thegreat Astronomer’s mind. Attend tothem, learn new and wonderfulthings and send in your entry. Prizefor the best, neatest and most correctentry is a copy of the Wil TirionBright Star Atlas, so go for it!(1) Which two constellation arerelated to Andromeda in a familialway?(2) James Christy discovered aMoon. Which moon?(3) What is a coelostat used for?(4) What is interesting aboutCalypso, Telesto and Tethys?(5) How long is a cosmic year?(6) In which year of the 20thCentury was the great daylight cometdiscovered?(7) John Dollond is rememberedas the chief inventor of what?(8) What is the rotation period ofthe Earth?(9) On what object is a CanicularYear based?(10) On which object would weobserve the Hale Cycle?(11) For which discovery is AsaphHall best remembered?(12) What is the colour of R Leporis?(13) Traditionally the Hunter’s Moonfollows which Full Moon?(14) The apparent magnitude of anebula is also called its ……….Magnitude.(15) Which metal has been createdmostly by Type 1a supernovae?(16) The K-T boundary saw the endof which Earth period?(17) Hans Lippershey is commonlycredited with which discovery?(18) Where Shergottites, nakhlitesand chassignites believed tooriginate?(19) Which planet is the seconddensest in the Solar System?(20) How many satellite galaxiesdoes the Milky Way have? His Eminence requests that entriesshould be addressed as follows:

Shatterini Quiz c/-The Binocular and Telescope Shop

55 York Street, Sydney 2000or email:To: mike@bintel.com.au

Subject: shatterini quizAs the sage once said,“Those who dare often get wiped outby those who have remote controlledbombs. So watch it!”

Hey Don,I hear you visited

the landof the free

and the braverecently.

How’d it go?

Mate, they are some of thefriendliest people you can

meet in a long day’s march...but just don’t

mentionone thing. An’ what’s that

Don?

If you’d like your Society included, pleasecontact Mike Smith at (02) 9262 1344 ormike@bintel.com.au with information. We’llput your details in the above list.

The National Australian Convention of Amateur Astronomers was heldover the Easter weekend at the Wrest Point Casino, Hobart Tasmania.Seventy amateur astronomers from around Australia gathered together for threedays of lectures, presentations and discussion.Astronomical Society of Tasmania President Shevill Mathers opened theproceedings and the keynote address was given by Professor Fred Watson ofthe AAO. Over the course of the convention papers were given on subjects asdiverse as Black holes, Syncrotrons and Magnetic flares: Deep sky observing& imaging with video: Eclipsing binary modelling: Planetary orbits around aspinning gravitating star: The comets of 2004: The Argo Navis Digital TelescopeComputer: Workshops were held and Poster Papers were provided by manyamateurs.During the course of the proceedings an announcement was by theAstronomical Society of Australia that the Berenice Paige Medal was beingawarded to Colin Bembrick of the Sutherland Astronomical Society.

secure on-line shopping for your astronomical

needs.

accessoriesbinoculars

bookseyepieces

filtersfinderscopesmagazines

planispheressoftware

spottingscopestelescopes

tripods

Mate, the Magellanicgalaxies!

They’re really jealousthat we can seebright galaxies,naked eye an’’

they can’t.

SUTHERLANDSUTHERLANDSUTHERLANDSUTHERLANDSUTHERLANDOPEN NIGHTSOPEN NIGHTSOPEN NIGHTSOPEN NIGHTSOPEN NIGHTS

MAY 21 MAY 22MAY 21 MAY 22MAY 21 MAY 22MAY 21 MAY 22MAY 21 MAY 22Friday Saturday

from 7pmGreen Point Observatory

cnr Green Point Rd & Caravan Head Rd

see the planetssee nebulae and

star clusterslook through

large telescopeshot snacks & drinks

availableTel: 9589 1014

spend a night under the starsand planets with Sutherland

amateur astronomers

BINTEL252 DOBSONIAN

BINTEL202 SE DOBSONIAN

250mm diameter1250mm FL f525mm Plossl9mm Plossl8 x 50 findesrcopeFull Australian instructionsEach telescope pre-checked

200mm diameter 1200mm FL f6 25mm 2” eyepiece 9mm Plossl 6x 30 findesrcope Full Australian instructions. Each telescope pre-checked

$1099$1099$1099$1099$1099

$599$599$599$599$599

NOWNOWNOWNOWNOWwww.

OPENOPENOPENOPENOPENbintelshop.

com.au