OASA Stargazer October 2017
Image by Alastair Leith, Northampton
My apologies for the brief nature of this newsletter, but if i did not get this out today, it likely would not get out, completely snowed with work this month. In line with this please read carefully the provision for support i have in place.
SpaceKidets now worth 40 CPD points!
Astronomy with a small telescope There are countless books on the market, countless, many catering for beginners. So many go out to buy the cheapest telescope they can and fall fowl. For several years now, i have been running an academy which has catered for GCSE Astronomy, SpaceKidets to name a few. The most common question i always get it “What telescope should i buy�. I came to realise how hard a question it was. Many who ask it do not know their refractors from their reflectors. A gamble perhaps that upon speaking to Robert Ratford one of our tutors, i decided to purchase a 70mm Equatorial refractor (the Astromaster), put it together and take it for a test drive. Having not used a telescope this size in years, i decided to buy one and have a look to see what we can see. Endorsing it to our GCSE Astronomy students and other members at least we will know what this can see. I will know because i will have tried and used it. In line with this project, which better book to pick up than Guy Consigmaglios, Turn Left at Orion. A book i have had on my bookshelf for several years. No better
book to use as a guide to see what this can do. The upshot of this project will be a package for those interested who can invest in the telescope, either for personal persuit or to assist with their studies and with it (though paying a bit more) gaining access to the videos i will be producing with this telescope. Not only from the basics of a) What is in the kit b) How to put it together c) the anatomy d) How to set it up e) How to use it. Moving on with some webcam astrophotography too. In fact i mentioned the project to Adam Hinds, of Celestron who was more than happy to lend me a camera to use on it! Of course at the end of it will be a telescope we can endorse, not just because of the name (though that had a lot to do with why i chose this particular one) but because we will know it because we used it. but why begin here?
Starting Astronomy With Christmas coming, and i write this in October, it becomes clear that many want to pick this hobby up, and why not the nights are drawing in earlier making possible to take the kids out to see the stars. I was a 13 year old lad when i started and still recall how i started with a red torch, pencil, small telescope, and pair of binoculars. Oh and a star chart and note pad. I sketched stars around the constellations i knew and used a technique known as star hopping to learn and recognise the local stars. Sadly light pollution has steadily become worse making objedct identification harder. However i still believe that by going outside for a while and letting the eyes adjust you will gradually see more than you think. True for many they will view the Moon and planets, sadly for many the telescope will be put aside, what else after all can be done with it? Make no mistake, there are limits in light polluted skies, which is why going to a darker site if you can is an idea. So to kick off this journey, what can i say about the telescope in this newsletter? Well it is an equatorial refractor with a 70mm Acromatic Objective Lense and a 10mm, 20mm eyepiece.
So, what does this mean in real terms Well the telescope as discussed has Aperature 70mm Focal length 900 mm (so that is from the lense to where the light comes to focus). 10mm eyepiece 20mm eyepiece Star Diagonal Magnification
900mm / 10 mm 90 x magnigication 900 / 20 mm 45 x magnification The telescope could take on the basis of the rule of 50x per inch of aperture just over 100 x. On the basis that 70mm is roughly = 2.75 inches
So, what can we see with this, i hear you ask? Stay tuned to find out! Or better still purchase one of our packages, we will be supplying training videos with this telescope soon!
Old GCSE Astronomy format students Now is the time to make contact with your tutors to arrange supervision for exams. Please note it is your responsibilty to do this. If you run out of time neither the OAS Academy or the tutor cannot be held responsible
International Astronomy Show http://www.ukastroshow.com/
At the time of writing this, its actually just under a week away. First we’ve done so no idea what to expect. We have an outreach stall, number 10 in the foyer. You will not miss us as we have a banner and a nice telescope (or two joining us). Please by all means come and say hello, it will also be
GCSE Astronomy The year is now creaping up on us, with over 50 students (in fact its closer to 70 if we include the school thats joined us and our other older format. We are moving on through “The Earth now” so expect questions on this. Hopefully having some videos made up. Lynee Beck (one of our tutors) and Dr Julian Onions of University of Nottingham have both been assisting. The first will be posted next week! So watch this space. possible to enrol on our courses there as
Students in 9-1 should be on their way through the remainder of Planet Earth now and heading onto the night sky. Please do not forget to keep your tutor informed regarding your worksheets. It is also now possible to submitt them for their feedback. Please do this or follow the digital quizzes as this is the way we tell how people are doing. logging in problems Please do email help.astronomycourses@gmail.com now for any assistance. OASAcademy@gmail.com can be used but likely to have a slower response as Alastair is away more than he is in this month. Both Katy Nicholas and Robert Ratford can change passwords.
The Night Sky If you were out on 5th October, you might have seen the ISS pass at about 19:37 complimented by the rise of the Harvest Moon. Sadly i did not see it as it clouded. I wanted to image the ISS (International Space Station) pass first. (image below). In fact, it is worth noting here that the International Space Station orbits the Earth in low orbit (Low Earth Orbit to the tecchies!). In fact it orbits at a height of just over 400 km travelling at a speed of 17,500 km/h How bright is it? Can be as bright as Venus or even slightly bright, sometimes a lot fainter. But look out for it in the West as it moves rapidly East. You will easily see it with the naked eye and binoculars. A medium telescope will be needed to show structure, but good luck tracking it! I was out that night with my son, Alexander, viewing it
This was captured using a Canon DSLR 1000D,
ISO 100 and i think a 30 sec exposure. The bright object is the Harvest Moon just rising. If you are interested in seeing the International Space Station there is an App you can download and install free (in fact cloudy as it is a pass is due here in 3 minutes at time of writing!)
Meteors As we continue our journey round the Sun, we are about to meet another debris donut left courtesy of a comet. This time from comet Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner. They are called the Draconids as they tend to radiate from the constellation of Draco the dragon. Despite myth, meteors are very tiny grains of ice and dust smaller in many cases than a grain of sand. They leave bright streaks when they burn up as they light up the atmosphere around them. The same debris that the comet discarded as it orbited the Sun. These “rings� of debris the Earth passes through annually - causing a meteor shower.
If you are an educator interested in teaching in a School. Look no further we offer courses to assist educators AND some of them even offer Continuing Personal Development (CPD) credits too! In fact, our very own SpaceKidets was just approved with 40 CPD Credits! What to help with the newsletter? Submitt an article? Please email info@onlineastronomycourses.co.uk