Share Astronomy – New Features!

Posted on April 5, 2010 by Ken Hudson

Lightning BoltToday we are happy and proud to announce the release of Phase 2 of Share Astronomy. Frequent visitors to this site will notice that we are no longer "just a blog". Share Astronomy is now a full-featured web application that will let you share your astronomy projects with people all over the world.

What kind of projects can you create?  Well, pretty much anything you can think of.  For example you can:

  • Show others how to collimate a reflecting telescope.
  • Provide detailed information on how you built an observing chair.
  • Document how you and other educators built telescopes for use by students interested in astronomy.
  • Create a tutorial on using a DSLR camera to get started with astro imaging.
  • Illustrate how you and your daughter built a radio telescope using NASA’s Radio Jove kit.
  • Explain how to build a battery pack to power the fans and dew heaters used on your 25" dob.
  • Help other astronomers build their first spectrograph.
  • Record your progress creating planetary astro images.
  • And more – just let your imagination run wild!

We believe Share Astronomy provides advantages over your other alternatives:

  • You no longer have to create multiple forum posts for each image and description.
  • You no longer have to create, maintain and pay for your own web site just to show others your images or projects.
  • We assist with the organization of your project by providing areas for a short synopsis, a detailed description, an equipment list and as many images and associated descriptions as you wish.
  • Share Astronomy was designed to be easy to learn and easy to use.
  • Share Astronomy is free.

We believe Share Astronomy is a truly unique tool and we hope you will use this site to share your work and your ideas with others.

We are here to help. If you have questions please send an email to "info at nealstreetdesign dot com". If you have problems with Share Astronomy please send an email to "problems at nealstreetdesign dot com". (Please make the necessary substitutions in the email addresses. We have to show it this way to protect ourselves from the evil spammers.)

Have fun and let us know what you think!

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Interview with Fred Koch of the Three Rivers Foundation (3RF)

Posted on March 30, 2010 by Ken Hudson

As I mentioned in a previous blog post, the Seventh Annual Deepest South Texas Star Safari was held under the auspices of the Three Rivers Foundation. While in Coonabarabran, Australia, I was fortunate enough to sit down for a conversation with Fred Koch who is the founder and principal benefactor of the 3RF. Included below is my conversation with Fred:

Can you please describe the 3RF?
Well, the Three Rivers Foundation for the Arts and Sciences, or the 3RF, is primarily an educational non-profit. We started out using astronomy because we had competitive advantages with dark skies in West Texas. However, it will expand to the other sciences and it will also include the arts. I was convinced when I went to an international planetarium association meeting in Melbourne four years ago and seeing digital planetarium what an extraordinary appeal can be made to the emotions aesthetically. The arts are very important, as are the sciences, and that is reflected in our facilities in Texas. We also now have a 3RF Australia entity that is separate, though, it's a sister organization. In both cases the idea is to use astronomy as a vehicle to encourage education with perhaps a bias towards science education.

The education approach you are taking – does it apply to students of any particular age or does it apply to everyone?
In general, across the board, everyone. We cater to students. We want to provide a hands-on interaction in the hope that that will promote a greater interest in science. Scout groups, for example, come out to our Comanche Springs astronomy campus in West Texas. We have public star parties for adults. We have teacher workshops. We feel like that's the best way – right now especially – to leverage our resources so that we're reaching a greater number of people.
Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Interviews | 1 Comment

Coonabarabran – Clear Dark Skies

Posted on March 17, 2010 by Ken Hudson

Coonabarabran Observing FieldHello again from Coonabarabran – the Astronomy Capital of Australia. As I promised, this blog post will address the wonderful Southern Skies and our fantastic viewing experiences here at The Seventh Annual Deepest South Texas Star Safari (DSTSS).

As I mentioned in my post on March 3, we have an unbelievable assortment of telescopes available for our use every night. There are approximately 10 Obsession telescopes and about 3 SDM scopes that range in size from 14″ to 30″. In addition, we have a pair of 25mm x 150mm Fujinon binoculars that are mounted in a Skyrover Starchair. Most of the dobs have Argo Navis and Servo Cat installed (some have only Argo Navis installed). We also have a large assortment of very nice eyepieces, too. In addition, some people brought their own eyepieces. Some of the time you find yourself sharing a scope with a new-found friend and some of the time you have the scope all to yourself for hours at a time. Needless to say, we feel like kids in a candy store!

Coonabarabran is a wonderful place for astronomy with beautiful dark, clear skies. So far we have had five nights of viewing. I would say three of those nights were truly excellent and two of the nights were very good. (One night we did have some clouds that interfered with observing and one night things got pretty dewy.)
Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy-related Travel | Leave a comment

Greetings From Australia

Posted on March 16, 2010 by Ken Hudson

Sydney Opera HouseHello from Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia. I am happy to report that we are having a fantastic time at the Deepest South Texas Star Safari (DSTSS).

Before I go further, I guess I should describe how this trip "works". We are not an organized tour in the traditional sense. We all arranged for our own transportation to Sydney, we reserved our hotel in Sydney individually and we have our own rental cars (or informally formed car pools). On the other hand, the organizers of the DSTSS have arranged for tours and activities that we can choose to participate in or not – it's up to each individual. They also arranged for our accommodations in Coonabarabran at the Warrumbungles Mountain Motel and provided the majority of telescopes for our use. (The members of the 3RF and the Australian volunteers are just fantastic people – it would be hard to thank them enough for the generosity.)
Continue reading →

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Off to Australia

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Ken Hudson

In just a few days, we’ll be leaving San Diego to attend The Seventh Annual Deepest South Texas Star Safari (DSTSS) in Coonabarabran, Australia. This will be my first time observing in the Southern Hemisphere. Needless to say, I am very excited!

The DSTSS is held under the auspices of the Three Rivers Foundation and coordinated in the U.S. by Anne Adkins. The Three Rivers Foundation (3RF) is dedicated to providing astronomy outreach to students and the general public across Australia.

One of the great things about this trip is that we don't have to take any equipment (other than maybe an eyepiece or two). The equipment list will probably include the following:

  • Five 18-inch Obsessions
  • Two 20-inch Obsessions
  • Two 25-inch Obsessions
  • One 30-inch Obsession-Style Dob by SDM Telescopes
  • 22-inch Binocular Telescope
  • Powered Binocular Chair
  • 25×150 Fujinon Binoculars
  • Sky Window for Binoculars

All of the Obsession telescopes will be equipped with Argo Navis.

In addition to the wonderful observing opportunities in Coonabarabran, we will have a few days in Sydney to "see the sites".

If possible, I will add additional posts while in Australia and do my best to keep you updated with the wonders of the Southern Hemisphere – both in the sky and on the ground.

Posted in Astronomy-related Travel | Leave a comment

Astro Imaging Software

Posted on February 11, 2010 by Ken Hudson

Recently, I posted the following question on the Cloudy Nights Beginning and Intermediate Imaging Forum: “What’s Your Image Processing Software Suite?”. In the space of a few hours I received 12 responses listing 21 different programs used by astro imagers. Subsequent posts listed additional astronomy imaging programs. I'm really amazed at how many programs and plugins are available to address the various intricacies of CCD image processing. Here's the list so far – including some I found on my own:

Please let me know if you know of more and please let me know your favorites.

Posted in Imaging, Software | Leave a comment

Hanny van Arkel – Citizen Scientist Extraordinaire

Posted on January 11, 2010 by Ken Hudson

Hanny Van ArkelIn my blog post on August 18, 2009, I discussed how amateur astronomers could do "real science" by participating in the Galaxy Zoo project. As the Galaxy Zoo web site points out more than 150,000 people have participated in this research effort. One of the most prominent participants is Hanny van Arkel.

Hanny van Arkel is the discoverer of Hanny’s Voorwerp which is Dutch for Hanny’s Object. The blueish object in question appears close to the spiral galaxy IC 2497 in photographs. Its exact nature is unknown but more information can be found here and thousands of other web sites.

Recently Hanny kindly agreed to answer some questions from Share Astronomy. The interview is included below. Thank you Hanny!

How did you originally hear about Galaxy Zoo and citizen science?
Through Queen's guitarist Brian May, who I admire a lot for his music and for what he writes on his website, www.brianmay.com. He mentioned Galaxy Zoo approximately a month after it had started, which is when I signed up.

What motivated you to get involved with Galaxy Zoo?
The fact I could help real scientists without being a scientist myself. Besides that, classifying galaxies is fun to do, as the pictures on www.galaxyzoo.org are beautiful.
Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Pro / Am Collaboration | 1 Comment

Radio Astronomy – What a Great Resource!

Posted on December 14, 2009 by Ken Hudson

Astron Logo

As I discussed in my blog post on December 8, 2009, visible light is only one portion of the electromagnetic spectrum used for astronomical observations. Astronomers routinely observe the radiation emitted by objects at other wavelengths – like infrared. Radio astronomers have been studying the radio waves emitted by astronomical objects since the 1930's. Radio astronomy is an area that I plan to write about frequently in the future. While radio astronomy isn’t as common among amateur astronomers as visible light observing it is still an exciting area that should be considered by amateurs looking for new observing opportunities.

One of the best internet resources I have found for learning about radio astronomy is ASTRON – the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy. ASTRON was founded in 1949 and currently operates two state-of-the-art observing facilities: the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Observatory (WSRT) and LOFAR (the Low Frequency Array).

The ASTRON web site is very well done and quite interesting. In particular I would recommend checking out the Publications page (pay particular attention to the Newsletters section).

Newsletters are published two times per year and the content is excellent. For example, the most recent issue (December 2009) has articles covering topics like:

  • The current status of LOFAR (the Low Frequency Array)
  • Millisecond pulsars and the discovery of a "missing link" in the process that creates them
  • Gravitational lensing
  • Seven high school students known as the "spacegirls" who won a Dutch space competition called CanSat
  • Student projects done as part of the Summer Student Programme 2009. (By the way, the deadline for applications of the Summer Student Program 2010 is February 1, 2010.)
  • Water in the early universe
  • And a LOT more – the newsletter is 44 pages long

If you are at all curious about radio astronomy or radio astronomers be sure to check out this excellent site.

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WISE Spacecraft Launched

Posted on December 14, 2009 by Ken Hudson

My previous blog post discussed the impending launch of the WISE spacecraft and infrared astronomy in general. I'm pleased to report that the WISE spacecraft was successfully launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California this morning at 6:09 a.m., Pacific time.

There are now three operational infrared missions: WISE, the Spitzer Space Telescope and the Herschel Space Observatory.

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WISE: Infrared Astronomy Takes a Big Step

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Ken Hudson

WISE Spacecraft Main Fairing

Image Credit: NASA/VAFB

If everything goes according to plan, NASA will launch the Wide-field Infared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft on Friday, December 11, 2009 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. (Please note: At the time this blog post was written weather was threatening to postpone the launch.) WISE was designed to survey the entire sky and to produce infrared images of millions of objects ranging from asteroids to brown dwarf stars to ultra-luminous galaxies.

For those of you interested in learning more about infrared astronomy I have compiled a list of resources that I hope are useful and fun:

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