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After another couple of weeks of poor weather we were able to catch a break between passing clouds(literally) for the Orionids! An incredible turnout of about 50 students made this annual meteor shower the second consecutive event breaking 50 students!!! Thomas Burbine and approximately 20-30 of his students showed up, Astronomy Club regulars, and friends of students made this a very divesre night in terms of statistics. We walked from the Totman Gymnasium to a field nearby behind the parking lot 44(purple), which to the suprise of everyone gave us the gift of complete darkness. The trees blocked nearly all of the light pollution from campus allowing the average meteor count per studnent to be about 6 or 7 meteors! The hidden gem of darkness on campus and some suprisingly clear weather given the forecasts for the day made this night clear enough to even see the Milky Way plane. Waiting for meteors we tried to point out all of the constellations with the most obivous being Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Cassiopea, and of course the star of the show Orion the Hunter rising in the east. There were two spectacular meteors which burned up for longer than a full second leaving brilliant trails across the sky which awestruck everyone. We had a real treat tonight with Sean McElwee, one of the members, bringing a camera and taking some pictures of the night sky and members. Check out the photogallery for some photos that turned out very well without sky tracking! Astronomy Club is going to make the Orionids event an anuall event with such a large demand for it; imagine how many people will show up when we have RSO funding and can advertise! October 6th, 2011 After two weeks of consecutive bad Wednesdays and Thursdays we were back at it again! Tonight was one for the record books in terms of the amount of people who showed up, totalling about 60 students in all. Thomas Burbine and about 30 of his Astro 100 students, Kim Smith and her 6th floor residents of Webster, Five College Astronomy Club members, and the general public all enjoyed the spectacularly clear weather. Inside the observatory with the 16" Cassegrain we observed Jupiter(seeing all four Galilean moons), a near full waxing Moon, and the Andromeda Galaxy. Outside, the smaller Celsetron viewed the same objects, while some people were doing constellation tours and exploring such objects like the Double-Cluster with binoculars. As a test today the FCAC brought one small refractor telescope up from Hasbrouck only to find that there was some serious work that needed to be done on it. Everyone had an excellent time, and we're hoping we've convinced some people to become regulars! :) See you next week! September 14, 2011 Tonight was our first official open night of the Fall 2011 semester. Overall the seeing was pretty poor, at the beginning of the night at 8:30 we were able to look at the moon, and one of the stars in the Cygnus constellation. Typically by about 9:00 we can see Jupiter however the clouds had covered most of the sky by then. Thomas Burbine and his Astro 100/101 came in two waves over the course of the night. Since we had poor conditions we spent extended time looking at the moon, and had some great discussions about the night sky, the observatory and topics in Astronomy that students were learning. We hope to have better skies next week! November 11, 2010 Tonight, was the second Thursday with good enough weather to have our second 'open observatory night'. With almost no advertising we got an unexpectedly large crowd of about 40 people to come! Tonight was probably the best observing conditions for any day we could have gone up. Even with trees to the west, a cell tower, and light pollution, tonight was very clear and beautiful. We did some constellation tours early in the night showing common ones like Cassiopiea, Cygnus, and later when it rose, Orion. The objects we saw tonight were Jupiter with its four Galilean moons, the Pleiades, the Andromeda Galaxy(M31), the Ring Nebula, and also got a nice look at the red color of the star Betelgeuse. Jupiter was quite the site with many bands visible, and perhaps Betelgeuse would look even better with a color filter! Everyone seemed to enjoy their night, and as a result many people signed up for the Five College Astronomy Club. Overall tonight was an excellent night for observing. November 10, 2010 Tonight, Professor Salimbeni and her class came to use the observatory. 100 Kids from Astronomy 100/101, came up to enjoy observing. The students were in rotation using the smaller telescope outside, learning the winter constellations, and observing with the 16" cassegrain reflector inside the observatory. We saw many objects including the Pleiades, Jupiter and 4 galilean moons, the Double Cluster, and the Andromeda Galaxy(M31). The weather continued to imrpove as the night went on, and the students seemed to enjoy a hands on component to the class; overall tonight was a great success for Professor Salimebeni and her class! April 29, 2010 Tonight was a quite a night for the open observatory nights. Before the crowds started showing up there was an untamed fire about 300-400 feet back behind the observatory in the North direction. The fire was met swiftly with a small crew of fire fighters and police. Tonight was led mostly by Ashley Bemis, Brenna Haynes, Tom MacRae and Joe Lyons, with the help of some graduating members of the Astronomy Club. Tonight was quite an incredible turnout with about 20 people showing up from the Bio-Science RAP. We also had a teacher from Amherst High school make an appearance, as well as some members from the introductory Astronomy courses and general public. Tonight was quite incredible as there were at least 2 flybys from satellites and an incredible spectacle of the ISS(International Space Station) flying over head. With the unexpected satellite viewings, people were given constellation tours, while waiting to look through the telescope. Through the telescope we looked at Mars, Jupiter, the moon and also the Great Cluster, which lies within the Hercules Asterism. Overall an excellent night. April 22, 2010 Tonight was a fairly successful night given the trouble with the weather in the earlier hours of the night. The Observatory was run successfully by Tom MacRae, Bill Dague, and Joe Lyons as it was their first time running the show without David Sliski and other seniors who have been running the observatory for many years. We got a crowd of about 20- 30 people spread out over the night from the astro courses 100, 103 and general public. Tonight we were able to get the usual favorites, Mars, Saturn and the Moon, of course with a little bit of haze due to the humidity and in some cases clouds. April 8th 2010 There were some clouds tonight, but we decided to try to open anyway. We managed to see Mars, Saturn, and Alcor and Mizar through gaps in the clouds, although they were all very blurry because of the haziness. Not one of our best nights, but we nonetheless had around twenty people show up in total. April 1st 2010 Today was a rather beautiful day, which yieled a magnificent night for observing. We saw Mars, Saturn and its four mooons: Titan, Reya, Dione and Tethys. We also looked at the double star system in the middle of the handle of the Big Dipper (Alcor and Mizar), as well as various Nebulas. There was a small crowd of Astro 100 and 101 students who we gave a Constellation tour to. Four new eyepieces came in the mail today, which is pretty exciting, so we tried those out to observe Saturn with different magnifications. February 4th 2010 Tonight we checked out Mars, the Pleiades, the double cluster, and the Great Nebula in Orion. Tonight was the first night we got to use our new two-inch eyepiece, and the images were loads better than before - the Great Nebula in Orion was absolutely gorgeous. We had a total of about eighteen people show up, which wasn't bad considering how freezing cold it was. November 17th 2009 We held a special gathering at the UMass Sunwheel for the Leonid meteor shower. We brought along two telescopes, which we used to look at Albirio, Jupiter, and Andromeda. Quite a crowd showed up - around 75 people by our estimated. Besides the meteor-watching, we also had our usual constellation tours. September 24th 2009 The observers and Prof. Schneider went up the observatory early this evening to see if we could improve the image quality of the telescope. After trying to align the center of the secondary with the laser collimator we looked at Jupiter. The image seemed to be much worse that on previous open nights. We then tried to locate the secondary in the center of the tube. This seemed to improve the performace of the secondary quite a bit. Next we moved some of the set screws that position the tilt of the mirror. Adjusting for the coma we were able to see banding on Jupiter and resolve the moons as point-like objects. While we did not fix the telescope we made noticeable improvements. Around ten people showed up to the open night and a few of them entertained us with their ukulele. The last interesting event of the evening was a passing of the International Space Station just over orchard hill. Hopefully next week we will have a better functioning telescope and/or a different one to use. September 17th 2009 Evidently the telescope did not take too kindly to being neglected all summer; its collimation and the position of the secondary were completely off, and Jupiter looked more like an amorphous blob than a striped sphere. We fixed the collmation and secondary, but unfortunately the image was only marginally improved. April 26th 2009 After a year of looking at a dirty mirror, Ron Zissel, retired astronomy staff, came out to the observatory to help clean and align the mirrors. While we were able to clean and ajust everything the telescope has not been tested since its cleaning. We are hoping for some clear weather to test out our new improvments. April 23rd 2009 Nothing particularly eventful this week: we had some thrity or so people show up, most of whom, we were surpried to learn, did NOT come for the extra credit. We looked at Saturn, which has become a recurring favorite, and we were able to make out five of its moons. We also checked out Praesepe (aka the Beehive Cluster) and M13. David gave his usual constellation tour (which we all know is just an excuse for him to show off his green laser pointer). April 16th 2009 It looks like people are clamoring for the Astro 100 extra credit - we had about fifty students come, quickly look at Saturn, sign in, and leave. This time, we were able to see a moon of Saturn's we'd never seen before - Iapetus. After the people who only came for the extra credit left, we had a handful of people left over. We checked out Praesepe in Cancer, as well as Alcor and Mizar, and for lack of other options, we tried for some objects we've never looked at before. We located NGC 2281 and M13, the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules. Although both were fairly dim, when we get better astrophotography equipment set up, they should be good candidates. We finished with an attempt to discern the double-double in Lyra - unfortunately, it was too low on the horizon to make out well. April 9th 2009 While last week had a huge turn out of astronomy majors, graduate students, postdocs and faculty, this week featured many students from astro 101. We had over 35 signed in students, 15 students, two security gaurds and a police officer. We had a full moon this evening which inhibited our ability to look at deep sky objects. With Orion and its nebula now behind the trees, shortly followed by the Pleadies, our only options for observing were the Moon, Saturn, and Alcor and Mizar. However, using higher power eyepieces we were able to see four out of Saturn's five largest moons: Titian, Rhea, Dione, and Tethys. Tonight marked the first time students tried to use the telescope for astrophotography. We attempted (and succeeded) to photograph Saturn and the four moons in addition to our Moon. Sebastian and David hope to post the pictures on the website in the near future. A GREAT NIGHT! Thanks to some advertising of the Five College Astronomy Club meeting and the 100 Hours of Astronomy, we had a HUGE turnout! We had around 40 people, including undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, and even Ron Snell, the head of the Astronomy Department, joined us. The Daily Collegian sent a journalist to cover the event, so keep your eyes peeled for an article sometime soon. We finally got to install the new focuser we bought, and what a difference it made! We are now able to use a wide selection of eyepieces, cameras, and other equipment, and with the new fine adjustment knob, we can get razor sharp images. We were able to look at Saturn, Alcor and Mizar, and the moon (on which we discovered the infamous Moon Spider!). David brought his own four-inch refractor telescope to observe the Orion Nebula, and we had constellation tours outside for the large crowd. Unfortunately, the initial haze turned into clouds later on, so we were forced to stop observing around 10:00. Considering that the weather forecast said it would rain, we lucked out. Even though the weather was less than optimal a few astro 101 students were able to see Saturn, the double cluster in the Cassiopeia, Orion’s nebula, and the bee hive cluster. After viewing through the telescope David lead them through a tour of the constellations. They toured Taurus, Augia, Orion, Canis major and minor, Cancer, Gemini, Leo, Cassiopeia, and Ursa Major and minor. A few Security guards stopped by to take a quick look a Saturn. At the end of the night a astro 103 student showed up to start a class project. Due to the sucky weather since the start of the semester, the observatory was opened for the first time this evening and it was AMAZING!. We were able to see comet Lulin which was between Saturn and Regulus, otherwise known as alpha Leo. While the comet is fading we were able to see its core in addition to the ionic and dust tails. Next we observed Saturn whose rings are currently edge on. We observed Saturn's largest moons Titan and Rhea in addition to a grouping 4 of the smaller moons. We then viewed Orion's nebula and looked at the trapizium at its heart. Alcor and Mizar a double star in the big dipper were next. After that we looked at the open Beehive cluster,otherwise know as M44. M44 is located in the center of the constellation Cancer. Our last object for the night was the Crab Nebula. While we were able to find the nebula, it was too faint at magnitude 8.4 to see any detail. Four people showed up to the observatory this evening. We were open from 8 PM until 10:30 PM Although the weather was good tonight, the yesterday's snow and freezing rain jammed the observatory slit shut, so that we were unable to observe tonight. Three people came by tonight. We did a constellation tour, looked at the double-double, the double cluster in Cassiopea, Albirio, the ring nebula, and the moon. Twelve people visited the observatory tonight. We looked at Vega, Albirio, the double cluster in Cassiopea, and the Andromeda galaxy. About forty people visited the observatory tonight. We looked at the same things as last week. 25 people visited the observatory tonight. We looked at the double-double in Lyra, Albirio (the head of Cygnus the Swan), and the moon. The observatory was open tonight. The light pollution was a little over bearing, most of the objects we wanted to spot were in areas of large amounts of light pollution; Uranus and M15 - A Globular Star Cluster. In addition the Moon was just past its first quarter but we could not see it in the southern sky because of the trees blocking our view. We were able to observe a double star in the constellation Delphinus - the Dolphin. We looked at different techniques for observing color differences between two stars in a binary system. Tonight was the first open observatory of the semester. We had a nice crowd - 15 to 20 students. We discussed how Edwin Hubble discovered other galaxies using Cepheid Variable stars, how to star hop, and a little Greek mythology. We used binoculars to spot the Andromeda Galaxy, and the telescope to view Epsilon Lyrae - a double star in the constellation Lyra as well as the Ring Nebula in Lyra. Tonight was the Meteor Shower Watch at the Observatory! Check it out here! Lousy weather tonight, hopefully the observatory will be open next week! Lousy weather tonight, hopefully the observatory will be open next week! The observatory was closed for Thanksgiving. Lousy weather tonight, hopefully the observatory will be open next week! This week at the observatory we were working on overcoming a few obstacles. Earlier in the week a piece at the top of the dome broke off that stopped the dome from closing and opening on one side. Therefore, after Wednesday's rain, the observatory had considerable water inside that needed to be cleaned. I [Ross] arrived to the observatory an hour early to take care of the water damage. It would take 30 minutes to mop up all the water. After that the observatory was ready to open, and it was a good thing we opened tonight, because tonight was the largest gathering at the observatory all year. Approximately 50 students came by tonight to use the facilities. We started off the night with a globular cluster in the constellation Pegasus called M15. We learned how to use averted vision to see details of faint objects better. We then changed direction and looked east to see if we could spot a supernova remnant called M1, The Crab Nebula, but light pollution would hinder us from seeing it. In weeks to come, it will be further off the horizon and won't be as difficult to spot. The last object of the night was a quarter moon rising low on the horizon. We were able to see significant atmospheric distortion. This compared to how we see a distorted image above a hot grill. There was fantastic weather tonight to start the night. The moon was in a gibbous stage and was very bright. This would provide great views of the moon, however, it would make the sky too bright to see deep sky objects, as predicted. We started with the moon and saw the crater Tycho, and discussed impacts, and causes for mountains in the middle of craters. Freshman students from the Physical Science Talent Advancement Program (PSciTAP) showed up to get a hands on astro experience, and were rooting for deep sky objects, we were able to spot the Andromeda Galaxy, but not as bright as past weeks. We also talked about the magnifying power of the telescope. We found that the scope could read posters in hallways of the dorms in the distance. Towards the end of the night, the crude focus was not working, which stopped us from moving to the Crab Nebula, but hopefully, by next week, will be fixed. There was great weather tonight at the observatory. This was the largest gathering of students that the observatory has seen in years. At the beginning of the night we had 21 students at the observatory. Three police cadets stopped by to investigate the gathering; and after they realized it was educational, they decided to get a glimpse of the Andromeda Galaxy. Open Star clusters were the favorite tonight! We saw two great ones, both in the constellation Taurus. The first was the Pleiades Star Cluster and the second was the Hyades Star Cluster. We also got the see the North Star, Polaris, through the telescope and realized that it was part of a binary star system and a had a small blue companion star that was approximately 630 times fainter than Polaris was! Lousy weather tonight, hopefully the observatory will be open next week! Lousy weather tonight, hopefully the observatory will be open next week! The observatory opened despite a cloud cover rolling in. We had three students from Astro 100 stop in and we were able to see the Moon really well, even though there was a thin covering over it. The clouds actually acted as a filter which reduced the brightness of the moon so it wasn't so overwhelming through the eyepiece. Then two astronomy and physics students from Smith stopped by to see the facilities. They were really impressed with the observatory, but couldn't believe we didn't have a computer drive for the telescope. After glimpsing the Ring Nebula in Lyra, we had to close down early due to the clouds covering the sky completely. I arrived at the observatory at 7 PM. The sky had some breaks in it, and the clear sky was visible, but only for a few minutes - after that, a thick cloud covering rolled in. I got there early because I had brought replacement bulbs, a vacuum cleaner, and paper towels and cleaner. The observatory had been filled with cobwebs, dust and dirt since I started working in it last year. I spent all of last night cleaning (because the weather was lousy). So be sure to stop by the cleaned observatory next week! We'll keep this weeks targets the same for next week! Objects Viewed: M57, The Ring Nebula Double Double in Lyra (Epsilon Lyrae) Gamma Delphini (Double star in the Dolphin Constellation) M31, The Andromeda Galaxy This site was last updated on 2/7/10 |
