Born and raised in the Hudson Valley (NY). Went to UB (Mech. Eng.). Have lived in WNY ever since. Married with a daughter. In addition to my passion for astronomy I also have strong interests in music (guitar), golf, hunting, fishing, shooting, and love to travel (when the opportunity and finances allow for it).
!!! NEVER LOOK AT THE SUN DIRECTLY WITHOUT APPROVED SOLAR GLASSES OR FILTERS FOR TELESCOPES/BINOCULARS !!!
The Weirdest Sunrise Ever!
BAA Members Tim Collins and Mark Percy have recently made the rounds on local TV to talk about the upcoming Partial Solar Eclipse. On June 10th There will be an Annular Solar Eclipse. Western New York will wake up to a Partial Eclipse at sunrise (5:36 AM). The Sun will be about 80% covered by the Moon. Max Eclipse occurs at 5:39 AM and the Eclipse ends at 6:36 AM. You’ll need an unobstructed view to the Northeastern horizon.
In the first video BAA member Tim collins is interviewed on WGRZ-TV’s Monday Town Hall. You can view it here.:
In the second video BAA Members Mark Percy and Tim Collins are interviewed but the team on WIVB-TV. You can view the Vide by clicking on the link below.
Those of you familiar with our Looking Up! Virtual Stargazing events will recognize Mark and Tim, as they are frequent contributors.
Mark Percy is the Director of the Williamsville Space Lab Planetarium.
Tim Collins is manager of the Kellogg Observatory at the Buffalo Museum of Science, a presenter at the Whitworth Ferguson Planetarium at Buffalo State College and the Williamsville Space Lab Planetarium.
It is a given that the reflecting telescope is the workhouse of astronomy. It established itself on the professional level due to the fact that it did not suffer from the limitations of aperture size as is the case with refracting telescopes. And, on the amateur level due to less cost per aperture size. This aside, much of the popular accounts do not reflect (yes, pun intended) accurately on the origin and development of the reflecting telescope. For example, scores of entry-level science and astronomy books claim Isaac Newton as the inventor of the reflecting telescope. However, such is not the case. This is not a knock, nor does it detract from Newton’s genius. It is like the lawyers say: you have to read the fine print.
The credit for the first reflecting telescope goes to the Italian monk, physicist and astronomer Niccolo Zucchi (1858-1670) [1], long before Newton constructed his reflecting telescope in 1668. It is said that Zucchi developed a keen interest in astronomy after a meeting with the famous astronomer Johannes Kepler. Around 1616, Zucchi created a basis reflecting telescope. Zucchi’s telescope involved a bronze primary mirror to focus the image and a concave lens as an eyepiece to view the image. Zucchi’s telescope failed to yield satisfactory images. The factors were the angle the mirror was tilted at to deflect the focused image a measure to the side towards the observer, along with the observer’s head partially obstructing the incoming light from the viewed object, and the possibility that the mirror did not adequately focus the image. Consequently, Zucchi further construction on his reflecting telescope. Nevertheless, in 1652 Zucchi published his book, “An optical philosophy and the experimental nature of the bases determined”, in which he described his experiments with his reflecting telescope. His book later inspired scientists James Gregory and Isaac Newton to pursue improved designs for reflecting telescopes [2].
The earliest design for a practical reflecting telescope goes to the Scottish mathematician and astronomer James Gregory (1638-1675) [3]. Gregory’s design predated Newton’s reflecting telescope by five years. The blueprint for Gregory’s telescope was set forth in his 1663 book, “Promotion of Optics”. Gregory pointed out that a reflecting telescope with a parabolic mirror would correct spherical and chromatic aberrations endemic to refracting telescopes of his day – a finding that preceded Newton’s conclusions.
Gregory’s design placed a secondary concave mirror with an elliptical surface past the focal point of the parabolic mirror, reflecting the image back through a hole in the primary mirror where it could be viewed. Gregory’s proposed design became appropriately known as the Gregorian telescope. However, Gregory had no telescope building skills. Others eventually constructed Gregory’s telescope many years later. However, the Gregorian telescope is seldom used today due to the fact that later telescope designs proving more efficient. Despite this, Gregory’s basic design is used in today’s radio telescopes – the most famous being the Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico [3].
Regarding Newton’s 1668 reflecting telescope, it marked a turning point – of sorts. Newton’s design employed a primary mirror to capture light and a smaller secondary mirror to reflect the light out the side of the telescope to a magnifying eyepiece. This, along with the fact that his telescope was easier and less costly to construct than Gregory’s telescope eventually made Newton’s design popular with amateur astronomers and was thenceforth known as the Newtonian Reflector. But there was a problem.
While Newton’s telescope eliminated the problem of chromatic aberration it still suffered from spherical aberration, resulting in a blurry image caused by the spherical shape of the primary mirror. And this was the problem. Newton tried to grind a parabolic mirror in 1666 to eliminate this problem but was unable to do so because the technology was not available at the time. This resulted in Newton’s telescope becoming unusable [4]. The net outcome was that only two were built and given to the Royal Society if only for the purpose of proving the concept of a reflecting telescope [5].
It was not until more than fifty years later that the English inventor and mathematician John Hadley 1682-17440 ground the first parabolic mirror in 1721, thus produced the first practical reflecting telescope [4]. Hadley’s techniques has since been used, notably by the late John Dobson (1915-2014), the inventor of the widely-popular Dobsonsian telescope.
The succeeding years after Hadley’s innovation witnessed new variations on the reflecting telescope such as the Cassegrain and Schmidt-Cassegrain designs that we know today, for example. Burt the salient point is that the conception and prototype of the reflecting telescope occurred before Newton’s telescope. And, moreover, long after Newton built his telescope did the reflecting telescope prove itself and become the mainstay in professional astronomy. And this is, well, something to reflect on.
Did you or someone in your family get a new telescope? Great welcome to a fantastic hobby! You’re all set, just open the box, point up and you’re good to go. Well, not really. Using a telescope is a learned skill. Sometimes it can be quite challenging, even frustrating. We’ve all been there. No one is born knowing all this stuff. Talk to most amateur astronomers and you’ll see that that had some help along the way. That’s why we are so eager to help out newcomers. That’s the way it is with this hobby. So here’s some friendly advice to help you get started with that new telescope.
1.) Find a local Astronomy Club
That would be us. If you’re reading this, you’ve come to the right place. Most clubs have programs accessible to the public, so you don’t have to join. Given the current circumstances with the Pandemic, we’re not certain when we will hold in-person public events again. In the meantime, we are holding virtual events live-streamed to our Facebook page. Check out our events page on this website to keep track of our events. You can ask questions, we try to answer all the questions in the comments. Like what you see/hear, consider joining. We offer more opportunities to interact and learn from other members.
2.)Set it up and Learn to Use it in the Daytime
Put your telescope together while it’s still light or inside in a well-lit space. Once your telescope is assembled, point it at any distant object(s) (a telephone pole, mailbox, distant tree, etc..). NOTE: NEVER POINT YOUR TELESCOPE AT THE SUN!!! Learn how to move the telescope from object to object, align the finder (more on that later), work the focuser, and switch eyepieces. Try practicing during the day, where it is easy to see instead of fumbling around in the dark.
3.) Learn how to Align the Finder
Most telescopes come with a finder. They can take a few different forms. Some may be Red Dot finders and others may look like a mini-telescope. Either way, their purpose is the same, to assist in pointing telescopes. In order for them to work, they must be aligned with the main telescope. This is best done in daylight. If you plan on observing for the night, set up your scope before dark and check/align your finder. Using your eyepiece with the widest field of view, this will be the eyepiece with the longest focal length (biggest number). Center a terrestrial object (mailbox, top of a telephone pole, tower, streetlight, etc.) in the field of view of the telescope. Look through the finder and see where it is pointing.
A typical Red Dot finder.A typical Finder Scope. This is a 6 x 30 Straight Through Finder Scope.
Most finders have some sort of a reticule (Red Dot, Circles, Cross-hairs, etc.). Is this reticule pointing at the same thing centered in the eyepiece? Most likely it isn’t. There should be some adjustment screws/knobs on the finder to move it (up/down and left/right). Make the necessary adjustments so that the finder is pointed on the same thing centered in the main telescope when you look through the eyepiece. Here’s the important part, keep checking the eyepiece of the main telescope to make sure the telescope has not been moved when making adjustments. Re-center the object and continue with adjustments if the telescope was moved. Now, wherever your finder is pointing the telescope should be pointing. Optional. If you want to refine the alignment, replace the long focal length eyepiece with a smaller focal length eyepiece, increasing the magnification and providing a narrower field of view. Repeat the alignment process with this eyepiece to really dial in the alignment.
4.) Use Long Focal Length Eyepieces to Find Objects
Your telescope may have come with more than one eyepiece. The eyepiece with the longer focal length (bigger number) will provide less magnification and therefore a wider field of view.
This 25 mm focal length eyepiece is an example of a long focal length eyepiece, providing a generous field of view for finding objects and viewing objects with large angular size.
When looking for objects, use the longest focal length eyepiece you have. This will help increase the chances of the object you’re looking for will be in the field of view once you point the telescope using your finder. Once in the field of view, center the object and if desired, switch to a smaller focal length eyepiece to increase the magnification. Note, if the atmospheric conditions are poor, increasing the magnification may not always provide a favorable result.
This 10 mm eyepiece is an example of n eyepiece that will increase magnification once an object is found and centered in the field of view with a longer focal length eyepiece.
Hope these tips help you get started in a wonderful hobby that can inspire you and challenge you for many years to come. If you find yourself having difficulty and getting frustrated. Cut yourself some slack. As I said in the beginning, this is a learned skill. No one is born knowing how to do all this stuff. Seek out help. Most of us had a lot of help along the way and we’re glad to help others.
Have you been watching Jupiter and Saturn? If you have, you probably noticed they appear to be getting closer to one another. From our vantage point here on Earth, they are. Both planets are heading towards the Great Conjunction on December 21st, when they will appear closest to each other. Many of our members are genuinely excited about this special and rare event. BAA member Patrick Crants discussed the Great Conjunction during the November 21st “Looking UP!” virtual star gazing event (click here to view the video on our Facebook page: https://fb.watch/22lkkJo-rW/ ). The following was assembled from his presentation.
The Jovian and Saturnian Systems as they will appear during the Great Conjunction on December 21, 2020. Image created using Sky Safari 6 Pro for Mac.
What is a Conjunction?
A conjunction is simply an optical alignment of two celestial bodies (normally solar system objects – planets, moon, comet, asteroids, etc.) as seen from our perspective on Earth.
Jupiter/Saturn conjunctions are called “Great Conjunctions” by astronomers.
A conjunction is only an optical alignment. It does not imply any proximity between the two bodies. (See Figure 1)
During the great conjunction of December 21, Jupiter will be 5.927 AU’s from Earth (555 Million miles) while Saturn will be 10.829 AU’s (1 Billion miles), meaning Saturn will still be in excess of 400 million miles from Jupiter.
Figure 1 – From our view here on Earth, both planets will appear to be very close to one another even though they will be hundreds of millions of miles apart.
How often do Great Conjunctions Occur?
A conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn occurs once every 19.6 years on average.
Due to the nuances of planetary orbits, not every conjunction reaches the same degree of separation. The conjunction of 12/21/2020 will be the closest great conjunction witnessed in the last 400 years (1623).
Oddly enough, this degree of separation will be repeated in just another 60 years (in 2080)
How close will they appear to be?
At its closest conjunction (appulse), Jupiter and Saturn will be separated by an angle of just over 6 arc-minutes. An arc-minute is one 60th of a degree.
For comparison, the full moon has an angular size of 30 arc-minutes, 5 times greater than the separation we will see between Jupiter and Saturn.
This means that both planets and many of their respective moons will be visible (see figure 2) within the eyepiece of a medium length telescope at a medium magnification (1-150x). To the naked eye, the two planets may be difficult to “split”. Note: Magnification may be limited by atmospheric conditions as both planets will be very close to the horizon.
Figure 2 – A simulation of the view through a telescope on December 21st. Image created with Stellarium.
When and how can this be viewed?
Jupiter and Saturn will be closely spaced for several days before and after minimum conjunction of 12/21.
They will be low in the Southwest at dusk.
They will set within 90 minutes of sunset.
The conjunction can be viewed naked eye, using binoculars, or with a telescope.
Weather permitting, the BAA will be providing a “Looking Up!” live stream of the conjunction on at least one evening between 12/18 and 12/23. For more details, check out out our website and Facebook Page as the date approaches.
As our Observatory Director, Dan Marcus likes to say “It’s all about having fun”. For about the last week, BAA members have been doing just that, having fun with a bright comet. It’s been way too long since northern hemisphere stargazers have had a decent comet as most of the fun of late has been in the southern hemisphere. After several promising comets fizzled out earlier this year, Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) is putting on a show in the predawn sky.
Starting around July 2nd reports started to show up on online stargazing sites, that the Comet was visible and bright. The comet could be found very low in the northeastern horizon immediately prior to sunrise (click here to find and observe the comet). Several members started to get up very early (well before sunrise) to observe and capture the comet, sharing their plans and results on the Member Forum. Members really love to share their experiences with other members and the public. Members have taken to various platforms (social Media, BAA Member Forum, Zoom etc…) to share their experience virtually with their fellow members, friends, and families.
Here are just a few of the images captured this week by our members (click on the images to view a larger version of the image).
Image of Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) captured by Patrick Crants on July 7, 2020. Pat captured this image through his Sky-Watcher 120 ED telescope and ZWO ASI170 camera.
Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) photobombed by the ISS. Image captured by Patrick Crants on July 7, 2020 with Canon 1DX and a Tamron 150-600 mm lens (@ 150 mm).
Image of Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) captured by Phil Newman on July 8th. Phil used a Canon T4i and his Canon 70-200 F/2.8 lens @ 200 mm.
Image of Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) captured by Patrick Crants on July 1oth. Patrick used his Canon 1DX and Tamron 150-600 mm lens @ 150 mm.
Image of comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) captured by Dan Marcus on July 12th. Dan used a Canon T3i and 200 mm lens.on July 10th
Image of comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) captured by Dan Marcus on July 12th. Dan used a Canon T3i with 55 mm lens.
Image of comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) captured by Ernie Jacobs on July 12th. Ernie used a Canon T6i and Canon 50 mm f/1.8 lens.
How to Find, Observe and Photograph Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE)
For the next few days, early (before sunrise) is the only option. you will need a good view to the NE horizon. The comet is about one fist held out at arms length below the bright star Capella (located in the constellation Auriga). Dark Skies help (especially to see the comet without optical aid), but the good view of the horizon is a must. Try to be out to your observing location by 4 AM. So far this week the “sweet spot” has been between 4:15 am and 4:45 am. The comet is visible to the naked eye, but it is best to find it in binoculars first, then try to locate it without optical aid. A small telescope, like a spotting scope or birding scope will work well too.
Path of Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) before sunrise for the next several days.
Around July 12 – 15, the comet will appear early in the evening sky very close to the NW horizon, well below the bowl of the Big Dipper. The comet will continue to rise after that and start to approach the Big Dipper.
Path of Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) in the evening sky after July 12th. Image made using Sky Safari 6 Pro for Mac.
How to photograph the Comet:
Want to try to capture a picture of the comet? Have a DSLR and a tripod? Observatory Director Dan Marcus offers some advice for finding and photographing the comet. According to Dan, the same advice hold true for when you look for it in the morning or evening sky. You will need a LOW horizon to see it and a compass to help you get the right bearing. Use a 50 mm lens and put it where you think the comet should be located. If you are in morning or evening twilight (sky not fully dark), start by using you the camera’s automatic setting mode and reduce the exposure until the camera says it is too dark. You’ll want to under expose the image so the sky is a dark blue and not washed out. If the sky is dark you will need to use the camera’s manual settings. Regardless if you use the camera’s automatic or manual settings, don’t overexpose the image as overexposing the image will cause the sky and the comet to appear washed out.
Also, most smartphones have really impressive low light capability. You can snap an image through the eyepiece of binoculars or a telescope. Also, you may be able to capture the comet in a wide-field shot. Having the phone on a tripod or leaning on something stable will help with getting a sharper image. Learn how to manipulate exposure, focus, and zoom controls on your phone to get the best results.
As you may have heard, there is indeed a penumbral lunar eclipse this Saturday night into Sunday. However, please also be aware that this penumbral eclipse is very partial. A penumbral eclipse is only a secondary shadow of Earth cast on the Moon, so unless you have a way to measure lunar brightness it will not be very noticeable if at all. In most circumstances, eclipses are spectacular events, be it lunar or solar. However, penumbral eclipses fall on the opposite end of the spectrum. Typically, the main part of an eclipse, the umbra, or main shadow, will cast a darkness over the object being eclipsed. Due to geometric shapes not only are shadows caused by a light blockage from a direct line between edges of objects, but a less significant shadow is created by opposite edges of the shape. This “cross-shadowing” creates two very indirect secondary shadows on either side of the main shadow. In our case, Earth’s shadow will not intersect the Moon at all as the Moon revolves around Earth, but the Moon will pass through one of the much fainter bands on its way by.
Lunar Eclipse Geometry graphic by Tim Collins
Bottom line is that there will be no “Blood” Moon, nor will it appear as though a “bite” was taken from the Moon. There will just be a very slight dimming of the surface. Here is more information, to see what to expect in detail. Also remember, eclipses occur in pairs and two weeks ago there was a “ring” or annular eclipse over Africa and India while we slept. In rare cases, we get three eclipses while the alignment is present. As an example, a penumbral lunar eclipse also occurred last month.
The next total lunar eclipse for Buffalo will occur on May 15-16, 2022.
The next total solar eclipse for Buffalo will take place on April 8, 2024 (This means that we are in the path of totality). The last time Buffalo was in direct line with the Sun and Moon was January 24, 1925 (over 99 years before), and we were clouded over at 9:11 AM. The next total solar eclipse for Buffalo will happen on October 26, 2144 at 1:12 PM.
