April 2002 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Thursday night photo op
by Chuck Hards 03 Apr '02

03 Apr '02

Joe (Bauman): How is the western horizon from the east side of Skull Valley? Is it low? I worry about dust and atmospheric extinction with the object so low by the time the sky is dark. There is also the problem of distant headlights from I-80 shooting over the hills toward the east. Not noticeable to the naked eye, but the film will pick it up in the form of reduced contrast. True darkness won't even be available before the comet gets too low, we need all the help we can get. I had thought that shooting from the western shore of Antelope Island might provide an opportunity for much better seeing, being that the line-of-sight would be over water, along with much less local atmospheric dust for the same reason. There also is a chance to get a great shot using a short-focal-length lens; if the water's surface is smooth, a reflection of the comet and galaxy might be imaged on the water along with the sky image itself. What do you think? What are the group's thoughts? Thanks Chuck PS: The comet was much subdued from my backyard tonight; I can tell that there is a lot more dust in the air (the Chinese cloud?) and high cirrus. Saturday night had by far the clearest air in the past week. Love those Bears! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax http://http://taxes.yahoo.com/

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Comet question
by Josephine M. Grahn 03 Apr '02

03 Apr '02

Allen and I were going to head out to the lakeside road tonight. Usually we go roughly 4.5 miles down the paved road from the freeway exit, to a left hand turn-off. (I think there is either a cattle guard painted on the road or a very small culvert just before the turn off, and a sign that says where the road goes. From there we go perhaps 1/4 mile to a wide area that is almost parking lot size, and we set up there. In the past we never had real problems with dust, but we haven't been out there yet this year. This gets us away from most residual freeway lights and most of the lights at that industrial plant. there is still a glow from Salt Lake, but it's no worse than Rush Valley, and probably not as bad. Normally we also get a nice serenade from the coyotes, which adds to the aura. We expect to head out there a little before 6:00 tonight. We'd love the company if anyone else wants to come, and we'll certainly let you know tomorrow how the NW horizon was. There are some hills to the west, but we're roughly 7 miles from the peak, which is 2200 feet above the valley floor, so they only block ~5 degrees, which we don't want to see anyway..... Jo >I was on the Lakeside road last night to see the comet. But a dust storm >forced a hasty retreat. The lights visible out there (when the dust is >blowing) are SLC glow to the east and some from the industries at >Aragonite to the south. The north and north west are fine. The road is >pretty much in the bottom of the valley, with dirt spurs to the east >and west. I think one marked Well Pass goes up and over to Lakeside. >This >is dusty country; how would people would feel about setting up scopes on >dusty dirt roads? > >Did get to see the comet from the second Grantsville exit. Fun to see >the comet and M31 in one binocular field of view. > >If the weather's good I'll probably be on the Lakeside road tonight. > > >Bill Biesele >

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Comet question
by Josephine M. Grahn 03 Apr '02

03 Apr '02

Bill, That sounds about right. I was pretty sure it mentioned a well that was not on the maps, but I couldn't remember which. Hope to see you there. Jo >We'll be out there; can't tell if where you go is the same one I've been >using but it's close. I think the road we turn west on is marked Big >Well(?). > >Bill Biesele

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I'm baaaack!
by Chuck Hards 02 Apr '02

02 Apr '02

Hello to all my Utah-astronomy friends, I'm back on the list! Despite better judgement, considering my AOL v3.0 browser (utterly contemptable crap; but hey, it's free for a while longer) viewing comet Ikeya-Zhang these past two nights has made me "homesick" for your company! Anybody else looking at this cute little comet? Chuck __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Greetings - send holiday greetings for Easter, Passover http://greetings.yahoo.com/

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Web page
by David Dunn 02 Apr '02

02 Apr '02

Here is the link. http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/RS_OneDay.html -----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 1:58 PM To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] (no subject) Like the Graphic timetable of the heavens, in each January's S & T? Remember that the rise and set times assume a featureless horizon. Local topography will alter the times by many minutes. I think you left off the link, Dave. Chuck --- David Dunn <david.dunn(a)albertsons.com> wrote: > I just found this cool webpage. You can put in your > city and state and it > gives you some Sunrise, Sunset, Moonrise, Moonset > and the % illuminated for > the moon. > > Dave > > _______________________________________________ > Utah-astronomy mailing list > Utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com > http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax http://http://taxes.yahoo.com/ _______________________________________________ Utah-astronomy mailing list Utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy

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(no subject)
by David Dunn 02 Apr '02

02 Apr '02

I just found this cool webpage. You can put in your city and state and it gives you some Sunrise, Sunset, Moonrise, Moonset and the % illuminated for the moon. Dave

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Comet question
by David Dunn 02 Apr '02

02 Apr '02

There have been times, usually when it is cold, when we have had moisture in the air affect visibility. We have generally had good visibility from Antelope Island. I don't think the parking lot that we usually use will be good for viewing the comet. I think that Buffalo Poing would be in the way. If you go right when you get to the other side of the causeway you can get to the beaches and campsites. If you set up there you should have a good view. Watch out for the lights on the restrooms. I haven't seen any problem with salt and our telescopes. Dave -----Original Message----- From: Joe Bauman [mailto:bau@desnews.com] Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 8:22 AM To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Comet question More dithering. I now think the Wedge faces the wrong direction, with the Wasatch Plateau looming to the WNW where we'd like to see the comet. So probably the Wedge is out of the question. Regarding the headlights of Skull Valley: How about the road to the north toward Lakeside? Before the Utah Test and Training Range, probably there's a good spot. Anyway, looking at the map, that seems possible. The closeness of the Great Salt Lake brings up a concern that I have, which might be ridiculous, so I would like the group's opinion on this. But living in the middle of the Pacific (I went to high school on Kwajalein, Marshall Islands), we were acutely conscious of the corrosive effects of salt spray. Is there any such worry about astronomical equipment in proximity to the Great Salt Lake? Is vapor from the lake going to degrade the view? Even west of the lake, like the route to Lakeside, there are big muddy salt flats that contribute moisture to the atmosphere. Just wondering if anyone has thoughts on these notions. Thanks, Joe _______________________________________________ Utah-astronomy mailing list Utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy

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(no subject)
by Larry Frisk 02 Apr '02

02 Apr '02

For the inquisitive mind interested in celestial phenomena I recommend this informative treatise... http://www.arachnoid.com/sky/index.html _\\|//_ (-O-O-) -----o00--(_)--00o----- Larry & Kaye Frisk lkfrisk(a)earthlink.net

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Great star party
by Patrick Wiggins 01 Apr '02

01 Apr '02

Great views of the comet tonight from SPOC. But even better views of Saturn and M-42 through the Brandt and Jupiter through the Ealing. Chances are good that we'll open both scopes up Sunday night too. Patrick :-)

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