September 2011 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Would like to go to Foothill Elementary star Party
by D P Pierce 26 Sep '11

26 Sep '11

I would like to go to the Foothill Elementary star party this Thursday ( I need a ride for me, my wheelcair and 4 1/2" scope). I think this is the same teacher that we originally helped out at Lone Peak Elementary in Draper then he transferred to South Jordan and now Foothill. He charges admission, sells goodies and even obnoxious light rings. He totally funds his schools science program for the year with the proceeds. He deserves lots of support! Deloy Pierce

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SPOC this Saturday
by D P Pierce 26 Sep '11

26 Sep '11

Is anybody going to SPOC this Saturday? If so I would like a ride. I have a foldup wheelchair which fits in trunks, hatchbacks, some back seats and all pickup truck beds. I have a 4 1/2" scope I would like to take but that isn't a deal breaker. I live at 6200 S and Bangerter. Deloy Pierce

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Geomagnetic storm
by Patrick Wiggins 26 Sep '11

26 Sep '11

This from Spaceweather.com. Patrick Space Weather News for Sept. 26, 2011 http://spaceweather.com GEOMAGNETIC STORM: A strong geomagnetic storm is in progress following the impact of a coronal mass ejection (CME) today, Sept. 26th, at approximately 12:15 UT. Analysts at the Goddard Space Weather Lab report a "strong compression of Earth's magnetosphere" and the possibility that satellites in geosynchronous orbit have been exposed to solar wind plasma and magnetic fields. Mid- to high-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras after nightfall. Observing tip: The hours around local midnight are usually best for spotting Northern and Southern Lights. Check http://spaceweather.com for images and updates.

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Gerrish mount
by D P Pierce 26 Sep '11

26 Sep '11

Chuck, 44" Deloy

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Faster than the Speed of Light
by Canopus56 26 Sep '11

26 Sep '11

Bill said, ''The whole 'nothing can travel faster than light' thing is addressing the speed at which stuff can travel /through/ space time. There is no rule against space time expanding or contracting faster than light . . .'' The effect that you are talking about is superluminal recessional velocities, and it applies generally to galaxies that have a redshift greater than z=3. Galaxies with a redshift greater than 3 have redshifts that indicate that they are traveling away from us as greater than light speed, and such redshifts are an indicator of expansion of the universe on a cosmological scale. However, measured superluminal redshifts are observed only beginning at cosmological distances of z=3 or about 6 or 7 Giga light-years from Earth. The distances involved in the CERN experiment are on a terresterial scale, and their experiment does not involve cosmological expansion of the space underneath the experiment as a significant factor. Good question, though. Clear Skies _- Kurt

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Faster than the Speed of Light
by Nancy Matro 25 Sep '11

25 Sep '11

For those who haven't read this yet. Neutrinos have been clocked faster than the speed of light. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44629271/ns/technology_and_science-science/ Nancy

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NGC7331
by Joe Bauman 25 Sep '11

25 Sep '11

A fine galaxy with a couple of its "dear" friends -- I took the view this morning at Lakeside. Thanks, Joe http://www.slas.us/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=4707&g2_imageViewsIndex=1

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Faster than the Speed of Light
by Canopus56 25 Sep '11

25 Sep '11

Joe wrote: > Kurt's post indicated we are talking about time differences > that seem incredible to imagine and more importantly > incredible to measure. Joe, Recall that the professor doing the atmospheric gamma ray burst experiment out at Seabase (who has lectured to SLAS a couple of times) was also building nano-second timers. His experiment also is dependent on being able discriminate nano-second time intervals. Clear Skies - Kurt P.S. - Now if someone would just build and sell a video time-stamper with microsecond resolution, that is GPS synchronized and that costs $50 instead of the current market price of _$1500_, I could get back into lunar occultation timing!

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Refractor Bug
by Steve Fisher 25 Sep '11

25 Sep '11

UA friends, I have an acquaintance in Northern Arizona who purchased a D&G 8' f/12 last summer. He has injured his shoulder and is thinking about selling this awesome OTA and rings. This is not a fire sale and would probably go near to list price (I'm sure) but is close enough to be picked up, no shipping and over the state border there would be no tax. If you have an interest in a large refractor get hold of me. If you don't know, that is an 8' f/12 achromat that lists new around $3,795.00 plus accessories and shipping. There is around a 12 to 14 month wait for new.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Faster than the Speed of Light
by Canopus56 25 Sep '11

25 Sep '11

The key point is that their possible implications of their results are so revolutionary that the CERN team took the extraordinary step of announcing their finding early - principally in order to spur other researchers to try and replicate their new developments. The normal route to alert other researchers to a new unusual result would have been for the CERN Team to send a new developments letter to _Nature_. But the CERN team feels their result is so important that they are holding a press conference to get the word out to their colleagues ASAP. Note that Einstein's speed limit c applies to light traveling in a vacum and not through all substances. Almost all substances, like air, slow the speed of light to below c. A few can slow light down to almost a speed of 0. However, when light travels through a few exceptional materials - it travels _at faster than c_. This has been known experimentally for many years. Whitehouse, D (19 July 2000). "Beam Smashes Light Barrier". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/841690.stm All of this is in the category of anomalous experimental results - like zero-point energy - that no one really understands. Anomalous results are the grist of future revolutions in scientific theory, e.g. - the anomalous period of the orbit of Mercury spurred Einstein to advance classical Newtonian mechanics to relativity theory. Clear Skies - Kurt

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