May 2013 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

Need for a New Subcommittee
by Ray Druian 23 May '13

23 May '13

First of all, this note is really from me, Ray, and is not spam. Please do not misunderstand me. I am in NO WAY advocating discontinuing the L&O subcommittee. Long may it continue to serve the membership! Even those who dispise L&O. There's a new sheriff in town, though, and I'm proposing an additional subcommitte, namely the *C.L. Subcommittee*. For those of you who haven't been to NY, ElLay, Chicago, or any of the few other remaining centers of JooFood in the country, since last November, Mike and Janet Feldman have opened a deli at 2105 E 2700 South, where they serve such delicacies as half-pound corned beef and pastrami sandwiches, matzo ball soup, potato pancakes, and, special on Fridays only (ta-da), CHOPPED LIVER!!! And that IS chopped liver, as well as an assortment of other specialties and goodies (including the best bagels in town) that have been heretofore unabailable within 500 miles of Salt Lake City. Sadly, so far they're only open Tues-Sat. from 11AM to 3:30 PM and Thursday through Sat from 5 PM to 8:30 PM. I'm sure that, as their substantial business increases, their hours will as well. My modest proposal is, next Friday at, say 6:30 PM, the new subcommittee meet at their establishment for the consumption of Chopped Liver or whatever other comestibles the membership desires. I fully intend to be there to host the affair and all are invited. Note that next Friday precedes a full moon weekend, wherein there should be a solar party on Saturday and no other public star parties planned. Nor is it a good weekend for private star parties. One and all are welcome. Thanx, Ray PS: Nobocy HAS TO consume chopped liver, but those of you who don't are responsible for your own digestive systems.

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Bogdan eyepiece question
by Patrick Wiggins 22 May '13

22 May '13

Anyone happen to know the brand, lens design and true FOV of the "SLAS 50mm eyepiece" (as it's referred to in the checklist) that lives in SPOC's Bogdan refractor? Thanks, patrick Sent from my iPad

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Cool music (cosmic) video
by Thomas Sevcik 22 May '13

22 May '13

My daughter forwarded this video to me. Nice NASA, Russian and other media videos set to the vocals of Sarah Brightman. The boy launching a model airplane took me back to those years in the 50's, a long lost hobby I once enjoyed. http://youtu.be/uYAKQoev2K8 Tom Sevcik

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New planetary weather app
by Patrick Wiggins 22 May '13

22 May '13

I just learned of this via a news release from NASA. Anyone here tried it yet? patrick +++++ Sol Sol is the world's first interplanetary weather application. Users can select a planet and view the weather there, as they might view the weather on Earth by typing a postal code. The Sol team also built the Mars Atmospheric Aggregation System (MAAS) API, used to fuel several of the Mars weather applications produced during the challenge. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id643824319/

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Another Quick Note about Old Time Radio
by Ray Druian 22 May '13

22 May '13

In an earlier post, I noted that Orion Samuelson occasionally filled in for some sorta righty commentators. The one I remember best was the great Paul Harvey. When Paul said that "time marched on", it REALLY marched. Anyhow, when someone filled in for him, the substitute's normal mild-mannered voice was replaced by Paul's strident martial cadence. It was true of Orion Samuelson and also for WBBM's "Special Event Director," Hugh Hill. What struck me wasn't so much the change from straight news to political content but the total change in the apparent personality of the announcer. As a voice actor, the (again) great John Dehner was especially good at being totally different people, sometimes on the same broadcast.

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astronomy cartoons...and confessions
by Kelly Ricks 22 May '13

22 May '13

Hey all, I've been busy helping create a "new member's packet" for my local astro club out here in Ohio, and drew up a couple cartoons for it today. You can see them (and read about why I wanted to help on the project...that's the confession part), on my blog here. http://www.kellyricks.blogspot.com/2013/05/amateur-astronomy-cartoons.html I'm not really a cartoonist, but I think they're kinda fun anyway. Enjoy... ~Kelly

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Utah-Astronomy Digest, Vol 123, Issue 61 (More On Clear Channel Radio)
by John R. Peterson 22 May '13

22 May '13

Larry, coincidentally my father moved us to San Francisco in 1960 and his first job there was on KGO, again both radio and TV. He later did stints at KPIX TV, the SF CBS affiliate, and KCBS radio before finally going back to KGO TV. John R. Pterson >From: Larry Holmes <larry(a)kijoda.com> >To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> >Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Meade Bought by Chinese >Message-ID: <519BE0A2.4030506(a)kijoda.com> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > >Ray, enjoyed your post. Growing up in very rural Eastern Oregon, I >could receive good old KSL from here, KGO from the Bay area, and of course, >XERB "The Voice of the West" with Wolfman Jack. Being just across the >Mexican border in Rosarita Beach?, it was infamous for it's tremendous >power output. No FCC to deal with. Also, on a side note, it furnished >the music in the movie American Graffiti... I had a Zenith (not the Trans- >oceanic--Drool), but a step down, and I listened to stations all over >the West, but those (Clear Channel) above stick out, along w/KFBK from >my home town of Sacramento. KFBK was similiar to WGN in that I >sometimes went to sleep with the radio on, and it shut down around 1A or >2A and >would make me sit up in bed at 5A when a cheery voice would announce >"Good Morning, this is your farm report". But, anyway, that was about >the time Dad would come in to get me up to do the milking. 73 > > >On 5/21/2013 11:54 AM, Ray Druian wrote: >> >> Just to confuse everyone further, all this reminds me of the time when I >> was a little kid and, on those rare occasions when I arose early enough to >> get to school on time, I heard the early morning broadcasts on WGN, the >> Chicago Tribune radio station. WGN was always bragging about how they were >> a "clear channel" station. In those days before Clear Channel >> Communications company was formed to buy up as many radio stations in the >> nation as they could, "clear channel" meant that the FCC had granted a >> particular frequency (WGN was at 780kc) to a single station, so that, when >> atmospheric conditions warranted, there would be no crosstalk between that >> station and another sharing the same frequency. For people living in rural >> America, this was most important because radio was the most important means >> of getting major news out to the hinterlands. >> >

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Utah-Astronomy Digest, Vol 123, Issue 60 (KSL Was a Clear Channel Radio)
by John R. Peterson 22 May '13

22 May '13

All through the fifties my father, Rolfe Peterson, was on KSL radio (as well as KSL TV) and it was a 50,000 watt clear channel station. He had listeners write back from LA to Chicago and from San Francisco to various cities in Texas. Those were the days. John R. Peterson >From: Ray Druian <raydruian(a)gmail.com> >To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com >Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Meade Bought by Chinese >Message-ID: > <CAAeZBPk28x21Xqc1DTiie6yVaX1X4e0MBqAgeaNZmhd6rx0q9Q(a)mail.gmail.com> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 > >When I bought my dob, I shopped around without knowing much about the >various manufacturers other than Orion, Meade, and Celestron could be >trusted. I counted Meade out because their manufacturing plant is in >Mexico. Celestron's bigger scopes were in the really expensive category, >and Orion was made in good old Watsonville, in California, in the US of A. >So I went with them. After much delay, the UPS man delivered several large >cartons from Orion. They all said "Made in China" on them. So much for >buying American made products. > >Just to confuse everyone further, all this reminds me of the time when I >was a little kid and, on those rare occasions when I arose early enough to >get to school on time, I heard the early morning broadcasts on WGN, the >Chicago Tribune radio station. WGN was always bragging about how they were >a "clear channel" station. In those days before Clear Channel >Communications company was formed to buy up as many radio stations in the >nation as they could, "clear channel" meant that the FCC had granted a >particular frequency (WGN was at 780kc) to a single station, so that, when >atmospheric conditions warranted, there would be no crosstalk between that >station and another sharing the same frequency. For people living in rural >America, this was most important because radio was the most important means >of getting major news out to the hinterlands. > >Early in the ayem, WGN began the broadcast day with a guy named Aureeyun >Samuelson telling the great unwashed multitudes of Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, >and even downstate Illinois, just how much they could expect that day if >they sold their hog bellies, corn, wheat, and kumquats in the financial >markets. To farmers, this was extremely important news. Many years later, >after television was invented, Mr. Samuelson began to appear on WGN-TV, >often telling the same things to the public that he had previously on the >radio. He would also fill in occasionally for some right-wing commentator >who was on vacation (these guys weren't nearly as right back then as they >are today, BTW), and it was a bit disconcerting to hear political babble >coming from the same mouth from which I had previously only heard straight >news. > >What really threw me for a loop, though, was the slide that appeared at the >beginning of the show that stated Mr. Samuelson's first and last names. It >seems that Aureeyun was spelled O-r-i-o-n. > >I just thought you all needed to know that. > > >------------------------------ > >

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Meade Bought by Chinese
by Ray Druian 22 May '13

22 May '13

When I bought my dob, I shopped around without knowing much about the various manufacturers other than Orion, Meade, and Celestron could be trusted. I counted Meade out because their manufacturing plant is in Mexico. Celestron's bigger scopes were in the really expensive category, and Orion was made in good old Watsonville, in California, in the US of A. So I went with them. After much delay, the UPS man delivered several large cartons from Orion. They all said "Made in China" on them. So much for buying American made products. Just to confuse everyone further, all this reminds me of the time when I was a little kid and, on those rare occasions when I arose early enough to get to school on time, I heard the early morning broadcasts on WGN, the Chicago Tribune radio station. WGN was always bragging about how they were a "clear channel" station. In those days before Clear Channel Communications company was formed to buy up as many radio stations in the nation as they could, "clear channel" meant that the FCC had granted a particular frequency (WGN was at 780kc) to a single station, so that, when atmospheric conditions warranted, there would be no crosstalk between that station and another sharing the same frequency. For people living in rural America, this was most important because radio was the most important means of getting major news out to the hinterlands. Early in the ayem, WGN began the broadcast day with a guy named Aureeyun Samuelson telling the great unwashed multitudes of Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and even downstate Illinois, just how much they could expect that day if they sold their hog bellies, corn, wheat, and kumquats in the financial markets. To farmers, this was extremely important news. Many years later, after television was invented, Mr. Samuelson began to appear on WGN-TV, often telling the same things to the public that he had previously on the radio. He would also fill in occasionally for some right-wing commentator who was on vacation (these guys weren't nearly as right back then as they are today, BTW), and it was a bit disconcerting to hear political babble coming from the same mouth from which I had previously only heard straight news. What really threw me for a loop, though, was the slide that appeared at the beginning of the show that stated Mr. Samuelson's first and last names. It seems that Aureeyun was spelled O-r-i-o-n. I just thought you all needed to know that.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] astronomy cartoons...and confessions
by Kelly Ricks 21 May '13

21 May '13

Thanks so much! I always worry a little that things I find amusing will fall flat with others. Happy to know it's not always the case. Best, ~Kelly > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Tue, 21 May 2013 08:33:48 -0700 (PDT) > From: Richard Tenney <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> > Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] astronomy cartoons...and confessions > Message-ID: > <1369150428.64976.YahooMailNeo(a)web163902.mail.gq1.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > They are way fun Kelly -- your craft is wonderful > /R > > > >

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