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Binoculars
by David Dunn 31 Dec '02

31 Dec '02

Sportsmansguide has another binocular that some of you might be interested in. They are a Tasco 12 x 50mm Waterproof Binocs. They are $29.97. I have several pairs of 10 x 50s that I use and pass out to my kids at star parties. They seem to be a nice binocular for looking around the Milkyway. The F.O.V. is listed as 288' @ 1000 yrds. Dave

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Fwd: Dobsonian Telescope Equatorial Platform Tracker
by Richard Tenney 31 Dec '02

31 Dec '02

Hi all, This looks like a pretty cool site for all of you ATM'ers out there; Patrick, I'm having problems sending e-mail since Christmas for some strange reason (something's up with Yahoo again); maybe you could also distribute this address on your list. Enjoy, Rich Note: forwarded message attached. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com

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astromart ad/weightless mount
by David Bennett 23 Dec '02

23 Dec '02

Hi Chuck, I was wondering if you could briefly explain to me the principles behind your 'weightless' mount design as mentioned in the following astromart ad: http://www.astromart.com/viewad.asp?cid=163376 The dobsonian design is very similar to a scope that Dave Bernson built many years ago using a Jaegers 6" f/10 except for the missing counterweight. I don't have the October 2000 S&T the ad mentions...I'm very curious. Dave

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Testing
by Kris Jones 23 Dec '02

23 Dec '02

I am asleep. You expect me to sleep at night? ;-) Kris >>> cyn(a)cynthiablue.net 12/17/2002 1:55:08 PM >>> Just testing, seeing if ya'll are awake. :) Please discard this message. Cyn

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Fwd: RE: News, 18 DEC 2002
by Richard Tenney 19 Dec '02

19 Dec '02

Note: forwarded message attached. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Geminids
by Grahn Family 10 Dec '02

10 Dec '02

Joe, We were up there last night until about 3:30 am. The temperature never got lower than 14, and there was no hint of snow. HOWEVER.... we did have a couple of visitors that really worried us for a bit. As we were unloading the trailer when we first got there, the whinnying of the horses in the field across the road seemed pretty loud. Then the clip-clop of the hooves got quite loud. Suddenly, about 20 feet away, two very large (at least 15 feet high!:)) horses came out of the shadows at us. (okay, maybe they were just average size horses, but for a minute there, they seemed huge and scary.) My best hand waving and shouts of "Git!" did nothing to dissuade them from their desire to see what we were about. We could not get them to move more than 10 feet away, and every time we turned our backs, they moved right in, peering over our shoulders. All I can think is that our trailer must have looked like their trailer, and they clearly wanted in. They were very friendly, and I suspect that if we had a saddle with us, we could have gone for a ride. After a few minutes of checking out our trailer, and seeing that no new friends awaited them inside, and they were not going to be invited in, they finally allowed themselves to be shooed away. Of course, they made me chase them with a light and yell the whole way, stopping and looking at me every time I quit, as though to let me know that they were making the rules for this game, and it required that I make a really big fool of myself.... They left us alone for the rest of the night, but I must admit we hesitated about getting the scopes and binoculars out. They were big enough to do a lot of inadvertent damage, and I have no question that they would have wanted a glimpse of the horsehead nebula, if they came back. About 3:15, I began to get an uneasy feeling. I could hear something moving about in the bushes, but none of the tell-tale noises of the horses. I finally got out the weak white light, and was completely unnerved to see two eyes looking at me, from a height of at least 5 feet. The light was not powerful enough to see what was behind the eyes, just them. Then the eyes swung down to 2 feet, back up, and started moving. I yelled at Allen to get the big light, but even that did not make it clear what was out there. Only after the animal moved a bit closer, and was joined by a second pair of eyes, did we realize that it was a return visit from our earlier friends. Once again they insisted on being chased on their terms. At that point, we decided to pack up and head home. All in all, a delightful, if adrenalin filled, night. Be forewarned, apparently the resident horses up there have both advance warning and stealth modes of operation... And they like to get a rise out of observers!

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Geminids
by David Bennett 10 Dec '02

10 Dec '02

Here's a nice primer for the Geminids next week: http://www.msnbc.com/news/844095.asp I think a few people are considering going out to Rush Valley to watch the shower next Friday night/Saturday morn: http://www.slas.ws/maps/RVALLEY.HTM *The above map only shows general directions to the site.

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Geminids
by Grahn Family 09 Dec '02

09 Dec '02

Wayne, Feel free, but personally, I think skunks can put a much bigger damper on the festivities! Jo At 09:46 PM 12/9/2002 -0700, you wrote: >May I forward this to the yahoo LX200 gps group, they were complaining >about skunks etc. this summer. >Wayne

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Re: Geminids
by bill biesele 09 Dec '02

09 Dec '02

Patrick wrote: > Anyone interested in viewing the Geminids from the much warmer (or at least not > as cold) climes of SPOC? And, hey, there are even restrooms, a warm room and a > near by eatery (I do love my creature comforts). Sounds good to me. How about a fog report Friday night just in case? The fog did do some good this morning. Kept the lights from SLC from messing up my morning sky check. One of the clearest skies to west I've seen in a year. Socked in tonight though. Bill B.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Endeavour / ISS?
by Kris Jones 04 Dec '02

04 Dec '02

This surface seems whipped about like dunes.. is it scorched from an impact? The region doesn't keep the shape of a crater exactly, but it might be a high-temp impact area after the blackened sand was tossed about a bit. What I thought to be interesting is how the "veins" of darker material radiate from the dark spot in a manner similar to blown dust. I don't know, it is really odd. The more I look at it the more puzzled I get. Kris >>> bau(a)desnews.com 12/03/02 12:57 PM >>> Dear astronomy friends, here's a view I stumbled across today. Apparently it was just released by NASA. Click on the image to the left. I am very curious about what you all think is shown. The large dark area looks like moist ground or, I hesitate to even think it, vegetation. Thanks, Joe Bauman http://themis.la.asu.edu/zoom-20021203a.html Joe Bauman science & military reporter Deseret News bau(a)desnews.com (801) 237-2169 _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy

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