First light from the new solar telescope:

Sunspot 1084 (Click on image to enlarge)

This is a first light adaptive optics image from the New Solar Telescope (NST) at the Big Bear Solar Observatory in California. "With a 1.6-meter primary mirror, the NST is the largest solar telescope in the world," says Nicolas Gorceix of the observatory staff. "It has realtime correction for atmospheric distortion (adaptive optics), so we can see things in very high resolution--as small as 65 km wide on the sun."

• Visit the Spaceweather website for more information
  
  
• 
  The Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO)

Gaan Mars ons vannag, as ons slaap, insluk?

"No wonder... You're looking at ............"  (Fill in the town or city where you are staying).

Miskien moet ons liewer nie vannag gaan slaap nie. Sê nou net!

Hier is my teorie oor die twak wat via e-posse versprei word.

27 Augustus het gekom en gegaan!

Hier sit ons nog.  Ok die dag het nog `n paadjie om te loop.

Loer op die blog vir die absolute waarheid: Klik hier

My eie conspiracy theory! 

Hierdie twak wat rondgestuur word werk soos volg: Iemand - (wat die eerste boodskap uitstuur) begin om die e-pos aan `n paar ongelowiges te stuur. Dit word dan van een ongelowige tot die volgende ongelowige gestuur. Soos `n kettingbrief.

Die adresse word meer en meer. Later is daar duisende adresse. Die ou wat die brief begin rondstuur het lag al die pad. Hy oes al die adresse en stuur aan almal `n boodskap dat hulle bankbesonderhede foutief is.

"Klik op hierdie skakel en gee vir my al jou bankbesonderhede want ek wil jou van jou geld verlos!"  Of jy het $30 000 in die US-lotto gewen (Lees eintlik Ponde en in die UK, maar ek kry nie die pondteken nie). Of jy kan geld bydra vir `n arme kind wat verkrag is (wat nie bestaan nie) se kos en klere en hele skoolloopbaan.

Daar is baie van die skelmstreke!

(Vul jou dorp/stad  se naam in onder die foto, as jy dié twak glo!)

Terloops. Kliek op die boonste skakel. Ons hou van baie besoekers op die blog. Stuur die adres aan nog duisende mense sodat hulle presies kan weet wat aangaan. Stuur dan al die e-posadresse vir my. Ek kan dit baie goed gebruik. Ha! Ha! Ha!
(The devil made me do it!   ;-)

Om te bevestig dat Mars in `n verskriklike moeilike bui is: Klik hier 

Klik op die  O . As niks gebeur nie sal Mars nie so groot soos die maan word nie!
- Doen dit op jou eie risiko. 

Terloops. Die maan was Woensdag, 25 Augustus net na volmaan op sy verste punt van die aarde in die eliptiese baan waarin dit beweeg. Dit word apogee genoem. Dit was `n hele 406 388 km van die aarde af. Lees gerus jou Skyguide vir 2010 - Bladsy 30). 

- 17 Januarie 2010 was die maan ook in apogee. Verste weg van aarde (406 343 km)

- 20 Mei 2010, 10:30,  Maan in perigee. Naaste aan die aarde (369 733km)
- 25 Augustus 2010, 0730. Maan in apogee  (406 388 km vanaf aarde)
- 25 Desember 2010, Maan in perigee, (368 465 km vanaf aarde).

Apogee en Perigee: So lyk dit 
 
(Dis feite en nie versinsels nie).

Groete

Hannes Pieterse

Jupiter loop weer deur! Amateur sien dit.

Rare flash of light seen on Jupiter in astral collision

A flash of light believed to be caused by astral matter colliding with Jupiter has been captured on camera by an amateur astronomer in Japan. 

• 
  

  Watch the video

   Dankie vir die wenk,  Thinus  

Southern African biennial Symposium of the ASSA

The Pretoria branch of ASSA is proud to announce the dates for the Southern African biennial Symposium of the ASSA. The symposium will take place at the Silverton campus of the Council for Geoscience on Thursday 7 October 2010 and Friday 8 October 2010. Click to download a pdf or doc registration file with full information.

The symposium will focus on light/spectrum pollution and people interested in delivering papers are invited to send a short synopsis to the Committee. See detail at: download pdf document

Please note that, due to the limited time that we have to organise this symposium, the deadline for submission has been extended and we will accept submissions up to 17 September 2010.

11 September 2010 - Occultation of Venus by the moon for E Brazil & S Africa (daytime)

Re Post with extra information

Maak `n knoop in jou selfoon om hierdie okkultasie van Venus deur die maan nie mis te loop nie. Dit is in die dag en sal maklik met `n verkyker waargeneem kan word. Selfs met die blote oog. Venus verdwyn Saterdag 11 September om 14:29 agter die maan en verskyn dan weer om 15:47.  Die sekelmaantjie gaan hoog in die hemel sit en daardie klein ligpuntjie naby hom is Venus. Sien onder vir meer spesifieke tye.

Times for the Free State
Bethlehem 2:36 pm 3:48 pm
Bloemfontein 2:29 pm 3:47 pm
Harrismith 2:38 pm 3:50 pm
Kroonstad 2:33 pm 3:45 pm
Parys 2:34 pm 3:43 pm
Smithfield 2:30 pm 3:50 pm

Northern Cape
Calvinia 2:14 pm 3:40 pm
De Aar 2:24 pm 3:46 pm
Hotazel 2:19 pm 3:37 pm
Kimberley 2:25 pm 3:44 pm
Springbok 2:08 pm 3:34 pm
Sutherland 2:18 pm 3:44 pm
Upington 2:15 pm 3:37 pm

• Besoek die Johannesburg Planetarium vir meer spesifieke tye in Suid Afrika
  
• So het dit in 2007 gelyk: Astronomy Picture of the Day
  
• Next good Venus-Moon occultation for us is March 2023. 

Hier is meer inligting: 

11 Sep - Occultation of Venus for E Brazil & S Africa (daytime)

Local Circumstances (Boyden Observatory - Bloemfontein)

Longitude =  26° 14' 31" E
                             Latitude =  29° 01' 18" S
                            Elevation = 1114m.

                 Greatest Occultation = 2010-Sep-11 13:08:05.6 UT
                             Altitude =  76.4°
                              Azimuth = 338.3°

            Calendar Date and Time          Planet           Sun     Limb
                Universal Time         Azi    Alt    PA      Alt      PA
 

Universal Time 

Ingress    2010-Sep-11 12:29:18.8 d   18.6°  76.6°   88.0°   43.0°  295.3°
Egress     2010-Sep-11 13:47:08.7 b  309.3°  71.2°  328.4°   28.5°  295.2°
  Duration    77m 49.9s

Graphic of disappearance and reappearance points as seen from Boyden Observatory

Graphic Source: TheSky6

 Click on images for a bigger view

• Venus has phases like the moon
  - Wiki information
  - The Phases of Mercury and Venus
  -The Phases of Venus

International Observe the Moon Night , Saturday, 18 September 2010

Did you know? September 18, 2010 will mark the first ever International Observe the Moon Night! This year’s InOMN will be used as our pilot year to inform us on how to make it better and more interactive. We’re testing the waters and would love to hear from you about how we’re doing. The InOMN website is ever evolving, so please be sure to check back often!

Gaan besoek gerus die webblad en deurkruis dit.

• observethemoonnight.org

Wondelike downloads en skakels na al die kraters ens. wat jy op die maan kan sien.

NGC 253, Sculptor Galaksie vanaf Boyden Sterrewag

Hier is die Sculptor Galaxy wat ons gisteraand by Boyden afgeneem het. Die aand het nie glad verloop nie. Die tracking was af, wind het gewaai en ys op teleskoop het gemaak dat ons 03h00 moes oppak.

Die Siver dollar het nogtans mooi uitgekom.

2h 45min exposures van 5min subs.

QHY9 c ccd deur 80mm Maxvision triplet refractor Guiding deur 8 duim bird jones reflector Nebulosity 2 PHD Photoshop CS 5

Magnitude: 7.90

 Afstand: 12.9 Mly

Foto: Brett du Preez en Chris  Joubert
ASSA Bloemfontein

What on earth?

When MESSENGER took this image, a distance of 183 million kilometers (114 million miles) separated the spacecraft and Earth. To provide context for this distance, the average separation between the Earth and the Sun is about 150 million kilometers (93 million miles).

Read the article   and explore thew website
Source: NASA Lunar Science Institute

 Auke Slotegraaf ons ASSA Dieplug-direkteur het my op die spoor gesit van die webblad via sy blog. Besoek dit gerus: psychohistorian.org

Opmerking: Hoe gaan die aarde vanaf  Andromeda se omgewing lyk. Die afstand is 2.6 miljoen ligjaar. Andromeda is die verste voorwerp wat met die blote oog gesien kan word.

Nog feite uit die Wiki-omgewing:

The Canis Major dwarf galaxy is classified as an irregular galaxy and is now thought to be the closest neighbouring galaxy to our location in the Milky Way, being located about 25,000 light-years away from our Solar System^[2] and 42,000 light-years from the Galactic Center


Vir my is die Kaap ver!

Groete

Hannes Pietersers

Lagoon-newel vanaf Boyden-sterrewag

Klik om te vergroot

Lagoon-newel in Hydrogen alpha golflengte afgeneem  

Beligting: 5 ure in totaal van 20x15min beligtings.

Darkframes, Bias frames en flatframes bygewerk.

Kamera: 8.6megapixel QHY9 kleur ccd-kamera.

Teleskope: Maxvision f/6 80mm apochromatic triplet refractor met 'n 8 duim Jones Bird newtonian reflector f/7.

Guiding gedoen deur reflector.

Mount is 'n Skywatcher HEQ5 Pro.

Foto: Brett du Preez en Chris  Joubert
ASSA Bloemfontein 

Boyden Sterrewag Ope-aand | Boyden Observatory Open Evening

Boyden Sterrewag Ope-aand
21-08-2010, 18h30 19:00


18:30: Waarneming van Saturnus deur die 13” teleskoop indien die weer dit toelaat

19:00: Lesing
"Wat die Sterre van Pluto vertel"
(Prof. Matie Hoffman, Mnr. Pat van Heerden en Ernie Halberg)
Ernie Halberg vertel ook van die asteroide wat hy ontdek het.

20:00: Waarnemings deur teleskope indien die weer dit toelaat

Toegang: R 30 per motor
Verversings en ligte etes te koop

Aangebied deur:

Vriende van Boyden Sterrewag en die
Amateur Sterrekunde Vereniging


Boyden Observatory Open Evening
21-08-2010, 18h30 for 19:00

The program includes observing through the telescopes weather permitting

18:30: Observing Saturn through the 13” telescope weather permitting

19:00: Lecture
“What the stars reveal about Pluto”
(Prof. Matie Hoffman, Mr. Pat van Heerden and Ernie Halberg)
Ernie Halberg tells us about the asteroid he discovered.

20:00: Observing through telescopes weather permitting

Entrance: R 30 per car
Refreshments and light meals for sale

Presented by:
Friends of Boyden Observatory and the
Amateur Astronomy Society