The Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio

 Join me, Martin Lunn MBE every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the award-winning Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio, probably the only regular astronomy show on any radio station in the country. 

I will take my weekly look at the night sky and look at all the latest news in astronomy. There will be the astronomical anniversaries this week plus the latest news from the astronomical societies in the north of England.

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live online at www.drystoneradio.com DAB radio in Bradford and East Lancashire, or 102 and 103.5 FM and can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

Cooke Telescope Tales - partial eclipse of Moon 1899

 W M Baxter used a 5 inch Cooke equatorial in Edinburgh to observe a series of occultations of stars  during the partial eclipse of the Moon on the night of 16th-17th December 1899. He observed 10 stars before fog and cloud prevented further observations.

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A little ramble through the night sky -Venus the goddess of Love kisses the Moon on June 17th

On Wednesday June 17th at around 10.30 in the evening it will be possible to see Venus very close to the crescent Moon. As long as it is not cloudy. 

Venus will be the very bright white dot just above the Moon. The pair will seem to be so close that it will look like they are kissing.

The crescent Moon will be low down in the north west the area of sky where the Sun has set. You can see this with the naked eye. You will not need binoculars or a telescope to see this event.

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A little ramble through 19th century astronomy - Sir George Airy Freedom of the City of London 1875

 Nature November 11th 1875

The conferring of the Freedom of the City of London on Sir George B Airy, the Astronomer Royal, and late President of the Royal Society, which took place on Thursday last is, we believe, the first instance in which that honour has been bestowed for scientific services unconnected with military or engineering science.

In the civic speeches which accompanied the ceremony, great stress was laid on Sir G B Airy’s service in connection with the Metric Standard.

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Cooke Telescope Tales - Jupiter observed from Australia in 1896

BAA Journal May 1896

 

PRESENT  ASPECT OF JUPITER 

 I am glad to be able to report that observing conditions generally have been very good with us since the beginning of last month, and that at least one other member besides myself has taken advantage of the good seeing to make drawings of Jupiter. I am unfortunately divorced from my observatory for some months, but have with me in the country an excellent 5-in. Cooke altazimuth as well as accurate time. 

I have never hitherto prosecuted a careful and continuous study of the giant planet's surface, and confess to great surprise at the vast and rapid changes that become apparent. This especially struck me first in the case of the N. equatorial belt, the northern and equatorial components of which exhibited alternately dark masses and condensations, divided by white spots after intervals of only five Jovian rotations. On March 13 and 14 there were typical instances of this. 

On March 26, 20h 40m, G.M.T., a faint wisp across the equator, was conspicuous, and next night, March 28, 2h 20m G.M.T., was invisible, while the equatorial region near the c.m. showed considerable change. Definition excellent, 4 to 5 on both occasions, power 200. The N. temperate area, however, has puzzled me most, for the three belts often seen have varied much both in visibility and latitude, while with exquisite definition on April 1, at 0h 20m G.M.T., the following portion seemed overlaid with vapour of a sage green tint, and the belts (2) were only faintly visible in their preceding parts, 

The Red Spot has been well seen on several occasions of almond shape, the f. end slightly more pointed than the p. Its tint seemed uniform, and a very delicate brick red, like a faint stain. It is overlaid on the S. side by the S. temperate belt, which is closely double through nearly its whole extent, and f. from the centre of the Red Spot is much darkened and sinuous. The great spot's preceding end was estimated on c.m. at 1h 15m G.M.T., April 1, and the following end on c.m. at 21h 52m 36s G.M.T. of same date. In the transit of Satellite I. on February 22, observed at Waverley, near Sydney, with my equatorial, the shadow must have been occulted by the satellite, which is perhaps worthy of note.

 

 WALTE R F. GALE .

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A little ramble through 19th century astronomy - new telescope at Toulouse Observatory in 1875

 Nature November 4^th 1875

The Observatory at Toulouse has purchased a telescope of 85 cm diameter, and 5 metres focal distance, at a cost of 1,200 francs. M. Tissereand is head of the Toulouse Observatory.

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Cooke Telescope Tales - occultation of Antares observed from Australia in 1896

 BAA Vol 5 No 5 June 1895 

The papers upon the occultation of Antares, 1896, May 10, were next read by the Secretary. 

Mr. Tebbutt obtained excellent determinations of the times of disappearance and reappearance, which agreed very closely with the calculations of Mr. Joseph Brooks, and indicated the probable correctness of the adopted longitude of the Windsor Observatory and of the tabular places of the moon and star. Antares did not disappear instantaneously in Mr. Tebutt's observation, but seemed to cut its way into the moon's disk during two or three seconds, a peculiarity also noted by Mr. Merfield. 

Mr. Gale, on the contrary, using a 6 inch Cooke refractor, at Paddington New South Wales recorded the disappearance as instantaneous on contact with the limb. In spite of thick haze, the " comes " was also visible to within a few seconds of the limb, and was seen immediately on the reappearance of the larger star. Messrs. Innes, Wright, and Matthews had also observed the disappearance as almost instantaneous.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk