A little ramble through the Astronomical Register May 1863 - colonial astronomy

 We learn from the Melbourne Argus of the 23d of February that the new observatory, for which a grant of £ 4500 was recently voted by the Colonial Legislature, is nearly completed, and the colonists are proud of it, as they may well be.

The transit instrument will be second only to those at Greenwich and Capetown; and Airy's zenith sector is at present in constant use in connexion with the survey of the colony, and the determination of the boundary between Victoria and South Australia.

 It has been determined to provide this observatory with a telescope of much greater optical power than any previously used in the southern hemisphere, to be employed chiefly in observations of nebulæ; and the advice of the Royal Society was desired as to the best instrument to be used.

 We believe that it has been decided that a reflector as large as, and similar to Lord Rosse’s, to be constructed in this country, should be employed. Should this course, which really seems rather a hazardous one, be adopted, we trust that the effects of the long voyage, and extremes of temperature, and loss of figure and polish, may all be avoided, and that the colony may reap all the laurels it deserves.

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Cooke Telescope Tales - BA meeting in York in 1881

 Messrs Thomas Cooke and Sons of York had a display of scientific instruments for the meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. It was the 50th anniversary meeting in York. The first was held in York in 1831. 

Cookes had on display an achromatic telescope OG of 15.5 inches in a brass cell. In addition, there was a transit instrument and a large fixed equatorial telescope for the Spanish Transit of Venus expedition in 1882. 

There was also an electrically controlled chronograph for recording astronomical observations. In addition, a solar spectroscope with 5 prisms and double ray reversion equal to 20 prisms.

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A little ramble through Pictor the Painters Easel

A faint constellation overshadowed by the brilliant star Canopus in Carina to one side and the Large Magellanic Cloud in Dorado on the other. Pictor cannot be seen from Britain.

The constellation was invented by Lacaille in the 1750s while in the southern hemisphere. There are no myths or legends attached to the constellation.

The brightest star alpha with a magnitude of 3.3, if there is any mist or moonlight the star cannot be seen. It’s an A class star 7,000 degrees and is 97 light years away.

The only other star worth mentioning is beta a magnitude of 3.9 another A class star this time hotter with a temperature of 8,000 degrees and is 65 light years away. Beta is a young star only 20-26 million years old. There are three planets orbiting the star.

A bright nova was seen by R. Watson in South Africa on May 25th, 1925 when it had a magnitude of 2.3 and reached a maximum brightness of magnitude 1.2 on June 9th, 1925, by July 4th it had faded to magnitude 3 then unexpectedly rose again to magnitude  1.9 on August 9th. The nova which today is known as RR Pictor is classed as a slow nova unlike nova Aquila 1918 and Nov Puppis 1942 which are fast nova. RR is believed to be around 1,700 light years away.

A nova is a binary system with a small white dwarf star and a large cool giant star they orbit each other. The white dwarf pulls gas from the giant star towards it and some of this gas then cascades down onto the surface of the white dwarf which throws this gas into space.

 In the Middle Ages before the invention of the telescope when people saw this kind of star appearing in the sky where nothing had been seen before they called it a Nova which in Latin means new. They thought a star was being born.  Today we know that these are older stars going through a cycle in their timeline.

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Cooke telescope Tales - 50 years of service

In August 1947 a social evening was held to commemorate the retirement of 5 veteran craftsmen at Cookes. Messrs A Harrison, T Dwyer, C Grewer, W Wrigley and J Danby all had worked for over 50 years at Cookes, they all stared at the end of the 19^th century. 

The social evening was held at the clubhouse where Mr E W Taylor joint managing director and son of HD Taylor who designed the Cooke Portrait Lens attended to present the proceeds of collections to each of the retired men. 

Some of Mr Taylor’s anecdotes were enlightening to a younger generation, whilst others created amusement which continued with responses from the honoured guests. 

It was a very pleasant evening.

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A little ramble through the Astronomical register June 1863 - Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel

The Astronomische Nachrichten of Jan. 26 notifies the death of Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel at the age of 52. Professor (or Major General) Mitchel was the founder, and for some time Director, of the Cincinnati Observatory, and was more recently Director of the Dudley Observatory, Albany, F.S.A. At the time of his death Professor Mitchel was serving as a Major General in the army of the Northern American (Federal) States.

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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.

A little ramble through Phoenix the Phoenix

Phoenix was the largest of the 12-constellation described by Petrus Plancius in 1597-98.

It’s an inconspicuous constellation lying near the southern end of Eridanus the River. The Phoenix represents  the mythological bird that was regularly reborn from its own ashes.  It was introduced into general use in 1603 by Johann Bayer.

The Arab astronomer Al Sufi called this area Al Ri al or the Young Ostriches, while in China the constellation was Ho Neaou or the Fire Bird.

There are few bright stars, the brightest is alpha was recorded by the Arab astronomer Al Tizini as Na ir al Zaurak which means The Bright One in the Boat. The star has a  magnitude 2.4 and is a K class giant with a temperature of 4,200’C degrees and is 85 light years away.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk