Scott McGillivray from the Royal Astronomical Society talks about the latest discoveries in space. This week: NASA’s report on the loss of Mars’ atmosphere, Earth’s Aurora Borealis, SETI’s search for ‘Alien Mega Structures’.
Europe and Russia’s cooperation on a Lunar mission.
Additionally – a look at images submitted by viewers, and Howard Trottier’s first image from the SFU’s Trottier Observatory.
Scott McGillivray from the Royal Astronomical Society talks about the latest discoveries in space, including an asteroid named ‘Spooky’ that is flying right past the earth.
For those of us who tend to be fascinated watching the tide flow in and then flow out again, Monday, September 28 holds a treat for us. This September 28, one day after a full lunar eclipse, the Earth will experience the lowest and highest tides in 18.6 years. We will not experience tides this extreme again until 2034.
The astronomical events that cause the tides work in various periodic cycles. The Moon has the greatest influence on the tides, but it is not the only one. The Sun also plays a role and when the two bodies work together it is called a spring tide (nothing to do with seasons) and when they work at 90 degrees to each other it is called a neap tide. Let’s examine these cycles.
All of these above mentioned mechanisms come to be on September 28 which will result in the extreme tide I mentioned at the beginning. The best place to observe this is the Bay of Fundy where the tide will rise over 55 feet or 16.8 metres. Our local tides will be noticeably higher than usual for observers like myself who like to watch the water come in and go out. Others who might notice are dock workers. Some of the older wharfs in the area might actually be submerged at the peak of the tide.
The tide charts for Vancouver predict the lowest tide is at aproximately 12:30 pm and the highest tide of the day will be at aproximately 6:40 pm. Please check tide charts on the day as well as tide charts for your local spot as the geography of our coastline influences the timing of the tides. For those of you stuck in office buildings on the 28th, take your binoculars and have a peek at the water front from time to time to watch the tide.
For lots more detailed information about the tides please refer to the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Observer’s Handbook 2015. Almost all the information above was taken from this book.
Leigh Cummings
The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Scott McGillivray talks about new images of Pluto, Saturn’s moon Enceladus, Winnipeg on Mars, and the upcoming lunar eclipse.
Source: http://globalnews.ca/video/2230629/space-talk-with-scott
Thu, Aug 27 – The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Scott McGillivray talks about why whisky was sent to space, the newest model of our solar system, the newest pictures of Saturn, and Stephen Hawking’s superstring theory regarding the black hole.
Source: http://globalnews.ca/video/2189886/space-talk-with-scott-aug-27
Our own Scott McGillivray talks about the baby version of Jupiter, Cassini’s new photos of Saturn’s moon Dione, and new 3D images of Mars, on Global TV.
Source: http://globalnews.ca/video/2170291/space-talk-with-scott-august-17
Tue, Aug 11 – The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Scott McGillivray talks about food being grown and eaten in space, the Perseid meteor shower, the newest photos of Pluto, and how astronomers say the universe is dying.
Source: http://globalnews.ca/video/2159851/space-talk-with-scott-august-11
The summer months are now upon us. We hope that you are enjoying the amazing hot weather and clear nights that we have been experiencing. Your Vancouver Centre has been rather quiet for the past month in regards to evening public events. This is due to the fact that in the months of June and July, the days are too long and the evenings not dark enough to warrant a large planned public observing event. Having said that though , there have been and will continue to be impromptu evening observing sessions held and we hope that you will continue to join us for those. Our next pre-planned evening public event will be on Saturday, August 8 and the event will be two-fold. Firstly, we will enjoy the annual Perseid meteor shower at the joint Metro Parks/ RASC event at Aldergrove Regional Park. Check out our page at Meetup for more details. Secondly, the August 8 event will be held in conjunction with our sister astronomy club —the Astronomica l Association of Jamaica. The Jamaica club will also be observing on the evening of August 8, and afterwards our two clubs will share details and photos. Your Vancouver Centre was paired with the Astronomical Association of Jamaica in February of this year through the Astronomy Without Borders Pairing Program. To date, our communications have been restricted to email and Skype but with this first- ever joint observing event, we hope to solidify this pairing. If you haven’t already, please join the Vancouver Centre Meetup group for email notifications of all of our events at www.meetup.com/astronomy-131.
Clear skies,
Suzanna Nagy, Vice President
8,000 – that is how many people SFU estimates attended the joint International Astronomy Day and Science Rendezvous festivities on Saturday, May 9. If you were there, then you know what a great success it was.
RASC’s contribution to the day included 19 tables of activities and displays. The Moon Phases with Oreo Cookies was so successful that I had to make a run to the nearest grocery store to buy more Oreos. One of our craft tables ran out of paper by the end of the event. The Solar System Toss to Pluto was a huge hit and Astronomy Bingo was enjoyed by both children and adults alike.
We hosted seven short lectures that were well attended with a good variety of topics, including “New Horizons and our First Visit to Pluto” by Scott McGillvray, “Are We Alone? The Search for Extra Terrestrial Life” by Stanley Greenspoon, “The Global Space Community” by Ken Lui, and Ed Hanlon’s Northern Lights slideshow to name just a few.
The weather was spectacular (the first time in 3 years we did not have rain on Astronomy Day) and RASC took full advantage with three solar telescopes set up beside the new Trottier Observatory for solar viewing.
A big thank you goes out to Vancouver Telescope and Pacific Telescope who donated an 8 inch Dobsonian as a door prize. The winner was the Chan family with children Carina and Colton from Burnaby, BC.
Canadian Telescope also donated solar viewing glasses, umbrellas, and binoculars which were given away throughout the day.
I can never thank our volunteers enough for all of their efforts. 40 RASC volunteers gave up their Saturday, many of whom were there all day — some arriving as early as 9:00 am to start setting up and stayed until 6:00 pm for take-down. I wish to acknowledge their efforts by naming each here:
Staff at Vancouver Telescope
Staff at Canadian Telescopes
UBC Astronomy Club and Ronan Kerr
Planetary Society and Ken Lui/ Catherine Lui
Karl Miller, Gordon Farrell, Doug Montgomery and their solar telescopes
Howard Trottier for opening up the Trottier Observatory for tours
Ted Stroman for his Moon and Apollo Mission display
Jim Bernath and his hands-on science displays
Adrian Mitescu, Phil Lobo, Pomponia Martinez and Bob Parry for helping Jim Bernath at his six display tables
Mark Eburne and his Light Pollution display
Stanley Greenspoon and Sarang Brahme at Craft Table #1
Benjamin Joseph and his son Mark as well as Jennifer Kirkey at Craft Table #2
Judy Zhou, Anca Datcu-Romano and Irena Datcu-Romano at the Moon Phases/Oreo Cookie activity
Scott McGillvray at Astronomy Bingo
Eimi Anazawi and Samer Aabedi at the Solar System Toss
Alan Jones who coordinated all seven lectures
As well as Muguette McDonald, James Smith, Kyle Daly, William Fearon, Ron Jerome, Michael Levy, Terry McComas, Jeremy Van Den Driesen and Leigh Cummings.
I don’t think that I missed anyone but in the event I did, please accept my heartfelt thanks.
And finally, a very special thank you to Simon Fraser University and its amazing staff for allowing rasc Vancouver to hold International Astronomy Day in the Academic Quadrangle and all fees waived. A special relationship has developed between RASC Vancouver and SFU and with the opening of the Trottier Observatory, we are looking forward to many more years of astronomy-related activities at SFU. From my lips to God’s ears— here’s hoping for many clear-weather night skies.
By Mark Eburne
Welcome all the visitors to the annual RASC Vancouver Centre Astronomy Day held in conjunction with SFU’s Science Rendezvous here at Simon Fraser University.
Every year, the RASC Vancouver Centre and its dedicated volunteers deliver outstanding displays and talks centered on the science of astronomy and the impact it has on everyday life here and around the world. This year is no exception.
You can always find something in the astronomy world to spark an interest in your mind or perhaps your children’s minds. Whether it is looking back in time or into the future of space travel, there is something for everyone.
In today’s world of high-powered telescopes imaging the depths of time or huge super computers building scenario models of what is going to happen, we can all enjoy the results of the thousands of dedicated astronomers and scientists making it simple for us to understand. Perhaps you just want to lay down in a dark area and look up into the night sky and wonder or peer through the eyepiece of a portable ’scope in your back yard. Whatever your astronomy hunger is, you can feed it here at Astronomy Day.
Please take the time to ask questions. All of our RASC members and volunteers here at SFU love talking astronomy. Who knows, you could start yourself on a new course of discovery. It’s all here. Enjoy the journey. Clear Skies.