Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers based in Lowestoft and Kessingland Astronomy group which is part of Lyra based in Kessingland

The talk I done at the new Marram Green Library on Wednesday afternoon:

 

A bit about our Society:

 

Lyra is Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers based in Lowestoft Suffolk and we have frequent Monthly meetings at the Waveney Gymnasium in Kirkley Lowestoft, Lyra also has a purpose built Observatory containing a 10 inch reflector telescope situated close by in the grounds of Kirkley high school in Kirkley Run, this Observatory was originally opened by Sir Patrick Moore on 19th April 1991 when he was here in the area and doing talks at the Marina Cinema.

 

After a few years this Observatory was no longer used anymore and fell into a state of disrepair, however with the Lyra Society membership increasing to around 25-30 members at the Millennium the Observatory has been painstakingly renovated and carefully restored for over the past 9 years now and put back into working order for members to go along and use and also for skywatch meeting nights.

 

The telescope is now up and running and operational and is also motorised for star tracking as well as Observing very deep sky Objects.

 

For people interested in getting involved in our society you do not have to own a telescope or have a great deal knowledge about Astronomy to enjoy the awesome beauty of the night sky, knowledge comes with time and much can be seen by the naked eye or with a pair of binoculars before progressing to an astronomical telescope or much gained understanding of this rewarding science.

 

We also have Fieldwork Skywatches at various locations around the area including the old R.A.F Bunker lodge at Hopton of which we call the Hopton Site, Corton Clifftops for Meteor watches as well as the back of Pontins holiday camp in pakefield for Skywatches and the odd Meteor shower which is close to the old recently refurbished lighthouse which is now the Coastguard lookout station. 

 

We have professional Astronomers give lectures to its members and these meetings are also open to the public, anyone is welcome to join the Society and if you wish for more information about our society or how to join I have some information leaflets as well as magazines of interest you can take for free at the end of this talk.

 

Within the Society I am head of the Comet section for LYRA and also head of K.A.G which is Kessingland Astronomy Group and a part or link of Lyra, I am also Navigator or Astrogator as its called of the Stars which is the Fieldwork side of this very fun Science.

 

 

REAL SKYWATCHING FUN (THE MOST INTERESTING PLACE ON EARTH)

 

This is the talk I did on the 10/2/05 of which you may find interesting

 

There is nothing more awe inspiring than to look up into the night sky on

any clear night from a dark location and see the vastness and array of stars

from horizon to horizon

 

As you may know I have been doing astronomy for a number of years now (over 10) and

with being part of my local astronomical Society Lyra I have multiplied my

understanding of this very rewarding science.

 

My Equipment:

 

My equipment that I use is a 4.5 inch Tal reflector telescope and a pair of

20x100 mounted binoculars, the 4.5 inch Tal reflector telescope is Russian made and is a very sturdily built piece of equipment,

 

My 20x100 binoculars are German made and mounted on a Manfrotto heavy duty tripod with a ball joint attachment.

 

The Fieldwork:

 

Before I start a nights observing I will firstly have a look

out of my front and back upstairs windows in my house to check the weather

and see if the sky is clear, the main reason I do this to look for any

distant cloud(s) that could quickly sweep in and ruin a nights observing

this has happened to me several times before and on one night I had all my equipment

climatised outside and ready to settle down for a nights observing when

suddenly a cloud appeared over the rooftop followed by another and so on,

within 5 or so minutes the sky was totally covered from horizon to horizon

with thick cloud and all I could do was put the kettle on and forget about a

night under the stars, an hour later it was raining but I had got my

equipment indoors and re-climatised long before then.

 

However-after I have checked the skies from the upstairs windows I go out into the

garden to check the amount of dampness around because sometimes with a lot

of dew falling it can cover the lenses on the binoculars and this also has

happened to me before and ruined a nights observing as well.

 

The conditions outside that are ideal for me is a dry clear night cold but

bearable and no wind or dampness (dew) but the thing with really clear crisp

nights is that they are extremely cold and usually with a frost sometimes.

 

Clothes to wear:

 

So the thing is to wrap up warm with several layers of clothes 2 or 3 pairs

of thin socks and thermal underclothes if you have them, a thermal hat helps

as a lot of body warmth is lost from the head, a good idea is to wear many

thin layers of clothes to trap body warmth as well as good gloves.

 

Fingerless gloves are an invaluable thing to have for changing lenses,

operating the focus mount and switching on the torch as well as the kettle for a hot drink, 

I also have a thermal waistcoat which goes over my feather filled jacket for

extra warmth.

 

Keeping warm:

 

Do not forget to fill the kettle with water and have it pre-boiled

so when you come indoors feeling freezing cold after a nights viewing it does

not take so long to boil again to make a hot drink for yourself.

 

I prefer packet cup "a" soup but tea and coffee are just as good although

I rarely drink alcohol when observing as this is a diuretic and can make you

feel the opposite (colder).

 

Climatising the equipment:

 

After I have checked out the back garden and had a good look around the sky

for the ideal conditions I go back indoors to start getting my equipment

climatised, the coldest rooms in my house is the downstairs toilet or the kitchen so I

turn the heating right down (with complaints from my mother of "shut that door" or to the affect of) and open the windows in either of these rooms to take the temperature down enough so the  equipment don't mist up when being taken from a warm house into the cold night air and vice verse..

 

Alternatively I could leave them in the outside shed to climatise but they are full up with bikes and various things.

 

I usually climatise my equipment for about an hour to an hour and a half and

I have rarely had any dewing problems with my reflector telescope.

 

My telescope;

 

I enjoy using my telescope it has a very sound mounting and would probably

keep upright in a strong gale, these mountings were used by the Russians to

test small amateur rocket launches because of the stability and strength of them,

in fact the telescope is so well made, strong and heavy I have to take it

outside in 2 pieces although it is worth it in the long run.

 

Almost ready:

 

When the equipment is all climatised including the lenses for the telescope

which I put on the windowsill near the open window to climatise as well I

pre boil the kettle get into my warm clothes and switch on a small red light

above my door for dark eye adaption which can take from 5 minutes to an

hour so I can see to take my equipment outside.

 

I wait about 5 or so minutes to get dark eye adaption but this can take up to an hour to

become fully dark eye adapted, in the 5 minutes I switch the radio on or go

outside to check if the climatisation is right on my equipment and it is not

dewing up, I use a flashlight torch or a small red LED light to look down the barrel of the telescope to check the main mirror and check the 4 lenses of the binoculars mounted on

the tripod.

 

Even with the heat from your face or if you breath on the lenses they can

mist up but moving away from it for a minute or so it will return to normal

viewing.

 

Things to avoid:

 

The trouble with standing on solid concrete is that your body heat is soon

conducted away so it is a good idea to stand on an old rolled up carpet or a

block of wood if you have one, I sometimes put my equipment on the grass in

my garden if it is not too damp.

 

The observing:

 

When everything is set up and ready to go and I am comfortable I will begin

observing and basically I will look at anything and everything whatever is

on show for the time of year although my main subject is Comets.

 

I have seen roughly over half the Messier objects but I am still looking out

for more as my equipment is capable of this.

 

To date I have seen 21 well observed Comets since 1996 and that averages out about 2 a year and Comets are my main subject in Astronomy as it was the bright Hale Bopp Comet of 1997 that got me interested in taking astronomy further in my work and becoming part of Lyra.

 

Comets are very odd things that usually orbit the Sun in a parabolic or oval to round shaped orbit with some being sungrazers that almost touch the surface of the sun before being ripped apart and thrown in bits back into space.

 

Comets keep most of there life dormant in the dark cold icy depths of space until they close in with the sun and become more active eventually spewing out material from holes formed in them and causing a tail to form which will always in any circumstance point away from the sun.

 

As the Comet heads to Perihelion and through it the most forces are exerted upon the apparition and it is usually at its brightest when observed from earth and the numerous astronomers like myself that will spend the hours of darkness outside in the dead of the night looking at them and maybe drawing a rough pencil sketch of them whilst looking through the telescope or binoculars to see how they look as hey journey round the sun.

 

Rewards:

 

I get a lot out of astronomy and being part of Lyra and some of my nights

observing the sky have gone right through to the early morning twilight

when the stars fade into the morning sky.

 

During the warm summer evenings I use a sun lounger with arm rests which lies right back and I watch the sky flicker by with my 8-20x24 zoom binoculars, it can be very interesting to see what messier objects that can be picked out in the azure blue summer twilight sky

from late may to late august when Astronomical twilight disappears from the U.K latitudes.

 

Around this time of year the deep sky objects become just about

impossible to see but there is still the planets or the moon to observe

usually low in Sagittarius when full at this time of year.

 

I also observe Satellite passes as well as the ISS of which the timings I get off the Internet-a site called www.heavens-above.com/.

 

Finally:

 

There is always something happening and always something up there to look

out for-and I am very sure I will be looking at the Skies and Head of the Comet section  for many years to come as well as being part of the Lyra Society of which whose help I have had I would not be in the position I am today with my knowledge of this very rewarding Science.

 

Thankyou.

 

Colin James Watling

 

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Deep Skywatching made simple...

A talk did on 5/12/2005:
 
The night sky is always an awe inspiring place to look at on any clear night
of the year and even on moonlit nights you can see the vast array of stars
as pin points of light all over the sky.

 

As you look around for a few minutes and your eyes become more dark adapted you can see the vastness of space and the milky way with its millions upon millions of stars that become more prominent for you to see after full dark eye adaption which for some people can sometimes take up to about an hour for there eyes to become fully adapted.

 

The star clusters such as praesepe, the pleiades and various Nebula's such as M31 Andromeda galaxy and M42 the great Orion nebula come gradually into view it is these easier seen messier objects that I will be talking about tonight and give you all hopefully a more better understanding of how you can see and pick out these objects in the night sky be it with the naked eye or binoculars.

 

Autumn:

 

I thought what I would start with first as we are in autumn is the autumn constellations and the deep sky wonders they possess, the main configuration being the Square of Pegasus and close to the star Epsilon Pegasus is a Magnitude 6.4 Globular Cluster or M15, easily seen in binoculars has a high concentration of stars and is 250 light years across and also contains a small planetary nebula at magnitude 15.5.

 

From there I carry on to M2 in Aquarius which is also a Globular Cluster extends 250 light years across and lies 55000 light years from us easily seen in binoculars, onto the square of Pegasus itself and I find it very interesting just how many stars you can see in the square as it is devoid of Nebula's and star clusters.

 

On to  The Andromeda Nebula and the Great Galaxy M31 as it is called is at a distance of 2.5 Million Light Years and can be seen with the unaided eye on moonless nights and also it companion galaxies either side of the Nebula's Apparition-M32 at magnitude 8.2 extending 6000 light years across and at the same distance of 2.5 million light years, m110 at magnitude 8 14000 light years across and also 2.5 million light years distant-these 2 Companion Galaxies can be seen in reasonable Aperture sized telescopes.

 

On to M33 in the Constellation of Triangulum which is a Magnitude 5.7 and is face on spiral Galaxy and is better known as the Pinwheel galaxy, although it has a low surface brightness good binoculars will reveal reasonably well, it is 50000 Light Years across and a distance  of 2.4 Million Light years from us, it is a member of the local group of Galaxies.

 

Down into the Constellation of Cetus the sea monster or whale as it is known and there is a Variable Star called Mira with its magnitude ranging from 2.0 at its brightest to 10.1 when in fades, it is fairly easy to locate with Binoculars as a coppery red coloured star when at its Brightest.

 

Going upwards to the Azimuth you come to the "W" shape of
Cassiopeia which is a circumpolar constellation, by other words a
constellation that always remains above the horizon at any given time, it
has several binocular objects to locate and there is M52 located a little
way from the star Beta Cassiopeia at Magnitude 6.9, it is an open star
cluster which extends extends 10 Light Years and has a distance from us of
3000 Light Years its age being 35 Million Years old, on the other side of the
"W" shape is M103 which is close to the star delta Cassiopeia which is
another open star cluster at Magnitude 7.4 and has a distance from us
of 8.5 Million Light years, it is 15 light years across and has an age of 22
Million Years old.

 

Onto the Constellation of Perseus and NGC 884 and NGC 869 better known as the Sword handle/hand of Perseus which is an open star cluster not added to the messier objects catalogue probably because there is no way it resembles a comet and Charles Messier was actually a Comet Hunter and not actually looking for stars as such, The 2 Clusters are easily seen with the naked eye and Binoculars and NGC 869 has 200 stars in its cluster at 7200 Light Years distant and roughly 60 Light Years across around 3.2 Million years
old, NGC 884 has 115 stars at a distance of 7500 Light Years is 70 light years across and also 3.2 Million Years old.

 

Onto m34 not far from Algol the demon variable star at magnitude 5.2 an open cluster of stars reasonably easy to be seen with binoculars at a distance of 1400 Light Years, it is 14 light years across and 190 Million Years old.

 

Winter:

 

Into the winter skies and M45 The Pleiades wide open cluster in Taurus which is easily seen with the naked eye as well as binoculars show at least 5 main stars also visible to the naked eye, the cluster is also known as the seven sisters and with a larger telescope the nebulosity which covers this cluster can start to be seen as the stars are very young on an Astronomical Scale, when I see this Star Cluster rising in the Eastern Sky I know that Summer is finally coming to an end and the cold nights are not far away, its 78 Million Years Old and a distance from us at 380 Light Years is 12 Light Years across.

 

Further on into Taurus and the large open star cluster of the Hyades also known as the Taurus moving cluster which has a magnitude of 0.5, it is one of the nearest open star clusters lying at a distance of 151 Light Years and Aldebaran which is only a line of sight foreground star lies just under half way at 65 Light Years,

 

Into the Constellation of Auriga the Charioteer as it is known and the open star clusters M38,
M36 and M37, M36 is at Magnitude 6 has a distance of 3700 Light Years is 13 Light
Years across and 25 Million Years old, M37 is at Magnitude 5.6 and has a
distance of 3600 Light Years, M38 is at magnitude 6.4 is at a distance of 2800
Light Years, it is 16 Light Years across and is 220 Million years old.

 

On into Orion which is the main Winter Constellation and of course the Great Orion Nebula M42 easily seen with the naked eye as well as Binoculars shining at Magnitude 4 its distance of 1500 Light Years is 30 Light Years across which is an incredible stellar nursery to look at in a powerful Telescope.

 

On into Gemini the twins and the open star cluster M35 at Magnitude 5.1 has been likened to looking like a fine heap of silvery sand! 2800 Light Years distant 23 Light Years across and an age of 110 Million Years old

 

Into the next Constellation of Monocerous and M50 is a Magnitude 5.9 open star cluster at a distance of 3000 Light Years 13 Light Years across and 78 million years old to locate it take a line from the 3 stars of Orions belt Eastwards and slightly down,  onto M46 an open star cluster in Puppis at Magnitude 6.1 3200 Light Years distant and 24 light Years across 300 Million Years old, M47 at Magnitude 4.4 1800 Light Years distant 16 Light Years across and 78 Million Years old.

 

M41 open star cluster in Canis Major at Magnitude 4.5 1600 Light Years distant and 18 Light Years across, is over 190 million years old

 

On into the Constellation of Cancer and the lovely open star cluster Praesepe or m44 as it is also known as the Beehive Cluster of Stars seen to the naked eye on very clear moonless nights is at a distance of 580 Light Years 17 Light Years across and 660 Million Years old, just underneath M44 is M67 which is a very old open star cluster of Magnitude 6.9, it is 2700 Light Years distant 24 Light Years across  and an amazing 3.2 Billion Years old, onto M48 in the Constellation of Hydra the Water Snake at magnitude 5.8, it is 1500 Light Years distant and 22 light years across and is 300 Million years old.

 

 

Spring:

 

Into the Spring Constellations and our view or window out of the Galaxy into Deep Space and the Coma Berinices and Virgo Clusters of Galaxies some of these Galaxies were the most distant objects Photographed until the late 1930's, nowadays they are no problem to see for  us amateur back Garden observers.

 

A large telescope with a 10 inch main mirror will pick out the various Nebulas to see between these 2 Constellations, I personally have never been able to pick out many of these galaxies but when the spring returns I always try a little harder to see some of them with my 4 .5
inch Tal reflector telescope and point it in this direction to see if I can pick anything out, not forgetting the Coma Open Star Cluster seen as a small veil of stars above the Constellation of Leo.

 

Down into Canes Venatici and the M3 Globular Cluster which is 48000 Light Years distant 220 Light Years across and contains 45000 stars its age is 6.5 Billion Years old, into Ursa Major and the stars in the handle of The Plough with the Double Stars Mizar and Alcor worth looking at with Binoculars, M81 and M82  2 Galaxies that are over a Million Light Years apart but are related M81 at a distance of 8.5 Million Light years and 60'000 Light Years across and in an Elongated bright shape, M82 which is spindle like shaped at a distance of
8.5 Million Light Years, 25000 Light Years across and like a ghostly starship in shape,

 

Further down into the Constellation of Serpens Caput and the snowball shaped Globular Cluster M5 at 24000 Light Years distant and 150 Light Years across.

 

Into the Constellation of Opiuchus and small Globular Clusters of M10 and M12 easily seen with good Binoculars M10 at a distance of 16'000 Light Years and 90 Light Years across and M12 at 19'000 Light Years distant and 80 Light Years across, m14 and m104 are a little too faint for good binoculars although they can be vaguely picked out with them.

 

Onto the great Hercules cluster of M13 the best Globular Cluster to be seen in the Northern Hemisphere that is if you know where to look for it as it can be very difficult to locate sometimes, it is naked eye visible under exceptionally clears Moonless skies and is 26'000 Light Years distant and 50 Light Years across and a colossal 14 Billion years old Containing around 500'000 stars, M92 at a distance of 28'000 Light Years and 110 Light Years across.

 

Then into the Constellation of Serpens Cauda and the M16 Eagle Nebula 5'900
Light Years distant 5.5 Million Years old and contains an open cluster of
stars.

 

Summer:

 

Finally into the Summer Constellations such as Sagittarius look low in the
south around midsummer to pick out the various star clusters and Nebula's
panning with binoculars.

 

The Constellations of Scutum and the Wild Duck open cluster fan tailed in shape contains 200 detached stars 5500 Light Years distant 22 Light Years across and 220 Million Years old.

 

The Constellation of Cygnus the Swan look for the lovely Coloured double star Albireo a Beautiful Greenish Blue and Golden Yellow Double star visible in good Binoculars,  M39 open star cluster 800 Light Years distant 6.8 Light Years across and 220 Million Years old,

 

into the constellation of Cepheus and the lovely rich ruby red garnet star a variable star with a Magnitude range from 5 to Magnitude 10 and seen in good Binoculars when it is around its brightest.

So finally we have come full circle back to the autumn constellations and I hope you have all learned a little more about what wonders the night sky have hidden for us all to see and to offer for the wonders of the night skies.

 
Colin James Watling 5/12/2005

 

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Good Clear Skies
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Astrocomet
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Colin James Watling
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Lat' 52.418056N Long' 1.719722E (Chimney Pot)
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Elev: 38ft/11.5824 Meters above sea level
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Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
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Web: http://lyra.freewebsites.com/