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APL Astronomy Club

APL Astronomy Club. General Meeting September 17, 2014. Agenda. FY 2014 budget request – status Treasurer ’ s Report Proposed 2015 Equipment Purchase Overview Star Party / Solar Party planning Upcoming Events Observing Reports October ’ s Lunar Eclipse.

dean-gilliam
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APL Astronomy Club

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  1. APL Astronomy Club General Meeting September 17, 2014

  2. Agenda • FY 2014 budget request – status • Treasurer’s Report • Proposed 2015 Equipment Purchase Overview • Star Party / Solar Party planning • Upcoming Events • Observing Reports • October’s Lunar Eclipse

  3. APL Astronomy Club TreasurySeptember 17, 2014 *Includes $1 check fee

  4. Star / Solar Party Planning • Solar observing party: • Next solar observing session Sept 18, Central Green • Fall Friends and Family Star Party: • Plan for week of Sept 29th; 1st Quarter Moon on Oct 1st • Next 1st Quarter October 30 (Thursday, Halloween eve) • Full Moons: Oct 8, November 6. • Dark Sky Party: • Any plans for future trips?

  5. Upcoming Events – APL Club • Next Club Meeting – October 15 • Volunteer speaker? • Solar observing party – To be held on Sept 18th • Fall Friends and Family Star Party – sometime during the week of Sept 29th-Oct 3rd

  6. Upcoming Events - Regional • Chaos Spring Star Party – Mar. 27 – 30, 2014 – Staunton River State Park – Near Scottsburg, VA • Central PA Consortium Astronomers Meeting • NEAF/NEAIC 23 – Apr. 12 - 13, 2014 – Rockland Astronomy Club and S&T - Rockland Community College, Suffern, NY • Star Gaze – Apr. 24 - 27, 2014 – Delmarva Star Gazers – Tuckahoe State Park in Queen Anne, MD • Texas Star Party 2014 – May 25 – Jun. 1, 2014 – Astronomical League Southwest Region - Prude Ranch near Fort Davis, TX • The Cherry Springs Star Party – Jun. 26 - 29, 2014 – The Astronomical Society of Harrisburg – Cherry Springs State Park near Coudersport, PA • Greenbank Star Quest XI – Jun. 25 - 28, 2014 – National Radio Astronomy Observatory - Greenbank, WV • Mason-Dixon Summer Star Party – Jul. 23 - 27, 2014 – York County, PA • Stellafane Convention – Jul. 24 - 27, 2014 – Springfield, VT • NOVAC AHSP 10 – Aug. 22 - 26, 2014 – Spruce Knob, WV • Black Forest Star Party – Aug 22 – 24, 2014 – Cherry Springs, PA • Delmarva NoFrills 2014 – Sept 18-21 – Tuckahoe State Park • Blackwater Falls Astronomy Weekend – Sept 25-28, 2014 – Blackwater Falls, WV

  7. Observing Reports

  8. October’s Total Lunar Eclipse!

  9. October 8th Lunar Eclipse • This is to be the second of four consecutive total lunar eclipses (a tetrad) in 2014/2015 • There were no tetrads between 1582 and 1908 • There are 17 tetrads between 1909 and 2156 • The last tetrad was in 2003/2004. • The next will be 2032/2033.

  10. October 8th Lunar Eclipse • During the 5000-year period from 1999 BC to 3000 AD there have been/will be: • 4378 penumbral eclipses • 4207 partial lunar eclipses • 3479 total lunar eclipses • 568 of these total lunar eclipses belong to a tetrad

  11. October 8th Lunar Eclipse • Twilight eclipse, not going to be a great show for us, unfortunately (unlike the clouded out eclipse earlier this past April) • Sunrise is 7:11am, full eclipse is at 6:55am • The further west you go, the better/more you’ll get to see! (Hawai’i is nice this time of year, I’m given to understand)

  12. Eclipse Coverage Area

  13. Eclipse Coverage Area

  14. Timing Details

  15. Blaine Roelke Observatory Steve Conard 17 September 2014

  16. Blaine Roelke Observatory • Being built at Bear Branch Nature Center, a county park • Telescope, dome, and building being donated by the family of the late Blaine Roelke, a founding member of the Westminster Astronomical Society (WAS) • This dome was used by Blaine in several locations during his lifetime, most recently in rural central Pennsylvania • In addition, Carroll County has paid for the planning and concrete work, and WAS has paid for running power from the nature center to the observatory, a pier, and (TBC) a new telescope mount • Only through the combined effort of Blaine’s family, Carroll County, and WAS could this come together • Expect to open officially in 6-8 weeks

  17. Equipment • The dome is a 10’ Ash, that was refinished • Light tan outside, black inside • Manual rotation and slit opening for now, hope to upgrade to motorized long-term • Mounted on a ~12’ x 16’ structure • Telescope will be either a Celestron or Meade 14” SCT • The baseline is the Celestron, but that will require a new mount (hopefully to be finalized this week) • Pier is a Pier Tech II, which adjusts up/down, allowing more people to use the telescope without using the rolling stairway

  18. Location About 5 miles north of Westminster, just of MD-97 This is Bortle 5 (orange) for light pollution

  19. Photos

  20. Use • Both BBNC personnel and WAS members will use the observatory • There will be at least one public opening per month, in conjunction with shows at BBNC’s planetarium • WAS members will generally operate the telescope for these scheduled shows • WAS members can also become qualified to operate the observatory, and use it for their own interests on other nights, with advance reservation

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