 |
Royal Astronomical Society of New ZealandSouthern Stars: Abstracts Volume 42: March 2003 to December 2003. |
|
Royal Astronomical Society of New ZealandSouthern Stars: Abstracts Volume 42: March 2003 to December 2003. |
| No 1 March 2003 | No 2 June 2003 | No 3 September 2003 | No 4 December 2003 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Southern
Stars: Vol 42 Contents. |
RASNZ Home Page | ||
| Southern Stars: Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 1 - 32 | |
The Total Solar
Eclipse of 2002 December 4
Pauline and Brian Loader, Stephen Voss, Taka Okada, Garry
Telford.
Four articles describing different observers' views, and
photography of the total eclipse of the Sun as seen from Ceduna
and Woomera in South Australia.
Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 3 - 8
North Island
Stardate 2003
Lesley Hall and Ian Cooper
Upwards of 150 people, including some visitors from North America
and Europe, enjoyed a programme of stimulating talks and
workshops, good observing, videos and audio-visuals, and lots of
mixing and mingling.
Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 8 - 10
Johann
Schröter, William Herschel and the Mountains of
Venus
Andrew James
Since the invention of the telescope the observations of
atmospheric phenomena regarding Venus have always proved
difficult. Some early observers reported variations in the
curvature of the cusps and so-called "terminator anomalies". It
was these particular anomalies and their interpretation that lead
to a somewhat passionate debate, mainly between Friedrich Wilhelm
(later William) Herschel (1738-1822) and his fellow compatriot
Johann Heironymous Schröter (1748-1816). Schröter
assumed that the direct cause of the irregularities, especially
near the southern cusp, was a mountain or a mountain range - a
Venusian Himalayas, while Herschel concluded the 'alleged' cause
of the Venusian anomalies could possibly be attributed to
Schröter's tarnished speculum mirror. This paper also
discusses the life and observations of Shröter and attempts
to explain the basis of his reputation as a poor and unreliable
observer.
Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 11- 22
Comet C/2002 V1
Neat
Ian Cooper, Mike McGavin, Paul Moss, Noel Munford and Stephen
Voss
Comet C/2002 V1 Neat became visible in New Zealand skies about a
week after perihelion on 2003 February 18.3. A series of
photographs by a number of observers is presented.
Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 16 - 17
Hydrogen-Alpha
Solar Observing
Harry Roberts
Three aspects of observing the Sun through a Hydrogen-alpha
filter are described with examples from the author's sketches;
Quiet Prominences, an Eruptive Prominence and Prominence motion
by tuning the H-alpha filter for different Doppler Shifts.
Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 17 - 27
Book
Reviews
"Apollo - the Lost and Forgotten Missions" by David J Shayler,
reviewed by Steve Butler.
"The Hundred Greatest Stars" by James B Kaler, reviewed by
Bob Evans.
Volume 42, number 1. March 2003. Pp 28 - 30
| Southern Stars: Volume 42, number 2. June 2003. Pp 1 - 28 | |
Possum
Observatory
John Drummond.
Want to get dizzy? Just step into Possum Observatory - a 3.4m x
3.1m rotating building and you'll walk through the observatory
door in one part of the backyard and then out the door in a
different part of the backyard! This article recalls how I made
this rotating observatory, what scopes I have in it, and what
astronomical work I am doing.
Volume 42, number 2. June 2003. Pp 3 - 5
A Lifetime of
Auroral Observing
Reg C Sutherland.
When we are very young, sometimes an event will capture our
imagination and we will continue to pursue the phenomenon for the
rest of our lives. In my case, while living at Pukemaori, away in
the South, I saw a spectacular auroral display during the
mid-1930s. The sky was ablaze with flashing coloured lights. I
was told it was caused by sunlight reflecting of the ice in the
Antarctic. How wrong they were!
Volume 42, number 2. June 2003. Pp 6 - 7
Roemer and the
Speed of Light
Brian Loader.
In 1676 Roemer published a paper in which he established the
finite speed of light from observations of the times of eclipses
of the satellite Io, the innermost of Jupiter's Galilean
satellites. His method for doing this can easily be adapted by
observers to make their own estimates of the speed of light.
Fairly short term variations in the period of Io limit the
accuracy which can be obtained.
Volume 42, number 2. June 2003. Pp 8 - 12
Annual Report of
Council for 2002
Council of the Royal Astronomical Society of New
Zealand.
Includes Presidential, Financial and Membership Reports, together
with reports on publications and from sections.
Volume 42, number 2. June 2003. Pp 13 - 23
Book
Reviews
"Observing Variable Stars" by Gerry A Good, reviewed by
Albert Jones.
"Illustrated Dictionary of Practical Astronomy" by Chris Kitchin,
reviewed by Marilyn Head.
"More Small Astronomical Observatories" edited by Patrick Moore,
reviewed by Duncan Hall.
Volume 42, number 2. June 2003. Pp 24 - 27
| Southern Stars: Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. Pp 1 - 20 | |
Images of
Mars
Gary Beal.
During the 2003 very close opposition of the planet Mars, a
number of New Zealand amateur astronomers took images of the
planet through their telescopes. Many took advantage of the
relatively inexpensive Philips ToUcam 'Webcam'; a small video
camera used at a computer for videoconferencing. This is one
person's experiences.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. Pp 3 - 4
Pamela M
Kilmartin, FRANZ
Pamela Kilmartin was elected a Fellow of the
RASNZ at the 2003 RASNZ AGM and Conference. A brief resume of her
contributions to astronomy is given.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. P 5
Carter Memorial
Lecture 2003
Robin Gledhill.
The 2003 Carter Memorial Lecture was given in May by Dr Ben R
Oppenheimer, Kalbfleisch Research Fellow in the Department of
Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History in New
York. Public lectures entitled "Aliens: The Scientific Search for
Life on Other Planets" were given in Nelson, Dunedin,
Christchurch, Wellington, Wanganui, Napier, Hamilton and
Auckland. University seminars entitled "The Lyot Project" were
given in Christchurch, Wellington, Hamilton and Auckland.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. P 6
2002 Murray Geddes
Prize
Marilyn Head was awarded the 2002 Murray Geddes
prize. A brief resume of her contributions to young person's
astronomy is given.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. P 7
Collimation:
reflections from a different angle
Howard Page.
This article is based on a talk on collimation - specifically
primary mirror alignment, given to a group of people with an
interest in the topic, at the Wellington Astronomical Society
meeting.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. Pp 8 - 10
Book Review:
"Night Skies Above New Zealand" by Vicki Hyde
R W Evans.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. P 11
To Learn or to
Understand in Science Education
Frank P Andrews.
See December 2003, Pp 20 - 21, for
corrected re-print.
This paper was delivered at the 2003 RASNZ conference.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. Pp 12 - 13
Two New Variables
in Centaurus
W H Allen, FRASNZ.
While observing WX Centauri I found two un-catalogued variable
stars in the CCD field. This paper examines the light
curves obtained to determine the type of variable star.
Volume 42, number 3. September 2003. Pp 14 - 18
Thomas King
Observatory
Ataira Te Ao Nui.
The Thomas King Observatory in Wellington, near the Crter
Observatory, is now in constant use following the restoraion of
it and its telescope. This paper introduces the history of the
observatory.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. P 3
Refurbishment of
the Thomas King Telescope at Carter Observatory
Gordon Hudson.
In May 2001 I began the refurbishment of the 5inch Grubb
Telescope housed in the Thomas King Observatory. This telescope
was made in 1882 by Grubb in Dublin and over its 120 years it is
in remarkably good condition.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. Pp 4 - 6
The H-alpha Solar
Filter at the Thomas King Observatory
Stewart Mawson.
I had the satisfaction of installing the Coronado T60 H-alpha
solar filter on the 5 inch Grubb telescope at the Thomas King
Observatory.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. P 7
Aspects of the
Restricted Three Body Problem
Warwick Kissling.
An extended version of a talk presented at the 2003 RASNZ
conference in Christchurch. This paper preents a study of asteroi
motions near the L4 and L5 Langrangian points in the restricted
three body problem. Where the asteroid remains close to the L4 or
L5 points, some analysis is possible which reveals rich behaviour
abd an unexpected relationship involving Pythagorean
triplets.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. Pp 8 - 11
The Singularity
System: Sharing Observing Logs on the Internet
Miks McGavin.
A large number of amateur astronomers in New Zealand and around
the world keep logs of their observations. One disadvantage with
observing logs for some people is that they are not normally
accessible to anyone besides the person who made the
observations. In the past decade, computers and more recently the
Internet have made it easier for information to be organised and
propogated widely. This article presents a new method for
astronomical observing logs to be published online via a central
website, allowing people to keep ttrack of hat everyone else is
doing, and communicate about their activities.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. Pp 12 - 15
The Sun in
2002
R W Evans.
A summary of white light observations of the Sun in 2002, as
reported to teh RASNZ Aurora and Solar Section, is presented.
They year saw the beginning of the decline from Solar Maximum of
Solar Cycle 23. Eleven observers supplied a total of 1724
observations for the year to the Section.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. P 16
Early Astronomy in
Hawera
Ian Townsend, Don Glass. The birth of Astronomy in
Hawera is linked significantly with George Mortimer Townsend. Don
Glass has compiled this history from details supplied by Mr Ian
Townsend, George Townsend's son.
.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. Pp 17 - 19
To Learn or to
Understand in Science Education
Frank P Andrews.
The Carter Observatory has been involved in education since it
began operation in 1941. In the sixty years since its founding
this education programme has steadily developed in scope and
student throughput. The present programme is dedicated to
enthusing students in science and astronomy as well as the
related areas of scientific understanding. We stress
participation and gaining understanding in our approach. In this
paper we look at the vital difference in approach and outcomes
between students who are expected to learn science as opposed to
those gaining an understanding of the subject and look at how we
are dealing with astronomy instruction at Carter
Observatory.
This paper was delivered at the 2003 RASNZ conference. This is a
corrected version of the paper originally printed in Volume 42,
number 3, September 2003.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. Pp 20 - 21
"Biggest Sunspot
Ever. Honest!" - Behind the Hype.
Harry Roberts.
Keen sunspot observers are still reeling from the fantastic sloar
activity of the last few years (and months), which encompassed
the maximumof Solar Cycle No. 23. This cycle seems to have
produced some of the greatest flares so far recorded. But are
they?
Volume 42, number 4. December 2003. Pp 22 - 24
Book Review - "The
Modern Moon: A Personal View" by Charles A Wood.
R W Evans.
Volume 42, number 4. December 2004. Pp 25 - 26
Southern Stars Vol 42 Contents