20th birthday
celebration for the Australia Telescope at
Narrabri, NSW.
Antenna tours
Control building tours
Astronomer talks
Ask a expert
Art display
Have a look at the most advanced radio
telescope in the southern hemisphere.
For safety, enclosed flat-soled shoes are
required for some tours.
Saturday 19 July 2008
10am - 4 pm
Paul Wild Observatory
20 mins west of Narrabri on the Yarrie Lake
Rd
www.csiro.au/narrabriobservatory
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Australian Mars
Exploration Conference 2008 is on this
weekend!
Visit the Website now for a draft timetable
of the weekend’s events –
It’s not too late to sign up!! Visit the
website www.marssociety.org.au
for registration details.
Along with previously advertised speakers,
the Mars Society Australia is
excited to present our special conference
guest:
Professor Rob Morrison OAM, South Australia
's Senior Australian of the
Year 2008.
More information can be found at the Mars
Society Australia’s website
www.marssociety.org.au
General enquiries can be emailed to
amec@marssociety.org.au
Sponsorship places are still available.
Contact us now.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Howdy
According to Ice in space forums Starstuff
on Newsradio will be axed soon
Scott Alder
Hot off the press!!
News has just come to my ears from an ABC
source, that the only ABC radio
programme devoted to Astronomy and Cosmology
--Stuart Gary's "StarStuff" has
been axed and will finish in just two weeks.
The page for the programme is here:
http://www.abc.net.au/newsradio/programs/STARSTUFF.htm
StarStuff is an excellent, very, very
long-running programme (only a 1/2 hr
per week) with a large devoted audience that
is dedicated to the latest
developments in Astronomy and Cosmology --
essential listening for anyone
interested in Astronomy.
Why has it been axed?? To make way for more
sport. Yep, you heard it here, a
total of 700 hrs per week of sport is
broadcast on all the ABC radio and TV
channels per week, but it wasn't enough --
they needed that extra 1/2 hr.
Are you steamed about it??
Write to the Federal Government Ministers
here
Minister for Communications: Senator Steven
Conroy
senator.conroy@aph.gov.au
Minister for Science: Warren Snowdon
warren.snowdon.mp@aph.gov.au
And while you're at it C.C it to the Shadow
ministers:
Shadow Communications:
b.bilson.mp@aph.gov.auu
Shadow Science:
bob.baldwin@aph.gov.au
And stick a copy to the Greens while you are
at it:
bob.brown@aph.gov.au
Best,
Les D
Contributing Editor
AS&T
******************************************************************************************************
Astronomy Job
For those that like to 'live'
astronomy and there are many;) here is the
chance of a lifetime!
Applications are invited for
two positions which are based at the
Anglo-Australian Observatory (AAO) near
Coonabarabran, NSW.
The AAO, which is one of the world’s leading
astronomical facilities, operates two major
optical telescopes, the 3.9m
Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) and the
1.2m United Kingdom Schmidt Telescope (UKST).
Coonabarabran is an attractive country town
with very good schools, affordable housing,
located within a clean & healthy environment
and is the gateway to the popular
Warrumbungle National Park.
The Electronics group requires two Technical
Officers/Technicians to assist in the repair
and maintenance of a broad range of
electronic equipment, including telescope
drive and control systems, robotics,
computers, CCD and infrared detectors,
television systems and a wide range of
scientific instrumentation
for more info go here...
http://www.aao.gov.au/local/www/jobs/
Anglo-Australian Observatory
Comet Boattini
NAS member Scott Alder has
been tracking Comet Boattini and has some
interesting images of the comet in the
astro-photography
section. A bit of info on the comet below...
Comet C/2007 W1 (Boattini)
currently lies among the background stars of
the southern constellation Pyxis the
Compass. It lies at about the same altitude
at the bright star Procyon in Canis Minor.
Procyon lies due west as twilight fades,
while the comet stands in the southwest,
some 40° away. And Procyon shines about 100
times brighter than the comet.
As with all the other objects now hanging
low in the west after sunset, Boattini will
soon succumb to the Sun's glow. If you
live in the Southern Hemisphere, the view
should last through June's first week. By
early July, the comet will reappear in the
predawn sky. It should glow around 5th
magnitude then, but the possibility exists
that it could be brighter.
Astronomer Andrea Boattini discovered this
comet November 20 as part of the Mt. Lemmon
survey — a search program designed to locate
near-Earth asteroids.
*************************************************************************************
International Space Station
Fly by times Newcastle for
the next week
'heavens-above.com'
***********************************************************************************
Laser Pointer Ban in
NSW
More
news on the laser ban June 1st 2008
A new
regulation has been passed which will ban
the importation of high intensity laser
pointers, the Minister for Home Affairs Bob
Debus announced today.
“This new law will make it an offence to
import high powered lasers without a permit.
“It means anyone seeking to import a laser
pointer stronger than 1mW will have to have
an appropriate exemption, which will work in
the same way as for other restricted goods.
“However for the ban to be truly effective,
it’s important that the States and
Territories urgently establish uniform
national laws to support these new
Commonwealth controls.
“I have written to Police ministers calling
on them to put in place legislation which
imposes fines and jail terms for possessing
pointers above 1mW without an appropriate
exemption.”
The ban will take effect on 1 July 2008 and
is also on the agenda for the national
police minister’s meeting on 13 June.
The new regulation will allow legitimate
users including surveyors, the construction
and mining industries and astronomers to
apply for an exemption from the ban. More
.... http://www.alp.org.au/media/0508/msha300.php
NAS Vice-President
David Hough has written an article about
lasers and the law
If you happen to be at a meeting in
Australia and someone pulls out a laser
pointer, you may want to ask them if they
have a permit for that. Reuters is reporting
that New South Wales state in Australia is
listing laser pointers as a prohibited
weapon. If you are caught with a laser
pointer in the state without a permit it
could cost you 14 years in jail.
The state took the drastic action after
numerous incidents involving pilots of
airplanes and helicopters reporting having
their cockpits lit up by someone with a
laser pointer aiming at them. Laser pointers
can temporarily blind a victim if they are
pointed at the victim’s eyes, which is bad
news for a pilot landing an airplane or
flying a helicopter.
Mike Salway
www.iceinspace.com.au
Also more info on the laser ban ,
here
(www.iceinspace.com.au)
Phoenix: The
Search for Water
Mars Weather
Report - Northern arctic plain
Skies were
clear and sunny on Sol 1 on Mars.
The temperature varied between minus
112 degrees Fahrenheit in the early
morning and minus 22 degrees
Fahrenheit in the afternoon. The
average pressure was 8.55 millibars,
which is less than a 1/100th of the
sea level pressure on Earth.
Success Phoenix has landed!
around 10am, time: Australia
Due to the alignment of the earth and Mars, the Canberra deep
space communication complex (CDSCC) at Tidbinbilla, a NASA facility, will
receive the first images sent back by the lander. Once it safely touches down,
Phoenix will unfold its solar panels and power up its various scientific
instruments.
Then, about 12.15pm, it will begin transmitting the first burst of data back to
earth.
About 420 million kilometres and 15 minutes later, those first images will be
received by the Tidbinbilla facility, which will relayed them to mission control
in California.
This is not the first time that Canberra's deep space tracking facilities has
been the first to receive data from another world.
Back in 1969, the first pictures to be sent back from the moon by the Apollo 11
team were received and relayed by a facility at the ACT's Honeysuckle Creek, the
predecessor to the modern Tidbinbilla facility. http://www.cdscc.nasa.gov/Pages/pg04_visitorcentre.html
Phoenix
Mission
Information here
*******************************************************************************
Australian Sky & Telescope Magazine
May/June 2008 issue has a feature on page 82
about the NAS. The article was written by
our own NAS vice-president David Hough. This
will be a astronomy collectors item so don't
miss out. In newsagents now.
************************************************************************************
Sydney Observatory, Australia's oldest
observatory, celebrates its 150th
anniversary on 7 June
Sydney Observatory, Australia's oldest
observatory, celebrates its 150th
anniversary on 7 June. As part of the
celebrations, amateur astronomers are
invited to attend one or both of the
following seminars on the history of
Australian meteorology and astronomy.
When: Saturday 14 & Sunday 15 June 2008
Where: Target Theatre, *** Powerhouse
Museum ***
Cost: $30 per day or $40 for two days
(Museum entry and afternoon teas
included)
The two seminars are to be introduced
with an opening lecture at the
Observatory on the Friday (13 June 2008)
evening at 6:30 pm by Professor Fred
Watson. People attending the seminar
will be invited to the lecture as will
members of the public for whom normal
evening charges will apply. The lecture
is to be followed by viewing.
A number of high profile speakers have
agreed to take part including Professor
Neville Nicholls from Monash University
who is a member of the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that was
awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. Some
of the others talking about meteorology
are the NSW Regional Director of the
Bureau of Meteorology Barry Hanstrum and
the well-known weather presenter Mike
Bailey. Speakers for the astronomy
seminar include Professor Ray Norris of
the Australia Telescope National
Facility and Professor Fred Watson who
is Officer-In-Charge at the
Anglo-Australian Telescope.
For bookings please contact Sydney
Observatory on 02 9921 3485.
************************************************************************************
"David Malin Awards" is now four
weeks away.
The deadline is 5:00PM on
Monday, 11 June 2008.
Just a reminder that the deadline for
entries in this year's "David
Malin Awards" is now four weeks away. The
deadline is 5:00PM on
Monday, 11 June 2008.
The 2007 CWAS "David Malin Awards" are now
at Brisbane Planetarium,
where they will finish up in July. To date,
over 111,000 people have
viewed the exhibition, already exceeding
last year's phenomenal
result.
This year's winning photos will be eligible
for inclusion in the
International Year of Astronomy travelling
exhibition, that will
incorporate the finest astrophotographs
taken by professional and
amateur astrophotographers from around the
world. This will be one of
the premier events of the IYA.
A new themed, open section has been added to
this year's competition.
Astrophotographers of all backgrounds,
whether amateur,
semi-professional or junior, are invited to
compete together to see
who can be the most creative in evoking the
theme of "Star Trails in
the Landscape". The intention is to
encourage people with vision and
imagination, who are able to use simple
equipment, such as a tripod
and ordinary camera, to make attractive,
star trail images that have
a terrestrial foreground that adds to the
composition.
Competition Structure
---------------------
* Amateur - Wide Field
- Deep Sky
- Solar System
* Semi-Professional
* Junior
* Open ("Star Trails in the Landscape")
* Innovation Prize
For entry forms and information on the
conditions of entry, see the
following web site:
http://www.parkes.atnf.csiro.au/news_events/astrofest/astrophotography.html
Clear Skies!
Regards, John Sarkissian
2008 CWAS AstroFest Organising Committee
--
Regards, John.
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| John M. Sarkissian, B.Appl.Sc (Physics)
| Operations Scientist
| CSIRO Parkes Radio Observatory, ATNF
|
| PO Box 276
| Parkes. NSW. 2870.
| Australia.
|
| Tel No: (02) 6861 1769 (Intl. +61 2 6861
1769)
| Fax No: (02) 6861-1730 Switch: (02)
6861-1700
|
| WWW Page: http://www.parkes.atnf.csiro.au/people/sar049
+--------------------------------------------------
The IceInSpace AstroCamp event is taking
place on the 30th October to 2nd November,
2008. (Click on logo above for more
info).
***************************************************
Border Stargaze is back!
REGISTRATIONS for Border Stargaze 2008 ( 28
- 31st August 2008 )
are NOW OPEN (click here) or check out our
website -
www.asaw.org.au
ASAW is proud to announce that Border
Stargaze 2008 will be held at
The Wymah Valley Retreat formerly known as
The Great Aussie Resort.
The exciting news is that the retreat has
undergone a major
transformation. The quality and types of
accommodation available
have increased in addition to significant
improvements to the
existing facilities.
Located in the Greater Hume Shire the
Retreat boasts a 300 acre property with a
two - kilometer frontage to Lake Hume. It is
the
ideal site for hosting a star party offering
high standards of accommodation and
supported by a great management team.
Only 30km from the twin cities of Albury and
Wodonga we are also
ideally located to major cities. Melbourne 350kms (3.5hrs), Sydney
560kms (5hrs), Canberra310kms (3hrs) and
Adelaide 764km (8hrs).
The retreat is an ideal location for
individuals, families, schools or groups of
any size. The amateur astronomer will enjoy
excellent
observing fields, and the pleasure of a wide
range of facilities. Free Breakfast to
registered guests on the Sunday will be
returning
as will the Cosmodome (Mobile Planetarium).
Free Registration for children 13 and under
- (Standard
accommodation rates will still apply).
Guest Speakers � Fred Watson, Rob McNaught,
Phil Hart
(Astrophotography).
Astrophotography Workshops
Astro Activities
Vendors
and so much more!
The information pack is available online. As
always we welcome your
feedback on the registration process or
questions about the event itself.
Cheers
Petra de Ruyter
Secretary - Astronomical Society of Albury -
Wodonga
Secretary - Border Stargaze 2008 Committee
Mobile: 0431 535 417
Email: davartep@iprimus.com.au
**************************************************
What is Science Week
It's going to
be Australia's 11th National Science Week.
There will be activities for everyone! National Science Week 2008 will be from 16 -
24 August.
Anyone can
get involved in National Science Week and in
the coming months the 2008 event diary will
be available so you can search events and
find out what is happening around your area.
If you would
like to run an event in 2008 or would to
find out how your organisation can get
involved in National Science Week contact
scienceweek@dest.gov.au or call 02 6240
5078. If you have an enquiry about National
Science Week in schools send an email to
nscwk@asta.edu.au.
*****************************************************
