Are You Starstruck?

[Mother Dragon]

I'll bet a lot of us are stargazers. No, not movie stars. The kind in the sky. And all the other stuff up there, too. This is a great time to be looking up.

The Perseid meteor shower comes up first on August 12-13, Saturday night into Sunday. This is the best of the meteor showers with up to 150 meteors per hour. However, the moon will be just waning, so the viewing will probably be reduced to about 50-60 of the best and brightest per hour. The best viewing will be after midnight until almost dawn so you'll be up both late and early.

The we have the solar eclipse on Monday, August 21. The path of totality cuts a swath across the continental USA. Most of us will see at least some of the eclipse. The lucky ones will see the whole show. The next one will be in 2024.

If you want to watch the eclipse, you MUST have special glasses or you could be permanently blinded. You can even buy good paper-framed ones. Many local stores are carrying the glasses or you can order from the internet. However, please be sure they're certified for watching the eclipse. And don't look at the sun directly for more than three minutes even with those.

A very cheap alternative is a pinhole box made out of a shoebox. You don't look directly at the sun with it so it's a cheap and safe way to watch the show.

We're planning to go to a state park that has an observatory on a dark site, so the meteor viewing is very good. I expect we'll spend the whole night sitting in a parking lot, putting major cricks in our necks.

We considered traveling to see the eclipse, but I expect half the US will have the same idea. August in Texas is always blistering, so we're going to buy a small generator, hook up a couple of fans, and find an open place to watch as much of the show as possible. We already have our glasses.

Which brings me to these questions:

Are you an astronomy buff?

Will you make any special effort to watch the meteor shower, knowing that the best viewing will be after midnight?

Are you going to watch the eclipse? Are you in the path of totality? If not, do you plan to travel to be in the path of totality? Where? How far would you be willing to travel to see the total eclipse? Will the heat affect your decision?

Since TCS is an international group, I think there will be some very interesting answers. Let's hear yours!

 

[Winchester]

I can't wait! I'm so excited for the Perseids and am desperately hoping that the weather allows us to be outside pretty much all night long. Heat doesn't matter for us; we'll hang out outside for as long as we can. Humidity could be a hassle; rain will be frustrating. We love watching the Perseids and will spend the night walking from the front yard to the back yard and up on the hill out back.

As for the eclipse, well, I'm on vacation next Wed, Thurs, and Friday. But I'm thinking of changing it to Thurs, Fri, and Mon, simply so I can watch some of the eclipse....or what I can see in PA. I won't see total, but I should be able to see something. Rick will be in Vegas, so I'm on my own for the eclipse.

For those who are traveling, I hope you got your reservations and such in early....I heard that price gouging is at its finest for the eclipse in the areas of totality.

I love astronomy. When our son was younger, we gave him a telescope one year for Christmas. While he still lived at home, he and I would spend hours outside with the telescope at night, checking out everything we could. When he moved out, he took the telescope with him. I've often thought I should buy one for myself.

 

[mightyboosh]

I love astronomy. I have a couple of telescopes one of which is a dedicated Lunt solar scope. Here are some pics of the Sun, Jupiter and Moon that I took with them.

The Lunt scope in my yard one sunny day with astronomy camera in eyepiece linked to laptop. The Sun photo colours vary due to varying the wavelengths to bring out certain features.

 

[mightyboosh]

Hmm, I've put two photos of the scope in by mistake.

 

[mightyboosh]

Those bought solar glasses are fine but it's worth doing a check with them first. Find the brightest light source you can (not the Sun) and hold the glasses up to it. If you see any pinpricks of light whatsoever showing through, throw them away and get some more.

 

[Mother Dragon]

Sp

I love astronomy. I have a couple of telescopes one of which is a dedicated Lunt solar scope. Here are some pics of the Sun, Jupiter and Moon that I took with them.

The Lunt scope in my yard one sunny day with astronomy camera in eyepiece linked to laptop. The Sun photo colours vary due to varying the wavelengths to bring out certain features. View attachment 191296 View attachment 191298 View attachment 191300 View attachment 191301 View attachment 191302 View attachment 191303 View attachment 191304
View attachment 191296

Spectacular!

 

[MoochNNoodles]

mightyboosh Those pictures are AMAZING!!

I have always loved astronomy but not pursued it as a hobby to mightyboosh's level! One year DH gave me a telescope for my birthday. It's not fancy enough to do more than the basics; but it's still fun. I subscribed to a beginner astronomy magazine for a couple years until they stopped printing it.

I have taken my DD out in the middle of the night to watch the Perseid the last few years. Last year she was tired and asked to go back inside after a few minutes. We also had a critter in the yard with us. Still unidentified but a few people here had ideas when I posted about it.

We are actually going to study Astronomy for the entire year this year so I've been looking at a lot. (I homeschool my kids.) I did purchase the glasses for the eclipse but I'm still a little nervous about letting my 5 year old try it. I'm also looking for the nearest planetariums and places like that. We are very excited about the experiment/activities to go along with it.

I saw an article from NASA about what brands of glasses are safe to use. They were saying there are a lot for sale; even on Amazon, that are not approved! I don't want to risk something that could permanently damage any of us. I remember when we had a solar eclipse while I was in elementary school they made all the teachers close the shades in their classroom.

Fake solar eclipse glasses flood market; NASA recommends 5 brands
Safety | Total Solar Eclipse 2017
Reputable Vendors of Solar Filters & Viewers

 

[Mother Dragon]

As an educational and safe way to watch the eclipse, you might have the kids make a pinhole viewing box. With it, you never look directly at the sun, so it's safe. You can find instructions on the internet.

 

[mightyboosh]

mightyboosh Those pictures are AMAZING!!

I have always loved astronomy but not pursued it as a hobby to mightyboosh's level! One year DH gave me a telescope for my birthday. It's not fancy enough to do more than the basics; but it's still fun. I subscribed to a beginner astronomy magazine for a couple years until they stopped printing it.

I have taken my DD out in the middle of the night to watch the Perseid the last few years. Last year she was tired and asked to go back inside after a few minutes. We also had a critter in the yard with us. Still unidentified but a few people here had ideas when I posted about it.

We are actually going to study Astronomy for the entire year this year so I've been looking at a lot. (I homeschool my kids.) I did purchase the glasses for the eclipse but I'm still a little nervous about letting my 5 year old try it. I'm also looking for the nearest planetariums and places like that. We are very excited about the experiment/activities to go along with it.

I saw an article from NASA about what brands of glasses are safe to use. They were saying there are a lot for sale; even on Amazon, that are not approved! I don't want to risk something that could permanently damage any of us. I remember when we had a solar eclipse while I was in elementary school they made all the teachers close the shades in their classroom.

Fake solar eclipse glasses flood market; NASA recommends 5 brands
Safety | Total Solar Eclipse 2017
Reputable Vendors of Solar Filters & Viewers

Thanks for your compliment. I should have added that the best way to obtain the right quality glasses is via a proper astronomy store or an online astronomy supplier. There are many online. Still do the test though. The correct ones are perfectly safe for anyone but a child might be tempted to take them off for a second to get a 'better' look. You can easily project the Sun through a small hole in a piece of card onto another piece and obviously that is perfectly safe to view.

 

[mightyboosh]

As an educational and safe way to watch the eclipse, you might have the kids make a pinhole viewing box. With it, you never look directly at the sun, so it's safe. You can find instructions on the internet.

My apologies Mother Dragon, I didn't see your advice until I pressed the reply button.

 

[arouetta]

I have always loved astronomy. If I had an infinite supply of money I'd get a really, really good telescope. I don't have one now but I did have a 60mm and it was simply a tease. Though I was able to see Jupiter and its four largest moons when they were lined up in such a way it looked like two on one side, two on the other.

Recent years though I've gotten away from direct stargazing and more into the knowledge that could never be seen in a backyard telescope, like dark matter and the physics of a black hole and the likely reason the sun has a splotch of lithium on it.

 

[Boris Diamond]

Nice pictures, mightyboosh !

I have been a fan of astronomy since I was little. I love stargazing. I took a summer session at one college just because they had an astronomy course. Let me tell you, there is no better way to learn the stars and constellations than in a planetarium. I knew much when I started the course, but afterwards I knew all the major stars and all the constellations in the northern hemisphere and some in the southern. They could project the constellations on the ceiling and use a pointer flashlight to show which star is which. There was no confusion about what they were pointing to! That was the most enjoyable lab I have ever had.

I have a nice 4" Televue refractor and an 8" Dobsonian. I also have a nice selection of Televue eyepieces.

However, it has been cloudy here for every meteor shower and the lunar eclipse that have taken place in the last two years! And it is supposed to be raining this weekend for the Perseids! I am praying we have a clear day for the eclipse. I have been at the at the center of an eclipse in Edenton, NC in the 70's. It is indescribable. Much more amazing than I could have imagined. If there is any way you can see an eclipse from an area of totality, do it!!!

 

[Winchester]

mightyboosh your pictures are simply awesome! Gorgeous! I am green with envy at your telescope and the way you have it all set up. Excellent!

Yeah, we are to have humidity and t-storms Saturday into Saturday night. We're going to stay up though and, hopefully, the rain will stop and it will clear off, even just a little bit.

 

[mightyboosh]

This is the raw video of the Sun in the second photo before lots of tinkering. I hadn't got the tracking spot on so it drifts too much for my liking.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Very cool!!

 

[Mother Dragon]

This is the raw video of the Sun in the second photo before lots of tinkering. I hadn't got the tracking spot on so it drifts too much for my liking.

I looked at your solar video, which is excellent. That led me to the Oliver videos, which were delightful, especially the one with the catnip.

We're really glad you joined TCS. You have a lot to share with us!

 

[mightyboosh]

A few space facts/estimations for anyone who doesn't know. Apart from the first fact, estimates vary.

1 million Earths would fit inside the Sun and it's about 864,000 miles in diameter (Earth is about 7,900)
The Sun loses approximately 4 to 5 million tons of mass every second. EVERY SECOND. Yet it's life span is about 10 billion years. I can't wrap my head around that one.
Betelgeuse (top left star in Orion) is 1000 times larger than the Sun and is 13,000 times brighter. If Betelgeuse were placed where our Sun is, it would extend past the orbit of Jupiter. We would be toast!
Betelgeuse could go supernova at any time and would be spectacular, shining brighter than the full Moon for several weeks before it faded out of sight.
A teaspoon full of neutron star material would weigh as much as Mount Everest. Estimates vary a lot on this one, some say a billion tons per teaspoon full. On that note, if all the space were taken out of all the atoms of the worlds population, the resultant condensed material would fit inside a sugar cube but would obviously still weigh the same as all the people on Earth. another one I can't comprehend.
A marshmallow dropped from the height of 1 metre on a neutron star would hit the surface at over 4 million mph and have the energy of a nuclear bomb when it hit.
The closest star to us is about 4 light years away which is about 25,000,000,000,000 miles - and that's the closest one! The furthest are billions of light years away.
It's just mind boggling.

 

[Alejandra Rico]

There is no way to see most meteor showers where I live. Not because of the lights of the city or pollution, but because Asturias seems to be permanently covered by a dome of grey clouds. Indeed, there where a couple of eclipses we almost didn't notice because the Sun could not be seen anyway.
I call our dome "the anti-tourism shield".
Best of lucks to all of you, and please share pictures if you can so I can also enjoy come of that celestial beauty.

 

[Mother Dragon]

There is no way to see most meteor showers where I live. Not because of the lights of the city or pollution, but because Asturias seems to be permanently covered by a dome of grey clouds. Indeed, there where a couple of eclipses we almost didn't notice because the Sun could not be seen anyway.
I call our dome "the anti-tourism shield".
Best of lucks to all of you, and please share pictures if you can so I can also enjoy come of that celestial beauty.

Many TV networks are covering the eclipse. I know The Science Channel here in the US is. That's as close as we're going to get, too.

 

[Alejandra Rico]

Many TV networks are covering the eclipse. I know The Science Channel here in the US is. That's as close as we're going to get, too.

Do you have a cloud dome too? People call Asturias Mordor because the Sky is hardly ever seen, and Winterfell because we never seem to be able to have a propper summer. We have about 6 months of a mild winter (not usually getting under -10 C°) and like a very long mixture of spring and autum in which it is raining 90% of the time. We have a joke about the Universal Deluge... "40 days and 40 nights raining, and they called It Universal Deluge? We call that summer!"