Useful Links – Bath Astronomers

What are we up to?

May27

Talk by Elizabeth Pearson, Rovers and Landers

27 MayHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 27th May – Monthly meeting. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or William Herschel Society members. Bath Astronomers members get free entry. Picture: Simon Holbeche

Jun20

Solar Observing on the day of the Summer Solstice

20 JunHerschel Museum of Astronomy

June 20th (Saturday) , 12noon to 4pm Solar observing on the day of the Summer Solstice from the house and garden where 18th century brother and sister astronomers William and Caroline Herschel lived and the site where the Planet Uranus was discovered from in 1781. Generously supported by volunteers of Bath Astronomers.

Jun24

Talk by Roger Hyman, Getting great astrophotos

24 JunHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 24th June – Monthly meeting. Roger has been taking astro photos for the last 18 months and has produced some amazing results from commercially available kit you don't need to be a millionaire to afford. Roger will lead us through how he does it and perhaps you'll pick up a few tips. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or William Herschel Society members. Bath Astronomers members get free entry. Picture: Simon Holbeche

Sep30

Talk by Mark Radice, Observing the Planets

30 SepHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 30th September – Monthly meeting. A talk by Mark Radice on observing the planets. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or William Herschel Society members. Bath Astronomers members get free entry. Picture: Mark Radice

Oct28

Talk by Stephen Tonkin, Two Eyes are Better than One

28 OctHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 28th October – Monthly meeting. A talk by Stephen Tonkin on binocular astronomy. Two Eyes are Better than One. Steve Tonkin has been an amateur astronomer since childhood and now spends most of his time doing astronomical outreach; he leads public observing sessions at BBC Stargazing Live events. He has taught astronomy to adults and children for over 35 years and has authored many articles and several books on practical aspects of astronomy. He writes equipment reviews and a monthly Binocular Tour for BBC Sky at Night magazine. Steve is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, a past-chairman of the Wessex Astronomical Society and a founder member of Fordingbridge Astronomers. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or William Herschel Society members. Bath Astronomers members get free entry. Picture: Stephen Tonkin

Nov23

Moon/Planet viewing with Bath Astronomers

23 NovHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Monday 23 November, 6pm to 9pm Evening observing session from the house and garden of 18th century brother and sister astronomers William and Caroline Herschel. The Planet Uranus was discovered from the garden in 1781, by William. Generously supported by volunteers from Bath Astronomers.

Nov25

A Life on Mars. Talk by Bud Martin

25 NovHerschel Museum of Astronomy

A Life On Mars by Bud Martin We take a look at the personalities, speculations and theories that have contributed to our changing views of the Red Planet over the last 150 years. From the sublime to the ridiculous, we examine what it takes to visit our near neighbour. About Bud Bud first became interested in astronomy at 8 years old after seeing a bright meteor flash across the night sky. Determined to learn more, he avidly read all the astronomy books in the local Public Library then set about making his first telescope from spectacle lenses and cardboard tubes. At the same time, he developed a love for music and by the age of 13 had made his own electric guitar. Nearly 60 years later, Bud is still performing at gigs on his equally old Gibson 345. Astigmatism in his right (dominant) eye began to make observation at the telescope eyepiece a troublesome experience so Bud developed a system using a modified web-cam to view the heavens. Naturally, this paved the way to enable him to capture the images he was seeing on the computer screen. Constantly improving camera sensor technology meant that before long he was seeing objects – especially on the Lunar surface – in such detail impossible with his naked eye. Bud is an internationally published Lunar Astrophotographer. The event: Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. Bath Astronomers' members and under 18s enter for free. All visitors welcome and there is an entry charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for Herschel Society members and students. Picture: Bud Martin

Dec17

Evening Astronomy

17 DecHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Thursday 17 December, 8pm to 11pm Evening observing session from the house and garden of 18th century brother and sister astronomers William and Caroline Herschel. The planet Uranus was discovered from the garden here, by William, in 1781. Generously supported by volunteers from Bath Astronomers

Jan27

Talk by Nick Howes, Oh My God, We're all gonna die

27 JanHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 27th January – Monthly meeting. Nick Howes has sixteen years' experience working at the cutting edge of Research and Development. Formerly Deputy Director of Kielder Observatory, Sci-Comms for ESA, software development for the SKA Telescope, and Pro-Am Programme Manager for the Faulkes Telescopes, helping to discover dozens of new asteroids. Nick is both a fellow of the BIS and of the Royal Astronomical Society, and works now as the Lead Specialist for BMT's Space R&D team. BMT Defence and Security were the architectural design team behind the QEC Aircraft Carrier, and have offices all over the world, including Bath. His Talk "Oh My God...We're all gonna die" takes us through the perceived threats in space, and hones in on the ones that could truly change the face of our planet forever. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or William Herschel Society members. Bath Astronomers members get free entry. Picture: Nick Howes

Mar31

Talk by Pete Williamson FRAS

31 MarHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 31st March – Monthly meeting. Topic to be confirmed: Observing the Moon, or From Herschel to Hawkwind Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or William Herschel Society members. Bath Astronomers members get free entry. Picture: Peter Williamson

Jun30

Talk by Chris Starr, Cassini and Saturn

30 JunHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 30th June – Monthly meeting. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5 which helps cover the cost of the venue. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or Bath Astronomers members. Picture: Simon Holbeche

The Moon

First Quarter (Illumination: 58%)
Age: 8.14 days (Phase: 27.6%)
Size: 31.6' (Distance: 377,970km)
Moon rise: 11:11
Moon set: 03:09

New Moon	First Quarter	Full Moon	Last Quarter
Tue 24 Mar	Wed 1 Apr	Wed 8 Apr	Tue 14 Apr
Thu 23 Apr	Thu 30 Apr	Thu 7 May	Thu 14 May
Fri 22 May	Sat 30 May	Fri 5 Jun	Sat 13 Jun
Sun 21 Jun	Sun 28 Jun	Sun 5 Jul	Sun 12 Jul

The Sun

Sunset: 18:44
End twilight: 20:43
Begin twilight: 03:39
Sunrise: 05:39

Current Meteor Showers

Shower	Start	Peak	End	ZHR

Current Missions

Past Missions

Mythology

Constellation Mythology- A nice little page with links to more details on the mythology behind certain constellations

Exoplanets

Sun

Mercury

BepiColombo

The Moon

Moon Phases and Libration 2019
Apollo- NASA's overview of the Apollo programme to land people on the Moon

Mars

Jupiter

Juno

Saturn

Cassini-Huygens- Great mission that rewrote the book on Saturn

Asteroids

Space Ideas

Space Elevators and Astronomy

Astro Clubs and Observing

Go Stargazing- Listings of UK observing events
Bath Astronomers- Meets last Wednesday of the month
Beckington AS- Meets 3rd Friday of the month
Bristol AS- Meets once a week
Starquest Astronomers
Wells and Mendip Astronomers
Wiltshire AS- Meets first Tuesday of the month

School Outreach Ideas

Telescopes

Guide to Telescopes by Stargazing Live- A 6 page guide from the BBC on buying your first telescope

Software

Solar System Scope- A great tool for exploring the Solar System in both enlarged and realistic modes. You can use it online or pay a small sum to download and use it offline.
Worldwide Telescope- The American Astronomical Society's Worldwide Telescope available as a web application or a Windows download

The Planets

Planet	Rises	Sets	Constellation	Disk Size	Sun separation
Mercury	Thursday 05:15:04	Thursday 16:07:48	Aqr	6.5" (50%)	26.2°
Venus	Thursday 06:53:08	Thursday 23:23:05	Tau	25.8" (41%)	45.8°
Mars	Thursday 03:32:51	Thursday 11:51:13	Cap	6.4" (25%)	71.2°
Jupiter	Thursday 03:05:42	Thursday 11:16:23	Sgr	36.3" (74%)	78.2°
Saturn	Thursday 03:23:47	Thursday 11:50:07	Cap	15.6" (78%)	72.0°
Uranus	Thursday 06:29:00	Thursday 20:44:01	Ari	3.4" (83%)	22.5°
Neptune	Thursday 05:11:35	Thursday 16:22:07	Aqr	2.2" (98%)	23.4°

Rise and Set times are with respect to Bath, UK. (%) indicates size compared to maximum possible. As Separation with the Sun approaches 0°, we have Conjunction. As it approaches 180°, we have Opposition. Planets will not be visible between Sunrise(05:39) and Sunset(18:44)

Messier objects due South now

Messier	Name	Type	Magnitude	Constellation
M4	NGC6121	Globular Cluster	5.9	Scorpius
M6	Butterfly Cluster	Open Cluster	4.2	Scorpius
M9	NGC6333	Globular Cluster	7.9	Ophiuchus
M10	NGC6254	Globular Cluster	6.6	Ophiuchus
M12	NGC6218	Globular Cluster	6.6	Ophiuchus
M13	Hercules Cluster	Globular Cluster	5.9	Hercules
M14	NGC6402	Globular Cluster	7.6	Ophiuchus
M19	NGC6273	Globular Cluster	7.2	Ophiuchus
M62	NGC6266	Globular Cluster	6.6	Ophiuchus
M80	NGC6093	Globular Cluster	7.2	Scorpius
M92	NGC6341	Globular Cluster	6.5	Hercules
M107	NGC6171	Globular Cluster	8.1	Ophiuchus

Click on the Messier number for the finders guide for the deep sky object.

Spot the Space Station from Bath

Date	Mag	Start	Max	End
Thu 02 Apr	-2.0	20:46:50 look W alt 11°	35°	20:52:23 look SE alt 13°
Fri 03 Apr	-0.4	21:37:17 look WSW alt 10°	13°	21:40:01 look SSW alt 11°
Sat 04 Apr	-1.0	20:49:16 look W alt 11°	18°	20:53:40 look S alt 11°

Latest Starlink Satellites - 17th Feb

Date	Satellite	Rise	Max	Set
Thu 02 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:48:08 look W alt 12°	69°	21:53:33 look ENE alt 35°
Thu 02 Apr	STARLINK-1241	23:27:31 look WNW alt 10°	23°	23:29:07 look WNW alt 23°
Fri 03 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:42:41 look W alt 12°	69°	21:48:06 look ENE alt 35°
Fri 03 Apr	STARLINK-1241	23:22:21 look WNW alt 12°	26°	23:23:57 look WNW alt 26°
Sat 04 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:37:15 look W alt 12°	71°	21:43:00 look E alt 30°
Sat 04 Apr	STARLINK-1241	23:16:53 look WNW alt 12°	29°	23:18:47 look W alt 29°
Sun 05 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:31:30 look WNW alt 10°	75°	21:37:34 look E alt 31°
Sun 05 Apr	STARLINK-1241	23:11:25 look WNW alt 11°	28°	23:13:18 look W alt 28°
Mon 06 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:26:05 look WNW alt 10°	80°	21:32:29 look E alt 26°
Mon 06 Apr	STARLINK-1241	23:05:57 look WNW alt 11°	29°	23:08:08 look W alt 29°
Tue 07 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:20:41 look WNW alt 10°	87°	21:27:04 look ESE alt 27°
Tue 07 Apr	STARLINK-1241	23:00:31 look W alt 10°	28°	23:02:57 look WSW alt 28°
Wed 08 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:15:17 look WNW alt 10°	84°	21:21:59 look ESE alt 23°
Wed 08 Apr	STARLINK-1241	22:55:23 look W alt 11°	25°	22:57:46 look WSW alt 25°
Thu 09 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:10:13 look WNW alt 12°	73°	21:16:54 look ESE alt 19°
Thu 09 Apr	STARLINK-1241	22:49:58 look W alt 10°	21°	22:52:34 look SW alt 21°
Fri 10 Apr	STARLINK-1241	21:04:50 look WNW alt 12°	62°	21:11:48 look SE alt 16°
Fri 10 Apr	STARLINK-1241	22:44:50 look W alt 10°	18°	22:47:21 look SW alt 18°
Sat 11 Apr	STARLINK-1241	20:59:27 look WNW alt 11°	52°	21:06:41 look SE alt 14°
Sat 11 Apr	STARLINK-1241	22:39:59 look WSW alt 10°	14°	22:42:22 look SW alt 14°

This is the lead satellite from the 5th batch of 60 of the Starlink constellation launched on 17th Feb 2020

Prior Starlink Satellites - 29th Jan

Date	Satellite	Rise	Max	Set

This is one of the satellites from the 4th batch of 60 of the Starlink constellation launched on 29th Jan 2020

Asteroid or Potato?

Is this asteroid Arrokoth or a potato? Perhaps, after all the data was beamed back to Earth from NASA's robotic New Horizons spacecraft, the featured high resolution image of asteroid Arrokoth was constructed. Perhaps, alternatively, the featured image is of a potato. Let's consider some facts. Arrokoth is the most distant asteroid ever visited and a surviving remnant of the early years of our Solar System. A potato is a root vegetable that you can eat. Happy April Fool's Day from the folks at APOD! Although asteroid Arrokoth may look like a potato, in fact very much like the featured potato, Arrokoth (formerly known as Ultima Thule) is about 200,000 times wider and much harder to eat. Activities: NASA Science at Home