The Known Universe

I've seen this before, but it's so good it's worth looking at again.  See if the scale doesn't blow your mind when seeing the known universe in a 3d representation.

Star Party Saturday night in Tyler

Hello Friends, This is a special newsletter bulletin. Come observe the stars with our astronomers! The Center for Earth & Space Science Education will be hosting another star party this Saturday, October 20th. This event is free to the public and sponsored by the Astronomical Society of East Texas. Starting at 8:00pm, we will be showing East Texas Live Sky in our 40-foot dome (three showings, one every half-hour). If weather permits, we will also have telescopes set up outside of the planetarium for viewing.   What: Star Party!  Where: The Center for Earth & Space Science Education at Tyler Junior College   When: October 20, 2012, 8:00pm  Tickets: Free! For more information on this event or other events at the Center for Earth & Space Science Education please visit our website at www.tjc.edu/cesse or call 903-510-2313. Thanks, Tom Dr. Tom Hooten, Ed.D. Professor, Physics & Engineering Director, Center for Earth & Space Science Education NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador Tyler Junior College

Contact Us:                                                             The Center for Earth & Space Science Education 1411 East Lake St.  Tyler, TX 75701

Don K gets his picture in the paper :)

Longview News-Journal wrote an article publicizing the Longview WOW event "Out of This World" and look who ended up on the cover picture :)

Click below to see the entire article or grab a Sunday paper from 09/23

Out of This World in Longview

We had a great turnout today at the Longview Fairgrounds for the "Out of This World" event hosted by LongviewWOW.org!  Paul, Robert and Don K. were all on hand to help people look view sunspots.

Paul brought tons of information from NASA (a benefit of being members of the Night Sky Network) and we handed out a bunch of NASA CDRom's and brochures.

Joe Lee Ferguson (President of LongviewWOW) mentioned that they had over 1,000 in attendance so we must have visited with most of them :)

ASET in Longview tomorrow

Come to the Longview Fairgrounds to visit with us and so some safe solar viewing.  We're exhibiting at the LongviewWOW Out of this World Traveling Space Museum tomorrow and hope to see many East Texans in attendence.

Click Here for more Details

Star Party Saturday Night at CESSE

Hello Friends,

This is a special newsletter bulletin. Come observe the stars with astronomers! The Center for Earth & Space Science Education will be hosting a star party this Saturday, September 22nd. This event is free to the public and sponsored by the Astronomical Society of East Texas. Starting at 8:00pm, we will be showing East Texas Live Sky in our 40-foot dome and, if weather permits, setting up telescopes outside of the planetarium for viewing.

What: Star Party!

Where: The Center for Earth & Space Science Education at Tyler Junior College

When: September 22, 2012, 8:00pm

Tickets: Free!

In addition, I'd also like to take this opportunity to inform you that our public show schedule will be changing slightly. Starting this week (Monday, September 17th), our hours will change to the following:

Monday-Wednesday: Closed

Thursday-Friday: Open at 1:30pm, Close at 5:00pm

Saturday: Open at 10:30am, Close at 5:00pm

Sunday: Open at 12:00pm, Close at 5:00pm

For more information on this event, other events at the Center for Earth & Space Science Education, or our schedule, please visit our website at www.tjc.edu/cesse or call 903-510-2313.

Thanks,
Tom

Dr. Tom Hooten, Ed.D.
Professor, Physics & Engineering
Director, Center for Earth & Space Science Education
NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador
Tyler Junior College

High Definition Mars Descent

This is unbelievably beautiful.  To see what it actually looked like is amazing.  Make sure you watch it in HD Fullscreen to get the full effect.

Neil Armstrong: 1930-2012

The moon will miss its first son of earth.

Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission, has died, following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures. He was 82.

Armstrong's words "That is one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind," spoken on July 20, 1969, as he became the first person ever to step onto another planetary body, instantly became a part of history.

Those few words from the Sea of Tranquillity were the climactic fulfillment of the efforts and hopes of millions of people and the expenditure of billions of dollars. A plaque on one of the lander's legs that concluded "We came in peace for all mankind," further emphasized that Armstrong and fellow astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin were there as representatives of all humans.

Click here to read the whole story at NASA.gov

Suited for Space Premiere Event - 08.25.12 @ 5:30

Hello Friends,

Starting August 25th, just in time for the Fall semester, the Center for Earth & Space Science Education at TJC will host a new exhibit, a new show, and a special event.

Suited for Space, a new exhibition from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, opens Saturday, Aug. 25. The exhibit, which explores the evolution of spacesuit development from the early 20th century until the dawn of the shuttle era, features large-scale photographs of suits worn by astronauts from Project Mercury through the Skylab program, as well as suits used in testing and training. The CESSE is the only Texas stop for the Suited for Space exhibition. Following its Nov. 18 closing, it will then head to Massachusetts then on to the National Museum of Air and Space in Washington, D.C.

Heather Paul, a NASA Johnson Space Center engineer for future space suits, will speak at the exhibit opening 5:30-7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 25. Paul’s engineering career at Johnson Space Center has included developing life support designs for next-generation spacesuits that astronauts will wear as they explore places such as the Moon, Mars, or an asteroid.

“Astronaut,” narrated by actor Ewan McGregor (from “Star Wars” and “Moulin Rouge”), takes viewers on a 30-minute journey through inner and outer space to witness a rocket launch from inside the body of an astronaut and see the effects of floating around the International Space Station.

The event will include Paul’s program, admission to the Suited for Space exhibit, the center’s new dome-theater presentation “Astronaut,” and a reception with hors d’oeuvres. Tickets to this special event are $20 and can be purchased in advance online at http://www.tjc.edu/cesse.

What: A Date in Space!

Where: The Center for Earth & Space Science Education at Tyler Junior College (1411 E. Lake St.)

When: August 25, 2012, 5:30pm-7:00pm

Tickets: $20/person, includes reception, exhibit, speaker, show.

For more information on these and other events at the Center for Earth & Space Science Education at TJC, please go to www.tjc.edu/cesse or call 903-510-2312.

Curiosity Lands on Mars!

NASA's most advanced Mars rover, Curiosity, has landed on the Red Planet. The one-ton rover, hanging by ropes from a rocket backpack, touched down onto Mars early Monday EDT to end a 36-week flight and begin a two-year investigation.

Click Here for the pics on Nasa.gov!

Mars Science Lab Probe Landing

Around August 5th, the Mars Science Lab probe will land on Mars. The event can be viewed via video feed from NASA. The site below is where the event can be found on or about that date. It is possible that you may have to search for Mars Science Lab. You can see the animation on this site now.

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html


Information from Jet Propulsion Laboratory on MSL Curiosity landing.


When to Watch Landing
August 5, 2012 10:31 PM PDT (12:31 AM CDT) - after midnight
Show Begins 8:30 PM PDT (10:30 PM CDT)


Check to see if you have NASA TV on your cable or satellite TV system.

Paul R. Shaw

Astronomics Grand Opening - Norman Oklahoma

We (ASET) received a note from Michael Bieler and wanted to spread the word about his grand opening on September 29th at 9:00 AM.  Astronomics is the sponsor of Cloudy Nights which most astronomy enthusiasts enjoy on a regular basis.  Please make an effort to visit them in Norman, Oklahoma to show support for astronomy.


---------------------------------------

New Store Showroom

My name is Michael Bieler, owner of astronomics in Norman, Oklahoma, and the
world’s largest free on-line astronomy forum Cloudy Nights. I was
wondering if it would be alright for you to mention the Grand Opening of our
new astronomics store in Norman in your newsletter or at your next meeting.
astronomics has the largest telescope showroom in the U.S. (over 4000 square
feet), with over 120 telescopes and 200 eyepieces on display, and much more.

While we are open now, the date for the official Grand Opening is September
29th at 9:00 AM. We plan for it to be an all-day affair, ending with a
sidewalk astronomy/star party involving the local high school astronomy
clubs and hopefully the OKC astronomy club or any other club that wants to
make a showing.

The Norman North Astronomy Club advisor has already committed to manning the
solar scopes during the day for a sidewalk astronomy and man scopes at night
for an outreach star party.

We will have in-store sales and door prizes. TeleVue, for one, has already
donated over $2000 worth of Ethos eyepieces in a carry bag as a door prize.
Many manufacturers have agreed to come and talk about their products while
displaying what they can do. TeleVue, Celestron, Meade, Lunt, Explore
Scientific, and others are making their way down to Norman and I expect to
see more and more door prizes pop up soon. We will update our website,
CloudyNights.com, as well as our facebook page as soon as more information
becomes available.

Alan Traino, the head of NEAF, will also be dropping by. He’s scouting out
locations for a possible central U.S. trade show/science exposition similar
to NEAF. A good turnout would go a long way to convince him to set up a
yearly show in Oklahoma that would be convenient for all astronomers in the
central states to attend to see the latest and greatest from astronomy
equipment manufacturers.

Any mention of our Grand Opening that you might want to pass along to your
club members would be appreciated. We will also send updates to you about

additional manufacturers’ door prizes and such if that is all right with
you as well. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at
mike at astronomics.com or 800-422-7876.


I know that some of you live extremely far away from Oklahoma and will not
be able to make a the trip. However, I would like to pass on a discount we
provide astronomy club member that you all might not be aware of. Some
people are not aware that astronomics owns the astronomy forum
www.cloudynights.com. As a thank you for the support the community has given
us over the past 33 years, we offer a discount on almost all of our
products. All we need is for astronomy club members who give us their club
affiliation when they place an order over the phone or via the internet. Due
to manufacturer restrictions the discount will not show up in the basket,
but will be on the invoice that is mailed to you. As always, feel free to
contact us about any questions you have about a potential discount or
technical issues.

Thank you for your time.

Clear Skies,

Michael Bieler

Astronomics
110 East Main St.
Norman, OK
73069

www.astronomics.com

www.cloudynights.com
www.astronomytechnologies.com
www.facebook.com/astronomics
www.pinterest.com/astronomics
www.twitter.com/astronomics

KLTV Interviewing Paul about the Venus Transit

Click here to watch KLTV Interviewing Paul about the Transit of Venus 2012

2012 Venus Transit in HD

2012 Venus Transit NASA Images

Check out the images NASA is putting up for the 2012 Venus Transit

Tyler Paper talks to Tom Hooten about the transit of Venus

Venus Will Be Visible In Day Sky; Tylerites Can See It At TJC's CESSE

By BRITTNI BARNETT
Staff Writer

East Texans will have the opportunity to see one of the rarest sites in astronomy on Tuesday as Venus passes between Earth and the sun for the last time this century.

The Transit of Venus occurs about every 100 years in pairs separated by eight years, , said Tom Hooten, director of the Tyler Junior College's Center for Earth and Space Science Education.

A transit is characterized by an object moving in front of a larger object, Hooten said. Rather than covering the entire sun, Venus will merely resemble a small black disc moving across it.The last transit took place in June 2004 and after Tuesday, will not occur again until 2117 and 2125, he said.

When Johannes Kepler first theorized his laws of planetary motion he also made predictions about transits of Venus and Mercury, Hooten said.

"That really provided evidence back then of something that is common knowledge today -- that math can make predictions about what happens," he said. "That was revolutionary thinking back then, that you could actually predict what would happen in the heavens."

Click to read the rest of the story on TylerPaper.com

Night Sky Network

Everyone,

We are officially a member group of Night Sky Network. Night Sky Network is a NASA JPL affliated collection of astronomy clubs who common interest, and our mission, to provide astronomical education and experiences to the general public.

Check out : http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

and find the group near Tyler,Texas. Check out events too.


Paul Shaw

NASA Mission Wants Amateur Astronomers to Target Asteroids

April 18, 2012

Dwayne Brown 
Headquarters, Washington 
202-358-1726 
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov 

Nancy Neal Jones 
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. 
301-286-0039 
nancy.n.jones@nasa.gov 

RELEASE: 12-121

NASA MISSION WANTS AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS TO TARGET ASTEROIDS

WASHINGTON -- A new NASA outreach project will enlist the help of 
amateur astronomers to discover near-Earth objects (NEOs) and study 
their characteristics. NEOs are asteroids with orbits that 
occasionally bring them close to the Earth. 

Starting today, a new citizen science project called "Target 
Asteroids!" will support NASA's Origins Spectral Interpretation 
Resource Identification Security - Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) 
mission objectives to improve basic scientific understanding of NEOs. 
OSIRIS-Rex is scheduled for launch in 2016 and will study material 
from an asteroid. 

Amateur astronomers will help better characterize the population of 
NEOs, including their position, motion, rotation and changes in the 
intensity of light they emit. Professional astronomers will use this 
information to refine theoretical models of asteroids, improving 
their understanding about asteroids similar to the one OSIRIS-Rex 
will encounter in 2019, designated 1999 RQ36. 

OSIRIS-Rex will map the asteroid's global properties, measure 
non-gravitational forces and provide observations that can be 
compared with data obtained by telescope observations from Earth. In 
2023, OSIRIS-REx will return back to Earth at least 2.11 ounces (60 
grams) of surface material from the asteroid. 

Target Asteroids! data will be useful for comparisons with actual 
mission data. The project team plans to expand participants in 2014 
to students and teachers. 

"Although few amateur astronomers have the capability to observe 1999 
RQ36 itself, they do have the capability to observe other targets," 
said Jason Dworkin, OSIRIS-REx project scientist at NASA's Goddard 
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. 

Previous observations indicate 1999 RQ36 is made of primitive 
materials. OSIRIS-REx will supply a wealth of information about the 
asteroid's composition and structure. Data also will provide new 
insights into the nature of the early solar system and its evolution, 
orbits of NEOs and their impact risks, and the building blocks that 
led to life on Earth. 

Amateur astronomers long have provided NEO tracking observations in 
support of NASA's NEO Observation Program. A better understanding of 
NEOs is a critically important precursor in the selection and 
targeting of future asteroid missions. 

"For well over 10 years, amateurs have been important contributors in 
the refinement of orbits for newly discovered near-Earth objects," 
said Edward Beshore, deputy principal investigator for the OSIRIS-REx 
mission at the University of Arizona in Tucson. 

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., will provide 
overall mission management, systems engineering and safety and 
mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta is the mission's 
principal investigator at the University of Arizona. Lockheed Martin 
Space Systems in Denver will build the spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the 
third mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program. NASA's Marshall Space 
Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages New Frontiers for the 
agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. 

For more information about NASA, visit: 


http://www.nasa.gov 

For more information on Target Asteroids! and OSIRIS-REx, visit: 

http://osiris-rex.lpl.arizona.edu 

New Facebook URL

Now it's even easier to follow us on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/asetexas is our new Facebook URL.

Global Astronomy Month and International Dark Sky Week

Global Astronomy Month 2012 (GAM 2012) in April is the world's largest global celebration of astronomy since the unprecedented International Year of Astronomy 2009.

GAM 2012 brings new ideas and new opportunities, and again brings enthusiasts together worldwide, celebrating One People, One Sky.

Click Here to Learn More About it

International Dark Sky Week 14 - 20 April, 2012


Celebrate the stars! Created in 2003 by high-school student Jennifer Barlow, IDSW has grown to become a worldwide event and a key component of Global Astronomy Month.

Click Here to Learn More

Astronomy Day 2012 + Star Party

Just updated the calendar with the details for Astronomy Day 2012 and a Star Party afterwards (weather permitting).

Please look at our calendar for more details or Follow us on Facebook

Thanks for checking us out - and Clear Skies to you :)

Club Star Party Results

(copied from my personal observing blog - fovet.blogspot.com - from February 26th)

If you like what you see, become a member and come star watching with us :)

Star party in a blue zone (light pollution minimal) and being able to see the Milky Way is hard to beat.

Crescent Moon - stacked 3 shots at 400 iso 1/400th

Pleiades - nice and bright

I bumped the levels some to show how many stars we had.
Sirius is the bright one in the center of the frame.

Bode's Nebula (M81 and M82)

The reason I bought my first telescope.
Horsehead Nebula on the right (looks like a knight in chess)
and Flame Nebula on the left.

Orion's Nebula
This is probably my last attempt at Orion before it warms up.
This is two different shots blended in the middle to keep detail near the trapezium.
The long exposure was 120 seconds x 22 shots to get about 7 good ones.

2012 School Night for Astronomy

PRESS RELEASE

Forty area students from five  local school districts and home schools, along with teachers and other adults, participated in the 2012 School Night for Astronomy held on January 27, 2012 at the Mineola Nature Preserve. Twenty-three of the participants were from Yantis ISD. The students were able to views several celestial objects, including the Sun, sunspots,  the Moon, planets, constellations, stars, nebulas, star clusters, the Milky Way and galaxies.






A wide range of telescopes and binoculars used for the event were provided by member of the Astronomical Society of East Texas and co-sponsored by The Center for Earth and Space Science Education at Tyler Junior College.  Members participating  were Don Jackson of Eustace, Don Kilfoyle of Longview, Bill Fabers and daughter Nancy Geiger of Golden and Paul Shaw of Mineola. 

Updated Star Party

Join us at the Mineola Nature Preserve on January 27th for School Night for Astronomy - come check out the telescopes and make some new friends :)

Here's a map to help you get there

Dr. Phil Plait - Public Astronomy Lecture Series (at CESSE)

Click to visit CESSE and buy tickets - see you at the show...