Central Maine Astronomical Society

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The Firecracker Galaxy, NGC 6946

Lunar Eclipse Photo

Here's an image taken during totality from Camden. This image is the result of a stack of 20 luminance images and 10 each taken through red, green, and blue filters.

Sungazing at Merryspring's Winter Ecology Fair

Come join CMAS astronomers at Camden's Merryspring Nature Center as part of Winter Ecology Fest from 10am-2pm on Feb 7th, 2009. Take a look at our nearest star through a variety of safe telescopes operated by knowledgeable amateur astronomers. We had a blast last year and hope to see you. You can read a report from last year's fair below:

From our Special Correspondent Chuck Ebert:

Winter Ecology Day at Merryspring on February 2 was a success. Glenn (President emeritus and class clown) arrived with his SC equipped with solar filter and binocular ocular. Bill set up Mr. Brower"s Coronado (thanks, Mr. Brower) and I set up the PST. We had a ball swapping out eyepieces and seeing not much of anything. Conditions improved as the sky cleared and eagle-eyed Glenn and steely-eyed Bill spotted small prominences on the limb and then some spectacularly large but faint prominences deep in the disc of the sun. Bill stayed until 2:00 PM, he tells me, and untold curious passersby had a look. One family brought a telescope so we could help them set it up for terrestrial viewing and occasional imaging. They were very pleased with the help they got. All in all the club met its mission statement (has anybody see it lately?) to promote interest in amateur astronomy.

Paul Howell to Discuss Co-Discovery of an Exoplanet.

Join us on Friday Oct. 17 at 7pm for a talk by amateur astronomer Paul Howell. Paul is part of the successful XO project, a professional-amateur collaboration responsible for the discovery of several exoplanets.

Exoplanets are bodies orbiting around distant suns, and Paul will detail the transit method for observing these planets.

Club president Pete Kalajian has also been busy with exoplanet transit observing. Check out his light curves of exoplanet WASP-10b.

Comet Holmes!

Comet Holmes is a naked eye sight in the northern sky in the constellation Perseus. It looks like a fairly bright star to the naked eye, but swing a pair of binoculars around on it to see a wonderful fuzzy ball. No tail visible yet, but keep your eyes on this one. It brightened a million times in one day, so there may be more surprises in store. Check out this nice photographic finder chart.

CMAS President Pete Kalajian Unveils His New Website

Pete Kalajian has just finished his website dedicated to ccd imaging and amateur telescope making. Check it out!

Naked Eye Constellation Tour on (date to be rescheduled:Stay Tuned)

Come Join Pete Kalajian, a local amateur astronomer for a night of stargazing at 149 Youngs Hill Road in Washington as part of the (put in the proper name of the library's program here) . Pete will be hosting a tour of the constellations using his laser pointer that greatly simplifies seeing the constellation outlines. Bring a blanket or lounger, binoculars and sky charts if you have them, and a red flashlight. You can make a simple red flashlight by taping some red cellophane over the lens. Dimmer lights work best. Plan to arrive just at twilight, around 9:00pm, and watch the sun's last rays fade as Venus outshines everything else in the sky. After the talk, Pete will have a telescope available, and folks can take a look through that, too.

For directions, call Susan Richardson at 845-2807.

CMAS now on Giveline

Why not make your next online purchase through Giveline. A portion of your purchase will be donated to CMAS. Check out the link for more information.

Astronomy Day at Merryspring Nature Center Attracts Dozens

Thanks to Jacob Gerritson for hosting "Curioser and Curioser", a review of cosmology by U. Maine professor, Dr. David Batuski and also for setting up his big Dob on the observation field. Thanks to Colin Caissie and Roberta Adlington for helping with the night time observing. But a SPECIAL thanks to Bill Smith for his dedication to both of the observing sessions. Bill hosted the solar observing, did a great job finding solar flares and keeping the sun sharp in the sights of Mr. Brower's solar scope (thanks too, to Mr. Brower for the use of the scope). Bill watched the equipment during the lecture and then did a yeomen job again at night.

We gained another member and met a number of interested people who came from as far away as Bangor to attend. Several brought their scopes for help in setting them up and some returned at night for observing. Many casual observers stopped by to take advantage of the weather,and I hope everyone had as much fun as I did.

We had so much fun, we forgot to hold a business meeting, which may be for the best.

CMAS and Watershed Community School sponsor "Cosmology in the 20th Century" talk

Where did it all begin? That's a question that's been at the center of human inquiry since we rose up on two feet. Once squarely part of the realm of religion, 20th century scientific investigation in Cosmology has given us direct observational evidence of how our universe began, is unfolding, and how it will ultimately end.

Bates College Professor Eric Wollman's talk entitled "Cosmology in the 20th Century" was exciting and informative, and gave a wonderfully clear and concise overview of the state of cosmology to date. About 25 folks came out on a cold March evening to hear Eric, and there was a lively discussion which followed the lecture, much of which focused on Eric's alternative to the Hot Big Bang theory, which has centimeter-sized rocks spread throughout the universe, as a result of cooler early universe temperatures. A huge thanks to Eric for coming up to share his refreshing perspective!

Professor Wollman received his PhD in physics from the University of California Berkeley in 1976, where he worked on high-resolution infrared spectroscopy of stars and interstellar gas. In 1979, after three years as a postdoctoral research associate at the Kitt Peak National Observatory, he joined the faculty of Bates College . He is currently Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy and teaches a wide variety of courses in both physics and astronomy. Since coming to Bates, his research has shifted from infrared spectroscopy to theoretical topics, including plasma physics and cosmology. His interest for many years has been the identity of the dark matter and conditions in the early universe.

This lecture was sponsored jointly by The Central Maine Astronomical Society (CMAS) and The Watershed Community School's Cosmology Class.

The Watershed Community School is a independent democratic high school currently in it's 4th year of operation, located in Rockland.

Club Members Win Award at Stellafane

The bugs were ferocious, the dew was dripping from everything, the skies were clear, and the Stellafane optical judges were about to show up, but when CMAS club members Pete Kalajian and Colin Caissie tried to make the final adjustments to the flex mechanismon the "flex mirror bowling ball scope", they discovered that they'd bottomed out the puller plate on the bottom of the mirror cell. Undeterred, they brainstormed a fix that entailed cutting out dozens of paper rings to act as spacers to the judges for optical judging. Unfortunately, the rings introduced some astigmatism to the mirror, so even though it was perfectly corrected for spherical abberation, it didn't win the optical competition. No matter: for the first time ever, a flex mirror had been judged at Stellafane. Doubtless the first of many.

On saturday, the judges were sufficiently impressed with the drive mechanism to award the scope a first prize in the special category. That's the second year in a row that CMAS members have won a prize at Stellafane. Last year Lenny Arsenault won in the optical division with his superb 6" f/10 reflector.

Porter Telescope Dedicated

The family of the late Warren Porter were honored at the Brower Observatory in North Whitefield by the Central Maine Astronomical Society (CMAS) on 13 May, 2006.  The occasion was the dedication of the Porter Telescope, a 16" Meade Starfinder, which was presented to CMAS by Warren Porter and his family in memory of their son, Technical Sergeant Gary Alan Porter who had owned the telescope.

A brass plaque fastened to the telescope has this inscription:

Speaking for CMAS, Colin Caissie described how the telescope had already seen much use by members of the astronomy club as well as by many children and adults at the Astronomy Day celebration at Merryspring Park in Camden on May 6th. He also acknowledged several other valuable gifts that the Porter family had presented to CMAS. An important mission of the astronomy club is making knowledge of astronomy available to as many people as possible, and the Porter Telescope is destined to play a large role in this effort

Watershed Students Spearhead Rockland Lighting Ordinance

Back in May, when Watershed students held their second public light pollution meeting at the Rockland Public Library, they weren’t optimistic about their effort to pass a new lighting ordinance in Rockland. The students didn’t know whether their semester of studying civil governance and policy, collecting light pollution data, researching anti-light pollution techniques and ordinances, or meetings with specialists, city officials, and the Rockland City Council, would pay off with a new city policy. "Reducing light pollution is not a cause that interests many people," explained Jocelyn Callahan, a Junior at Watershed.

On July 10th they learned that the ordinance they helped draft had been passed by the City Council and will go into effect as of August 9, 2006.

These students were part of an Applied Democracy course at the Watershed Community School. In February of 2006 the students began learning about how local government differs from and engages with state and national government, and how public policy is formulated and established. “ The purpose of the class was to give students direct experience with the skills necessary to effect change in their local community,” explained Will Galloway, Applied Democracy instructor and Dean of Students at Watershed. “It was our hope that by picking a manageable project, students could be involved in the process of democratic policy-making from start to finish” said Galloway. “We also hoped that they would have a better understanding of government, the role of informed citizens, and the effectiveness of a well-organized citizen initiative.”

For the first part of the semester students were given assignments and held discussions about the workings of state and local government. Then the class of 10th-12th grade students: Scout MacKay from Searsmont; Jocelyn Callahan from Appleton; Faith Stevens and Lilly Whitehead from Rockland; Anna Wind, Manaan Mays, Sali Amabebe, and Katy Dodge from Camden, Sam Perkins and Isaac Gerard from Thomaston, and Sam Auciello from Warren divided themselves into Research, Policy Development, and Outreach committees. Their work illustrated the challenges associated with any democratic efforts. “It was difficult to coordinate our work so that everyone had something to do,” said Isaac Gerard, “and it was often difficult to come to agreement.” The class became familiar with Bismark’s admonition that people who “appreciate law and sausage should not see either being made.”

The Light pollution ordinance, drafted by Sam Auciello of Warren, requires that outdoor lighting on new construction meet specific guidelines to avoid light shining up, or to the side, of the lighting fixture. According to Auciello, “The ordinance, although technically detailed, simply specifies that lights should illuminate just what is necessary, without wasting light and energy with scattered or undirected lighting.” "No-one really loses with anti-light pollution ordinances" according to Lilly Whitehead of Rockland because, "poorly designed lighting wastes energy, can cause dangerous driving conditions, and takes away the beauty of the night sky.”

According to the International Dark Sky Association (www.darksky.org) , a world wide clearinghouse and advocacy group, light pollution in the US wastes one billion dollars of energy each year, is responsible for a significant number of traffic accidents, and may have deleterious effects on child development. It's also resulted in a whole generation of urban and suburban youth unfamiliar with the magic of the night sky.

Entering its fourth year, the Watershed Community School is a new independent high school opportunity for midcoast students. With a base in the Lincoln Street Center for the Arts in Rockland, the school enjoys a broader downtown campus that includes the Farnsworth Museum, the Rockland Public Library, the Penobscot School and other buildings and institutions. Watershed offers a rich and rigorous academic program within the context of a small, supportive democratic community. Quality and depth of scholarship and craftsmanship are emphasized in a variety of on- and off-campus classes intended to challenge students and support them in their interests. Parents, students, and educators interested in the Watershed School are welcome to contact the school at 594-1873 or through its web site www.watershedcommunity.org