Support Your Local Astronomer!

Love & Rockets Your Local Astronomer SubOrbital

  'Sic Itur Ad Astra'. . . 

 

April 30 is the birthdate of the (re)discoverer of minor planet Ceres: 

 Johann Carl Friedrich Gauß

 

Return of visible suborbital launches! 

Wallops Flight Facility is undergoing some changes with the advent of  Commercial Space Launches. 

Under the auspices of the 

Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority
4111 Monarch Way, Suite 303
Norfolk, VA 23508
(757) 440-4020

 

The site is transforming into the 

Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (M.A.R.S.)

  • Latitude: 37.8 degrees N
  • Longitude: 75.5 degrees W

 

All the while remaining as historic Wallops Island, Virginia.

Find more information on this exciting endeavor at 

www.vaspace.org

 

Total Solar Eclipse 

of 

August 21, 2017

NASA's Main Eclipse Site includes a Countdown Clock

More INFO available here as well 

Eclipse maps using various projections

 I volunteer at the

DASEF Environmental Outpost

Located in the far corner of Big Oak Park - follow the road to the silver dome!

585 Big Oak Road
Smyrna, Delaware 19977
(302) 659-5003

 

 - from the Astronomical Applications Department of

USNO's The Astronomical Almanac Online!

 

Skygazer's Almanack for 40 Degrees North 

- Compliments of Sky Publishing 

Lunar Graze Occultation Maps for 2016 

By Eberhard Riedel

 
 
Are you fascinated by meteorite craters?
 I have started an ASTROBLEMES page on Google+
 
Come enjoy, and share Earth's violent history. 
 
 
 

Space Weather Media Viewer

http://sunearthday.nasa.gov/spaceweather

NASA's Consolidated Launch Schedule
 
NASA's Launch Schedule features the planned dates and details for missions by NASA and the partner nations in the International Space Station Program, including Russia, European Space Agency and Japan. To learn more about how the schedule is arranged and what it includes, check out Launch Schedule 101. 


 

 23 YRS of Orbital Rocket Science -

 

Dedicated. Knowledgeable. Brilliant! 
 

 

 LIVE Coverage on NASA TV

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv or

 

 

 

@StargazerUSA On Saturday night, September 19 around 7:50 p.m. EDT, it looked like a passing comet or a giant, luminous amoeba. But this was pure rocket science. Courtesy of Wallops Island Flight Facility, in Virginia.

 

http://j.mp/CKF25

 

 The cloud was created by a Black Brant XII sounding rocket.

100 Hours of Astronomy

An Event 400 Years in the Making

View my Astrophotos at Photostream

http://s250.photobucket.com/albums/gg251/StarwatcherUSA/Astro/

 

 

 

NASA’s JPL Blog
"Comets and Life On Earth"
It is becoming a bit more clear how life may have originated on Earth.
 

 

Shuttle / ISS Visibility Predictions

for Dover, DE

International Space Station

& Space Shuttle

 Not near Dover?

 Find your town

For NASA TV streaming video, scheduling and downlink information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

 NASA will provide continuous mission updates online, including a webcast and a blog, at:
http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

On launch day, a blog will update the countdown beginning at 4 p.m. Originating from Kennedy, the blog is the definitive Internet source for information leading up to launch. During the mission, visitors to NASA's shuttle Web site can read about the crew's progress and watch the spacewalks live. As Discovery's flight wraps up, NASA's blog will detail the spacecraft's return to Earth.

Live updates to the NASA News Twitter feed will be added throughout the shuttle launch countdown, mission and landing. To access the NASA News Twitter feed and other agency Twitter feeds, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/collaborate

 

 

 

 

 

IOTA Occultation Manual free Download

The Complete Guide to Observing Lunar, Grazing and Asteroid Occultations


The International Occultation Timing Association (IOTA) has just released a new book on Occultations. It's a free, online and ready for downloading PDF file. It is 388 Pages.

If you like to time the disappearance of stars (and asteroids, planets. . . ) and reappearances along the lunar limb, you will find this manual to be a great resource.
http://www.poyntsource.com/IOTAmanual/Preview.htm

From the Preview Website:
"The International Occultation Timing Association (IOTA) wants you for the most exciting observations you can make – occultations ! Never before has there been an opportunity to contribute to the body of scientific knowledge about the lunar limb profile and the size of shape of asteroids plus a host of other occultation phenomena. . ."

"Occultations occur when one celestial body passes in front of another, temporarily blocking its light. The observation of these "eclipse" events provides important information on the celestial body responsible for the eclipse. . ."

"All astronomers, both amateur and professional, can make occultation observations.This book has all the necessary information one needs to begin a successful occultation program. Whether you are a novice observer, or an advanced observer with a video system, you can assist in the search for asteroidal moons, help discover new double stars and help determine the size of the Sun during solar eclipses. . ."

"Written by IOTA's most experienced astronomers, this is the only book you'll need for occultation observations of stars by the Moon, by asteroids, and other solar system bodies. It includes an extensive set of Appendices, and over 120 figures and diagrams, 388 pages.

Chasing the Shadow: The IOTA Occultation Observer'sManual
- is currently online, FREE as an e-book. . ."

Go straight for it:
http://www.poyntsource.com/IOTAmanual/IOTA_Observers_Manual_all_pages.pdf

Thanks go out to the AOS for the link!