|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
ASTRO - Astronomical Review of the Year 2007
Astronomical Review of the Year 2007
In terms of hours spent per week I must almost qualify as a full-time astronomer. Twelve months ago I promised myself that I would attempt to cut my workload down to a more sensible level - well I have failed! On the plus side I have managed to re-launch my website and my astro blog and I have made real inroads into the backlog of astronomical projects that needed to be written up. So it is not all doom and gloom. Indeed I am getting an average of close to 300 hits per day on the website with particular interest being shown in the short projects I have been writing up (http://www.martin-nicholson.info/1/3fd.htm) http://www.martin-nicholson.info/1/1a.htm http://ukastronomy.livejournal.com Comets There was a time when I did quite a lot of astrometry on comets and I would send results to the Minor Planet Center. This year I did far less until Comet Holmes hit the headlines with its dramatic increase in brightness and I managed to image it a number of times. Comet Tuttle proved to be more of a problem - situated as it was in a inconvenient part of the sky when it first came to my attention. It was well into December before I got a decent view and even then it seemed rather fainter than I had been led to expect.. Double Stars I remain convinced that measuring binary or double stars does not represent a sensible or productive use of my limited observing time. This is because most of the wider pairs - such as those I can image using my equipment - only change very, very slowly. With no reliable, easily accessible and up-to-date catalogue that would enable me to see what others are currently doing there is a real chance that anything I did do would just be duplicating their work. There is also the problem that many of the systems listed in the Washington Double Star Catalogue (WDS) catalogue are known or at least strongly suspected to be line-of-sight double stars of no astronomical significance and again measuring these cannot be justified. Meetings, Magazines and Societies I don't go to many meetings. It is a sad fact that I don't like to drive long distances, especially at night, so unless the programme on offer is of particular relevance to me I tend not to bother. Fewer meetings in the London area and more in the Midlands would be a great help. Astronomy Now continues to impress me and it will not be long before it renders Sky and Telescope - which has shrunk dramatically - "surplus to requirements". The Astronomer is also excellent but I do wish their AGM was held in a more central location. It is hard to imaging how anybody without Internet access would be able to participate fully in AAVSO activities. This is not a criticism, more an observation, since I do have this new technology myself. The British Astronomical Association always produces a high quality magazine and the website seem to have improved beyond recognition in the last few years. However I am really starting to struggle to see how the Webb Deep Sky Society will compete against the vast range of, mainly free, astronomical resources now available to amateur astronomers. My Equipment I am still using a Takahashi Epsilon 250mm F/3.8 astrograph and an ST-8XE CCD camera mounted on a Paramount GT1100ME mount housed at an Observatory near Mahill, New Mexico. Variable Stars I find imaging novae and supernovae enormous fun - not too many other members of the AAVSO or BAA seem to have the facilities to do multi- filter measurements so I feel that what I am doing has scientific merit and events have shown that you can never be certain about the final shape of the lightcurve. I also find rapidly changing variables, particularly those where the changes are unpredictable, particular fun to observe. I am mindful that these seem to be out of favour with other variable star observers, but then that is part of the attraction. I have tried hard to get enthusiastic about cataclysmic variables but with very little success. Spending lots of time obtaining negative results, because the star is not in outburst, is just not how I would want to spend my time. Once the star is in outburst it is moderately appealing to take magnitude measurements in different pass-bands and I am also quite attracted by creating a library of animated images showing the different states of the star. Martin Nicholson Daventry UK |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
ASTRO - Inductees into the Astronomical Hall of Shame - Class of 2007 | ukastronomy | Astronomy Misc | 1 | January 2nd 08 04:26 AM |
ASTRO - Inductees into the Astronomical Hall of Shame - Class of 2007 | ukastronomy | Amateur Astronomy | 1 | January 2nd 08 04:26 AM |
ASTRO - Astronomical Review of the Year 2007 | ukastronomy | Astronomy Misc | 0 | January 1st 08 10:25 AM |
ASTRO - Astronomical Review of the Year 2007 | ukastronomy | Amateur Astronomy | 0 | January 1st 08 10:25 AM |
30 Year Astronomical Events | Gary | Amateur Astronomy | 4 | January 7th 05 10:44 PM |