A Space & astronomy forum. SpaceBanter.com

Go Back   Home » SpaceBanter.com forum » Astronomy and Astrophysics » Amateur Astronomy
Site Map Home Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #81  
Old December 9th 18, 09:33 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Paul Schlyter[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,344
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sat, 08 Dec 2018 18:48:12 -0500, Davoud wrote:
Paul Schlyter:
It's an interesting fact that modern professional astronomers

rarely
know the constellations. They don't need to since they just dial

in
the coordinates of the object they want to observe with their big
GOTO telescopes. Or they may not even observe themselves,
professional observers observe for them. That's rational for
optimizing the use of available observing time of course, but it
certainly make you lose contact with the skies.


Right. But contact with the skies is a luxury that amateurs can

enjoy.
The professional has work to do. Except that in my club we have a
number of professionals who are also amateur astronomers (STSCI,

APL,
Goddard are all nearby). For the most part they don't get anywhere

near
a telescope in the professional lives, but they do commune with the
skies at our star parties.


It's like if a
professional geographer didn't know where Switzerland or China or

USA
were situated without looking them up on a map, and if he wanted

to
go there, he just dialed in the geographical coordinates on the

GPS
of his self-driving car or self-flying plane and then let it take

him
there.


According to a friend of mine who is a military pilot, what the
traveling geographer really does in the modern era is board a
commercial flight where a trained pilot dials in the geographical
coordinates on the GPS of his (largely) self-flying airliner and

let it
take him where he wants to go. Barring a Lion Air-type incident,

that
is.


That's why air travel sometimes is considered to not be "real
travel". If you travel on the surface instead, you get to see much
more of the area you travel through. But of course surface travel
takes much more time, and that's time today's rushed people think
they don't have.
  #82  
Old December 9th 18, 09:35 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Paul Schlyter[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,344
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sat, 08 Dec 2018 15:36:16 -0700, Chris L Peterson
wrote:
On Sat, 08 Dec 2018 23:03:38 +0100, Paul Schlyter
wrote:


A similar calendar on Jupiter would have to have about 300 months

of
about 30 days each. Perhaps we should refrain from trying to name
these months and just number them instead?


Or maybe use something like stardates. A year with as many decimal
places as make sense given the length of that year.


Are you suggesting that the day-night cycle should be ignored?
  #83  
Old December 9th 18, 10:33 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Gerald Kelleher
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,551
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

As the only person here who affirms that the planet turns 365 1/4 rotations for 1 orbital circuit based on the parent observation that after four cycles of 365 days, the first annual appearance of a star skips a first annual appearance by one day.

A hypothetical 365 3/4 rotations would create an alternative calendar framework based on 3 years or 366 rotations and 1 year of 365 rotations at the end of the 4th cycle thereby keeping days fixed to the annual milestones of Solstices and Equinoxes.

The system for Mars will have the same timekeeping principles adjusted to the orbital and daily traits of Mars which fit inside a calendar framework. Of course all this may die but experience tells me that information eventually makes it into circulation albeit in a way that people struggle with concepts. I suppose the background scenery of other contributions makes it appear that the writers have a handle on astronomy and timekeeping but the dominance of a secondary system like RA/Dec framework dictates otherwise.





  #84  
Old December 9th 18, 11:15 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Chris L Peterson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 10,007
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sun, 09 Dec 2018 21:35:27 +0100, Paul Schlyter
wrote:

On Sat, 08 Dec 2018 15:36:16 -0700, Chris L Peterson
wrote:
On Sat, 08 Dec 2018 23:03:38 +0100, Paul Schlyter
wrote:


A similar calendar on Jupiter would have to have about 300 months

of
about 30 days each. Perhaps we should refrain from trying to name
these months and just number them instead?


Or maybe use something like stardates. A year with as many decimal
places as make sense given the length of that year.


Are you suggesting that the day-night cycle should be ignored?


No. But you could eliminate months by simply having a fractional year
and a day count. That's akin to numbered months.
  #85  
Old December 9th 18, 11:16 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Chris L Peterson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 10,007
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sun, 09 Dec 2018 21:27:00 +0100, Paul Schlyter
wrote:

Even traveling in undeveloped countries in remote regions, the most
reliable way of planning and executing travel is using a map app

and a
GPS.


True, and that includes hiking. However you must still decide which
route you want to take, you cannot just "point yourself" to the
destination.


That's generally true even for air traffic.
  #86  
Old December 10th 18, 04:47 AM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Quadibloc
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 7,018
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sunday, December 9, 2018 at 11:06:59 AM UTC-7, Davoud wrote:

I wonder if Quadibloc knows that Machu Picchu is 9km from a rail
station and that, if further help is needed, one can look for the lodge
and the Machu Picchu snack bar!?


Well, I did realize it was a tourist destination. But it doesn't have
its own airport. I thought one would have to go at least part of the way
by picturesque means such as riding on a donkey.

As for Macizo del Auyán-tepui, nobody goes there anymore. Too crowded.


I hope that old joke isn't the only way in which you are joking. It is
an ecologically sensitive area, and thus I would have expected the local
authorities to be protecting it.

Although in Venezuela, the government has other concerns at the moment.

John Savard
  #87  
Old December 10th 18, 07:25 AM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Paul Schlyter[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,344
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sun, 09 Dec 2018 15:15:36 -0700, Chris L Peterson
wrote:
A similar calendar on Jupiter would have to have about 300

months
of
about 30 days each. Perhaps we should refrain from trying to

name
these months and just number them instead?


Or maybe use something like stardates. A year with as many

decimal
places as make sense given the length of that year.


Are you suggesting that the day-night cycle should be ignored?


No. But you could eliminate months by simply having a fractional

year
and a day count. That's akin to numbered months.


The months on Jupiter would have to be short anyway, from 2 to 16
Earth days, depending on which of the four big moons you'd like to
sync it with.
  #88  
Old December 10th 18, 07:29 AM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Paul Schlyter[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,344
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Sun, 09 Dec 2018 15:16:47 -0700, Chris L Peterson
wrote:
On Sun, 09 Dec 2018 21:27:00 +0100, Paul Schlyter
wrote:


Even traveling in undeveloped countries in remote regions, the

most
reliable way of planning and executing travel is using a map app

and a
GPS.


True, and that includes hiking. However you must still decide

which
route you want to take, you cannot just "point yourself" to the
destination.


That's generally true even for air traffic.


True. To avoid war zones, tropical cyclones and the like. Someone who
points his Goto telescope only must avoid the Earth. And perhaps also
the Sun during daytime.
  #89  
Old December 10th 18, 04:03 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Chris L Peterson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 10,007
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Mon, 10 Dec 2018 07:25:35 +0100, Paul Schlyter
wrote:

On Sun, 09 Dec 2018 15:15:36 -0700, Chris L Peterson
wrote:
A similar calendar on Jupiter would have to have about 300

months
of
about 30 days each. Perhaps we should refrain from trying to

name
these months and just number them instead?


Or maybe use something like stardates. A year with as many

decimal
places as make sense given the length of that year.


Are you suggesting that the day-night cycle should be ignored?


No. But you could eliminate months by simply having a fractional

year
and a day count. That's akin to numbered months.


The months on Jupiter would have to be short anyway, from 2 to 16
Earth days, depending on which of the four big moons you'd like to
sync it with.


Maybe better to keep them based on the colonists' menstrual cycles...
  #90  
Old December 10th 18, 04:07 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Paul Schlyter[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,344
Default Lat/Long and timekeeping system for Mars

On Mon, 10 Dec 2018 08:03:14 -0700, Chris L Peterson
wrote:
The months on Jupiter would have to be short anyway, from 2 to 16
Earth days, depending on which of the four big moons you'd like to
sync it with.


Maybe better to keep them based on the colonists' menstrual

cycles...

Yes. Otherwise the colonists on Mars would have really short months.
Imagine three months per day! That's what you would get by letting
Phobos define the months...
 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Timekeeping architecture oriel36[_2_] Amateur Astronomy 7 February 25th 14 12:27 PM
Lat/Long and AM/PM system for Mars oriel36[_2_] Amateur Astronomy 0 August 15th 12 04:59 PM
Timekeeping in Genesis oriel36[_2_] Amateur Astronomy 2 November 11th 11 08:38 PM
Long socks and pride, marching in the boardwalk, Ceausescu's private police, system, Boogle-bush gb6726 Astronomy Misc 31 October 22nd 07 07:04 AM
Looking for software compute lat and long of features on solar system bodies canopus56 Amateur Astronomy 2 August 20th 06 06:04 PM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 07:39 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 SpaceBanter.com.
The comments are property of their posters.