Full Moon & Jupiter Party
Saturday, 19 January 2013 02:19
Becky
FULL MOON AND JUPITER PARTY
SATURDAY, JANUARY 26, 2013
8PM - 11:30PM
Come join Becky at Fleetwoods Restaurant on Front Street, Lahaina on the ROOFTOP!
8" Meade Telescope provided to check out these bright celestial orbs!
Make a reservation for dinner and make it a special occasion.
See you there.
Astronomy Class coming
Monday, 08 October 2012 01:41
Becky
Becky Sydney's
ASTRONOMY FOR BEGINNERS class Oct. 26 - 11/16 (4 Fridays)
If you enjoy looking at the stars above, you will love learning more about the Moon,
stars, constellations and even black holes in this class! You will learn how to use a
star chart, telescope, and astronomy software in this introduction astronomy class.
And with a few basic 'astro tools’, you will be able to easily navigate through the
heavens and observe planets like Mars and Jupiter, understand the phases of the
Moon and peer at deep space wonders through an 8" telescope. Class will include
a private tour of one of Maui’s premier Haleakala Telescope in Pukalani.
Becky Sydney is President of the Maui Astronomy Club and has been teaching astronomy for over 20 years.
She was awarded 2 NASA Space Grants for work in Astronomy Education & Asteroid Tracking.
Class fee: $109
4 Fridays: 6:00PM - 8:30PM 10/26/12 - 11/16/12
@ Laulima Building #107 at UH Maui College Campus.
Please call 984-3231 to register.
Last Updated ( Monday, 08 October 2012 01:53 )
Faulkes Telescope 2012
Wednesday, 15 August 2012 22:20
Becky
Come join the Maui Astronomy Club for some deep space observing
using the FAULKES TELESCOPE in Pukalani at the Institute for Astronomy.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 19 from 7:30pm - 11:00pm.
Get ready for spectacular views of galaxies, nebulae and comets!
Alex Filippenko on Maui!
Tuesday, 31 July 2012 23:49
Becky
ALEX FILIPPENKO GIVES TALK ON MULTIVERSES - MAUI HAWAII!
Thursday, Aug. 2, 2012 6:30pm Institute for Astronomy
Hope to see you there.

Lahaina Noon Day
Monday, 16 July 2012 21:42
Becky
Aloha Astro Experimenters,
Here's a very cool experiment to try TOMORROW ONLY! July 17, 2012.
Hawaii is the only state located in the tropics. (Tropic of Cancer)
The tropics extend from 23 ½ degrees N latitude to 23 ½ degrees S latitude with the
equator situated directly in between at 0 degrees latitude.
And every location in the tropics has two days when the Sun is exactly overhead.
Objects will cast no shadow!!!
In Hawaii, these times are known as "Lahaina Noon."
The first time was May 23rd....as the Sun was traversing north toward the Summer Solstice, June 20th.
Now the Sun is on it's way back and will spot light Hawaii tomorrow, July 17th!
Something I call the ZENITH SUN.....perfectly overhead!
For Hana the zenith time is at 12:30pm and for Kahului and Lahaina it's starts at 12:32.
So go outside and experience Lahaina Noon for yourself! Photograph an object that casts no shadow.
A pencil or pole or anything you desire works great.
Send me your photos!
Best photo wins a prize!!!
Mahalo,
Becky Sydney -
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Maui Astronomy Club
|
The Geminids are Coming - The Geminids are Coming!
Tuesday, 11 December 2012 19:54
Becky
Aloha!
The Maui Astronomy Club has a unique opportunity to view the
Geminid Meteor Shower this Thursday night at the new LUMERIA MAUI
Retreat Center on Baldwin Avenue!
Hope you can make it.
Thursday, the 13th is the New Moon which is the perfect night for shooting stars!
Come join me at Lumeria Courtyard with a sleeping bag to lay on or a chair.
Park in the parking lot and walk to side of building to courtyard.
I'll have a few glow sticks leading the way.
SUMMARY:
Geminid Meteor Shower at LUMERIA MAUI
Thursday, December 13, 2012
8pm - 11pm
1813 Baldwin Avenue
Bring something to lay on or sit in.
Bring a pic nic dinner and beverages.
Bring a flashlight for safety.
Please leave a donation in the box for this event.
I'd love to have more gatherings at Lumeria!
Read about the Geminids below.
Mahalo,
Becky
By Latin Times Staff Writer, Dec 10, 2012 06:26 PM EST
Good news: before the world ends, we're all in for one hell of a light show.
Often referred to as the best meteor shower of the year, the Geminid shower is fast approaching Dec. 13.
"Of all the debris streams Earth passes through every year, the Geminids' is by far the most massive,"
NASA astronomer Bill Cooke said. "When we add up the amount of dust in the Geminid stream,
it outweighs other streams by factors of 5 to 500."
NASA reports that the Geminids are a relatively young meteor shower, with the first sightings occurring
in the 1830s with rates of about 20 per hour. Over the decades the rates have increased, regularly spawning
between 80 and 120 per hour at its peak on a clear evening.
Last year's Geminid shower seriously compromised by bright moonlight when a glowing gibbous moon came
up over the horizon during the late evening hours and washed-out many of the fainter Geminid streaks with its
bright light. But this year promises to be one of the most spectacular displays in recent memory. Coinciding with
a new moon, this year's shower promises to be even more eye-popping than normal. This means no moon will
be visible during the shower, making the sky especially dark and black, and creating perfect viewing conditions for the shower.
"Indeed, under normal conditions on the night of maximum activity, with ideal dark-sky conditions, at least 60 to 120
Geminid meteors can be expected to burst across the sky every hour on average (light pollution greatly cuts the
numbers of visible meteors down significantly)," said Space.com.
"The Geminid Meteors are usually the most satisfying of all the annual showers, even surpassing the famous Perseids of August," noted Space.com.
"Studies of past displays show that this shower has a reputation for being rich both in slow, bright, graceful meteors and
fireballs as well as faint meteors, with relatively fewer objects of medium brightness. Geminids typically encounter Earth at
22 miles per second (35 kilometers per second), roughly half the speed of a Leonid meteor. Many appear yellowish in hue.
Some even appear to travel jagged or divided paths," the site added.
Geminids are unique among other meteor showers, as scientists believe they were spawned not by a comet, but by
"3200 Phaethon," an Earth-crossing asteroid.
Although, as Space.com points out, it's still possible that the meteors came from comets, noting, "the Geminids may be
comet debris after all, for some astronomers consider Phaeton to really be the dead nucleus of a burned-out comet that
somehow got trapped into an unusually tight orbit. "
Good news: before the world ends, we're all in for one hell of a light show. Often referred to as the best meteor shower
of the year, the Geminid shower is fast approaching Dec. 13.
"Of all the debris streams Earth passes through every year, the Geminids' is by far the most massive," NASA astronomer
Bill Cooke said. "When we add up the amount of dust in the Geminid stream, it outweighs other streams by factors of 5 to 500."
On the night of Dec. 13, 2012, the Geminid meteor shower will be peaking right around 8p.m. EST, though the best time to watch
for them is always around 2a.m. local time, when their radiant point will be passing very nearly overhead, according to Space.com. The higher a shower's radiant, the more meteors it produces all over the sky, says the site.
NASA reports that the Geminids are a relatively young meteor shower, with the first sightings occurring in the 1830s
with rates of about 20 per hour. Over the decades the rates have increased, regularly spawning between 80 and 120
per hour at its peak on a clear evening.
Those in Europe and North Africa east to central Russia and China are in the best position to catch the very crest of the
shower, when the rates conceivably could exceed 120 meteors per hour. The Geminid meteor shower is named after the
constellation Gemini, which is located in roughly the same point of the night sky where the Geminid meteor shower appears to originate.
Last year's Geminid shower seriously compromised by bright moonlight when a glowing gibbous moon came up over the
horizon during the late evening hours and washed-out many of the fainter Geminid streaks with its bright light. But this year
promises to be one of the most spectacular displays in recent memory. Coinciding with a new moon, this year's shower promises
to be even more eye-popping than normal. This means no moon will be visible during the shower, making the sky especially
dark and black, and creating perfect viewing conditions for the shower.
"Indeed, under normal conditions on the night of maximum activity, with ideal dark-sky conditions, at least 60 to 120 Geminid
meteors can be expected to burst across the sky every hour on average (light pollution greatly cuts the numbers of visible
meteors down significantly)," said Space.com.
"The Geminid Meteors are usually the most satisfying of all the annual showers, even surpassing the famous Perseids of August," noted Space.com.
"Studies of past displays show that this shower has a reputation for being rich both in slow, bright, graceful meteors and
fireballs as well as faint meteors, with relatively fewer objects of medium brightness. Geminids typically encounter Earth at
22 miles per second (35 kilometers per second), roughly half the speed of a Leonid meteor. Many appear yellowish in hue. Some even appear to travel jagged or divided paths," the site added.
Geminids are unique among other meteor showers, as scientists believe they were spawned not by a comet, but by
"3200 Phaethon," an Earth-crossing asteroid.
Although, as Space.com points out, it's still possible that the meteors came from comets, noting, "the Geminids may be comet
debris after all, for some astronomers consider Phaeton to really be the dead nucleus of a burned-out comet that somehow
got trapped into an unusually tight orbit. "
Last Updated ( Tuesday, 11 December 2012 20:09 )
International Observe the Moon Night Tonight!
Saturday, 22 September 2012 23:35
Becky
SATURDAY, SEPT. 22 - INTERNATIONAL OBSERVE THE MOON NIGHT.
Maui Astronomy Club will meet at 5pm - 8pm at Kamaole 3 Beach Park in Kihei - - on the grassy lawn.
Bring a picnic and beverages and enjoy viewing the Equinox sun thru the scope using a solar filter and
the 1st quarter Moon of course.
Last Updated ( Saturday, 22 September 2012 23:39 )
CURIOSITY lands on Mars!
Monday, 06 August 2012 22:23
Becky
THE EARTHLINGS ARE COMING! THE EARTHLINGS ARE COMING!
Earth's most sophisticated rover, CURIOSITY, lands on the red planet successfully!
Aug. 5, 2012 will mark an historical point in space technology and planetary studies.
Mars will never be the same. We await to learn so much!
NASA IMAGES:


NASA has just released a spectacular new image of Curiosity descending to Mars. Taken by the HiRISE camera onboard
the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, the snapshot shows the parachute fully inflated about one minute before touchdown:

Curiosity landed at 10:32 p.m. PDT Aug. 5, (1:32 a.m. EDT Aug. 6) inside Gale Crater near the foot of a layered mountain three miles tall and 96 miles in diameter.
Observations from orbit have identified clay and sulfate minerals in the mountain's lower layers, indicating a wet history. For the next two years (at least)
the rover will search the layers for ancient habitats that might have supported Martian microbial life.
Curiosity carries 10 science instruments. Some are the first of their kind on Mars, such as a laser-firing instrument
for checking the chemical make-up of rocks from a distance. The rover will use a drill and scoop at the end of its robotic
arm to gather soil and powdered samples of rock interiors, then sieve and parcel out these samples into analytical laboratory
instruments inside the rover. To handle this science toolkit, Curiosity is twice as long and five times as heavy as Spirit or Opportunity.
Lahaina Noon Photo Winner
Sunday, 29 July 2012 11:00
Becky
Congratulations Linda Turnbull for the best Lahaina Noon photo.
Lahaina Noon occurs 2x a year if you live in the tropics.
The Sun passes directly overhead and poles or vertical objects cast no shadow!
Photo from Lahaina Noon day July 17, 2012 12:32pm
2012 Venus Transit
Friday, 29 June 2012 22:45
Becky
Venus Transit - June 5, 2012 - Maui Hawaii
photo by Glenn Schneider
Photo by Rob Ratkowski
Photo by Rob Ratkowski
Photos by Becky Sydney
Last Updated ( Friday, 29 June 2012 23:28 )
|