The Earthworm

Posted on October 1, 2019 by ST Editors

by Theodore R. Frimet

primordial astrochemistry

These biological organisms that we inhabit are not quite what they appear to be. Your host body is not here to manifest your mind, or your brain. 57 percent of your humanity is composed of microbiome. We accommodate not ourselves, rather we sponsor the DNA of anything other than what you predetermine to be human. What then is it to be human? It is to be host to a complex biological machination of evolution. Your destiny is to co-exist within the rules of Darwin. What then you say of the Universe? Let’s find out, shall we?

The Amateur looks the professional into the eye, rather directly, despite the glancing, excruciating pain. Back in the day, we were told that matter is the lesser god. What worth of it to look into the lens, and peer into the night sky, then? Especially when the professional continues their pursuit and attempts to define dark matter and energy? It truly doesn’t matter much. Since all the time, hidden in plain sight, dark matter and energy continue to rule the void.

We have played host to many minor organisms. Most of which we cannot live without. The Universe, too, cannot live without her 5 percent. The matter that coalesced, from the Bang to the Horizon, is our physics manifesto. Helium Hydride, once thought to be of limited scope, now is being reborn with new calculus. HeH+, our first molecule of substance, was detected within a nebula earlier this year. (Bovino, S., & Galli, D. (2019). First Molecule Still Animates Astronomers. Science, 365(6454), 639.) How then shall we say that the old gal could exist without the creation of her first, precious chemistry? Not at all, it would seem.

When we time lapse the history of our Universe, we venture beyond the darkness of where light could not travel. Yes. The darkness has its definition only at the brink of the cooling and accretion of protons and electrons. Further we spin the hand of time to the formation of Hydrogen and Helium, while the light of creation blasts beyond its massive confines. And so it goes, with gaps to my gaff, that matter accretes, gravity takes hold on the laws of physics, and stars are born anew. Taking the greater leap, the dynamic death of these early giants, render to us the material that we are born of. Who shall we be, to remind all readers that you are made of the stuff of stars? Your life, and yes, your being, are not dark matter, or energy. They are the light of the world, and of the Universe.

Contemplate, as I did this chilly September morning, that cells bind to provide structure, and the earthworm wiggles thru the biological detritus. Give just pause to your being. We exist as a scaffold to a great majority of wiggly things. Just as the live dirt matrix is the mother for an earthworm, you are the scaffold for a great Universal host. Is it a leap of scientific wonder that those of us that are the light, form a bridge and matrix to so many things? Fear not the dark matter and energy. Wonder at it, and peer thru the night-time lens. Be ever confident with the knowledge that without the light, there would be no dark.

Earthworm, T.S. (Frimet, 4X Plan Infinity, Fischer Scientific Micromaster)

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Snippets

Posted on October 1, 2019 by ST Editors

compiled by Arlene & David Kaplan

-BBC

Kirkcudbright school’s conversion to dark sky center begins
Work has started to convert an old school in southern Scotland into a dark sky visitor center. The £2.5m project at the former Johnston Primary in Kirkcudbright will include a planetarium. The school overhaul will see a wide range of other facilities included…more

-BBC

Water found for first time on ‘potentially habitable’ planet
Astronomers have for the first time discovered water in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting within the habitable zone of a distant star. The finding makes the world – which is called K2-18b – a plausible candidate in the search for alien life. Details were published in the scientific journal Nature Astronomy…more

-NASA

Eerie black spot on Jupiter
NASA has captured stunning images of Jupiter pictured with an Earth-sized black spot on its surface.
It’s actually an enormous shadow from an eclipse caused by Jupiter’s moon Io passing in front of the Sun…more

-SPL

Has another interstellar visitor been found?
An amateur astronomer has discovered a comet that could come from outside our Solar System.
If so, it would be the second interstellar object after the elongated body known as ‘Oumuamua was identified in 2017. Here’s a visualization of C/2019 Q4 created with JPL Horizons data…more

-BBC

Team plans color film of black hole at galaxy’s center
The team that took the first ever image of a black hole has announced plans to capture “razor sharp” full color video of the one at the center of our galaxy. Satellites would be launched to supplement the existing network of eight telescopes to make this movie…more

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From the Director

Posted on September 3, 2019 by ST Editors

Rex

 

 

 

by Rex Parker, Phd director@princetonastronomy.org

New Season Begins Sept 10. A very big thanks go to the Dept of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, for their support and especially the provision of Peyton Hall auditorium for our meetings again this year. The first meeting will be Tues Sept 10 at 7:30 pm; see the article below for information about the upcoming speaker programs.

Gravity Hill Star Party Sept 28. Bring your telescope to The Barn at Gravity Hill in Hopewell Township on Sept 28! (https://www.thebarnatgravityhill.com/) The Barn is a beautiful, upscale venue with adjacent field suitable for telescopes with great sky views. Thanks to the efforts of Outreach chair Gene Allen and several members, we held a successful astro outreach event there in August for a youth group from Queens NY. In return, Gravity Hill’s owners are providing access for this star party, which could become an annual event if there is interest. This Sept 28 will be a one-night event (drive-home-before-dawn). Members, family and friends are welcome to attend, even if you don’t own a telescope. Please note that registration is required but there are no costs to attendees. See the flier below for more information. You can also e-mail me at director@princetonastronomy.org to register if you cannot make the Sept 10 meeting.


Some things change, some stay the same. One of AAAP’s most important goals is to enhance connections and camaraderie within the organization while expanding member access to astronomy knowledge, experiences, and technology. Based in part on results from this summer’s member survey, which received 80 responses (100 members), we are making a few changes for this year – and also not making one proposed change.
• 10-minute member talks after the intermission. We realize that it can be a bit daunting to get up in front of a group in the auditorium, before the main speaker has even been introduced. Yet this is a great way for members to get to know each other and share astro experiences in the club. So let’s reconfigure: the 10-minute member talk will now be scheduled following the intermission after the main speaker. Although this usually means a reduced audience size, the spotlight is less glaring. So please step up and offer us a tale of your recent astronomy experience, book or travel review, observing tips, new telescope; slides or show-and-tell are optional. Please contact me or Program chair (Ira Polans) to get onto the schedule for an upcoming meeting.

• Member Saturday nights with your telescope. In the recent member survey, 62 of 80 responders said they own a telescope, but only 37 said they use it at least once in a while or more. Becoming more skilled with telescopes is important to 67, yet only 38 said they come out to the Observatory more than once a year. To address this, the Board has decided to promote Saturday nights for members to gather for hands-on astronomy at a safe location with wide sky views. We suggest setting up at the west end of the soccer fields at Washington Crossing State Park, easily accessed off Rte 579/Bear Tavern Rd on the way into the Observatory. No gate opening is needed (the gate at 579 is generally open except in mid-winter). If you want to initiate an informal Saturday night telescope session with members, please feel free to send an e-mail to me or any Board member and we’ll broadcast a note to all members that day.

• Name will not be changed. An altered perception of what “amateur” means led to a recent proposal to consider changing our name. Amateur in our title can be an attracter as well as a hindrance to new member recruitment. Our club needs to evolve in the context of significant advances in astronomy, images from Hubble, the visibility of NASA missions, and a thousand other changes in science communication. The impact of technology, emergence of citizen-science, changing demographics, and the presence of a highly knowledgeable population in central NJ are factors behind the proposition.

A change in AAAP’s name would be subject to a formal proceedings and vote later, so the current question is only an attempt to gauge members’ opinions. From the recent survey, there were 33 in favor, 13 neutral, and 30 against the proposed change to drop amateur. Therefore, at least at this time, the Board has decided to not remove amateur from triple-A-P (we will not become double-A-P). The Board also agreed this question should be revisited in a couple years.

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From the Program Chair

Posted on September 3, 2019 by ST Editors

by Ira Polans

The first meeting of the season will be held on September 10 at 7:30 PM in the auditorium of Peyton Hall on the Princeton University campus. The talk is on the “Engineering the Measurement of the Hubble Constant” by Rachael Beaton, Research Fellow, Princeton University

The local expansion rate of the Universe, the Hubble constant, is one of the fundamental parameters in our current concordance cosmology and one that anchors the expansion history of the Universe. The resolution of the historical factor-of-two controversy in the Hubble constant nearly two decades ago (e.g., the Hubble Space Telescope Key Project) has evolved into a > 3.8-sigma tension between the traditional Cepheid-distance ladder measurements and that determined from modelling anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background (CMB; Planck Collaboration). At the heart of the tension, is not only a difference in method, but also a fundamental difference in the state of the observed Universe: the distance ladder measures the local rate in the nearby universe (e.g., z~0), whereas the CMB anisotropy measurements use the very young Universe (z ~1100).

Resolution of the tension requires (i) a full-scale evaluation of the systematic effects in either technique or (ii) “new physics” added to the standard cosmological model. The trigonometric parallaxes provided by Gaia in the near term permit an unprecedented opportunity to use alternative standard candles and construct a full end-to-end distance ladder without Cepheids. The Carnegie-Chicago Hubble Program is doing just that; we are in the middle of building a new distance ladder that relies on the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB). As I will demonstrate, this not only provides a direct cross-check on the Cepheid path, but there are numerous advantages to using a distance indicator that, as a standard candle from old stellar populations, is nearly ubiquitously present low-crowding and low-extinction components of galaxies. More specifically, by being able to calibrate every ‘local’ SNe Ia and easily probing ever-larger volumes with JWST and WFIRST, the TRGB-based distance ladder paves a clear path to a measurement that is engineered for the highest precision and accuracy.

Two changes are being made for the 10 minute talks this season. First, the talk will be given after the intermission. Second, we are instituting a 10 minute limit. The speaker will be given a 90 second warning to wrap up the talk. If you’re interested in giving a 10 minute talk please contact either Rex or me.

There will be a meet the speaker dinner at 6 PM an Wiberries in Palmer Square. Please contact program@princetonastronomy.org by noon on September 10 if you are interested in attending the dinner.

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Outreach Blotter

Posted on September 3, 2019 by ST Editors

by Gene Allen, Outreach Chair

The support our member have given for the summer push has been great, and now it is winding down, with only a few presentations remaining.

At 7 pm on Wednesday, September 4, Victor Davis will be offering a presentation at the Hopewell Theater, 5 S Greenwood Ave, Hopewell, NJ 08525, in support of the Hopewell Public Library. Following the presentation, we hope a few can join me to show what we can of the night sky from the adjacent lot. If you can bring a scope to help, please plan to be set up to receive observers by 7:30.

At 6:30 pm on Sunday, October 20, I will be giving my presentation at the Pennington Public Library, 30 Main St, followed by star gazing from a nearby open playing field. Volunteers bringing scopes include Jen & Dave Skitt, David Reis, and Tim Donney.

Looking farther ahead, Jim Peck will be giving his presentation to the Jewish Community Center of Edison on January 14, and I will be offering mine to the Princeton Windrows Science Group on January 30.

All this, plus some really high attendance Public Nights at Simpson, make this our most active summer in years. Let’s hope we get a bloom in membership from all your efforts!

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Minutes of the August 8, 2019 AAAP Board Meeting

Posted on September 3, 2019 by ST Editors

by John Miller, Secretary

  • Rex Parker called meeting to order at 7:30 PM
  • AAAP online member survey synopsis was reviewed. Member participation at the observatory, percentage of member scope owners/regular users, AAAP name change (Board decided to keep “Amateur,” rather than replacing with “Astronomy”), and other survey responses were discussed.
  • Sidereal Times co-editor Surabhi Agarwal suggested a 50% dues discount for high school-age membership to the AAAP. Rex Parker said this would have to be discussed with Treasurer Michael Mitrano, who was not at the Board Meeting.
  • Member dues reminder was discussed. A more effective communication process was suggested. Surabhi will place a notice in Sidereal Times.
  • It was recommended that regular notices be sent to the general membership inviting same to meet at-will at the Washington Crossing Soccer Fields for observing sessions, on any Saturday.
  • A new star party venue was further discussed – to be held at The Barn at Gravity Hill, Hopewell Township, NJ; September 27th and 28th. Details published in the August 6th Sidereal Times.
  • Rex Parker forwarded the idea to mount the club’s ZWO294 camera onto the C14 telescope. This would be partnered with a flip-mirror optical diagonal. Operational details are under study. Details in the August 6th edition of Sidereal Times.
  • David Skitt’s offer of a donated storage shed, to be placed on the observatory property was put on hold with three board members voting against.
  • A detailed discussion regarding needed reinforcement / repair to the observatory outside supporting pillars was undertaken. Michael Mitrano was suggested as lead investigator for contractor and permit reviews.
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