SpaceWatchtower: 2023

Monday, December 18, 2023

Winter Begins at Solstice Thur. Night; Ursid Meteors Peak Friday

This diagram shows the position of the Earth, in relation to the Sun, at the time of the Winter Solstice, as well as the other solstice and equinoxes of the year, in Earth's Northern Hemisphere.
[Graphic Source: ©1999, Eric G. Canali, former Floor Operations Manager of the original Buhl Planetarium & Institute of Popular Science / Buhl Science Center, America's fifth major planetarium and Pittsburgh's science & technology museum from 1939 to 1991, and Founder of the South Hills Backyard Astronomers amateur astronomy club; permission granted for only non-profit use with credit to author.]

By Glenn A. Walsh

Reporting for SpaceWatchtower

The season of Winter, in the Northern Hemisphere of Earth, begins at the moment of the Winter / December Solstice, Thursday Evening, 2023 December 21 at 10:27 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) / December 22, 3:27 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This moment also marks the astronomical beginning of the Summer season in the Southern Hemisphere.

Winter continues in Earth's Northern Hemisphere until Spring begins on the Vernal Equinox: Tuesday, 2024 March 19 at 11:07 p.m. Eastern Daylight Saving Time (EDT) / March 20 at 3:07 UTC. This also marks the beginning of Autumn / Fall in the Southern Hemisphere.

In Meteorology (Weather Science), the convention is to start a season on the first day of a calendar month. So, Meteorological Winter runs from December 1 to February 28 or 29.

This year's Winter Solstice marks the 55^th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 8, the first human mission to the Moon. Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida on 1968 December 21 at 7:51 a.m. EST / 12:51 UTC, entered lunar orbit early on the morning of Christmas Eve, orbited the Moon ten times, and returned to Earth on 1968 December 27.

Tomorrow marks the 51st anniversary (1972 December 19) of the return to Earth of the last human mission to the Moon, Apollo 17. Apollo missions 18, 19, and 20 had been cancelled, primarily due to budget cuts.

Almost exactly 24 hours after the Winter Solstice will mark the peak time for the annual Ursid Meteor Shower. This meteor shower peaks Friday Evening, 2023 December 22 at 11:00 p.m. EST / December 23, 4:00 UTC (of course, meteor showers can only be viewed between local sunset and local sunrise, best viewed between local Midnight and local dawn when Earth is rotating into the meteor shower).

Winter Solstice

In etymology, the word solstice comes from the Latin terms Sol (Sun) and sistere (to stand-still). In ancient times, astronomers / astrologers / priests recognized that one day of the year when the Sun would appear to reach its lowest point in the sky for the entire year. The motion of the Sun's apparent path in the sky (what is known astronomically today as the Sun's Declination) would cease on this day, and the Sun would appear to stand-still, before reversing direction.

With our Gregorian Calendar, this usually occurs on, or very close to, December 21. In ancient times, when people used the Julian Calendar, the Winter Solstice was on, or very close to, December 25, what we now know as Christmas Day. Mid-Winter festivals, at the time of the Winter Solstice, were common in ancient times. Instead of competing with these traditions, the early Roman Catholic Church Christianized the Winter festivals by observing the birth of Jesus Christ on December 25 [the actual birth date of Jesus of Nazareth was probably either in the Spring or around Harvest-time (late Summer / early Autumn)].

Today, we know that, while the Sun does have motions (the Sun rotates on its own axis about once every 27 Earth days; our Solar System revolves around the center of the Milky Way Galaxy once every 225 million-to-250 million Earth years), it is actually the motion of the Earth, tilted on its axis (Mean Obliquity) currently 23.43616 degrees / 23 degrees, 26 minutes, 10.1 seconds (at the North Latitude this is known as the Tropic of Cancer or Northern Tropic, while at the South Latitude this is located at the Tropic of Capricorn or Southern Tropic) from the plane of our Solar System while revolving around the Sun, that causes the Earth's seasons.

Hence, as the Earth arrives at the point in its orbit around the Sun, where the south polar axis is most directly inclined toward the Sun (thus, the Sun appears at its lowest point for the year in the Northern Hemisphere sky) around December 21, this marks the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere (and the Summer Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere).

Alternately around June 21, the Summer Solstice marks the beginning of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere (and this date also marks the Winter Solstice, which is the beginning of Winter in the Southern Hemisphere) as the Earth reaches the point in its orbit where the north polar axis is most directly inclined toward the Sun.

The day of the December Solstice is the only time of the year when the Sun reaches the point of Local Solar Noon at the South Pole. Conversely, it is also the only time of the year when Local Solar Midnight occurs at the North Pole. And, of course, it is the reverse during the June Solstice: the only time the Sun reaches the point of Local Solar Noon at the North Pole and the only time when Local Solar Midnight occurs at the South Pole.

Although the Winter months in the Northern Hemisphere are known for the year's coldest weather, the Earth is actually at the point in its orbit closest to the Sun (astronomically known as the point of Perihelion) on or very near January 2. The Earth is farthest from the Sun, each year shortly after the Northern Hemisphere's Summer Solstice, on or very near July 5 (the point of Aphelion). Over a half-year's time between Earth Perihelion and Earth Aphelion, the difference in distance between the Sun and Earth varies by about 3.2 million statute miles / 5.1499008 million kilometers.

The dates of Earth Perihelion and Earth Aphelion are not fixed. Due to the Earth's Precession of the Equinoxes, these days shift forward approximately one day every 58 years. About 800 years ago, the Earth Perihelion was on the date of the Winter Solstice, around December 21; Earth Perihelion will be on the Vernal Equinox, the beginning of Spring around March 20, about 4,300 years from now. Earth's Axial Precession (often described as a "wobble" in the Earth's orientation, like a spinning top or a gyroscope) gradually changes the orientation of the Earth's Rotational Axis, which completes one rotational cycle once every 25,772 years.

This year, Earth Perihelion will occur on Tuesday Evening, 2024 January 2 at 7:38 p.m. EST / January 3, 0:38 UTC. At that moment, Earth will be the closest to the Sun for the whole year: 91,404,095 statute miles / 147,100,632 kilometers. This year's Earth Aphelion: Friday Morning, 2024 July 5 at 1:06 a.m. Eastern Daylight Saving Time (EDT) / 5:06 UTC - 94,510,539 statute miles / 152,099,968.88 kilometers.

Solar radiation, and hence heat from the Sun, to warm an Earth hemisphere depends on the length of daylight and the angle of the Sun above the horizon. Earth receives about 7 per-cent more solar radiation from the Sun during the time of Earth Perihelion in January, than at the time of Earth Aphelion in July. However, the tilt of the planet's axis toward the Sun determines the additional and more direct solar radiation received by a planet's northern or southern hemisphere, and hence, the warmer season of the respective hemisphere.

The Earth's Perihelion in January, and Aphelion in July, are due to the elliptical nature of the Earth's orbit around the Sun. Perihelion and Aphelion would not occur if the Earth's orbit was a true circle.

Since the Earth is closest to the Sun near the beginning of the Northern Hemisphere's Winter Season, the Earth, then, moves faster in its orbit around the Sun than it moves in July, making the Northern Hemisphere's Winter a shorter season than Summer. Winter will last for only 89 days, while this past-Summer lasted nearly 93 days. This is one of the observed consequences of Johannes Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion, which he published at the beginning of the 17^th century.

The day of the Winter Solstice is known as the “shortest day of the year” and the “longest night of the year” as the Sun shines on the Northern Hemisphere for the shortest length of time for the entire year, on this day. For this reason, Homeless Persons' Memorial Day is commemorated on December 21.

Since the Summer Solstice in June, the number of daylight hours have slowly diminished each day, with the night-time hours progressively increasing each day. This has benefited astronomers (to view planets, stars, and other celestial phenomena), amateur / ham radio operators (to communicate with other ham operators around the world), and long-distance (DX) radio enthusiasts (to receive AM / medium-wave and short-wave radio stations from around the country or around the world), who need the lack of solar radiation to ply their respective craft. Once we reach the Winter Solstice, the number of daylight hours will, now, slowly increase each day, with the night-time hours declining each day--until, once again, this reverses on the Summer Solstice.

Interestingly, the climate of a locale in the Southern Hemisphere is, on average, slightly milder than a location at the same latitude in the Northern Hemisphere, because the Southern Hemisphere has significantly more ocean water and much less land. Water warms-up and cools-down more slowly than does land. The only exception is the Antarctic Continent, which is colder than the Northern Hemisphere's Arctic region, possibly because most of the Arctic region is covered with water (although, often frozen water on the surface, but liquid water beneath the ice) while Antarctica is mostly a land mass.

On the Winter Solstice, the Sun appears (from Earth's perspective) to be in the constellation Sagittarius—that is, if you could view the stars behind the Sun on the Winter Solstice, you would see the stars of Sagittarius. Previously, just a few days earlier, the Sun had appeared to be in the constellation Ophiuchus. The change, when the Sun appeared to move from Sagittarius to Ophiuchus, occurred on December 17.

However, a couple thousand years ago, the Sun would have appeared to be in the constellation Capricornus during the Winter Solstice. And, about 150 years from now, the Sun will appear to be in the constellation Ophiuchus during the Winter Solstice. The names Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn were coined in the last centuries B.C., when the Sun would appear in the Constellation Cancer the Crab on the June Solstice and in the Constellation Capricornus the Horned Goat on the December Solstice.

This apparent change is known as Precession of the Equinoxes or Axial Precession. This is a slow “wobble” of the Earth's axis, which causes the background stars or constellations that the Sun appears in to change over an approximately 25,771.5 year-cycle. This cycle runs through 12 traditional constellations of the zodiac, plus the constellation Ophiuchus, comprising the constellations along the ecliptic.

Precession also causes the North Star to change over the approximately 25,771.5 year-cycle. Today, Polaris is known as the North Star, which has been used for ages by navigators. However, at the time Egypt constructed the Great Pyramid, architects used Thuban, the North Star at that time, to align the pyramid. And, about 12,000 years from today, Vega will be the North Star.

Although for the year, December 21, for Earth's Northern Hemisphere, has the fewest number of daylight hours and the most night-time hours, it may be surprising to some that this date does not have the latest sunrise time nor the earliest sunset time for the year. This is also true for the June 21 solstice in the Southern Hemisphere.

Depending on a location's latitude, the latest sunrise time actually occurs a few days after the respective solstice, while the earliest sunset time occurs a few days before the day of the solstice. These time differences are due to, what scientists call, the Equation of Time (the Equation of Time is graphically displayed on most world globes as a figure “8”, known as the Analemma).

The U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington defines the Equation of Time: "the Equation of Time is the difference apparent solar time minus mean solar time". Apparent solar time, which is somewhat variable, directly tracks the motion of the Sun and can be measured using a sundial. Mean solar time measures solar motion if the Sun's motion was uniform; it is measured by an accurate clock which does not vary in time measurement.

The Sun's motion does vary throughout the year. Hence, the latest sunrise time and the earliest sunset time do not occur on the actual day of the solstice.

Ursid Meteor Shower

Almost 24 hours after the Winter Solstice comes the peak of the annual Ursid Meteor Shower, which actually begins on December 17 and usually lasts about a week ending December 24, 25, or 26. The Ursids seem to comprise a narrow stream of debris originating from Comet Tuttle. Hence, it is difficult to see Ursid meteors outside of a 12-hour window before and after the peak, where possibly 12 meteors per-hour could be seen, under ideal conditions.

The Ursid Meteor Shower is so-named because most meteors appear to radiate from a point near the Star Beta Ursae Minoris (apparent meteor shower radiant) in the Constellation Ursa Minor (better known as the asterism the “Little Dipper”), which is the brightest star in the bowl of the Little Dipper. Some people call these meteors “Ursids,” in an attempt to emphasize that their apparent radiant is Ursa Minor, not Ursa Major (the asterism the “Big Dipper”).

However, you should not, necessarily, be looking only at the Little Dipper when looking for meteors in this shower. Meteors can appear in any part of the sky at any time (although a meteor's tail may tend to point back toward the radiant).

Of course meteor showers, like all celestial observations, are weather-permitting. If there are more than a few clouds in the sky, meteors will be much more difficult to find. Clear skies are not always available in the skies of late Autumn and early Winter. And, it is always best to get away from city lights, for the opportunity to see the smaller, dimmer meteors. A bright Moon in the sky will also make it more difficult to view the smaller, dimmer meteors. As always, the best time to view any meteor shower is between local midnight and local dawn, when the Earth is actually rotating into the stream of meteoric debris.

Binoculars and telescopes are not very useful for finding meteors. Meteors streak across the sky in a very short period of time, far too short to aim binoculars or a telescope. So, the best way to view a meteor shower is to lie on a blanket or beach towel on the ground, or use a reclining a chair, outdoors in an area with a good view of the entire sky (with few obstructions such as buildings, trees, or hills), and keep scanning the entire sky (best results: look in darkest parts of sky).

So, if you go out to see the Ursid Meteor Shower, start looking for meteors around local midnight, or perhaps a little later. Make sure you have a good site where you can see most of the sky, and that sky is relatively clear. Be sure to dress properly for the early morning temperatures, now that we are at the very beginning of Winter.

And, you want to go out ahead of time, before you actually start looking for meteors, to get your eyes accustomed to the dark sky. Dark-adapting your eyes for meteor-watching could take up to a half-hour.

Internet Links to Additional Information ---

Winter Solstice:
Link 1 >>> http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/astronomy/WinterSolstice.html
Link 2 >>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter
Solstice: Link >>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solstice

Popular Winter Planetarium Sky Shows Shown at Pittsburgh's original Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science (1939 to 1991), including full scripts of each show:
The Star of Bethlehem >>> http://buhlplanetarium3.tripod.com/skyshow/bethlehem/
The Stars of Winter >>> http://buhlplanetarium3.tripod.com/skyshow/winter/

Calendar Formats ---
Gregorian Calendar: Link >>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregorian_calendar
Julian Calendar: Link >>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_calendar

Ursid Meteor Shower: Link >>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UrsidsA

Homeless Persons' Memorial Day:

Link >>> http://nationalhomeless.org/about-us/projects/memorial-day/

Related Blog-Posts ---

"'The Night the Stars Fell' 190 Years Ago: Beginning of Citizen Science."

Mon., 2023 November 13.

Link >>> https://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-night-stars-fell-190-years-ago.html

"American Lunar Society Founder on 50th Anniversary: 1st Humans Orbit Moon."

Mon., 2018 Dec. 24.

Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2018/12/50th-anniversary-incredible-legacy-of.html

Source: Glenn A. Walsh Reporting for SpaceWatchtower, a project of Friends of the Zeiss

"Winter Begins at Solstice Thur. Night; Ursid Meteors Peak Friday."

Monday, 2023 December 18.

Artificial Intelligence not used in the writing of this article.

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gaw

Glenn A. Walsh, Informal Science Educator & Communicator (For more than 50 years! - Since Monday Morning, 1972 June 12):
Link >>> http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/weblog/spacewatchtower/gaw/
Electronic Mail: < gawalsh@planetarium.cc >
Project Director, Friends of the Zeiss: Link >>> http://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/fotz/
SpaceWatchtower Editor / Author: Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/
Formerly Astronomical Observatory Coordinator & Planetarium Lecturer, original Buhl Planetarium & Institute of Popular Science (a.k.a. Buhl Science Center), America's fifth major planetarium and Pittsburgh's science & technology museum from 1939 to 1991.
Formerly Trustee, Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall, Pittsburgh suburb of Carnegie, Pennsylvania, the fourth of only five libraries where both construction and endowment funded by famous industrialist & philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.
Author of History Web Sites on the Internet --
* Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh: Link >>> http://www.planetarium.cc Buhl Observatory: Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2016/11/75th-anniversary-americas-5th-public.html
* Adler Planetarium, Chicago: Link >>> http://adlerplanetarium.tripod.com
* Astronomer, Educator, Optician John A. Brashear: Link >>> http://johnbrashear.tripod.com
* Andrew Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries: Link >>> http://www.andrewcarnegie.cc

* Other Walsh-Authored Blog & Web-Sites: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/gawweb.html

Saturday, December 9, 2023

Halley's Comet Aphelion - Farthest from Sun

Halley's Comet, as seen from Easter Island on 1986 March 8; photographer: W. Liller (International Halley Watch, Large Scale Phenomena Network).

(Image Sources: NASA, Wikipedia.org, By NASA/W. Liller - NSSDC's Photo Gallery (NASA):http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-comets.htmlhttp://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/image/planetary/comet/lspn_comet_halley1.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=544352)

By Glenn A. Walsh

Reporting for SpaceWatchtower

TODAY (Saturday, 2023 December 9) marks Aphelion for Comet Halley, the comet's farthest point in their orbit of the Sun. Halley's Comet's last Perihelion, their closest approaches to the Sun and Earth, came in 1986. Halley's Comet's next Perihelion will come in 2061.

1910 – Astronomer John Brashear shows Halley's Comet to the general public, using telescopes in Pittsburgh's Riverview Park, on the front lawn of the Allegheny Observatory.

1985 & 1986 – Pittsburgh's Buhl Science Center shows Halley's Comet to the general public, using telescopes in the original Buhl Planetarium Observatory, including the historic 10-inch Siderostat-type Refractor Telescope.

2023 December 9 – Halley's Comet reaches Aphelion.

2061 July 28 – Next Halley's Comet Perihelion.

Internet Links to Additional Information ---

Halley's Comet: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halley's_Comet

StarDate - "Distant Comet": Link >>> https://stardate.org/radio/program/2023-12-09

Source: Glenn A. Walsh Reporting for SpaceWatchtower, a project of Friends of the Zeiss

Saturday, 2023 December 9.

* Other Walsh-Authored Blog & Web-Sites: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/gawweb.html

Thursday, December 7, 2023

UPDATE: Launch Slips to Jan. for U.S. Robotic Return to Moon

Observation windows looking into the Astrobotic Clean Room, from the Moonshot Space Museum, located on Pittsburgh's Lower North Side. In this photograph, two Astrobotic technicians are working on the Peregrine Moon Lander, scheduled to be launched to the Moon Christmas Eve. This photograph was taken on the day of dedication of the Moonshot Space Museum: Saturday, 2022 October 15.

(Image Source: SpaceWatchtower Blog, Friends of the Zeiss; Photographer: Glenn A. Walsh)

UPDATE - 2023 Dec. 11: Launch of the Peregrine Lander and Iris Rover has been delayed until, at least, the week of Jan. 8 (in overnight hours - four-day launch window). United Launch Alliance (ULA) CEO Tory Bruno, in a Social Media Post, announced that, although the Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) for the countdown of the very first launch of the new Vulcan Centaur rocket went well, there were some "routine" issues with ground equipment. Mr. Bruno said “I’d like a FULL WDR before our first flight, so XMAS eve is likely out.”

Should the rescheduled launch occur the week of Jan. 8, Cape Canaveral will be a busy place that week. Currently a second lunar lander, Mission IM-1 by Intuitive Machines with its first Nova-C Lunar Lander to be launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, is scheduled for launch Jan. 12. On Dec. 4, Intuitive Machines had announced that the lander had arrived at a processing facility at Cape Canaveral.

gaw

By Glenn A. Walsh

Reporting for SpaceWatchtower

America's return to the Moon, with a robotic lander and rover, is planned for launch Christmas Eve of this year. This NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) project, the Peregrine Lander carrying 21 payloads, was built by Astrobotic Technology, Inc. of Pittsburgh and the Iris Rover was produced by Carnegie Mellon University.

Over the years, the United States has had several fly-by and orbital missions to the Moon, since the last Apollo mission, Apollo 17, left the Moon on 1972 December 14. However, Peregrine Mission One will be the first American lander and rover since the days of Apollo.

Peregrine Mission One will be launched atop a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan Centaur rocket from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida [Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41)]. This is the first flight of this particular rocket, a successor to ULA's Atlas V and Delta IV launch vehicles. Getting such a new rocket ready for launch, and passing NASA requirements, meant that the original May 4 launch date slipped until December.

Launch of the Peregrine mission is scheduled for early on the morning of Christmas Eve: 1:50 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) / 6:50 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), Sunday Morning, 2023 December 24. It was also on Christmas Eve, this time in 1968, when humans first entered orbit around another planetary body, the Earth's Moon, during the historic mission of Apollo 8.

The Peregrine Mission One launch window continues during December 25 and 26, if a launch cannot occur on Christmas Eve. Provided the launch does occur one of these three days, landing on the Moon is expected a month later: Thursday, 2024 January 25.

Internet Link to Live-Stream Web-Cast of Astrobotic Launch Near End of Blog-Post.

About an hour or so after launch, the Peregrine Lander and Iris Rover will separate from the launch vehicle and enter a Trans-lunar Injection for the beginning of the trip to the Moon. After entering a medium orbit around the Moon, landing the spacecraft will wait until early morning at the landing site: Sinus Viscositatis ('Bay of Stickiness') located at 35.25 degrees North and 40.99 degrees west on the Moon.

By landing early in the morning on the Moon, this will give the mission eight-to-ten days of operation while the Sun is shining. Once nightfall descends on the spacecraft, operations will stop and wait for the next sunrise. However, Astrobotic Founder and Chief Executive Officer John Thornton warns that with the cold of a lunar night, it is not known how that may affect the equipment; he said that India's Chandrayaan-3 Lander did not resume operation after lunar night. According to Mr. Thornton, the Moon's surface temperature varies from about +212 to +248 degrees Fahrenheit / +100 to +120 degrees Celsius in the daytime “down to liquid nitrogen cold” at night; a lot of things can break at such low nighttime temperatures.

Another NASA CLPS mission, the launch of Intuitive Machines Nova-C Lander (IM-1 Mission), was also delayed and is now scheduled to launch after the Peregrine Lander. But if the IM-1 Mission schedule holds, it may actually land on the Moon slightly before the Peregrine Lander.

The Iris Rover is a collaboration between the students, professors, and staff from Carnegie Mellon University and Astrobotic in the development of robotics technology for Outer Space. The rover name Iris is Siri spelled backwards, in honor of Carnegie Mellon University Lead Systems Engineer Siri Maley. The Iris robotic mission will be the smallest, first American, first university-built, and first student-built rover on the Earth's Moon.

Carnegie Mellon is also providing another payload called MoonArk, which Astrobotic describes as a “collaborative space project”. This sort-of space museum “embodies the arts, humanities, sciences, and technologies in a set of intricately designed objects intended to spark wonderment and discovery for future generations.”

Among the 21 payloads on this mission are instruments from NASA research centers: Ames Research Center (Moffett Federal Airfield, Silicon Valley, California), Goddard Space Flight Center (Greenbelt, Maryland), and Johnson Space Center (Houston, Texas) ---

Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA) – GSFC
Linear Energy Transfer Spectrometer (LETS) – JSC
Near InfraRed Volatiles Spectrometer System (NIRVSS) – ARC
Neutron Spectrometer System (NSS) – ARC
Peregrine Ion-Trap Mass Spectrometer (PITMS) – GSFC/European Space Agency

Other payloads include a M-42 Radiation Detector from the German Aerospace Center, as well as scientific payloads from the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Hungary. An American space company, Elysium Space, is sending the remains of people's loved ones on the spacecraft. And, scientists from the Seychelles are sending one Bit-coin.

Japan's Lunar Dream Capsule, from the company Astroscale, is described as a “time capsule”. The time capsule includes messages from 80,000 children from around the world.

A commercial spin-off from Carnegie Mellon University, Astrobotic opened a Moonshot Space Museum on Pittsburgh's Lower North Side on Saturday Morning, 2022 October 15. This new museum is located adjacent to Astrobotic's manufacturing facility. In addition to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education for young people, this museum allows the general public to watch Moon rovers being constructed.

Carnegie Mellon University originated in 1900 as the Carnegie Technical Schools. It was established to provide for a technical education by famous industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.

Internet Link to Live-Stream Web-Cast of Astrobotic Launch ---

Link >>> https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv/

Internet Links to Additional Information ---

Peregrine Mission One ---

Link 1 >>> https://www.nasa.gov/missions/artemis/clps/astrobotic-peregrine-mission-one/

Link 2 >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peregrine_Mission_One

Astrobotic Technology ---

Astrobotic: Link >>> https://www.astrobotic.com/

Peregine Mission One Update: Link >>> https://www.astrobotic.com/peregrine-mission-one-update/

Peregine Mission One Manifest: Link >>> https://www.astrobotic.com/lunar-delivery/manifest/

Carnegie Mellon Iris & MoonArk:

Link >>> https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2023/october/cmus-iris-moonark-leave-pittsburgh-en-route-to-the-moon

Related Blog-Posts ---

"Moonshot Space Museum Opens in Pittsburgh." Thur., 2022 Oct. 20.

Link >>> https://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2022/10/moonshot-space-museum-opens-in.html

Moonshot Space Museum sponsored by Astrobotic Technology.

"CMU to Build 1st Univ.-Based Space Mission Control." Mon., 2022 April 18.

Link >>> https://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2022/04/cmu-to-build-1st-univ-based-space.html

"American Lunar Society Founder on 50th Anniversary: 1st Humans Orbit Moon."

Mon., 2018 Dec. 24.

Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2018/12/50th-anniversary-incredible-legacy-of.html

"Library to be Established on the Moon !" Mon., 2018 May 2.

Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2018/05/library-to-be-established-on-moon.html

Source: Glenn A. Walsh Reporting for SpaceW atchtower, a project of Friends of the Zeiss

UPDATED: Monday, 2023 December 11 - "UPDATE: Launch Slips to Jan. for U.S. Robotic Return to Moon."

Previous: Thursday, 2023 December 7 - "Christmas Eve Launch Planned for America's Robotic Return to the Moon."

* Other Walsh-Authored Blog & Web-Sites: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/gawweb.html

Monday, November 13, 2023

'The Night the Stars Fell' 190 Years Ago: Beginning of Citizen Science

'The Night the Stars Fell', the Meteor Storm of 1833 November 13. This woodcut print was produced by a witness to this Meteor Storm, Mr. Pickering, an Editor of the Mechanics' Magazine. (Image Sources: Mr. Pickering, Wikipedia.org, By attriuted to a Mr. Pickering - The Leonids: King of the Meteor Showers, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=13353173)

By Glenn A. Walsh

Reporting for SpaceWatchtower

“The Night the Stars Fell” was the early morning of 1833 November 13 when thousands of “Shooting Stars”, during what we now know as the annual Leonid Meteor Shower, became a Meteor Storm! A Connecticut college professor used the incident to start the first scientific study of Meteors and Meteor Showers and create the first Citizen Science Project.

In the early 19^th century, little was known about Meteors and Meteor Showers. Although Meteor Showers had been observed for centuries, most people at the time believed they were a somewhat unusual Meteorological or Weather phenomenon such as Lightning. It was only about 80 years before “The Night the Stars Fell” that Benjamin Franklin had developed the scientific connection between Lightning and Electricity. Still, Meteor Showers had been connected to rare but strange rocks falling from the sky.

It was not until 1807 when a Yale University Chemistry professor investigated a Meteorite which had fallen in Weston, Connecticut. Professor Benjamin Silliman believed the Meteorite had originated from above the atmosphere, in Outer Space. But, astronomers showed little interest in his hypothesis.

It was in the early morning hours of 1833 November 13 when people throughout the eastern United States awoke to a sky filled with bright Meteors radiating from a single point in the sky. Agnes Clerke, a Victorian Astronomy writer, wrote at the time that up-to 240,000 Meteors had been visible during the nine hours of darkness. It was later calculated that the Meteor Storm had resulted in at least 72,000 Meteors per hour!

Another Yale professor, astronomer Denison Olmsted, was one of the people, awakened by neighbors that early morning, who observed the Meteor Storm. He wanted to study the phenomenon. But, other than his own observations, he had little data to work with.

Professor Olmsted decided to seek help from the general public. As soon as the Meteor Storm dimmed with the rising Sun, he wrote a letter to the New Haven Daily Herald, asking anyone who had seen the Meteor Storm to write him with any details they remember. And in this era, most newspapers subscribed to other newspapers around the nation, so other newspapers started reprinting the professor's request.

Here is Professor Olmsted's appeal, as reprinted in Virginia's Richmond Enquirer on 1833 November 26:

“As the cause of ‘Falling Stars’ is not understood by meteorologists, it is desirable to collect all the facts attending this phenomenon, stated with as much precision as possible. The subscriber, therefore, requests to be informed of any particulars which were observed by others, respecting the time when it was first discovered, the position of the radiant point above mentioned, whether progressive or stationary, and of any other facts relative to the meteors.”

The Meteor Storm was seen by members of the general public throughout the eastern United States, specifically east of the Rocky Mountains, and from Canada to Jamaica. Soon, Professor Olmsted started receiving observation reports from all over the country.

Additionally, other newspapers started printing observation reports. The New York Evening Post ran a series of articles on the event. Although it was only seen in North America, it made news in Europe, as well. Even Abraham Lincoln commented on the Meteor Storm years later.

This Meteor Storm was also noted by Native Americans. It resulted in a peace treaty by the Cheyenne and a reset of the Lakota calendar. Indians of the American Great Plains, in their annual calendar-journals, declared 1833 the 'Year the Stars Fell'.

After sorting through many public observations crowd-sourced from all over the nation, in January of 1834 Professor Olmsted published an accurate description of the event in the American Journal of Science and Arts (published in the January – April 1834 and January 1836 editions). He noted that the event was not seen in Europe, and that the Meteors seem to have originated from the Constellation Leo the Lion. He determined that the event was not a local affair, but was visible over a wide area of the country. He hypothesized that the Meteors came from a cloud of particles in Outer Space and fell to Earth from the influence of gravity. He concluded that Meteor Showers came in annual cycles, from a body with a very elongated orbit around the Sun. His calculations of the speed and altitude of the Meteors were nearly correct.

This Meteor Storm repeated in Europe 33 years later when hundreds of Meteors per minute were seen (a few thousand per hour). It was around this time that astronomers were able to make the connection between these Meteors and Comet Tempel-Tuttle, hence the first understanding that Meteor Showers originated from Comets.

A Meteor Shower normally consists of dust particles related to a Comet. Each time a Comet approaches the Sun, the Comet loses dust particles following the melting or sublimating of ice on the Comet. These dust particles, called Meteoroids, continue to follow the same orbit as the parent Comet and then form a Meteoroid Stream. Each year, as the Earth orbits the Sun, the Earth passes through several of these Meteoroid Streams, becoming Earth's Meteor Showers.

The Earth's gravity attracts many of these Meteoroids and they fall to Earth; then, they are viewed by people as Meteors as they burn-up in the atmosphere. Most are extremely small and burn-up completely. From time-to-time, larger particles enter the atmosphere and create brilliant displays known as Fireballs or Bolides. If these particles are large enough, they may not completely burn-up and land on Earth as a Meteorite.

While the historic Meteor Storm occurred on November 13 of 1833, today the Leonid Meteor Shower usually peaks around November 17 or 18. In 2023, the Leonid Meteor Shower peaks early on Saturday Morning, November 18 at 1:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) / 6:00 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This year, the Zenithal Hourly Rate at the peak time is predicted to be 20 Meteors per hour.

Actually, another smaller Meteor Shower, the Northern Taurids (which originated from Asteroid 2004 TG, which seems to be a large fragment of Comet Enke which originated the Southern Taurids, which peaked November 5 to 6), peaks early this morning (2023 November 13). The official peak was actually Sunday, November 12 at 7:00 p.m. EST / November 13 at 0:00 UTC. The Zenithal Hourly Rate at the peak time is predicted to be 5 Meteors per hour. Although, it is best to look for these Meteors much later into the evening and early morning.

Binoculars and telescopes are of little use in finding Meteors. Meteors flash across the sky much too quickly to aim binoculars or a telescope.

Your eyes will need to be dark-adapted about a half-hour before you start looking for Meteors; otherwise you may miss dim Meteors. So, try to get outside in the dark ahead of the time you wish to start observing. Also, try not to look at your cellular telephone while observing Meteors; the light from your phone could disrupt your dark-adapted eyes.

For most Meteor Showers, the best time to watch is between local Midnight and Dawn, when the Earth is rotating into the Meteor Shower. This is true, despite the actual predicted time of peak Meteors.

Although Meteors usually radiate from a single spot or radiant in the sky (for the Leonids: Constellation Leo the Lion and for the North Taurids: Constellation Taurus the Bull), it is not necessarily the best strategy to only look at a particular constellation. Meteors, even during a Meteor Shower, can appear in any part of the sky at any time. In fact, watching for Meteors only near a radiant would usually mean viewing shorter Meteor trails and seeing a Meteor for a shorter period of time.

To view Meteors, you want to find a good viewing site, away from city lights and as high an elevation as possible (a site with few objects obstructing the Horizon, such as hills, trees, or buildings). City lights will tend to drown-out the many dimmer Meteors, as will a bright Moon phase that shines much of the night and early morning.

Fortunately, the brightness of the Moon will not be a problem this week. The Primary Moon Phase of New Moon (Lunation #1248) occurs on Monday Morning, 2023 November 13 at 4:27 a.m. EST / 9:27 UTC.

The best way to view a Meteor Shower is to lie down on a beach or lawn chair, beach towel, sheet, or blanket. Then continue to scan the entire sky to search for Meteors (best results: look in darkest parts of sky).

Of course, Meteor watching is always weather-permitting. Even a few clouds in the sky could cut down on the number of Meteors visible.

If you live in the northern latitudes, this time of year you will want to be sure to be prepared for colder temperatures in the early morning hours. Be sure to check the weather forecast, for the area from where you plan to observe from, by checking with the local NOAA Weather Radio, local radio or television, or a weather app on your cellular telephone.

Internet Links to Additional Information ---

Meteor: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteoroid#Meteors

Meteoroid: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteoroid

Meteor Shower: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_shower

Leonid Meteor Shower: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonids

Northern & Southern Taurid Meteor Showers: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taurids

Denison Olmsted: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denison_Olmsted

Citizen Science Projects: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/FAQ/citizenscience.html

Related Blog-Posts ---

"Fireballs Possible As Meteor Shower Peaks Wed. & Thur. Nights." Wed., 2015 Nov. 11. (Northern Taurid Meteor Shower)

Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2015/11/fireballs-possible-as-meteor-shower.html

Leonid Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight." Mon., 2014 Nov. 17.

Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2014/11/leonid-meteor-shower-peaks-tonight.html

Source: Glenn A. Walsh Reporting for SpaceWatchtower, a project of Friends of the Zeiss

Monday, 2023 November 13.

* Other Walsh-Authored Blog & Web-Sites: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/gawweb.html

Saturday, October 21, 2023

Centennial: Projection Planetarium

These photographs show the two earliest versions of the Zeiss Planetarium Projector. The first image shows the very first projector, the Zeiss Mark I, which was introduced at the Deutsches Museum in Munich 100 years ago today. The second image, the Zeiss Mark II, operated in the original Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science in Pittsburgh from 1939 to 1991 and was the first planetarium projector placed on an elevator.

(Image Sources --- Zeiss Mark I: Wikipedia.org; Zeiss Mark II: History of Buhl Planetarium Internet Web-site)

By Glenn A. Walsh

Reporting for SpaceWatchtower

Today (2023 October 21) marks the centennial of the planetarium projector, which made its debut at the Deutsches Museum in Munich, Germany on 1923 October 21. This means of displaying the motions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars of the sky, without any concern for inclement weather, quickly developed in cities around the world.

The concept of a projection planetarium was first conceived on 1914 February 24 at a meeting of staff scientists of the Carl Zeiss Company in Jena, Germany. Due to delays caused by the First World War, the first actual planetarium projector would not be produced until nearly a decade later.

The idea came as a solution to a problem brought on by a request from a client, Oskar von Miller. Mr. von Miller, a well-known German engineer, had spearheaded the establishment of the first modern-type science and technology museum, the Deutsches Museum in Munich, Germany, which opened to the public on 1906 November 12. In 1913, German Astronomer Max Wolf, former Director of the Baden Observatory in Heidelberg, urged Mr. von Miller to include, in the Deutsches Museum, a way to realistically reproduce the night sky, in detail, including the motions of the planets.

Also in 1913 (before Chicago's Adler Planetarium opened in 1930), a large-scale, mechanical celestial sphere, called the Atwood Sphere, opened to the public in the Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences (today, it is displayed in the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum). In a mechanical celestial sphere, a small number of people would enter an enclosure where light from outside the enclosure would twinkle through small holes in the sphere, as a display of stars that could be seen outdoors; additionally, the sphere would spin around the viewers demonstrating star movement. The concept of a mechanical celestial sphere, large enough to accommodate at least ten people, dates back to 1664 when the Globe of Gottorf was installed in the Kunstkammer Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

Mr. von Miller wanted a mechanical celestial sphere for the Deutsches Museum. However, he asked that the Carl Zeiss scientists find a way to also display the movements of the Sun, Moon, and planets in the celestial sphere, something that was not included in previous spheres.

Two Carl Zeiss scientists, Walther Bauersfeld and Rudolf Straubel, offered an alternative on 1914 February 24: replace the small celestial sphere with a giant hemispheric dome, and use a bright central lamp to project the planets and stars onto the dome-sky.

In addition to being the first concept for a projection planetarium, it was also the first concept of a true, large-scale planetarium. Except for a small-scale Orrery, the previous celestial spheres had no way to demonstrate the motions of the planets.

A very primitive projection planetarium had been invented in 1912 by Professor E. Hindermann in Basel, Switzerland. Called an Orbitoscope, this spring-driven instrument included only two planets orbiting a Sun. A small light bulb on one planet projected shadows on the other two objects, accurately displaying retrograde loops and speed changes, but not much else.

Well after the end of World War I, the Carl Zeiss Company first demonstrated a large-scale projection planetarium in August of 1923, in a 16-meter dome set-up on the company's factory roof in Jena. The Zeiss Model I, known as the “Wonder of Jena,” was then dismantled and shipped to the Deutsches Museum.

On 1923 October 21, Mr. Bauersfeld, the Carl Zeiss Company Chief Design Engineer, demonstrated the Zeiss I in a program for invited guests at the Deutsches Museum. As the first public planetarium show, the professional and public reaction was enthusiastic. The planetarium projector was then returned to the Jena factory for finishing touches, and then permanently installed in the Munich museum on 1925 May 7.

This new educational tool greatly impressed scientists and civic leaders in Germany, resulting in six other German cities receiving Zeiss planetarium projectors by the end of 1926. By 1930, five more German cities had projectors. A much improved Zeiss Model II soon superseded the Zeiss I.

In 1927, the first Zeiss projector outside of Germany was installed in Vienna, and then a projector was installed in Rome in 1928 and one in Moscow in 1929. Other European cities to receive planetarium projectors from the Carl Zeiss Company, prior to World War II, included Stockholm (1930), Milan (1930), and Paris (1937). The first Asian planetarium projectors appeared in Osaka in 1937 and Tokyo in 1938.

Five Zeiss planetarium projectors were installed in America prior to World War II. The first came to the new Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum in Chicago in 1930. Founded by Chicago business leader Max Adler, the institution is part of Chicago's Museum Campus, which includes the Field Natural History Museum and the Shedd Aquarium. A visit in 1930 by Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh co-founder Leo Scanlon, and other members of the club, inspired the club to lobby for a planetarium to be built in Pittsburgh.

During a Web Seminar on 2020 September 3, Mike Smail, Director of Theaters and Digital Experience at the Adler Planetarium, announced that America's oldest planetarium projector had been found in storage in central Ohio and recovered. The author, Glenn A. Walsh, is proud to have assisted in the resolution regarding the mystery of what had been a missing historic projector.

The second U.S. planetarium, the Fels Planetarium, was installed as part of Philadelphia's Franklin Institute in 1933; the planetarium opened two months before the Franklin Institute Science Museum was completed in 1934. It is said that Samuel S. Fels, the soap company president and philanthropist who funded the planetarium, missed the debut performance in Fels Planetarium. He was late and refused to be seated late, as he felt nothing should interrupt a planetarium show once it has begun!

Two American planetaria opened in 1935. On May 14, Griffith Observatory and Planetarium opened in Griffith Park in Los Angeles. While the large planetarium dome is in the center of the facility, two smaller observatory domes are on the east and west sides of the building. The east dome houses a 12-inch Zeiss refractor telescope, one of the earliest public observatories; solar telescopes are housed in the west dome, with a coelostat which sends the images to the public exhibit gallery. Located on a high hill just above Hollywood, Griffith Observatory has been included in numerous motion pictures (including James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause) and television programs (including Star Trek: Voyager).

Hayden Planetarium opened in New York City's long-established American Museum of Natural History on 1935 October 3. After a very controversial renovation, which included the demolition of the original Hayden Planetarium building, the new Hayden Planetarium opened as part of the much larger and more impressive Rose Center for Earth and Space in 2000. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, nationally known as a host of PBS science programs, is the long-time Director of the Hayden Planetarium.

Also in 1935, the Buhl Foundation committed to building a planetarium in Pittsburgh, in memory of department store co-founder Henry Buhl, Jr. Opened in 1939, Pittsburgh's original Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science included five public galleries of exhibits of the physical sciences, and even one life science presentation. A public observatory, with a rather unique 10-inch Siderostat-type refractor telescope, was added in 1941.

Buhl Planetarium's Zeiss II Planetarium Projector was the first planetarium projector to be placed on an elevator (a special worm-gear elevator custom-built by the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company), and the Theater of the Stars was the first planetarium theater to include a permanent theatrical stage and a special sound system for the hearing-impaired. Buhl used their Zeiss II, with no major modifications, until the building closed as a public museum in 1991. The Zeiss II is now on public exhibit, but not in use, in Pittsburgh's Carnegie Science Center, where the Henry Buhl, Jr. Planetarium and Observatory now utilizes a full-dome, digital projection system.

Two American-built star projectors are of special note. In 1937, the Korkosz brothers installed a projector, which projects 9,500 stars but no planets, in the Springfield Museum of Science in Springfield, Massachusetts. Including a major restoration in 1996, the staff of the Springfield Museum of Science have lovingly maintained this historic projector, which continues providing astronomy education to young and old alike, to this day!

After World War II, neither Zeiss factory in war-torn Germany was capable of producing planetarium projectors for several years. Thus, the California Academy of Sciences decided to build a one-of-a-kind planetarium projector for the Morrison Planetarium in San Francisco, which opened in 1952. Today, Morrison Planetarium claims to have one of the world's largest all-digital planetarium theaters.

With the post-war boom in America, many new educational facilities were constructed in the second half of the 20^th century, including new planetaria, science museums, and public libraries. New technology has changed the planetarium experience and increased the educational capabilities of planetaria. Likewise, planetarium-type computer programs have brought the planetarium experience to school and home computers, and even to hand-held smart telephones.

Internet Links to Additional Information ---

Planetarium: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetarium

Centennial of the Planetarium (International Planetarium Society):

Link >>> https://planetarium100.org/

Related Blog-Posts ---

"Mystery Solved! Oldest U.S. Planetarium Projector Found & Recovered." Fri, 2020 Sept. 18.

Link >>> https://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2020/09/mystery-solved-oldest-us-planetarium.html

"100 Years Ago: Planetarium Concept Born." Mon., 2014 Feb. 24.

Link >>> https://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2014/02/100-years-ago-planetarium-concept-born.html

Source: Glenn A. Walsh Reporting for SpaceWatchtower, a project of Friends of the Zeiss

Saturday, 2023 October 21

* Other Walsh-Authored Blog & Web-Sites: Link >>> https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/gawweb.html