Space Day 2012: Museum of Flight

The GAU Coffeehouse Gathering is cancelled tonight as it is Space Day 2012 at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, WA.  From 5:00 PM until 9:00 PM the Museum of Flight is offering free admission (1st Thursday of the month) and they will be holding an educational event focusing on fun, space-related activities for families.

Stay tuned for the next GAU Coffeehouse Gathering announcement for late May.

**Cancelled** GAU Coffeehouse Gathering: Transit of Venus

Heads up!  The GAU Coffeehouse Gathering is cancelled tonight.  Please see the post on Space Day 2012 for details.

The GAU is planning on a (short notice) coffee gathering at a centrally located Starbucks to hang out and talk about astronomy.   Let's talk about the incredibly rare transit of Venus across the face of the Sun!

In the picture to the right, I captured the transit of Mercury across the face of the Sun.  You can barely see it...there's a huge sunspot on the eastern edge, but look to the southwest of that sunspot...you will see a tiny dot.  That's Mercury, believe it or not.  I was blown away.

Witnessing this transit was absolutely the best moment I've ever had in my entire life enjoying astronomy.  The reason is that when you visually see the disc of a planet against the Sun, you will be put in your place in terms of the true scale of the Universe.

Reading about the scale of the Universe in books is one thing, but seeing Mercury in front of the Sun puts this scale into perspective in an amazing way.

In June this year, we have a rare chance to witness Venus crossing the face of the Sun on the 5th and 6th.  This is not to be missed at all because it will be the last chance you will have in your lifetime.  The next transit is in the year 2117.  Think about that...no one alive today on our planet will witness the next transit of Venus.

Let's talk about it Thursday evening.  It's the last time the GAU will ever gather over a cup of coffee and talk about the transit of Venus.   You can educate yourself on this transit with the June 2012 issue of Astronomy Magazine on page 50.

Coffehouse Gathering Information: Date: Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

Time: 7:00 PM Location: Starbucks Coffee, 333 Strander Blvd, Tukwila, WA 98188

Ham Radio and Amateur Astronomy

I recently became a licensed Technician with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and as an amateur astronomer, I find amateur radio and amateur astronomy go hand-in-hand in so many compelling ways.

Coming from a military background, I always try to "be prepared" for just about anything, and while observing in the field, this same principle applies.  We all pack what we need to observe up in the mountains or the deserts, but what about communication?

There are many observing sites that I have been to over the years in both Washington and California where there literally is no cell phone coverage at all.  In today's techno-world we live in, it seems odd that we are so connected, but we also venture into parts of our environment where we could become seriously injured and truly need to call for help.  By relying on our cell phones too much, it's possible that we get a bit too comfortable and don't really think about what could happen if we actually had no signal and had a serious emergency.

Enter amateur radio.  It's also called ham radio...and that immediately throws up connotations of guys hunkered down in their ham shacks dialing in distant stations, but take a look at the picture of the two radios and the cup of coffee above.  Both of these are ham radios capable of communicating on amateur radio frequencies that could literally save your life.  These are a far cry from the stereotypical ham radios that you might be thinking of.  (Baofeng UV-3R on left, Yaesu FT-60r on right)

I'm an avid skier and one of the added benefits aside from being able to communicate from the mountains with my handheld radio is that I can monitor the ski patrol from my ham radio...I can't transmit on those frequencies, but I can transmit on the amateur frequencies I'm licensed for, and that could save my life someday.

Now, picture yourself at the top of Table Mountain on a clear starry night by yourself, enjoying the stars.  There is no cell phone signal at Table Mountain.  Of course I'm aware of the "sweet spot" up there...and it's truly sweet. You literally need to hit it just right to get a signal, but overall, there is no signal before you even get there.

Now imagine you trip on a rock on your way to the outhouse, or over your own equipment and hit your head on a rock, or even something less critical but just as important...your car won't start, etc.  What do you do?  Your cell phone doesn't work, and perhaps you are injured and alone.  Bad spot to be in.

If you had a handheld ham radio with you...these two scenarios are vastly different than each other according to FCC regulations.  For example, if you are seriously injured and faced with a life-or-death situation, you do not need a license to use a ham radio (like the ones in the picture) to call for help.  However, your car not starting is not a life-or-death emergency...in this example, you can not use the same radio to call for help...this is a direct violation of FCC regulations and you will get in a ton of trouble.

With a Technician license and a small handheld radio, you may be able to reach the repeaters in the Ellensburg area, and actually call for assistance, regardless of whether you are seriously injured or just have a dead battery...the amateur radio community will help you.

As a Technician with a radio, I plan on actually testing these repeaters over the summer to see how effective this is, and will report back to the GAU readers what my results are.  If anyone has already tested amateur radio from Table Mountain, let us know what your results were.

If you are an avid amateur astronomer, I highly encourage you to consider studying for your Technician license and enter the world of amateur radio.

In the immediate area near the GAU, the Federal Way Amateur Radio Club is awesome, and even provides free classes to help you take your exams.  The free class I took was on a Friday evening, Saturday all-day, and half-day on Sunday, complete with on-site FCC license testing.  It was a fantastic class that was very educational and geeky...ad we astronomers love geek content.

I recommend augmenting your astronomy with enhanced communication capabilities with an amateur radio license.  You won't regret it, and it may even save your life someday.

Scottevest Transformer Jacket: The Ultimate Astronomer Jacket!

Photo Credit:  www.scottevest.com

(An astronomy-related review)

Alright fellow astronomers...it's time for some new gear for the upcoming observing season!

As you know, I rarely do product reviews on this website, even though we've got readers in 63 countries, but I had to get the word out on this gem.

(I don't own any Scottevest products yet by the way...I just happened to see this online while looking for a jacket for an upcoming trip)

This new Scottevest Transformer Jacket demands consideration because of several key assets that would be incredibly useful as an astronomer in the field.  First of all this jacket has 20 pockets, plus removable sleeves that use super-magnets.  Currently priced at $160.00 which isn't that bad if you shop around for other similar travel jackets.

This means that when you are out in the desert or in the mountains like TMSP (or even your back yard) preparing to observe, you can keep cool in the vest, and as the Sun sets and the air chills up, you slide the sleeves on and continue prepping.   The sleeves do not zip on/off, they snap on/off in seconds.  This means you don't have to take the jacket off in the field and set it down somewhere to fuss with the sleeves and get all dirty.

Imagine this...an entire star-party kit in your jacket, rather than fumbling around in the dark for these items:

1.  Foldable star chart or small sky atlas
2.  Red-light flashlight
3.  White-light flashlight
4.  Gloves
5.  Digital recorder
6.  iPad - to keep it out of the dew (there's even an iPad pocket)
7.  Multitool
8.  Several eyepieces at least
9.  Eyepiece filters
10. Chapstick
11. Water or small Thermos of coffee
12. Snacks
13. Sunglasses (during the day of course)
14. Sunscreen (daytime in the field)
15. Wallet
16. Keys (with built-in secure lanyard)
17. Cell phone or Smart phone (see-through interior pocket to protect from dust, etc.
18. Help!  There's still more room in this jacket!

You have 20 pockets to hold whatever gear you can imagine for the night.  I've used a variety of vests before but overall haven't liked the design or the functionality.

My Columbia vest from REI has a pocket for a cell phone, but my iPhone doesn't fit in it and it looks like I'm going fishing.  It has other pockets as well but not as smartly laid out as the Scottevest jacket/vest combo...plus it tops out at under half the pockets that most of the Scottevest products have.

If your an astronomer and you have one of these, please let me know how if you've field-tested it yet under the stars.  The dedicated vests are also great-looking with even more pockets, so if you have a vest instead of a jacket, I'd be curious if you've field-tested those too.

If you have any experience observing in the field with these, please drop me a note at:

bergskog at gmail dot com

South Pole Expedition Update

Photo Credit:  Michael Studinger/NASA

Just a quick shout out to the folks who stopped by Wednesday evening to hang out and talk about astronomy and even my potential expedition to the South Pole.

We had a great time talking about many topics related to astronomy, and topics having nothing to do with astronomy...that's what we do at the GAU.  Thanks to the guys who stopped by!

Here's a quick update on my potential South Pole expedition...I have two preliminary routes in mind at this point:

Route 1:  Scott Base to South Pole
This route starts at New Zealand's Scott Base and crosses the Ross Ice Shelf between the Schwerdtfeger and Marilyn weather stations along a straight line towards the Shackleton Coast to the entrance to the Beardmore Glacier just after the Elaine weather station.  This is where Shackleton himself emerged from the  Ross Ice Shelf, crossed the Queen Maud Mountains, and headed for the South Pole.  He's the guy that discovered this glacier back in 1908 and this is part of the first proven route to the South Pole.

Route 2:  Brunt Ice Shelf to South Pole 
This route starts at the UK's Halley Base and skirts the Theron Mountains and Shackleton Ranges and then straight to the South Pole.  I have no idea if this is feasible or not, but I do know that it means much less time on an ice shelf and no mountain ranges to actually cross or pass through.  The image in this article (credit to Michael Studinger/NASA) is completely amazing!

Aside from route planning, I'm working on trying to determine what type of amateur astronomy may be possible, as well as cost estimating.  Stay tuned for updates, and thanks for stopping by the GAU's website.