philippine astronomical society - july 2009 appulse issue

8/14/2019 Philippine Astronomical Society - July 2009 Appulse issue

1/8

thethe

APPULSEOfcial Newsletter of the Philippine Astronomical Society

July 2009Vol. 41 No. 63

PROPELLING ASTRONOMY EDUCATION TOWARD THE ACHIEVEMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXCELLENCE AMONG FILIPINOS

ONCE A DREAMER... A Prelude on Historys 2nd Longest TotalSolar Eclipse by Allen Yu

Volume 41 No. 63 1

We are now aboard the plane en routeto Asias motherland, the historiccommunist stronghold on this side of the

world. Once we touch down we will ac-

climatize ourselves to the Chinese air and

skyline, where ultra-modern urbanization

has caused the night sky to be completely

washed out leaving only the Moon as the

celestial object visible in its night sky.

But we are not seeing the Moon at night,

in fact, the night sky is useless to us. In the

dead of the night, just a few hours before

sunrise we drag our weary bodies off the

bed, force our face into the cold morn-

ing water and dress up for the days main

event.

We have our checklist of things and leave

no stones unturned, then grab a bite of

quick breakfast and leave Suzhou for Jiax-

ing, the site reserved for visitors to view theeclipse. For in a few more hours past nine in

the morning, the morning shine seems pal-

er than usual, the wind gets colder, and an

eerie atmosphere starts to replace the lively

morning chatter and festivities. The Suns

shadow appears crescent through the pin-

holes of the leaves of the trees. The Earth, it

seems will stand still, perhaps caught nap-

ping as well, along with the morning souls

that went into hiding, the cocks crow, the

creatures of the night take their heads out

of the burrows, and 100 million chinky-

eyed people living along the eclipse path,

plus an assortment of united colors of Ben-

etton, red, white, black, green, strain their

necks counting precious seconds from a

few minutes of arrested anticipation, pray-

ing darn hard that no clouds would spoil

the perfect day.

Just then, a running shadow wavers through

the ground like a shockwave of an impact,

impossible to miss, and more impossible

to photograph. Take a moment to observe

the ground too,

folks. And if

you want some

weird experi-

ment, try to let

an egg stand

during totality.

Debatable theo-

ry has it that thecombined grav-

itational forces

of the Moon

and the Sun is

enough to make

an egg stand

Hmmmm.I

wonder if I can

stand my egg as

well hehehe, but hey, dont laugh, they at-

tempted it in Thailand in the 90s - just one

of those powerful eclipse myths around.

Seconds before, the feeble light of the once

mighty Sun came to naught as the spectacle

now shows the Diamond Ring and the Bai-

leys Beads. I want to observe these shows

personally, and photography might spoil

this opportunity; so if you have a videocam

aimed at the vastness of the lands, a rush-

ing gigantic shadow crashes in turning day

into that articial darkness we all spent

money, effort, tears and sighs, uneasiness

and discouragement, and despair preying

on our souls. and all what we waited for

- the Totality!

The crowd erupts, cheers and tears owing

as we see the Suns corona dancing, and

suddenly we realized, the long-forgotten

Sun is a wonderful sight to behold! The co-

rona is a story of beauty and danger. Prom-

inences arc their way back to the Suns

surface, and when they snap, they release

coronal mass ejection. Spaceweather relies

heavily on it.

This is a remarkable coincidence having

the size of the Moon and Sun almost the

same is the magic behind it. This wouldn

be possible plus or minus a few tens othousands years from now, as the Moon

continues to go farther and farther from

the Earth. And OSole MioOSole Mio

Sta nfronte a te, sta nfronte a te!...Andrea

Bocelli bellows his diaphragm till kingdom

comes/

After 5 minutes, the rst rays of the mighty

Sun leaks out of the Moons edge, and nal

ly the land claims back its glory. The show

is over. Long live this expedition trip!

So what is so exciting about an eclipse anyway? Whats the fuss of being under the

Moons shadow for a few minutes? Nothing

I guess, only my sane part can answer that

and I now know life and God are wonderfu

in many weird ways. I will sleep soundly

and smiling tonight. A dream I have dared

to live to see, and nally, ever worthwhile

SOME OF THE PAS DELEGATES TO THE

2009 CHINA TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE


2/8

APPULSE

THE

2 Appulse - July 2009

The Appulse is published monthly by the

Philippine Astronomical Society.

TheAppulse 2009. All rights reserved.

Please send articles, letters, observations,

reports to

Email: [email protected]

or to [email protected]

Website: www. philastrosoc.org

editorial Advisr

Edna Azucena

editorial Staff

Victoria Evarretta

Editor-in-Chief

Francis Ferdinand Irlandez

Layout Editor

John Nassr

Joel LinaoVictoria Evarretta

Allen Yu

Francis Ferdinand irlandez

Contributors

by FFSIrlandez

j U N E m E E T I N G r E P O R T

ImagesbyJennyBaltazar

As part of its vision to promote astron-omy education to the Filipino people,the Philippine Astronomical Society visited

and held its June monthly meeting at the

Universidad de Manila, Lawton, Manila

last June 20.

The program started with Mr. Ronald Tanco

who gave an overview lecture of how deep

the subject of Astronomy is. After him, Mr.

Edmund Rosales presented to the students

tips on observational astronomy; the audi-

ence was awed with his simulation of the

upcoming Total Solar Eclipse in China in

July. It was like Edmund took us there to

experience that spectacular event. After the

lectures, the BS Education students were

all very thankful for the fun experienceof PAS meeting. They even requested that

PAS holds a stargazing for them. And PAS

will surely answer their call. Mr. Ian Allas then called the delegates of the Astronomy

Educational Tour in China. They discussed certain things like the design of their shirt

streamers, etc. When all were agreed upon on the China trip, it was Mr. Hernan Dizons

turn to present the qualied members who may run for the Board in the July election. The

meeting ended about 5:00PM.


3/8Volume 41 No. 63 3

A DATE WITH THE STARS

by Victoria Evarretta

These days when the skies are all butclear and there seem to be no let upwith the afternoon and night rains, casual

observing seems impossible.

But I got the break last week of June whenthe usual scorching heat here in Tuguega-

rao took its normal course. The sky was

clear and everything seemed to be a para-

dise astronomically for me. Clear, clear,

clear blue skies in the morning (see pic-

tures) with unbelievably no speck or streak

of clouds at all west, east, north, south. And

the night became the jeweled sky any star-

gazer would hanker to see. Luckily, I felt

no body aches those days; it was thus just

right and perfect condition for a date with

the stars.

I went up the roof deck, pulled out my

Starry Night Guide, my binoculars, sleep-

ing mat, red ashlight, and laser pointer

from the observatory and readied myself

for a two-hour stargazing while lying down

at the cement oor. I told myself that this is

just a night for the constellation hunting as

the constellations presented in the sky from

8:00 to 10 PM. Beyond that time, I begged

off - for the spirit is willing but the esh

is weak, as they say. (This reminded me of

our PAS out-of-town-stargazing sessions in Noveleta, Cavite and once in

Sampaloc, Rizal.)

Our two coconut trees still

block the eastern view, but I

cannot get myself to cut these

down. Doing so would mean

harsh heat and no shady com-

forts and breeze in the morn-

ings. Waiting for the stars until

they are in the zenith or in the

western horizon is good enough

for me.

I like looking northeast because

this has no obstruction in our

roof deck. While southwest has

no obstruction either, the glar-

ing lights from the nearby tennis courts dim

the view of the southern side. It so happen

that the end week of June is also the week

of province-wide festivities here in the City

because the provincial government cel-

ebrates the Aggao Nac Cagayan (literally,

Day of Cagayan).

The sweet music of the

Bee Gees, Cascades, and

the Beatles all-the-more

heightened the beauty ofthe breezy night with fes-

tive atmosphere brought

about by the towns night

activities. Perfect night

indeed for a date with the

stars.

Northeast instantly

showed the Ursa Minor

with its Little Dipper and Polaris. Then

came Cygnus, Cepheus, Draco while Ursa

Major was already girding close to the

western horizon. Up in the zenith are Co-

rona Borealis, Bootes, Hercules, Ophiucus,

Virgo, and Libra. Leo is seen prominently

near the western horizon while Scorpius

and Lupus in the southeast are still taking

their turn going up the zenith.

So whats the big deal with the constella-

tions for me? I guess I like to be fully fa-

miliar with the constellations and the sto-

ries/legends that each tell. This is good for

the kids, and theres still the kid re in me

wanting to know all. I am not into that gear

yet where every night with clear sky is a

night to observe throughout until the sun

rises.

Why didnt I invite friends for more com-

pany? Inviting friends around would mean

a big responsibility for me and would

greatly diminish my enjoyment, for tha

would mean work for me trying to enter-

tain them. In between this constellation

hunting, I liked teasing the groups chattingnear the barangay hall by aiming the laser

pointer with the light show at them. One

kid cried and ran to his mother when I did

so. Ha ha ha.

You noticed that I did not mention the wax

ing crescent moon yet. I did observe that

- its dark lowland plains contrasting the

bright highlands. While I was mentioning

the marias and highlands to our helper who

occasionally came up, he saw instead the

two eyes, nose, and white teeth of the moon

- something I failed to notice

before. He even thought th

moon looked like a skull then

(days after when it was already

the rst quarter. Bending ones

imagination, indeed, it looked

like one. The Mare Serenitatis

Mare Crisium looked like the

moons two eye sockets; and

Mare Tranquillitatis, its nose

Wonder what the supposed

teeth were - I guess they

are the highlands surroundingMare Nectaris (dont think Im

this familiar with the moons

features; Im just looking a

my reference book).

Anyway, come August, I will observe what

ever planets and deep-sky objects will be

observable by then. I hope that I will have

the energy to stay whole night for the ob-

servation.

Note the completely blue sky west of the mini-semi observa-

tory with the early morning shadows from the coconut trees.

Sky completely blue indeed (with the observatory at foreground) that turned

into a jeweled cloudless sky at night. The big space in front of the observatory

is where I usually stargaze.


4/8

Continued on page 5

G R E E T I N G S F R O M D U B A I !

4 Appulse - July 2009

Its really been a long time since I lastparticipated in the forum discussions, butI assure you that Ive been lurking around

for quite a while now, just listening in on

the latest news, events, and general chika-

chika in our beloved PAS. Reading your

posts really livens up my otherwise bland

day here in the ofce. It feels so good to

hear about your monthly meeting sessions,

observation programs, and other activi-

ties...most of the time, I just pretend that

Im also there, enjoying the dark skies of

the Philippines with you guys. Im happy

to see that there are lots of discussions on

different topics taking place, and that peo-

ple are actively participating.

So hows everyone? Hows the PAS gang?Brother Dennis, Brother Leo, Sis Mitz, Sis

Nelli? Whats up with you, guys? I heard

recently that Allen has rejoined PAS...wel-

come back, man! Sir Milo, Sir Hernan, Ate

Agnes, Ate Edna, Kuya Berns, the Wonder

Kids --- Leo Minor, Jane, et al --- and eve-

ryone else that Ive had the opportunity to

rub shoulders with when I was still in the

Philippines...kumusta na kayong lahat? I

miss you all so much! I really need to do

a lot of catching up; for the past few years,

Ive always tried to make it a point to visit

you guys whenever Im on vacation in thePhilippines, but my personal commitments

just wont allow me to spare some time,

even for just a few hours. Thats how my

vacations are. Theyre hardly relaxing. I

think Brother Dennis knows about that al-

ready. But I hope to set things right on my

next annual vacation, because I really want

to meet up with all of you again, and may-

be catch a few planets and constellations

while Im there. I also want to nally meet

Ate Vicky...lagi na lang po napo-postpone

ang pagkikita natin, maam! And Mr. John

Nassr...sir, champion ang mga astropho-tos mo! Very inspiring, breathtaking, and

mind-expanding talaga sila! I hope Ill get

the chance to personally shake your hand,

and maybe visit Stardust Observatory, in

the near future!

Well, as for me, I cant really share any-

thing with regard to urban observations,

since the only celestial bodies that I can see

from my ats balcony are the Sun, Moon,

the brighter planets like Venus and Jupi-

ter, a handful of bright

stars like Sirius, and the

Big Dipper asterism in

Ursa Major. Quite pa-

thetic, isnt it? Too bad

that Im in a part of the

world where the nights

are --- at least within the

city limits --- an astrono-

mers worst nightmare.

On any given night, the

sky above my at glows

with an eerie orange hue

so bright that one would

think that twilight just

set in...at midnight. Liv-

ing just a few kilometers

away from one of theworlds most busiest airports also doesnt

help much. The rural desert skies are a

completely different story altogether, but I

dont really get to go camping in the boo-

nies that much anymore since Im virtually

bogged down with ofce work for much of

the week. Until recently, I used to drive into

the desert in the wee hours of the morning

just to escape the glare of Dubai, armed

only with a pair of binoculars, my old

starmap, and a red LED ashlight. Those

nights were truly unforgettable, not just be-

cause of the fact that the Milky Way wasso bright in the middle of the desert that I

could see the dark knots of obscuring dust

within it without using averted vision, but

also due to the exciting, funny, and scary

experiences that Ive had as I tried to look

for dark skies farther and farther away from

the city limits. Ive had my fair share of hits

and misses because of my penchant for get-

ting into sticky situations just so I can get

my astronomy x. Come on, guys, lets ad-

mit it...were all addicted to the stars!

For instance, there was this time when Iwas all alone in the desert about 60-70 kil-

ometers away from Dubai, and everything

was pitch black...it was so dark that when-

ever I activated my watchs light function

so I could see what time it was, I would

get temporarily blinded for a few short sec-

onds. It was also very quiet, and it was a

spooky sort of silence, the kind that you

only get to experience in the movies just

before some hideous thing hiding in the

bushes suddenly snatches the scantily-clad

heroine away and rips her guts out. Thatshow creepy it was. From somewhere in the

dark, I hear a few short snorts a few meter

away, and I suddenly jump into my car for

fear of being eaten by some unseen mon-

ster. I turn on my headlights and I see...a

small group of wild donkeys blinking in

the harsh glare of my headlights while la-

zily grazing away. Then there was this time

when I was in a different patch of deser

near the border with Oman about 150 kil-

ometers away from Dubai. Unlike before

it wasnt completely dark because it was

almost 5:30 in the morning, and the easternhorizon was already awash in hues of blue

rose, and orange. It was wintertime, and

beautiful Venus oated serenely to the east

I sighed to myself, Ahhh...what a nice

end to a perfect evening of observation...

I was sipping from a cup of hot chocolate

and I already felt chilled to the bone so I

was about to pack up for the evening when

from out of nowhere, a loud boom tha

sounded like something exploded nearby

shattered the silence of the early morning

sky, followed closely by two slightly lesser

booms. Shortly afterwards came a persistent deep rumbling that sounded like rolling

thunder, with vibrations so intense that I fel

them deep inside my chest. I looked around

me in disbelief; seeing nothing out of the

ordinary, my eyes were drawn reexively

to the skies. And then I saw them! To the

northeast and relatively close but climbing

swiftly at almost the speed of sound were

the bright glows of engine exhaust pipes

by Joel Linao


5/8Volume 41 No. 63

on full afterburner --- the aircraft spotter

in me kicks in, and I spy an American B-1

bomber and two unidentied F-16 ghter

aircraft (most likely from the US Air Force,

as well) escorting it. Ive just been buzzed

by UAE-based American military aircraft

at a height of less that 150 feet, in the mid-

dle of winter while in some desert near theOmani border, while enjoying a cup of hot

chocolate! It doesnt get any stranger that

that! I could still smell the aviation-grade

kerosene hanging in the air long after they

disappeared into the morning sky. Talk

about closing an uneventful night of ob-

servation with a bang. Or rather a boom.

Or three booms. Later that week, due to

extreme curiosity, I found out that Ameri-

can and UAE military aircraft based at an

aireld near the UAE capital city of Abu

Dhabi were conducting a month-long joint

military exercise near the patch of desertthat I chose for my quiet night of stargaz-

ing, and that they were using laser targeting

systems to simulate attacks on random tar-

gets instead of using actual bombs. I have

a weird feeling that my car became one of

their unwilling targets during their train-

ing maneuvers. Hmmm...

Anyway, Ive still got a lot of stories to tell

about my astronomy adventures here in the

UAE, stories that have accumulated for the

past ve years. Theres this story involving

the border police, another story about a car

stuck in the sand until noontime, and yet

another story about a crazy Indian build-

ing watchman who mistook a telescope

for a cannon, among other stories. But

those stories will be for a different time,

when Im no longer swimming neck-deep

in ofce paperwork (when would that be,

Brother Dennis is probably asking himself

right now...hehe). As for now, Im cutting

this post short because its starting to be-

come a short novel. I would just like to say

that it really, really feels good to be nallyposting something in our forum again after

an absence of almost four years. From this

point in time onwards, I dont think I can

afford to sit by the sidelines any longer...its

time to jump in once more. Active Mode:

ON!

Mabuhay ang astronomiya sa Pilipinas!

Long live the Philippine Astronomical So-

ciety!

Greetings.. from page 4July - August Meteor Shower Watch

Meteors, also called falling or shootingstars, occur when the Earth passesthrough debris elds left by passing com-

ets. What we are witnessing when we see a

shooting star is a small piece of interplan-

etary matter, called a meteor, entering the

Earths atmosphere and burning up at aheight of about 100 km. While most look

white, some can appear blue, green, yellow,

orange, or red. Some may even explode at

the end of its visible ight. Most showers

produce about 20 or more meteors per hour

, but there are showers which can produce

hundreds of meteors in less than an hour.

Such shows are, unfortunately, very rare.

Meteor showers are named after the radiant

- the constellation from which they appear

to radiate.

DELTA AQUARIDS

This shower favors the southern hemi-

sphere (Southern Delta Aquarids) and the

tropical latitudes in the northern hemi-

sphere (Northern Delta Aquarids). From

northern temperate latitudes, the maximum

hourly rate may reach 15-20 meteors. Like

most meteor showers, the best observing

time for this shower is before dawn. Unlike

most meteor showers, the Delta Aquarids

does not have a very denite peak, despite

the date given below. Instead, these me-dium-speed meteors ramble along fairly

steadily throughout late July and early Au-

gust. The waxing gibbous moon around the

peak of the Delta Aquarids wont really

tarnish the luster of these fainter than av-

erage meteors, because the shower is best

in the wee hours before dawn. An hour or

two before dawn presents the most favo-

rable view of the Delta Aquarids. Because

the peak of the Delta Aquarid shower is so

broad, the expected meteor rates (15-20 per

hour) may be about the same from July 28-

30. The meteors will appear to radiate fromthe southern part of the sky. Peak date: July

28. Radiant: Constellation Aquarius.

ALPHA CAPRICORNIDS

The Capricornids are characterized by their

often yellow coloration and their frequent

brightness. They are also slow interplan-

etary interlopers, hitting our atmosphere at

around 15 miles per second. Though you

can expect only 15 meteors per hour at best

under dark sky conditions, the Capricornid

are noted for producing brilliant reballs.

The duration of this shower extends from

July 15 to September 11. The shower

has the reputation of producing some of

the brightest meteors. The Alpha Capricornid meteor shower occurs every year

from about July 15 to September 11. The

showers maximum is usually July 31 and

August 1. The maximum rate is about ten

meteors per hour. Astronomers have no

identied the object responsible for pro

ducing the Alpha Capricornids. Since 1953

at least three comets and one asteroid have

been suggested, but none perfectly ts the

orbit of the meteor stream that causes the

shower.

PERSEIDS

Like a messy

tourist, the

comet Swift-

Tuttle passed

through our

solar system

in 1992 (as it

did in 1863)

leaving behind

its trash: tiny

grains of ice,dust, rock, and other debris. As the Earth

makes its trip around the sun, we pass

through this debris eld with some spectac

ular results - the Perseid meteor shower..

The Perseids is the most reliable and stil

very spectacular as they create 50 to 150

meteors an hour on average, and increas-

ing at times as high as 400 an hour. It can

be a most spectacular display. The Perseid

meteor shower is named after the constella

tion Perseus (located near Cassiopea) from

which it rst appeared to have come.

These typically fast and bright meteors ra

diate from a point in the constellation Per-

seus, and like all meteors in annual show-

ers, they cover a large part of the sky. The

Perseids are considered by many people to

be the years best shower when the moon

is out of the way during the showers peak

Unfortunately, this years moon is not to-

Continued on page 6


6/86 Appulse - May 20096 Appulse - July 2009

July - August... from page 5

tally out of the way during the Perseids.

The slightly waning gibbous moon rises

around midnight just as the Perseids start

to pick up steam. Nonetheless, you should

be able to catch some Perseid meteors be-

fore moonrise and even after. The Perseids

tend to strengthen in number as midnight

ebbs toward dawn. Although not a favora-ble year, these meteors are often bright and

frequently leave persistent trains. From

late night on Tuesday August 11 till dawn

on Wednesday August 12, a decent sprin-

kling of Perseid meteors may adorn this

summer night, despite the pesky moon. Lie

back and watch meteors until dawns light

washes the stars, moon, and planets from

the sky. Peak date: August 12

Sources: Earth Sky, and Skyscrapers, Inc., Total Es-

cape, About.com

AstronotesThank you for the latest issue of Appulse

which I enjoyed a lot as usual. I found the

introduction of the editorial staff especially

timely and well presented. I commend and

salute the editorial staff because without

all of you, the Appulse would simply not bepossible!

John Nassr

Stardust Observatory

Baguio City

I saw your design in the May Appulse 2009(the paper was very well prepared!).

Dr. Jesus TorresRizal Technology UniversityMandaluyong City

WATCH :

THE UNIVERSE

(NEW SEASON)

AT THE HISTORY CHANNEL

EVERY MONDAY AT 9 PM!!!

ASTROPHOTOGRAPHYby John Nassr

Date Imaged : Ju ly 6 - 7 , 2009

Lens: Ast rophysics 5 f /8 S tar f i re

Camera: Dragonf ly 2

E xposure : 15 seconds

Fi l ter : Ha, Baader Herschel Wedge

Mount : AP600

Locat ion: S tardus t Observatory

AR 1024 through a hydrogen alpha lter showing the sunspot

on the outer solar chromosphere

AR 1024 in white light taken through a Herschel wedge show-

ing the sunspot in the lower solar photosphere region


7/8Volume 41 No. 63 7

Astronomy Update

Source of CosmicRays Pinned Down

By Clara Moskowitz

Staff Writer

posted: 25 June 2009

02:18 pm ET

As astronomers have long expected,exploding stars called supernovascan accelerate particles up to almost the

speed of light, a new study shows.

The discovery helps explain where theextremely energetic cosmic rays we nd

near Earth come from.

Cosmic rays are charged particles, most-

ly protons, that come swooping through

space from beyond the solar system.

They carry such an energetic punch they

can knock out electronics systems on

Earth if they manage to make it past our

atmosphere.

Until now, scientists couldnt be sure

how cosmic rays acquire their energy

and speed.

It has long been thought that the super-

accelerators that produce these cosmic

rays in the Milky Way are the expanding

envelopes created by exploded stars, but

our observations reveal the smoking gun

that proves it, said Eveline Helder of the

Astronomical Institute Utrecht of Utrecht

University in the Netherlands, leader of the

new study.

When a star dies in a supernova, the blast

releases a huge amount of energy. Muchof that energy is used to heat up a bubble

of gas that expands around the remnant of

the star. Some energy, though, goes toward

speeding up the particles that become cos-

mic rays, the researchers determined.

When a star explodes in what we call a

supernova a large part of the explosion en-

ergy is used for accelerating some particles

up to extremely high energies, Helder

said. The energy that is used for particle

acceleration is at the expense of heating the

gas, which is therefore much colder than

theory predicts.

Helder and team looked at the leftovers

from a supernova called RCW 86 with theEuropean Southern Observatorys Very

Large Telescope. The star exploded about

8200 light-years away in AD 185, and was

recorded by Chinese astronomers.

The modern researchers measured the tem-

perature and speed of the gas behind the

shock wave created by the stellar explo-

sion. They found that the gas, at 54 million

degrees Fahrenheit (30 million degrees

Celsius), was much lower than would be

Cosmic rays originate in supernova, like the one that created this rem-

nant, Cassiopeia A, photographed by the Chandra X-ray observatory.

Credit: NASA/CXC/MIT/UMass Amherst/M.D.Stage et al

expected given the shock waves velocity.

Rather than heat up the gas, some of the

supernovas energy went toward speeding

up particles to near the velocity of light, the

astronomers concluded.

The missing energy is what drives thecosmic rays, said collaborator Jacco

Vink, also from the Astronomical Institute

Utrecht.

Helder and team describe their ndings in

the June 26 issue of the journal Science.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/090625-cos

mic-accelerator.html


8/8

philippine astronomical society - july 2009 appulse issue

Documents