Deirdre Kelleghan  skysketcher@gmail.com
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Get the moon in your head  - What's up for September 2012 - International Observe the moon night 2012 

9/10/2012

 
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Almost Full Moon Lunation 12.75 days Sketch
 Get the Moon in your head

‘At conjunction the moon occupies a position between the sun and the earth; it is then illuminated by the sun’s rays on the side which is turned away from the earth. The other hemisphere, which faces the earth, is covered with darkness; hence the moon does not illuminate the surface of the earth at all. Next departing gradually from the sun, the moon comes to be lighted partly upon the side it turns toward us, and its whitish horns, still very thin, illuminate the earth with a faint light. The sun’s illumination of the moon increasing now as the moon approaches first quarter, a reflection of that light to the earth also increases. Soon the splendour on the moon extends to a semicircle, and our nights grow brighter; at length the entire visible face of the moon is irradiated by the suns resplendent rays, and at full moon the whole surface of the earth shines in a flood of moon light. Now the moon, waning, sends us her beams more weakly, and the earth is less strongly lighted; at length the moon returns to conjunction with the sun, and black night covers the earth.’

Extract from Sidereus Nuncius (The Starry Messenger) 1610 by Galileo Galilei translation by Stillman Drake from the book Discoveries and Opinions of Galileo.

Now there ye have it, direct and clear from the master Galileo. Read it slowly, imagine it, and animate it in your mind. Observe it for yourself, spend time with the moon soon you will understand its movements.

Galileo was a great man for sharing the moon through his telescope. He shared with other scientists, princes, students, the pope, and artists. He was compelled to share it as it was such a magnificent sight even in his small telescope. He wrote Starry Messenger to share his drawings and observations of the moon, far and wide.

The way Galileo writes about the moon pulls you in to be part of his exploration. He thereby   transports his readers to share his thoughts as he figures out the lunar surface, phases and features of the moon observed over 400 years ago.  Today you can still find freshness pouring from his enquiring mind in his descriptive writing.

Sharing the moon with the public is an affliction borne with large smiles by many astronomers all over this planet.  It’s amazing that there are so many people today that have never had an up close and personal view of the moon in a telescope. International observe the moon night invites astronomers to show the moon to people on September 22nd. This is a global event, with an increasing bubble of participants.

If you have binoculars or a telescope consider joining in and showing the moon to your neighbours. Register here its easy.

Check the map for other IFAS clubs sharing the moon on the night

The moon is a constant in our existence; our eyes are drawn by it to look up from all over the planet.  Galileo made sense of the moon for us, at great risk to his freedom.  Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin lifted the entire planet by landing on it for the first time back in 1969.   On September 22nd you can easily pick out the Sea of Tranquillity with your eyes. Wink at the moon is an action request from Neil Armstrong’s family, to honour his memory. It’s also a really cool simple public outreach exercise.

Weather permitting I will be on the promenade near Bray head with St Cronan’s Stargazers and our telescopes from 19:00 hrs till 20:30 approx   September 22nd
.



What's up for September 2012 from Jane Houston Jones


Irish childrens paintings BOUNCED to the Moon and beyond on Radio Waves - What's Up for April 2011 - Saturn

4/4/2011

 

Moon Bounce was Live on Sunday April 10th


Paintings via radio waves to the MOON and back in 2.5 seconds
The paintings were be converted into radio waves , each colour in the paintings equals a note in music
its a Newton idea.  The paintings  traveled 500,000 miles and  returned as altered versions of themselves with individual sound signature files unique to each painting created in the process.

The paintings were  sent to the Moon via large radio antennas in Brazil , the UK and Switzerland and received
in The Netherlands by a 25 Metre radio telescope in Dwingeloo all online to music created by Marty Quinn Sonifonics a NASA developed sound out of images software .
Send me your colour by Deirdre Kelleghan
 

Earth calling Moon ................... come in over

Moon calling Earth ....................receiving you loud and clear

Earth:  Is anybody there?

Moon:   Not a soul

Earth:   Are you lonely?

Moon:   Not much going on here, so yes a bit lonely

Earth:  How about we send you some paintings to brighten up your surface?

Moon:  Wonderful, I will look at them and then send them back because I have nothing to hang them on. So how about I BOUNCE them  back to Earth?

Earth: Sounds Good

Moon:  Yes I look forward to all the colours as I am many shades of grey.

Earth:   Here they come OK?

Moon:  Ooooooooooooh ......................       boy I can feel the colours, all the colours of the rainbow. Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue,  Indigo, and Violet  . Wow !! ............... a lovely LRO false colour Moon painting by Paul Byrne , one of my very round young craters.  Oh and now a beautiful SDO First Light sun painting by Lucy Grier , I love the sun.  Here comes ................. oh yes indeed ......... it’s another moon Saturn’s Enceladus by Diarmuid  Moran . That Moon has an ocean exploding out of it!  Now I feel the  SDO Solar Flare painting by Liadh  Farago  oh my ,so gorgeous. 

Hold on the next wave brings a little painting of the sun and a big painting of Saturn and Cassini by Deirdre. I feel them all in my craters and maria. I think I can feel some sounds, some music too.


The colours swirled around my craters, over my rays and up my mountains . How special colours are , how exciting to bind them up in radio waves and send them into space to visit me.

How fantastic radio waves are!!!  I felt six bouncing paintings what a great experience. Do come back and colour my face again soon. The Earth Moon connection is so exciting, from now on when I bounce the suns light to Earth I will try to feel the colours every day.


Read more about Deirdre's paintings click here

For more technical information visit OPTICKS link below

Thanks to  OPTICKS Daniela De Paulis , Jan van Muijlwijk
, Deirdre Kelleghan, Paul Byrne , Diarmuid Moran, Lucy Grier, Liadh Farago , Astronomers without Borders, Stillorgan Gold Pack Brownies, St Cronans National School Bray, Solar Dynamics Observatory, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and Cassini.

False colour ? What is it ?
Inside light there are seven colours , we can see them sometimes in rainbows.
The colours tell us information about the light
When scientists use "false colours" over an image of something in space, the colours tell them
and us more about the picture.


More here on False Colour and Radio Waves Mission Science


Stillorgan Gold Pack Brownies IGG attended Deirdre's workshop The Suns Massive for OPTICKS

St Cronans Star Gazers attended Deirdre's workshop Deadly Moons for OPTICKS


What's Up for April 2011 from Jane Houston Jones - Its Saturn check it out

Waning Gibbous Moon - Drawing Exhibition in Bray - St Cronans Star Gazers Adventures in Astronomy - What's Up for February 2011

2/4/2011

 
Picture
Waning Gibbous Moon
Bray, Co Wicklow Ireland
January 28th 2008
200mm dob/FL 1,200mm/25mm eyepiece/48X
Lunation 19.60 days 01:35 – 03:42
Pastels and conte on black paper


On Feburary 20th 2011 the waning gibbous moon will make a lovely triangle with the Planet Saturn and the star Spica.

Here in Ireland look east at 22:30 and you should be able to see this visual delight for your self.




If you have a telescope , have a look along the terminator find Mare Crisium
( the sea of crisis) It should look awesome as the terminator will be right through the middle of it. The moon will be 17.84 or almost 18 days past new. In my sketch the waning moon was 19.60 days past new .  Crisium was already engulfed by nightime on the lunar surface and not visible.


Our Moon has no light of its own, what we see is the sun light reflecting back to our eyes.
The Moon is said to be waning when it is moving toward new. Each waning night it has less light shining on its lovely near side as we look at it.

Our Moon is said to be waxing when it is moving from new to full. Each waxing night is has more light shining on its lovely near side as we look at it. The Moon is filling its near side with sunlight until it is full of light as we view.

Our  Moon is said to be waning when it is moving from full to new. Once again it has less light shining on its lovely face as we look at it. This cycle continues each lunar month, the more we observe it, the more we understand it.




My waning Moon sketch will be on exhibition with other drawings at The Signal Arts Centre in Bray Co Wickow from February 15th to February 27th . The exhibition is called Myriad Visions

do drop in and see all the work.

I look forward to sharing Saturn at public viewings during March and April when Saturn will be higher in the night sky earlier in the evening.  A date for your diary is March 12th when we will be looking at Saturn from Glendalough , the upper lake car park .  7pm - A talk on the Cassini Mission to Saturn at the Education Centre  followed by a viewing of the planet WEATHER PERMITTING OF COURSE.

Also during March I intend to  hold several public Moon and Saturn  viewing sessions here in Bray , details to follow. All are  weather permitting.






Picture
I am very proud of my new astronomy group here in Bray , St Cronans Star Gazers are a great bunch of enthused children , parents and teachers who delight in learning a little bit of astronomy . You can read about our latest adventures by clicking on the link .

Whats Up for February 2011 from Jane Houston Jones - enjoy !

Massive dark filament on the sun - What's Up for December 2010 from Jane Houston Jones - Total Lunar Eclipse

12/6/2010

 
Dark  Magnetic Filament December 6th - an experimental sketch
Picture
Active Dark Filament on the Sun's SE limb as viewed from Bray Co Wicklow December 6th

PST 40 8mm eyepiece Pastels and charcoal on black card.
An experimental sketch to capture detail on the solar disc.
10:45 UT December 6th 2010 -  I was thrilled to see such a huge well structured filament on the sun. It arced upward from the solar surface and whipped over the south limb with powerful visual action. The filament seemed to be anchored to the sun by many many fine lines which appeared dark against the solar disc in h alpha . These fine power packed solar lines continued within the arc over the limb looking like a solar waterfall  against the blackness of space. This filaprom was over 700,000 km long , that is enormous.

You can follow the sun,  this filament and its adventures  here

on the  Solar Dynamics Laboratory website or on Spaceweather.com
What's Up for December 2010 from Jane Houston Jones - includeds some details on the coming  Total Lunar Eclipse which is visible from Ireland early morning December 21st.  Get your warmest jacket on, best do gloves and hat as well,  and head to somewhere you can clearly see the moon low in the North West sky. You do not need a telescope , you can see it with your eyes or with binoculars.
Eclipse begins at 06:32 , mid  eclipse is at 08:17 , the moon sets at 08:55. This will be a difficult observation as the moon will be very low to the horizon but as there will not be another one till 2015 it might be worth a look.  Listen to Jane's What's Up for December for a good explaination of  a lunar eclipse.



I am the Moon – Look at Me - International Observe the Moon Night - What's Up fpr September 2010

9/3/2010

 
Picture
 I am the Moon – Look at Me  by Deirdre Kelleghan
15 Day Moon Durrus, West Cork Ireland 26th August 2010 23:05 UT – 00:08 UT
 Pastel and conte on black paper 200 mm Dob/ FL 1,200 mm / 32 mm eyepiece


We are privileged to live on a beautiful but fragile planet moving through space at 18.5 miles per second. We are born, live and die here; in our lifetimes we owe it to ourselves to become even a little knowledgeable of our place in the Universe.


Just a small fraction of us ever get to leave the planet and become acutely aware of the startling reality that we do in fact live in space.


We all admire humans and robots who explore off planet, but each of us here on the Earth can still reach out to grab a bit of wonder for ourselves by simply looking up.

 Our moon is a beautiful object whether you look at it with an instrument or just by eye.


The Moon is our nearest natural orbiting satellite, so let us stand a while and look at it together.Let’s think about what we see when we gaze upward.

On International Observe the Moon night the moons appearance is described as waxing gibbous.  The gibbous shape of the moon on September 18th is exactly in-between the first quarter and full moon. This phase gives us the opportunity to view naked eye most of the Maria. In the northern section close to the terminator, Mare Imbrum, ( The Sea of Rains) just  a bit to the right is Mare Serenitatis  ,( The Sea of Serenity) below Imbrium is Mare Insularium,  (The Sea of Islands ) . Below Serenitatis, is Mare Tranquillitatis   (The Sea of Tranquillity), the place where men first stood upon the moon.


 

 Just three days previous most people would refer to it as a half moon but have a think for a minute or two. The Moon is a spherical object, like a ball, it moves around our planet approximately once every twenty nine days.  On its journey it presents a different shape to us depending on its position to the sun in relation to the person viewing the near side from Earth.  The sun illuminates the moon’s surface and reflects that light towards our eyes. When the moon is at first quarter, half of its surface is lit up by the sun. At all times one half of the moons surfaces is bathed in sunlight while the other half rests in total darkness.

The Earth and the moon do a little orbital dance together which the sun lights up for our pleasure.

This dance involves the larger Earth partner holding the moons near side face towards itself the entire time .The orbital waltz created by the Earth and the moon as they swing around the sun together produces various phenomena during their annual soiree. These include eclipses, both lunar and solar, depending on the angle and varied positions between the three of them, the dancers and their light.

When you use your eyes only to look at the moon on International Observe the moon night, what are you looking at exactly? You will see the moon present itself to you when it is positioned a little more than one quarter way around the Earth. You will see the bright limb of the moon; you will see the line that separates daytime on the moon from night time on the moon. It is called ‘The Terminator’. Look closely and observe the darker markings ‘The Maria’ large lava filled impact basins. You will see the brighter higher areas and maybe if you have good eyesight you will see some of the larger craters and their rays. The lovely small rounded area to the upper right of The Sea of Tranquillity, close to the limb, is Mare Crisium (the sea of crisis).

With even a small pair of binoculars your view will be enhanced with detail. With a telescope depending on the size and quality of the eyepieces your view will be awesome.  There is a lifetimes worth of observing to be had with the moon alone. The contrast, the rich lunarscape, the play of light against the blackness of space, it is an exploration adventure available for all to view.

Join me and other amateur astronomers  September 18th on Bray Promenade at  7:30 near the  Boat House Cafe  WEATHER PERMITTING to observe and enjoy the moon.

The Irish Astronomical Society will have a Moon Viewing at the Martello Tower Sandymount , Dublin on September 17th 8pm -10pm All Wellcome Weather Permitting

Listen to Jane Houston Jones taking about  the Moon , excellent moon rotation graphic included - Enjoy



 

 


Anaxagoras crater, rays and the Moons North limb - What\'s Up for March 2010

3/9/2010

 
Picture
Anaxagoras crater, rays and the Moons North limb
February  28th / March 1st  2010  23:20 UT - 00 :35 UT
200 mm Dobsonian Telescope  FL 1,200
8mm TVP eyepiece = 150X

Anaxagoras crater and rays on the Moons North limb


South is up in this sketch because that is the way I viewed it and sketched it. Pastels & Conte on black paper.
















Our beautiful Snow moon was 99 .9 % drenched in the suns light when I went observing on the last day in February 2010.  Along the NW limb several craters were on view in the libration zone, it was my intention to make a sketch of these elusive features. They presented as dark deep long shadows edged with sharp bright lines against the blackness of space. 

However while these were interesting,  my eye was magnetized toward the brightness of
Anaxagoras and its ejecta rays,  giving great form to the area.   Several of these long dark shadow lines were also  on view  on the edge of the limb close to Goldschmidt and Herschel .  It was so visually interesting to observe the contrasts on the limb when the moon was so full, a black and white merry dance of slow movement and rich structure.

Plato never looked so dark and flat ,its black floor absorbing the suns light when most of the surrounding area was throwing it toward my eye. I adored the tiny pure white rim sections singing in the light. My sketch wandered across part of Mare Frigoris  , the area around Plato and includes part of Mons Teneriffe .


Info snippet

Full Snow Moon - February Since the heaviest snow usually falls during this month, native tribes of the north and east of America most often called February's full Moon the Full Snow Moon. Some tribes also referred to this Moon as the Full Hunger Moon, since harsh weather conditions in their areas made hunting very difficult in ancient times.

What's Up for March 2010 from Jane Houston Jones 
    Picture

    Author


    Deirdre Kelleghan is amateur astronomer,
    an artist and also  likes to write.

    "The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be lighted"
    Plutarch

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