Title: “Observing and Understanding the Moon”
Speaker : Robert Reeves
Abstract:
Robert Reeves will cover the basics of how the face of the Moon evolved, what the different types of lunar features are, and how they are related to each other.
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Robert Reeves Biography
Robert Reeves has been exploring the Moon since 1958 and took his first lunar photograph in 1959. He began telescopic astronomy with a four-inch Criterion Dynascope, his Christmas present in 1960. In 1975, he acquired a Celestron C8 telescope, which he still uses today. In 1977, he acquired a Celestron 8-inch Schmidt camera that he used for a quarter century for deep-sky photography. Today, Robert uses a Celestron C11 EdgeHD and a Sky-Watcher 180-mm. Maksutov for lunar photography from his Perspective Observatory located in central Texas. He also uses a Sky-Watcher 20-inch Stargate telescope for visual observing and a Celestron C14 with HyperStar for deep-sky photography.
In 1984, Robert began publishing articles about astrophotography in Astronomy magazine. Since then, he has published more than 250 magazine articles and 200 newspaper columns about astronomy. His articles have appeared in Sky & Telescope, Astronomy, Deep Sky, Deep Sky Journal, Amateur Astronomy, and The Astrograph.
In 1994, Robert published his first book, The Superpower Space Race, followed by The Conquest of Space, co-authored with Fritz Bronner. In 2000, he published Wide-Field Astrophotography, followed by Introduction to Digital Astrophophotography in 2005 and Introduction to Webcam Astrophotography in 2006. Robert’s latest book, about the Moon, is under editorial review.
Although Robert is an accomplished deep-sky astrophotographer, his current passion is re-popularizing the Moon within the amateur astronomy community by explaining the origin of the Moon, the evolution of its face, and introducing its geology to Moon lovers everywhere. He has perfected image-processing techniques that allow an amateur astronomer, using modest equipment, to exceed the quality of Earth-based professional lunar photographs taken during the Apollo era.
Robert enjoys speaking at astronomy conventions and spreading his passion for the Moon. His recent activities include a five-city speaking tour in China, where he was the first Westerner to address the Chinese astronomy community about the Moon. Robert also represents the Celestron telescope company at national astronomical conventions.
Asteroid 26591 Robertreeves is named in his honor, and asteroid 26592 Maryrenfro bears his wife’s name. Robert and Mary Reeves are the only husband and wife team to have sequentially numbered asteroids.
May 29, 2022 ALP Astronomy Expert Speaker Series 2022 with Fred Espenak
Fred Espenak
“Predicting and Chasing Solar Eclipses”
May 29, 2022, 10:00 Philippine Standard Time (02:00 UTC)
May 29, 2022, 10:00 Philippine Standard Time (02:00 UTC)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ausTznkbiec&pp=ygUmYXN0cm9ub21pY2FsIGxlYWd1ZSBvZiB0aGUgcGhpbGlwcGluZXM%3D
Fred Espenak is a retired NASA astrophysicist from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, where he worked with infrared spectrometers to probe the atmospheres of planets. He is also known as “Mr. Eclipse” because of his work on predicting and observing solar eclipses. He has written more than a dozen books on eclipses, including his most recent, “Eclipse Bulletin: Total Solar Eclipse of 2017 August 21.” Espenak also runs three websites on eclipse predictions (www.EclipseWise.com), eclipse photography (www.MrEclipse.com), and astrophotography (www.AstroPixels.com). Over the past 50 years, he has witnessed 29 total eclipses of the Sun. In 2003, the International Astronomical Union honored Espenak by naming asteroid 14120 after him. Espenak now lives in Portal, Arizona, where he operates his Bifrost Astronomical Observatory
Abstract : A total eclipse of the Sun is the most spectacular astronomical event visible to the naked eye. What is it like to witness a total eclipse? How often do eclipses occur and where can they be seen? Fred Espenak has spent more than four decades chasing eclipses around the world. He will share his experiences with us through photos and video. The next total eclipse though the U.S.A. occurs on April 8, 2024. Details of this exciting event will also be presented.
May 7, 2022 ALP Astronomy Experts Speaker Series 2022 with Joe Rao
At the end of this month of May, there is a possibility that we might experience a spectacular meteor storm coming from the 1995 breakup of Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann.
Joe Rao will explain his prediction of the possible end of May meteor storm with his webinar lecture, “The Night of the Shooting Stars”, this Saturday, May 7, 2022, 08:30 PM Philippine Standard Time (08:30 AM EDT/12:30 UTC).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=augM-4mOZp0&t=7s&pp=ygUmYXN0cm9ub21pY2FsIGxlYWd1ZSBvZiB0aGUgcGhpbGlwcGluZXM%3D
For 21 years, Joe Rao was the Chief Meteorologist and Science Editor at News 12 Westchester in New York, USA. He was nominated for eight Emmy Awards, and in 2015, was voted First among weathercasters in New York State by the Associated Press.
Abstract: In 1995, Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 broke apart in dramatic fashion. Now, a number of meteor dynamicists have confirmed what Joe Rao had predicted last year: A stream of particles ejected during the comet’s disruption may yield a dramatic meteor outburst at the end of May 2022. The predictions are uncertain because no one knows for sure how fast the concentrated dust swarm left 73P’s disintegrating nucleus, but there is a chance that we could see meteors briefly fall at rates numbering in the scores, or maybe even in the hundreds per hour! In this presentation, Joe will explain the reasons why late on the night of May 30th, you may see more shooting stars than you’ve seen in your entire life!
April 30, 2022 ALP GAM 2022 Astronomy Expert Speaker Series – Zolt Levay
Our next esteemed speaker will be Zolt Levay who will give his talk on the topic “Visualizing Hubble’s Colorful Universe”
on Saturday, April 30, 2022, 20:30 Philippine Standard Time (12:30 UTC).
Zolt Levay is a retired Principal Science Visuals Developer in the Office of Public Outreach at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STSci) in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He produced images and other visuals from data provided by the Hubble Space Telescope to publicize science results from Hubble and other observatories.
He continued this effort in planning for the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope. He also led the Hubble Heritage Team, an STScI project that showcased the visually finest images from Hubble
His work has resulted in some of Hubble’s — and astronomy’s — most iconic images, including the “Bubble Nebula” (NGC 7635), the Carina Nebula mosaic, and the return to the Eagle Nebula’s “Pillars of Creation” in 2015, as well as the Hubble Deep Field.
Zolt became interested in astronomy and photography at an early age and earned a bachelor’s degree in astrophysics at Indiana University, Bloomington, and a master’s degree in astronomy at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. He worked with several space science missions at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, before joining the Space Telescope Science Institute in 1983.
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has been exploring the cosmos for more than 30 years. In that time, it has revolutionized astronomy and has enabled us to reimagine the universe through a wealth of dramatic views of space in unprecedented detail. Zolt Levay will discuss what makes Hubble such a powerful instrument, describe some of the most significant science results and spectacular images, and show how its science data can be translated into colorful pictures. He will explore what has made these images so compelling yet not so different from photographs of dramatic Earthbound landscapes, showing us that nature extends to the most distant reaches of the universe.
Link to his lecture can be viewed at Astronomical League of the Philippines – Official You Tube channel
Dr. Jay Pasachoff Abstract
Title: “Observations of the December 4, 2021, Total Solar Eclipse from Antarctica”
Speaker: Dr. Jay Pasachoff
Abstract:
Dr. Jay Pasachoff led the Williams College Eclipse Expedition to observe the December 4, 2021, total solar eclipse from the air, aboard a chartered commercial jetliner, intercepting the Moon’s shadow at 39,000 feet (11,887 meters) near the coast of Antarctica. The eclipsed Sun was visible only 4 degrees above the horizon, with totality lasting 1 minute, 52 seconds.
A second expedition team from Williams College observed the eclipse from the ground, on Antarctica’s Union Glacier.
The goal of the research was to understand how the Sun’s corona is heated to a million degrees, even though the visible surface of the Sun is only about 6,000 degrees Celsius. Somehow, energy is being injected with the help of the Sun’s magnetic field into the corona.
Abstract:
Dr. Jay Pasachoff led the Williams College Eclipse Expedition to observe the December 4, 2021, total solar eclipse from the air, aboard a chartered commercial jetliner, intercepting the Moon’s shadow at 39,000 feet (11,887 meters) near the coast of Antarctica. The eclipsed Sun was visible only 4 degrees above the horizon, with totality lasting 1 minute, 52 seconds.
A second expedition team from Williams College observed the eclipse from the ground, on Antarctica’s Union Glacier.
The goal of the research was to understand how the Sun’s corona is heated to a million degrees, even though the visible surface of the Sun is only about 6,000 degrees Celsius. Somehow, energy is being injected with the help of the Sun’s magnetic field into the corona.
Joe Rao Abstract
Title: “The Night of the Shooting Stars”
Speaker: Joe Rao
Abstract:
In 1995, Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 broke apart in dramatic fashion. Now, a number of meteor dynamicists have confirmed what Joe Rao had predicted last year: A stream of particles ejected during the comet’s disruption may yield a dramatic meteor outburst at the end of May 2022. The predictions are uncertain because no one knows for sure how fast the concentrated dust swarm left 73P’s disintegrating nucleus, but there is a chance that we could see meteors briefly fall at rates numbering in the scores, or maybe even in the hundreds per hour! In this presentation, Joe will explain the reasons why late on the night of May 30th, you may see more shooting stars than you’ve seen in your entire life!
ALP Astro Webinar Series 2022
Astronomical League of the Philippines
Astronomy Experts Speaker Series 2022
The Astronomical League of the Philippines is happy to announce its first “Astronomy Experts Speaker Series 2022” webinars which will be starting this April 23, 2022. We are very fortunate to have four eminent and distinguished astronomy experts who will be speaking via these Zoom webinars on their particular fields of interest for the next few weeks. Our speakers and their topics are:
Fred Espenak Abstract
Title: “Predicting and Chasing Solar Eclipses”
Speaker: Fred Espenak
Abstract:
A total eclipse of the Sun is the most spectacular astronomical event visible to the naked eye. What is it like to witness a total eclipse? How often do eclipses occur and where can they be seen? Fred Espenak has spent more than four decades chasing eclipses around the world. He will share his experiences with us through photos and video. The next total eclipse though the U.S.A. occurs on April 8, 2024. Details of this exciting event will also be presented.
Fred Espenak Biography
Fred Espenak is a retired NASA astrophysicist from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, where he worked with infrared spectrometers to probe the atmospheres of planets. He is also known as “Mr. Eclipse” because of his work on predicting and observing solar eclipses. He has written more than a dozen books on eclipses, including his most recent, “Eclipse Bulletin: Total Solar Eclipse of 2017 August 21.” Espenak also runs three websites on eclipse predictions (www.EclipseWise.com), eclipse photography (www.MrEclipse.com), and astrophotography (www.AstroPixels.com). Over the past 50 years, he has witnessed 29 total eclipses of the Sun. In 2003, the International Astronomical Union honored Espenak by naming asteroid 14120 after him. Espenak now lives in Portal, Arizona, where he operates his Bifrost Astronomical Observatory.