Announcements

July 22, 2023 ALP Astronomy Experts Speaker Series featuring Br. Guy Consolmagno , S.J.

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“Vesta and the Chaotic Formation of Planets”

by Br. Guy J. Consolmagno, S.J. (Director, Vatican Observatory)
The Astronomical League of the Philippines is inviting everyone to join us this July 22, 2023 (Saturday) at 8:30 pm Philippine Standard Time (8:30 am EDT, 12:30 UTC) for an online talk on “Vesta and the Chaotic Formation of Planets”by no other than the Pope’s astronomer and the Director of the Vatican Observatory at Castel Gandolfo, Italy, Br. Guy J. Consolmagno, S.J.
Abstract:
Ten years ago, NASA’s Dawn mission was sent to asteroid 4 Vesta to inspect, up close, an intact protoplanet from the dawn of the solar system. Except, Vesta’s overall density is too low and its core and crust too big to fit anything like what we expect an intact protoplanet to look like. Instead, Vesta is giving us new clues to planet formation and evolution in a violent early solar system.
Biography:
Br. Guy Consolmagno S.J. is the director of the Vatican Observatory and a planetary scientist studying meteorites and asteroids. A native of Detroit, Michigan, he received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from MIT and Ph.D. from the University of Arizona, all in the field of planetary science. He entered the Jesuit order in 1989 and joined the staff of the Vatican Observatory in 1993.
Along with more than 200 scientific publications, he is the author of several popular books on astronomy and the relationship between faith and science. In 2014, he was recognized by the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences with the Carl Sagan Medal for excellence in public communication in planetary sciences. In 2000, the International Astronomical Union named asteroid 1983 UA1 as 4597 Consolmagno in his honor.

June 24, 2023 ALP Astronomy Experts Speaker Series featuring Br. Robert Macke , S.J.

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A talk on falling stars, ” Meteorites in the Vatican”

Please join us this June 24, 2023 (Saturday) at 8:30 pm Philippine Standard Time (8:30 am EDT, 12:30 UTC) for an online talk on meteorites by Br. Robert Macke, S.J. , Curator of the Vatican Meteorite Collection.

Biography:

Brother Robert Macke S.J. is a research scientist and curator of meteorites at the Vatican Observatory. He received a bachelor of physics from MIT in 1996, then studied at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, to receive a Master of Arts in physics in 1999. He taught astronomy for two years at Bowling Green State University in Ohio before entering the Jesuit order in 2001. As a Jesuit brother, he received a Master of Arts in philosophy from St. Louis University in 2006, and after a year teaching astronomy at Rockhurst University began work toward a Ph.D. in physics (planetary science specialty) at the University of Central Florida, which he completed in 2010. From 2011-2013, he studied for a Master of Theological Studies at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, and then joined the staff of the Vatican Observatory in 2013. He became the curator of the Vatican Meteorite Collection in 2013. To date, he has been involved in numerous research collaborations, including membership in the science teams of the Lucy and the OSIRIS-REx space probes, and has applied his research techniques to a large number of moon rocks from the Apollo missions. Outside of research, he makes YouTube videos both for the Vatican Observatory and for his own channel, “Macke MakerSpace.”

Abstract:

The Vatican Observatory is a research institution with a long and proud tradition in the astronomical sciences. The work of the observatory, done by Jesuit scientists, serves as a sign to the world of the compatibility of faith and science as well as the Catholic Church’s support of science. In addition to traditional astronomy, the Jesuits of the observatory also study theoretical physics, planetary science, and laboratory work with meteorites. The Vatican collection of over 1,200 meteorite specimens is housed at the Vatican Observatory. Research with the meteorites focuses primarily on physical properties: density, porosity, magnetic susceptibility, and thermal properties. These measurements are not limited to the Vatican collection; through international collaborations, we also study other collections. I will also speak a little bit about the application of my work to the OSIRIS-REx space mission and the specimens from the asteroid Bennu that it is delivering to the Earth.

May 20, 2023 ALP Astronomy Experts Speaker Series featuring Dr. Debra Elmegreen

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“A Glimpse of Galaxies at the Dawn of the Universe”
by Debra M. Elmegreen, Ph.D. (President, International Astronomical Union)
May 20, 2023 (Saturday), 8:30 p.m. Philippine Standard Time (8:30 a.m. EDT)

Our home planet Earth resides in a spiral galaxy which is the Milky Way. Have you ever wondered what galaxies are, their structure, and how they are formed in the Universe? Please join us this May 20, 2023 (Saturday) at 8:30 p.m. Philippine Standard Time (8:30 a.m. EDT) for an online talk on ““A Glimpse of Galaxies at the Dawn of the Universe”, by no other than Dr. Debra M. Elmegreen, the current President of the. International Astronomical Union. Dr. Elmegreen’s talk will explore the composition and structure of galaxies across cosmic time, probing the evolution of galaxies as they grow and interact with one another.

Dr. Debra M. Elmegreen was the Professor of Astronomy on the Maria Mitchell Chair at Vassar College from 1994 to 2022, after joining the faculty in 1985. She received her undergraduate degree from Princeton University (the first female to major in astrophysics) and a Ph.D. in Astronomy from Harvard University and was a Carnegie Observatories Postdoctoral Fellow (the firs Her research focuses on the structure and evolution of galaxies at optical, infrared and radio wavelengths. She enjoys observing with the Hubble Space Telescope and now, with the James Webb Space Telescope. Dr. Elmegreen is President of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) — the first U.S. female to hold this position in its 103-year history — and Past President of the American Astronomical Society (AAS).

May 5/6, 2023 ALP Penumbral Lunar Eclipse Image Gallery

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Below are images taken by members of the Astronomical League of the Philippines. Therefore, all images are the property of ALP as well as the imager mentioned. Any intention to use the images should seek permission to the ALP as well as the main author of the image.

Jett Aguilar

Images taken using Canon EOS R8 mirrorless camera with Canon EF1.8X extender on Takahashi TSA102 Refractor. 1/250sec exposure at ISO 100.

 

Peter Benedict Tubalinal

Image taken using Vivo V27e Smartphone afocal on Celestron Nexstar 8i SCT with Celestron ELux 25mm Plossl.

 

 

 

April 30, 2023 ALP Astronomy Experts Speaker Series featuring Dr. Daniel Green

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Comets, the so called denizens and visitors from deep space, have inspired awe and even fear since ancient times. On April 30, 2023 (Sunday), at 9;30 a.m. Philippine Standard Time (April 29, Saturday, 9:30 p.m. EDT), please join us for an online talk on “A Brief Tutorial on Comets” by Daniel W. E. Green, Ph.D. , Director, Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams (CBAT}
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EslAx6JD-ks
Dr. Green will talk about what comets are, how they are becoming harder to define in terms of their physical nature, how they are discovered and named, some statistics regarding comets, and how amateur astronomers can contribute greatly to the science of comets.
Dr. Daniel Green has been the Director of the International Astronomical Union’s CBAT since 2000. The CBAT is responsible for the dissemination of information on transient astronomical events (i.e. comets) and various IAU news including the announcement of designations and names of various celestial objects. He is involved in research of small bodies of the solar system — particularly, comets and meteors but also minor planets. He collects and archives/publishes data on comets from observers around the world, and these data are published in the International Comet Quarterly.
Dr. Green is also a member of the International Astronomical Union’s 15-member Committee on Small Bodies Nomenclature, which approves names for comets and minor planets (including trans-Neptunian objects) and their satellites.
He obtained his Ph.D. in physics and astronomy from the University of Durham (U.K.).

April 20, 2023 ALP Partial Solar Eclipse Image Gallery

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Below are images taken by members of the Astronomical League of the Philippines. Therefore, all images are the property of ALP as well as the imager mentioned. Any intention to use the images should seek permission to the ALP as well as the main author of the image.

James Kevin Ty 

Images taken using Canon EOS M6 mirrorless camera on Borg 76ED Refractor with TV 2.5x Powermate.  Baader 3.8 Solar Filter mounted on Vixen GPDX mount. 1/1000 sec exposure at ISO 200.

 

Jett Aguilar

Images taken using Lunt 100 hydrogen alpha telescope to capture whole disk images of the partially eclipsed sun as well as a Takahashi TSA 102 refractor with a Baader Astrosolar filter (ND5) and a Canon 7D DSLR at prime focus.

 

Kendrick Cole Ty

Partial Solar Eclipse at Maximum taken using Canon EOS 500D DSLR on Cankn EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L Lens set at 400mm f/11. 1/750 sec at ISO 100.

 

Raymund Sarmiento

Images taken using a Mobile Phone Huawei Mate20Pro with a Kase Mobile Scope and a DIY 3d Printed Baader Solar Fllter Adapter. Tracked using a Desk Top Polarie Sky Tracker. 

 

Val Thomas Abapo

Image taken from Cebu, Philippines using WO GT71 Refractor with WO 0.8 Reducer  and Celestron Skyris 132c camera.

 

Peter Benedict Tubalinal 

Images taken using Orion ST80 Refractor with 15mm Expanse Eyepiece and Smartphone.

 

Steven Bacalian

Images taken using Canon EOS 60D DSLR with Celestron C90 Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope mounted on Skywatcher Star Adventurer. 

 

Vincent Gella

Partial Solar Eclipse at Maximum taken using Celestron Powerseeker 80MM with Celestron 32mm Plossl with 
Baader Solar Filter 5.0 and Celestron EQ-2 Equatorial mount.

 

Renan Acosta

Images taken using Samsung Fold 4 Smartphone with 30x zoom.

 

Jowen Kibtiani 

Images taken from Polomolok , South Cotabato using Real Me 8 5GB Smartphone with Celestron 20mm Erecting Eyepiece on Celestron Powerseeker 70EQ Refractor on EQ-2 mount.

 

Miguel Cano

Safe projection method used by Miguel Cano using binoculars to show a sharper eclipsed Sun. 

 

Teddy-Ty Chua

Image taken using Samsung S21 ultra.. 70x zoom and Solar Filter.

 

Fung Yu

Image taken using Canon 70D DSLR with Canon EF300mm lens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2023 Father Victor L. Badillo Astronomy Service Award

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ALPer Raymund Sarmiento is this year’s Father Victor L. Badillo Astronomy Service Awardee for 2023 for his “For his innovative development of EQMOD, an open source telescope mount control software, which greatly aided astronomers worldwide.”

Raymund is the Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Officer of GMA New Media, the technology arm of GMA Network.

Serving as CTO of GMA New Media for the past 20 years, he is the co-inventor of some of the R&D projects for the organization, with patents obtained and applied locally and abroad.

He has extensive experience in AI and robotics, recently creating from scratch a Rubiks Cube Solver Robot.

An amateur astronomer as well as member of ALP since 2004,  he also developed a Telescope Observatory / Automation algorithm called EQMOD, which he launched as an open source project in 2006. It remains active to this day.

April Global Astronomy Month Free Telescope Viewing Event

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There will be a free telescope viewing event by the Astronomical League of the Philippines (ALP) on April  23 at Luneta and 30, 2023 at SM BY the Bay (SMBY) near the fountain area in celebration of Global Astronomy Month 2023.

On April 23rd, the event will start at 3:30pm with a free solar viewing session wherein the public get a chance to view the Sun safely with our member’s solar telescopes. The solar session will end at around 5:00pm.

Afterwards ,  night time free telescope viewing event will start at 6:00pm to 9:00pm. The event is free to everyone to join and get a chance to view planet Venus, Orion Nebula, double star Castor and many more!

Lastly on April 30th, ALP will held another GAM Free Telescope Viewing Event at SM by the Bay (SMBY) from 7:00pm to 9:30pm. The event is free to everyone to join and get a chance to view the Waxing Crescent Moon, planets Jupiter & Venus, Orion Nebula, double star Castor and many more!

See you all there! Please share these events to your friends and family.

April 15, 2023 ALP Global Astronomy Month Astro Webinar Talk

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Please join us online this coming April 15, 2023, at 8:00 p.m. Philippine Standard Time (8:00 a.m. EST), as we celebrate Global Astronomy Month.

There will be two online talks to be given by our Astronomical League of the Philippines members. The first talk will be on “The EQMOD Platform” by Mr. Raymund Sarmiento.  EQMOD is an open-source software project that was initially developed by a team of amateur astronomers led by Mr. Sarmiento. The project was started in the early 2000s as a way to provide computer control of equatorial telescope mounts, which can be used for astrophotography and other observational purposes. The development of EQMOD was made possible through the collaborative efforts of a community of amateur astronomers who contributed their time, skills, and resources to create an open-source software platform that is available to everyone. Today, EQMOD continues to be developed and maintained by a community of volunteers who support the software and its users.

The second talk will be on “Remote Astrophotography: The dream, the challenges” by Mr. Enrico Africa, who is also a member of the Cincinnati Astronomical Society. Mr. Africa will discuss the options available for  remote astrophotography and the solutions he had discovered  based on his own experience. He will specifically mention what one would need in doing remote astronomical photography in terms of hardware and software requirements as well as what are currently available. Enrico “Eric” Africa is a passionate amateur astronomer and astrophotographer and had been interested in astronomy for most of his life The apparition of Comet Hyakutake (C/1996 B2) in 1996 triggered his interest in observational astronomy. Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) in 1997 got him into astrophotography, first using film, and then digital imaging starting in 2001. Many of his images have been featured in Sky & Telescope, Astronomy Magazine and Astronomy Now magazines. He has been using a remote observatory in the dark skies of New Mexico since 2011.

March 12, 2023 ALP Astro Experts Series Webinar 2023 with Heidi Hammel, Ph.D

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Please join us this March 12 (Sunday) at 10 A.M. Philippine Standard Time (March 11, Saturday, 9 P.M. EST) for the Astronomy Experts Speaker Series 2023 online talk on:
“The First Year of the James Webb Space Telescope: What We’ve Learned, What Is Still to Come” by Heidi Hammel, Ph.D.

Abstract:
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) launched into space on Christmas Day, 2021. During its first year, this innovative observatory has already made revolutionary advances across astronomy with its infrared capability and high sensitivity. In this talk, Dr. Heidi B. Hammel will describe how JWST came to be and what it was designed to do, with personal insights into the long and complicated path to its launch. She will highlight amazing results from JWST’s first year, from discoveries about our nearby neighbors in the Solar System, to the spectacular deep-space images of distant galaxies. Dr. Hammel will also describe JWST’s studies of planets around other stars, explaining how we can study their atmospheres. She will finish with a look ahead not only for JWST, but also for the future of space astrophysics.

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