Stories Wanted: Gemini is written entirely by our members, for our members. Gemini needs your stories: how you first became interested in astronomy, how your interest has evolved over the years, equipment you use, projects or activities you have worked on, star parties or events you’ve attended in this state and elsewhere, how you’ve encouraged others—especially young people—to get involved in this fascinating hobby. Submit your stories to gemini@mnastro.org

E-mail Update: If your e-mail address has recently changed, chances are your address used for MAS e-mail distribution lists is not current. Please inform the e-mail list administrator of your new e-mail address at mailman@lists.mnastro.org to update your address for the e-mail distribution lists. Also if your e-mail, phone number or street address has recently changed, please fill out the “Update Member Information” Web form at mnastro.org/update-member-information to update your contact information in the MAS member records.

February 2020Volume 46 Number 1a publication of the Minnesota Astronomical Society

In the pages of the Gemini

Astrophotography: The Final Frontier

By Richard WillitsFor 35 years my connection to the night sky was through a four-inch Edmund

Scientifics Astroscan which my son bought at the Science Museum in St. Paul when he was 12. I used that little telescope for years, and now his son has it with him at college. I subscribed to Astronomy and at one time bought a new eyepiece from Orion Telescope, which put me forever on their mailing list. I retired, moved north into the woods with dark skies, and purchased an Orion Apex 127 which doubled as a spotting scope to see who was catching fish on the lake, and with the assistance of a webcam I could use it with my laptop.

At age 66 I became a caregiver and spent what little free time I had looking at the night sky. This is when I decided that I needed to treat myself and buy a real telescope. I purchased an Orion 10'' f/4 Astrograph Newtonian and an Orion Atlas EQG mount. We have a room above our garage with a large deck facing south, which is a perfect location to set up and take down this fairly large telescope. I went to Cloudy Nights Classified and found used Nagler eyepieces at affordable prices. I remember the articles in Astronomy and Sky & Telescope saying how wonderful these eyepieces are. I discovered that everything they said was true. They are great.

Somewhere around age 69 I noticed that I started having trouble seeing what I was supposed to be able to see. My eyes are good but getting old; perhaps I spent too many years under the welding hood. Using the experience I had with the webcam, I bought an adapter and connected my older Canon Rebel xsi to my telescope and was able to image what I could no longer see well. I was immediately addicted. I searched the Internet for information and tutorials on astrophotography, discovering that the Orion Atlas EQG is a Sky-Watcher EQ6 everywhere else in the world. It is the world’s most-used telescope mount; there is very good free software available, and there are many tutorials on its use. I have to say that since I connected my camera to my telescope and both camera and mount to the computer, I have learned more about computers and software than I have learned about the night sky.

This is the golden age of astrophotography. What a few years ago required a

Dakota Nights By Brad Nasset…Page 4

Hands across the Border By Jay Bruesch…Page 6

MAS Board Minutes for November/December 2019

By Trena Johnson, secretary…Page 6

Loaner Scope Program By Trena Johnson…Page 7

MAS Patron Members…Page 7

Mercury Transit and Falcon Nine Launch By Martin Godfrey…Page 8

My Interest in Astronomy By Mark McCure…Page 10

MAS 2020 Star Party Schedule…Page 11

Andromeda Galaxy (M31) Canon Rebel xsi modified camera and a William Optics 110mm telescope.

Minnesota Astronomical Society

GEMINI INFOEditorsBrian Litecky and Eugene Brown

WebmasterMAS Web Committee, chair Merle Hiltner, webteam@lists.mnastro.org

Forums AdministratorRuss Durkee

E-mail List AdministratorBob Brose

Monthly Meeting Presenter CoordinatorAhmed Reda

Gemini is published 6 times annually by the Minnesota Astronomical Society.

Electronic submissions for Gemini may be sent to:gemini@mnastro.org

Hardcopy items should be sent to:Minnesota Astronomical Society

Attn: Gemini P.O. Box 14931

Minneapolis, MN 55414

Send MAS membership dues, changes of address and S&T subscriptions to the MAS Membership Coordinator. Astronomy magazine subscriptions are available by contacting the MAS Treasurer.

MAS Board Members

President: Dave Falkner E-Mail: president@mnastro.org

Vice President: Valts Treibergs E-Mail: vice-president@mnastro.org

Treasurer: Matt Dunham E-Mail: treasurer@mnastro.org

Secretary: Trena Johnson E-Mail: secretary@mnastro.org

Board Member at Large: Gunnar Isberg E-Mail: boardmember1@mnastro.org.

Board Member at Large: Mary Williams E-Mail: boardmember2@mnastro.org

2GEMINI • www.mnastro.org

university- grade telescope and a staff of experts now can be done from one’s backyard. There may not be any two imagers with the same equipment and setup. My first guide scope was a plastic Celestron 70mm Travel Scope ($19.00 on ebay) with a webcam which fit into an 11/4'' eyepiece tube. If it found a bright guide star, it worked. My first camera was the Canon Rebel xsi (450D) mentioned above that is now available used for $80.00. Camera adapters can be found for under $20.00. The software, still mostly free, has been developed in Germany, France, Spain, Italy, the UK, Canada, USA and other places by people who speak different languages, but it all works together. If you have an ASCOM-compatible mount such as Orion or Sky-Watcher, start here: http://eq-mod.sourceforge.net/eqaindex.html. Stellarium Scope and Stellarium are also good sources. Be careful from where you download.

In astrophotography, the telescope mount is everything and they are not free. A

Orion Nebula (M42) Canon Rebel xsi modified camera and a William Optics 110mm telescope.

Lovejoy Comet Canon Rebel xsi modified camera and a William Optics 110mm telescope.

February 20203

good, small mount will cost close to $1,000 new; the Orion Atlas EQG (Sky-Watcher EQ6 Pro) is $1,400. If one compares astrophotography to fishing, the mount is like the boat. After that, it’s all about the accessories. If you already have a German Equatorial Mount (GEM) and it is a GoTo, you are ready to start.

Seven Sisters (Pleiades) (M45) Canon Rebel xsi modified camera and an Orion Newtonian f3.9 telescope.

I live in the woods in northeastern Minnesota near the small town of Ely. I’m not aware of any other astro-imagers near here. Mark Job is the only MAS member that I know. I am 100 miles north of Duluth, so interaction with other members is difficult. I photograph from my wooden deck. Most people in the world don’t believe that anyone would live in a place that gets this cold. Qiu Hongyum of QHYCCD Cameras tested the QHY163m camera to -30˚C for me to certify that it would work in Northern Minnesota.

Horsehead Nebula (NGC 2023) SBIG STF 8300 mono camera with Ha, OIII & SII filters and a

William Optics 81mm telescope.

For over five years I have been a member of a small astronomy group called “Astronomy Shed.” The group is centered in the UK and has participants from around the world. They have the Shed philosophy and equipment similar to mine, and they have all become my friends. I posted my first image there on my 70th birthday. I like to say, “The Sun never sets on the Shed.”

Eagle Nebula (M16) SBIG STF 8300 mono camera with Ha, OIII & SII filters and a 10'' RC

telescope.

Astrophotography has the nicest people. I have an imaging friend who manages to image from a wheelchair. Roger, who is a retired commando from the Royal Army, does a 26-mile marathon in uniform with full pack (about 65 pounds) in formation with his retired military friends. A friend from Dubai has to live with such strong social norms that it is difficult to be an astro-imager, which is sad, because his photos are ever so good. Carole, who is a retired opera singer, is the most versatile imager that I know. She can get beautiful pictures from light-polluted London. There is Julian, who is retired from medical research and understands pixel math. Pat, a retired roofing plumber who re-roofed church steeples, is able to take magnificent images from the sky with the most economical of equipment.

NGC 7331 QHY 163 color camera and a 10'' RC telescope.

The vast universe gives up its images grudgingly, but we all love the night sky and want to capture God’s creation.

After almost six years of imaging I have acquired too many telescopes and too many cameras. I was told by a friend that he was not sure about the cameras, but one can never have too many telescopes.

All the photos were taken from my deck near Ely, Minnesota and captured with an Orion Atlas mount and StellariumScope / ASCOM software

4GEMINI • www.mnastro.org

Dakota Nights

By Brad NassetThe Dakota Nights Astronomy Festival at the Theodore

Roosevelt National Park near Medora, North Dakota, is a fun event. Depending upon the timing of the new Moon, it is always held sometime in September. In 2019 it was held over the three-day Labor Day weekend. Steve Baranski, Bernie Stinger and I were there from MAS. I will share some of the adventure with you.

This herd of bison wandered through the campsite almost every night.

My wife Joan and I went out there a week ahead of time to goof off. One morning we heard a noise and opened the shade of the camper. Oh no…. my telescope! Not your usual hazard to be encountered! The herd of bison wandered through the campsite almost every day. Good grief.

The keynote speaker on Friday night was from the McDonald Observatory in Texas; his work at the observatory is as a dark-sky advocate for all the oil fields in that region. He was excited that they finally cracked the door open with one oil field operator, and they “saw the light.” The company became a dark-sky advocate with all of the other oil field operators. The secret is not based totally on being a good neighbor in Texas; they found that the lighting changes reduced costs; it actually made the workplace safer at night, and the night-shift employees really liked it. The governor and Barbara Bush were involved at some point also. I found this interesting but a bit frustrating to think how difficult the task is overall in the country.

Then to the observing field on Friday; alas, the skies were cloudy. Saturday was a beautiful day, and a number of telescopes were set up in the town square for solar viewing. Tons of people all afternoon. Across the street I made giant rope orbits for the planets and had them in the grass for my solar system presentation with the “planets on a stick.” About a dozen 24x36- inch foam boards with constellations were placed around the outside of Saturn’s orbit to give a sense of what the night sky looks like at various times of the year. My big eyeballs on the Earth globe always make people laugh.

The Saturday-night keynote was about the spectral patterns of stars, and other graphs, charts and technical stuff. Interesting, sort of like listening to Sheldon of “The Big Bang Theory” TV show. Good material and a good presentation.

The Saturday-night sky was perfect, and apparently after Friday’s cloud-out all the pent- up excitement burst forth. The approximately one-dozen scopes set up in the observing field were outnumbered by a tsunami of 510 people. Steve had his scope and Bernie had his HyperStar, so both wowed the crowd. I was sort of the strolling minstrel to entertain people while they waited for a scope. I’ll bet I gave a green-laser sky tour at least 20 times that night. I also told the story of how Galileo first looked at Jupiter through his telescope and ran into the house and woke his wife in the middle of the night, shouting, “Hey honey, come see this!” Come on, you know we all do that.

Solar viewing with Bernie

Sunday during the day was a repeat of solar viewing and the solar system presentation. What was a real honor and fun for me was that they asked me to be the Sunday-night keynote speaker. My presentation was “Unlocking the Secrets: How to find the Constellations” with the goal of ending this sad tale: Hey! Where is Orion? I saw it a few months ago. Where’d it go? The presentation was in the outdoor amphitheater with a 10-foot screen. Some 100 people attended. The clouds opened up around the conclusion of my presentation, as it was just getting dark, so I could have the people stand up right there, and I pointed to what I had just told them about.

Sunday night clouded over right after our brief look at the sky during my presentation, so there was no star party. The evening was spent with several of the volunteer astronomers sitting in a circle in the dark and talking. Park fire regulations prevented us from having a campfire, but we pretended. It was really a good conclusion to the festival. As a party favor we were given small, lighted name badges that can be programed with an iPhone via Bluetooth. I set mine to simply display “Brad.” I know for a fact there were two professional iOS programmers in that circle, and I have every reason to believe they hacked into my phone. Why else would my nametag suddenly blink and then start scrolling my apparently new name of “Bread” across the screen? Huh? The buttons were dead, so I could not stop it.

See you next year, Dakota Nights!

February 20205

More Dakota Nights

Brad giving his presentation

PacMan Nebula (NGC 281)

Veil Nebula (NGC 6992)

The North America Nebula (NGC 7000)

The Lagoon Nebula (M8)

The viewing field at Dakota Nights

Solar viewing with Steve

6GEMINI • www.mnastro.org

MAS Board Minutes for November/December 2019

By Trena Johnson, secretaryNovember

In attendance via UberConference: Dave Falkner, Matt Dunham, Suresh Sreenivasan, Steve Emert. We are at 525 members. Site Reports: JCC: Clayton, Bernie and Jon had 100-200 visitors to the observatory during Belwin’s Lunar Star Party on Nov. 8. The final Belwin event is on Dec. 13 for Native American storytelling about the stars. LLCC: Report from Ken Hugill: We installed the underground wire for the big scopes with work on installing the underground boxes to be finished in the spring. The big scopes have been winterized. Ken has the skirt for the 30’’ and will be putting new grommets on it. The trees are still standing as we continue to ask LLCC to cut them down. We may need some midnight lumberjacks this winter to get it done. Two of the red filters have fallen off the path lights. We will need to inspect them all in the spring and replace the two that have fallen off. The power to the light at the end of the main path is still out. The garage needs its trim painted. ELO: The railing project has been suspended until spring, but a few of the pieces for the SA Casby rail are cut and ready to weld. Electric work was completed to the upper plaza and the stair lights were hard-wired with a waterproof switch next to the stairs. The counterweights to SA Casby and JJ Casby have been delivered; plans are to install and rebalance them shortly. A security camera has been added outside the Hotspot classroom. LX200 has had gears replaced by Deane; this has fixed the problem for now. Carver

county parks have eliminated entrance fees as of Dec. 1, 2019, so we no longer need MAS members to display a permit. CGO: SimplySafe system has been installed. E-mails will be coming to offer training and updated access codes. Watch the forums for training times and updates. LX200’s hand pad has been replaced. Note: The power plug on the front panel is loose, so bumping it will interrupt the power; it will be replaced when temperatures are more favorable. Winterization will happen after the last star party in November. MAS Board: Matt Dunham will be resigning as board member at large in order to run as treasurer. Current candidates: vice president: Valts Treibergs; treasurer: Matt Dunham; board member at large: Gunnar Isberg, Brad Nasset, Conrad Sanders, Mary Williams. Astronomy Magazines: We will be discontinuing new and renewal membership service for Astronomy and Sky & Telescope. Please watch the forums and e-mails for updates on this subject.December

In attendance via UberConference: Dave Falkner, Matt Dunham, Miles Duffin, Suresh Sreenivasan, Trena Johnson, Valts Treibergs, Merle Hiltner, Gunnar Isberg. Current membership is at 533. Site Reports: Nothing new. JJC: We have been shoveling the walk just occasionally. Belwin: They had their final private event of the year last night. It was cloudy, so we just showed equipment and photos around the room. LLCC: Nothing new. CGO: The observation site is in hibernation. Snowplowing is making the driveway inaccessible. Board Election Results: vice president: Valts Treibergs; treasurer: Matt Dunham; board

Hands Across the Border

By Jay BrueschSometimes opportunities to share our love of the night sky

with others are planned; other times those opportunities just sort of fall into your lap.

The author with his 80mm “backpack” refractor

On a recent vacation trip to Egg Harbor on Wisconsin’s Door County peninsula, I heard that there was an International Dark Sky site just north of where we would be staying. Since our trip

coincided with the height of the Perseid meteor shower, I had to check this out. I loaded our 9.25’’ Schmid-Cassegrain into the car, and just in case there would be problems in transporting that heavy beast to a suitable viewing site, I also packed our 80mm “backpack” refractor. That turned out to be a good idea. When I arrived at the site (Newport State Park) to purchase a sticker and enter the park, I was told that there would be a public meteor-watching event that night, and I wouldn’t be allowed to drive to the observing area. So I slung the backpack over my shoulder and headed in.

The public event was hosted by some outreach folks from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (my alma mater). On hand were an astronomy professor who was giving a presentation on meteors and a graduate student in astronomy. They had brought two 8’’ SCTs for public viewing after the slide show. The crowd was big, close to 300 people. The UW staff were glad to have another astronomer on hand, albeit a pretty green one, and one more telescope—never mind that it was a small refractor on a pan-head photo tripod.

Long lines formed behind each of the three telescopes, and before clouds moved in people had the thrill of seeing the Moon through a telescope, plus the bands on Jupiter and Saturn’s rings. Then they all settled back to look for meteors through the limited clear sky that remained. I was glad I had brought a 4mm eyepiece along, which boosted the power of the little scope to 100x—enough to see a little detail. There were many cries of “Whoa!” and “Wow” as some got perhaps their first look at the wonders of the heavens.

I was grateful to have the opportunity to bring goodwill from the Minnesota Astronomical Society to our brothers and sisters in Wisconsin. And helping a large crowd to enjoy the night sky was very rewarding.

February 20207

Loaner Scope Program

By Trena JohnsonA few words from the outgoing Loaner Scope coordinator.

It has been a great pleasure to run the program for the last three years. I have met so many great people, from those who are just learning about the night sky to those more experienced. This program is designed for everyone at any skill level. If you are just learning about the program, here is what it has to offer: You must be a member of MAS. This allows you to borrow a telescope for at least one month and sometimes longer, depending on the season. A wide range of telescopes is currently available, with more options possible in the future as telescopes are donated. Currently in the fleet are two 10’’ solid-tube Dobs; two 8’’ solid-tube Dobs; one 6’’ short-tube Dob; one 6’’ SCT; one 5’’ SE SCT GoTo; one 8’’ SE SCT GoTo; one 8’’ Lightswitch GoTo; one 4’’

refractor; and one solar telescope. Recently we have acquired two DVD sets of The Complete Sky & Telescope 1940s to 2000s.

A little more about the loaner scopes. They all come with various sizes of eyepieces, 10mm to 40mm; most have a moon filter, instructions, and several guides to the night sky. A checklist is included for when you take the scope and for when you bring it back, listing everything that needs to be returned so it’s ready to be shared with the next person. Suggestion: Go over it as you pack it in your car to return it so you are not missing anything.

Thank you to everyone who has made this a time to remember. Without further ado I give you the new Loaner Scope coordinator, Antone Gregory. Thank you to Antone for volunteering for this position and to all the other volunteers who have helped with the Loaner Scopes: Steve E., Valts, Suresh, Scott H., Andy F., Mike S., and Dave F.

member at large: Mary Williams; finishing Matt’s board member at large role is Gunnar Isberg. Congratulations to the new board members. Thank you for volunteering. Minnesota Common Grant Application Form for Onan Foundation: We have received a check for $17,000 from the Onan Foundation for the repair of Onan’s roll-off roof. Dave Falkner has acknowledged the check by e-mail with a formal Thank You letter to follow. Inventory/Equipment: We are seeking a person to assist with the inventory/equipment to be sold. Please contact the president if

you are interested. Loaner Scope Coordinator: Antone Gregory has volunteered to take on this role. Trena will transition duties over the next few months. Constitution Committee: They have made their first pass through the bylaws and will be sending a review to the board in the next month. The committee will break for the holidays, reconvening in January 2020. Snack Table: Round one with Shipt delivering items seemed to work well. Feedback is welcome via e-mail to secretary@mnastro.org

MAS Patron Members

Patron memberships are available to those who wish to help contribute a little extra to support MAS activities. Patron memberships are established by constitution at 2-1/2 times the Regular membership rate – currently, $65 annual for a Patron membership. The $39 additional contribution is tax deductible. Patron memberships help fund equipment acquisitions, facility improvements, outreach activities and more. We would like to thank the following Patron members as of January 2, 2020: Tom and Arlene AlmScott AndersonJack AtkinsSteve BaranskiGreg BarilBradley BeiselScott BilleadeauKatie BloomeWayne BolineNatalie BrosharRev. Eugene BrownJay BrueschJonathan BurkhardtJeff BurrowsEarl ByeBill & Gail BynumKen CarlsonKurt CasbyJames CeglaArvind ChakravarthiStuart ChastainCara ClarkDeane Clark, Jr.Bruce ColemanMark ConnollyMichael DanielsGary DavisPaul and Jolie DavisMary Beth Smith & Ted DeMattiesThomas DillonTony DuBoisMolly DuffinMatt DunhamDave EckbladWilliam EggersDavid Eisenlord

Steven EmertDennis FaithDavid FalknerRobert FarrellPatricia FlugaurRobert FoucaultJeff FranksonAndrew FraserRobert FriedleinAlan FullerPaul GadeJim GerrityWilliam GlassMartin GodfreyBradley GordonMartin GormansonSteven GrabarkiewiczZdenko GrajcarAntone GregoryJere Gwin-LenthDale HagertJake HairrellEric HallBrandon HamilRyan HansonAndrew HarwoodGreg HaubrichMichael HaydockJonathan HaymanJennifer HaysVictor HeinerAngela Heins FamilyBrian HendricksJohn HillMerle HiltnerGary HoaglundMichael Hobbs

Lauren HoenGreg HokansonMichael HopfenspirgerGeorge HulmeCarole IsaksonAnton Jachim, PhDDick JacobsonGale JallenLen JannuschJeffrey JaroskiStephen JensenMark JobChelen JohnsonJulie A. Y. JohnsonKurt JohnsonTrena JohnsonJerry JonesMichael KauperKenneth KerrickMichael KibatMichael KnowlenJim KnudsenBill KockenDavid KockenParke KunkleGreg LarsonChristine LaughlinKevin LeeLouis LeichterPaul LiederClayton LindseyShawn LovettWalid MaalouliEdward MalinkaJohn MarchettiVanessa McCahonBruce McDonald

Duane McDonnellJavier MedranoRebecca MesserGerald MillerRobert MillerScott MorganPat NassefDouglas NelsonJacquelyn NelsonDoug NevermanKenneth NichollsTracy NiebelingAlan NootDouglas OinesThor OlsonChristopher PaolaGary PedersonMark PetchenikBecky PollackMardon QuandtAhmed RedaKirby RichterStephen RiendlEric & Rebecca RobinsonGerald RoehlDaniel RuhTheodore SadlerJack SandbergRoy Cameron SarverJames SchenzRonald SchmitAnna SchoenebergerLoren SchoenzeitDavid SchultzKristopher SetnesMike ShawJeff Shlosberg

Bernie SimmonsDavid SiskindDavid SjogrenDennis SjogrenEric SmestadAndrew SmithLeonard SolarzKatherine SprollBernie StingerJack StormsKent SwensonDavid SwymelerDavid TostesonValts TreibergsDavid TruchotSteve UlrichBob VangenPaul Van NormanDavid VenneLawrence WaitePaul WalkerFred WallSarah WeaverCraig WeinertMark WicklundMary WilliamsNeil WorthinghamRobin WrightGene YatesJohn ZimitschMark ZimitschNeal Zimmerman

8GEMINI • www.mnastro.org

Mercury Transit and Falcon 9 Launch

By Martin GodfreyOn November 11, 2019, I was lucky to be in Florida. It was a

big day for astronomy and space exploration, since the Mercury transit of the Sun coincided with the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 carrying the second batch of Starlink satellites at the Kennedy Space Center. I convinced a buddy of mine who was also down south to try to observe both with me.

A crowd watches the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 carrying the second batch of Starlink satellites at the Kennedy Space Center.

We asked around about viewing locations and talked to some locals who had seen dozens of launches. We learned that we could get tickets to two viewing areas on the Space Center grounds if we plan ahead and spend some cash, but everyone told us that launches look great from lots of places. A number of parks along the Indian River in Titusville give great views from the west. The Cocoa Beach pier area gives an unobstructed view from the south. But the general consensus was that for one’s first launch one can’t go wrong with Playalinda beach in the Canaveral National Seashore immediately north of the launch pads. The beach is about as close as a person can get without being on the Space Center grounds.

The launch was scheduled for about 10:00 a.m.; we hit the park gate at about 7:30. Admission is $15/car but the pass is good for a week. There were still a few parking spots open at the first parking area. The transit had just begun. We set up a Celestron 70mm Travel Scope on the hood of the car and had a look. The scope is a small refractor with typical chromatic aberration but not bad. It works great for terrestrial observing, plus the Moon and Sun. One can see the main cloud bands on Jupiter and the rings of Saturn. It comes with a mylar solar filter and a backpack case that holds the whole kit and fits in a suitcase—a good answer for traveling when I want to bring a scope along. One minor problem is that it is intrinsically unbalanced. The rack-and-pinion focuser is sturdy with good action, but I have to rack it out pretty far to focus. The configuration saves length for storage but makes it back-heavy even without an eyepiece. It has a threaded hole for a camera-type mount and a short vixen-width dovetail. The scope works great with any tripod that will hold a 35mm camera steady or with light mounts like a Celestron Astromaster GEM. It comes with a space-efficient mount/tripod that fits in the backpack but is so rickety that it is nearly unusable. I have to tighten things down below the target and then let the back end drop under the weight of the eyepiece and hope the target is in the field of view with hands off. It is exasperating, but I can make it work with a little care.

The Falcon 9 rocket leaves contrails against the clouds.

We popped on the mylar filter and used the OTA shadow and a 25mm Orion Plossi eyepiece to find the Sun and a 5mm Celestron X-Cel LX for viewing. That gave a view where the Sun took up about 75% of the field of view at 80x. The Sun was absolutely clean of spots and Mercury was clearly visible, tiny but nice and round and distinct. We watched for about 30 minutes, 8:00 to 8:30 a.m., and then we packed up and headed for the beach.

It’s a clean beach that goes for miles with a big sand ridge anchored by grass. We staked out a spot near the grass, since the tide was coming in. There is a barrier at the Space Center boundary, but some rangers on an ATV marked the closest spot for safe launch viewing a few hundred yards short of the boundary. We were a hundred yards or so in back of that point. Most people went as close as they could get, but a couple of photographers who seemed to know the drill were back near us. There was a constant flow of people from the farther parking lots walking down the beach until almost launch time. Even then there were maybe only 200 people total, so it was not crowded at all. We were told the whole beach and the 13 parking areas will fill up for big launches. The park is shut down when full or when the launch window approaches; no one can leave until it’s safe, but there are rest rooms at every parking area. Definitely bring some water and snacks.

The author’s Celestron 70mm Travel Scope

The window for this launch was very tight and lift off was about a minute into the window. We didn’t have to watch closely for very long. We saw the rocket and the brilliant orange flame slowly rising a few seconds before the sound hit. The Falcon 9 put out a low frequency sound with lots of rumbling and popping. It was not quite like being at a Ted Nugent concert but we could feel

February 20209

our internal organs vibrating. The rocket picked up speed very quickly. I followed most of the ascent with an 8x25 monocular, which gave me a good view. I could see the exhaust plume expand as the vehicle gained altitude and the atmospheric pressure dropped. The vehicle made a condensation trail illuminated by the Sun for a time. It was all over very quickly. It was super cool.

The rocket went right in front of the Sun. I know some of our MAS members could have taken a fabulous picture if they knew that was coming. My buddy got a good picture and a video with his iPhone. His first picture and a still from the video are shown here. Lots of cropping was necessary because as close as we would get was still pretty far away.

There is one other attraction that might be of interest to astronomers. At the far end of the beach at lot 13 is a two-story block house observatory with a dome. I had been at the beach the previous Saturday and checked it out. At one time it had been surrounded by a chain link fence, but it seemed like a hurricane had long since removed most of it and left the rest much worse for wear, so I strolled right up the driveway to have a look. There was a trailer with a soft cover in front of the observatory. The zippered door was hanging half open, possibly due to the high winds. I peered inside and was surprised to see three big optical tubes folded down on a massive mount. It was an ascent tracking camera. A sign on the trailer read “Stay clear when KTM mount

is operational.” Good advice. I saw another trailer-mounted tracking camera rolling down the interstate toward the Cape on Sunday as I headed to Orlando. Elon is definitely getting good video.

We headed back to our hotel in Orlando. We had a meeting there at 1:15 p.m., but I had about 45 minutes to kill. It was not enough time to set up the scope outside to see the end of the Mercury transit, but the sunlight was steaming in through my hotel window. I figured it would never work but I had nothing better to do, so I set up the scope on an end table near the window and took a look at the Sun. To my amazement the view was actually good. There was a bit of scattered light haze but almost no distortion, even though I was looking through the window at a steep angle. Mercury was still in transit. I would have been happy with the view if I had been outside. I watched for about half an hour as the planet approached the limb of the Sun, but a cloud robbed me of the last four minutes. The part of the window I was able to look through was just a single pane and was probably coated; maybe that is why it worked so well. I can get good Moon pictures by just holding my iPhone up to the eyepiece with the Travel Scope, but my attempts didn’t even come close with the Sun. A picture of my setup next to the magic window is shown here. A good transit and a great launch. Who could ask for more?

A Family Blessing

By Kent Swenson

Kruze Swenson, age 8, looking through the Celestron telescope

I’m always curious as to what the driving force or event was that spurred someone’s interest in astronomy. Maybe it’s just genetic. Perhaps it is following in the footsteps of a parent. For me, it started when I was a kid living in Southern California. Not an ideal place to observe stars by any means, but all it took was one evening when my older brother arrived home from work. He grabbed me and said, “You have to come outside; there’s a meteor shower.” A meteor what? I had no clue what to expect. Do I need an umbrella, army helmet, slicker? He said to grab a lawn chair, lie flat and look up. Simple enough. Then it happened. A meteor streaked by. I was Speechless. No, I wasn’t speechless. As an eight-year-old kid I couldn’t shut up. What? How? Why? This is amazing! Then another, and another. It was by far the best meteor shower I have seen in my life. I couldn’t tell you if they were Taurids or Perseids, but it didn’t matter. That was the kickoff for my curiosity with the skies.

Fast forward to early 2019. I had been tracking and

photographing the International Space Station for quite a while, but it was always passing over late at night. Finally it was to make a little earlier appearance, so I brought my son out to take a look. I didn’t know how he would respond. In essence it just looks like a bright, fast-moving airplane. It turns out that I had just witnessed his moment of curiosity and excitement. He had to know all the details. What are they doing up there? How fast are they going? Can they see us on earth? I figured his interest would fizzle quickly, but quite the contrary. He wanted astronomy books, a mini planetarium, time on the telescope. I was shocked. At eight years old he now has an amazing understanding of planets, stars, nebulae, meteors. Never did I think or imagine that our vast universe could provide a close family activity. Now I hear him explaining to his younger brother how everything in the universe works.

Nikon DSLR outfitted with an Ioptron telescope as a lens

I continue to grow as an amateur astrophotographer and observer. We are fortunate to live on the edge of a state forest, so our dark skies offer amazing opportunities for observation right outside our front door. Capturing meteor showers, super Moons, galaxies and much more has been a blast. My suggestion to people new to astrophotography and observation is to start off with cost-effective equipment. There are so many great options

10GEMINI • www.mnastro.org

that are expensive, but until you have perfected the craft it doesn’t make sense to spend big money. I found a great, affordable DSLR camera on eBay and have been slowly adding lenses to my collection. The best lens for the dollar I have found is the Rokinon 14mm f/2.8. It has a great field of view and captures super-sharp images. A stable tripod is a must for long exposures. Nearly all of these items can be found gently used on auction sites or even Craigslist. The same goes for telescopes. My Newtonian reflector came from eBay for half the price of a new one, and it was still in the original box. Just this week I found a brand new 12'' Dobsonian telescope for $200 on Craigslist.

Twenty-second exposure of the International Space Station flyover. Shot with Nikon D5600 and Rokinon 14mm lens

Celestron NexStar reflector telescope outfitted with a Neximage CMOS camera

Having my sons involved has given me even more of a reason to expand my collection of telescopes and camera equipment. I’m very excited about future star parties and other celestial events I’ll be able to share with my family. The best thing is that the universe is always there waiting for us. I only hope that more families are blessed with unexpected gifts like this.

My Interest in Astronomy

By Mark McClure

The Zhummel Z12 Dob at the author’s home in Prescott, WI

I got interested in astronomy when I was probably 10 years old. My family would go to our cabin on Lake Kabatogoma way

up north and I would look up at the “billions” of stars visible in the unpolluted sky. I started checking out astronomy books from my school library and would read nonstop, although I didn’t understand most of the terms used in the books. As time went on, my mother bought me a department-store telescope (Tasco, I think) and I started staying up late to look at different sky objects. My first big discovery was finding Saturn. Even in that cheap telescope I could make out the rings and colors of the planet. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen. I was hooked from then on.

Later in life I would gain much more knowledge and experience with the night sky and telescopes. As an airline pilot I would often point out the constellations and stars to my fellow pilots while flying at night above light pollution. I may have recruited a few more astronomy nuts over the years.

I bought an Orion XT8 about 20 years ago and started getting serious again about observing. I remember my first big find, the Ring Nebula. I was camping in norther Minnesota and had the Dob out one night. A group of kids came by to see what this

Lunar surface through the Celestron telescope Crescent Moon captured through the Celestron telescope

11 February 2020

Minnesota Astronomical Society 2020 Star Party Schedule Twilight Completely dark Moon % ELO Public Cherry LLCC Friday Date Sunset ends: from: to: Illuminated Night (Saturday) Grove Weekend Notes Saturday 3/14 7:20 PM 8:54 PM 20;54 1:40 AM 69% x

March 27 7:36 PM 9:12 PM 10:56 PM 5:20 AM 10% x x x Messier Marathon & LLCC: depends upon field conditions

Saturday 4/11 7:54 PM 9:36 PM 9:36 PM 12:33 AM 84% x

April 17 8:01 PM 9:46 PM 9:46 PM 4:35 AM 17% x x Alternate Messier Marathon

April 24 8:10 PM 9:59 PM 9:59 PM 4:20 AM 3% x (25th) x x Alternate Messier Marathon

Saturday 5/2 8:20 PM 10:13 PM never never 71% x Astronomy Day

May 15 8:35 PM 10:38 PM 10:38 PM 3:27 AM 39% x(16th) x x

May 22 8:42 PM 10:51 PM 10:51 PM 3:25 AM 0% x x Virgo Venture

Saturday 5/30 8:50 PM 11:05 PM 2:54 AM 3:13 AM 57% x

June 12 8:59 PM 11:21 PM 11:21 PM 1:54 AM 56% x (13th)

June 19 9:01 PM 11:25 PM 11:25 PM 3:01 AM 2% x x

June 26 9:02 PM 11:25 PM 1:25 AM 3:04 AM 2% x x x

Saturday 7/11 8:58 PM 11:12 PM 11:12 PM 12:40 AM 63% x

July 17 8:53 PM 11:04 PM 11:04 PM 3:31 AM 9% x x

July 24 8:47 PM 10:52 PM 11:49 PM 3:45 AM 20% x x x CWTS: 7/24-7/26

Saturday 8/8 8:28 PM 10:22 PM 10:22 PM 11:04 PM 78% x

August 14 8:19 PM 10:09 PM 10:09 PM 2:09 AM 20% x x

August 21 8:08 PM 9:54 PM 9:57 PM 4:35 AM 9% x (22nd) x x NNSF weekend: 18-23

Saturday 9/5 7:42 PM 9:21 PM 9:21 PM 9:28 PM 89% x

September 11 7:31 PM 9:08 PM 9:08 PM 12:49 AM 36% x x

September 18 7:18 PM 8:53 PM 8:53 PM 5:18 AM 2% x(19th) x x x

Saturday 9/26 7:03 PM 8:37 PM 2:30 AM 5:28 AM 75% x Fall A-Day

October 09 6:39 PM 8:13 PM 8:13 PM 11:33 PM 50% x(10th) x Opposition of Mars – Fri/Sat at ELO

October 16 6:27 PM 8:01 PM 8:01 PM 5:53 AM 0% x x 4M

October 23 6:14 PM 7:49 PM 1:26 AM 6:03 AM 61% x(24th) x

November 06 4:57 PM 6:33 PM 6:33 PM 9:24 PM 68% x(7th) x

November 13 4:49 PM 6:26 PM 6:26 PM 5:26 AM 3% x x

November 20 4:43 PM 6:21 PM 10:13 PM 5:34 AM 34% x

Saturday12/19 4:38 PM 6:20 PM 10:10 PM 5:58 AM 27% x Jupiter-Saturn conj. 13'

CGO (Latitude: 44.1971 Longitude: -92.8623): star party dates are for Friday nights with the alternate (if cloudy) for Saturday night.

LLCC star party dates for the entire weekend w/ housing provided by LLCC

REMINDER: Go/No Go decision is posted on the MAS website ONLY for the Messier Marathon, Virgo Venture & Mini-Messier Marathon.

B-SIG star party dates are for Saturday night, with the alternate being on Friday if the Saturday date is forecast cloudy.

B-SIG, Go / No-Go decission will be posted on the MAS Discussion Forums.

http://forums.mnastro.org/forums/viewforum.php?f=5

*** need to check the B-SIG policy with Suresh ***

ELO Public Star Parties (Latitude: 44.8103 Longitude: -93.9397): are All-Weather events for Saturday nights unless otherwise noted.

All times are from Skytools 3 and specifically for CGO; approximated for all else.

This schedule is subject to change. Please check the MAS online calendar at www.mnastro.org for a complete schedule of all MAS events.

Cherry Grove Star Parties are held on Friday nights, with Saturday reserved as the backup night if Friday is cloudy.

LLCC (Latitude: 46.6470 Longitude: -93.4650): Star parties are held on both Friday and Saturday night.

Eagle Lake Public nights are held on Saturday nights only.

J.J. Casby: Latitude: 44.9245 Longitude: -92.7924)Metcalf: Latitude: 44.93734 Longitude: -92.82157

big tube was. Needless to say, they were very impressed. Maybe I recruited a couple more geeks.

I attended a couple star parties at the Onan observatory when I lived in Excelsior. I was impressed with the scopes there. I regret that I have not been more active with MAS over the years, due to other priorities. Approaching 60 years old, I plan on having more time after retirement. I now have a Zhumell Z12 as well as the old XT8. The Zhumell is fantastic to observe with, although it is a little hard to move around. With our clear, dark skies where I now live in western Wisconsin, I have had many wonderful observing experiences. I have observed about a third of the Messier objects so far.

In the future I hope to be more active with MAS and meet some members. Thanks for keeping the hobby alive. Clear skies to all. The author’s Orion XT 8 classic at Hay Lake campground near

Jacobson, MN

How to pay your dues February 2020 Volume 46 Number 1Your MAS membership expires at the beginning of the month shown on your membership card. You will be notified of your renewal

by e-mail two months prior to expiration and by USPS mail the month of your expiration. You may renew by mail or online using PayPal. By mail: Send your payment to the MAS membership coordinator at: Minnesota Astronomical Society, Attn. Membership coordinator, P.O. Box 14931, Minneapolis, MN 55414. Make checks payable to MAS. Current annual membership rates when paying by check are: $26 regular, $13 student, and $65 for patron memberships. You may renew for one year or for two years at a time. Online using PayPal: PayPal charges a fee, so MAS includes a voluntary contribution in the PayPal membership rates to offset that fee. Membership rates us-ing PayPal are $27.50 regular, $13.75 student and $67.25 patron. The membership form and the procedure for joining or renewing using PayPal may be found at www.mnastro.org/members/join/.

Sky and Telescope and Astronomy Magazine Subscriptions

MAS members are offered subscriptions to these magazines at an astronomy club discount.

The Sky & Telescope discount subscription is $32.95 for one year or $62.95 for two years. You may call Sky & Telescope at 1-800-253-0245 to subscribe at the astronomy club discount rate, paying using your credit card. You must identify yourself as a member of the Minnesota Astronomical Society and provide the discount code of 4CLB13. If you do not wish to pay using a credit card, preferring to pay with a check, you may go to skyandtelescope.com/clubrenew for subscription renewals or www.skyandtelescope.com/clubspecial for new subscriptions. You will be presented with a form you can print, fill out and mail in with your payment check.

The Astronomy magazine discount subscription is $34 for one year, $60 for two years, or $83 for three years. You may call Astron-omy magazine at 1-877-246-4835 to subscribe at the astronomy club discount rate, paying using your credit card. You must identify yourself as a member of the Minnesota Astronomical Society and provide the society’s Club ID number of 37-2921-23389. If you do not wish to pay using a credit card, preferring to pay with a check, you may call Astronomy magazine at 1-877-246-4835 and request a re-newal notice to be mailed to you. The renewal notice will be preprinted with the MAS Club ID number and the astronomy club discount subscription rates. You may then return it to Astronomy magazine Customer Service through the mail with the accompanying payment check.

How To Subscribe to MAS E-Mail Distribution Lists and Join MAS Discussion Forums:

The MAS uses Web discussion forums and e-mail distribution lists for timely communications. We highly recommend that you sub-scribe to both the Web forums and the MAS general distribution e-mail list.

To join the MAS Web discussion forums, visit mnastro.org/Explore/Discussion Forum and click Register and complete the online registration form.

To subscribe to the MAS e-mail list, visit lists.mnastro.org and click on the MAS list link and follow the subscription instructions. There is a general list (MAS), an outreach list and lists for other special purposes.

MN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETYP.O. Box 14931 Minneapolis, MN 55414ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTEDa publication of the Minnesota Astronomical Society