31 October 2008

31 October - 1 November

Ireland	Samhain
Isle of Man	Sauin
Scotland	Samhain
Wales	Nos Galan-Gaeok

• Beginning of the Celtic year
• Enactment of rites to get omens from the coming year from the gods
• Night of the dead and of evil supernatural beings

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Observing Location	Fordham road @ Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY
Observational Period	0800 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 42° F Wind Light Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.48" Hg Steady Feels Like Brisk I can see boiling that is probably a combination of low altitude and bus/truck exhaust Transparency Good Seeing II
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Lib Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081031.0800 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.993 AU m 15s Angular Size 32' 16.6" Altitude 5.5° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 4.40° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 260.89° Parallactic Angle (P) 24.52° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2076 Nothing Seen   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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NASA has moved the launch date for STS-126 again. The new date is

CNN article

The HST Repair Mission can't fly before Apr09 (CNN) or May09 (BBC) because that is the earliest the repair part that is needed to resolve the recent problems will be ready. In the meantime HST is gathering and sending images back to earth. NASA feels that they will be able to fly the HST Servicing Mission at any time without having an adverse impact on future Shuttle missions to the ISS and ISS construction completion.

BBC story

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Sunspots Observed

There have been some spots this month but they are mainly smaller spots than I can see with my small binocular. I saw spots on only two days this month.

Observing Hours for the Year 2008

	Day			Night			Total
	Hours	Days	Avg	Hours	Days	Avg	Hours	Days	Avg
Jan	2.25	9	0.25	2.75	5	0.55	5.00	13	0.38
Feb	3.25	9	0.36	8.25	7	1.18	11.25	12	0.94
Mar	5.25	10	0.53	8.50	12	0.71	13.75	16	0.86
Apr	6.25	19	0.33	5.75	7	0.82	12.00	19	0.63
May	6.50	18	0.36	2.25	5	0.45	8.75	18	0.49
Jun	5.25	20	0.26	12.00	8	1.50	17.25	21	0.82
Jul	5.05	15	0.37	15.25	10	1.53	20.75	17	1.22
Aug	5.00	18	0.31	2.00	3	0.67	7.50	18	0.42
Sep	5.00	18	0.31	2.00	3	0.67	7.50	18	0.42
Oct	6.00	18	0.33	6.00	5	1.20	12.00	19	0.63
TOTAL	47.52	147	0.32	67.00	65	1.03	114.52	167	0.69

Climate Summary for June 2008

Temperature

There were three days this month when the high temperature was equal to or less than the normal low temperature for the day.

	High	Mean	Low
Above Normal	12 days	12 days	12 days
Normal	0 day	0 day	1 days
Below Normal	18 days	18 days	17 days
Temperature Extremes	75° F		43° F
Maximum Deviation	12° F -16° F	9° F -12° F	8° F -9° F
Mean Monthly Temperature		59° F

Precipitation

Days with measurable precipitation	9
Days with a trace of precipitation	3
Maximum one day precipitation	1.92 in
Monthly Total	3.62 in

Heating Degree Days

Above Normal	18 days
Normal	0 days
Below Normal	12 days
Maximim on a day	25 degree days
Minimum on a day	0 degree days
Maximum Deviation	11 degree days -8 degree days
Monthly Total	329 degree days

Cooling Degree Days

Above Normal	1 day
Normal	18 day
Below Normal	11 days
Maximim on a day	2 degree days
Minimum on a day	0 degree days
Maximum Deviation	1 degree days -2 degree days
Monthly Total	3 degree days

30 October 2008

Here is the chart of the weather conditions for the past two days when we were having high winds. The peak sustained winds coincided with the lowest pressure. The rain preceeded the lowest pressure and most of the wind gusts followed it.

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Observing Location	PKR
Observational Period	1500-1515 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 47° F Wind Gentle Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.36" Hg Steady Feels Like Chilly Transparency Good Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081030.1500 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.993 AU m 15s Angular Size 32' 16.2" Altitude 26.8° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 4.47° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 270.23° Parallactic Angle (P) 24.63° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2076 Nothing Seen   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

29 October 2008

I went out at 1100 EDT today to make a sun observation and had trouble making it to the end of the block due to the headwind. It has been gusty most of the afternoon and I am extending my charting of the weather another day. While I was out I got caught in a brief hail storm. Obviously I didn't need the welders glass since there was no visible sun although it was bright enough that there were shadows close to the bases of objects.

28 October 2008

The surf is already up in the toilet bowl. They are predicting higher wind gust tonight than we had last Saturday. I am going to graph them again. The rain is knocking the leaves out of the trees and there is supposed to be some flooding as a result of clogged storm drains. And in the Pocono Mountains they are supposed to get a couple inches of snow.

27 October 2008

It got extremely windy around here Saturday evening. When I went home it was just starting and I occasionally had trouble walking across the wind. There is a tree that must be nearly 100 feet tall in an inside corner of my building and as I was laying in bread reading I could see the whole tree whipping around. I decided to compare the conditions at the nearby airports.

Central Park

LaGuardia

JFK

Newark

White Plains

26 October 2008

Observing Location	PKR
Observational Period	1200-1215 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 57° F Wind Light Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 29.90" Hg Steady Feels Like Mild Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081026.1200 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.994 AU 8m 16s Angular Size 32' 14.1" Altitude 36.5° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 4.87° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 324.63° Parallactic Angle (P) 25.23° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2076 Nothing Seen   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

25 October 2008

The Wild Swans at Coole The trees are in their autumn beauty, The woodland paths are dry, Under the October twilight the water Mirrors a still sky; Upon the brimming water among the stones Are nine-and-fifty swans. The nineteenth autumn has come upon me Since I first made my count; I saw, before I had well finished, All suddenly mount And scatter wheeling in great broken rings Under their clamorous wings. I have looked upon those brilliant creatures' And now my heart is sore. All's changed since I, hearing at twilight, The first time on this shore, The bell-beat of their wings above my head, Trod with a lighter tread. Unwearied still, lover by lover, They paddle in the cold Companionable streams or climb the air; Their hearts have not grown old; Passion or conquest, wander where they will, Attend upon yhem still. But now they drift on the still water, Mysterious, beautiful; Among what rushes will they build, By what lake's edge or pool Delight men's eyes when I awake some day To find they have flown away? William B. Yeats

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I was wondering how much of a stabilizing effect proximity to large bodies of water plays on temperature variation so I charted the temperature for my normal Central Park weather station and also LaGuardia Airport which is spitting distance from home and is right on Long Island Sound, JFK Airport which is on Jamaica Bay and right off of the Atlantic Ocean, Newark Airport which is near NY Harbor, and Westchester County Airport in Westchester County which is probably the farthest station from water. I also looked at Relative Humidity

24 October 2008

Observing Location	VP
Observational Period	1000-1015 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 46° F Wind Calm Humidity High Barometric Pressure 30.54" Hg Steady Feels Like Cool Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081024.1000 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.994 AU 8m 16s Angular Size 32' 13.0" Altitude 26.1° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.06° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 352.10° Parallactic Angle (P) 25.48° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2076 Nothing Seen   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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The frost and freeze warnings are moving closer to the City. I decided to take a romp through the NOAA Glossary to find out exactly what these things mean.

Frost Advisory

Issued during the growing season when widespread frost formation is expected over an extensive area. Surface temperatures are usually in the mid 30s Fahrenheit.

Freeze Warning

Issued during the growing season when surface temperatures are expected to drop below freezing over a large area for an extended period of time, regardless whether or not frost develops.

Other terms used in the forecasts, which are not in the glossary, are "killing frost" and "hard freeze."

And since there is rain on the way I took another look at precipitation.

Fog

(abbrev. F) Fog is water droplets suspended in the air at the Earth's surface. Fog is often hazardous when the visibility is reduced to ¼ mile or less.

Mist

A visible aggregate of minute water particles suspended in the atmosphere that reduces visibility to less than 7 statute miles, but greater than or equal to 5/8 statute miles. It does not reduce visibility as much as fog and is often confused with drizzle.

Drizzle

Precipitation consisting of numerous minute droplets of water less than 0.5 mm (500 micrometers) in diameter.

Scattered Showers

When used to describe precipitation (for example: "scattered showers") - Area coverage of convective weather affecting 30 percent to 50 percent of a forecast zone (s). When used to describe sky cover: 3/8th to 4/8th (sky cover is measured in eighths or oktas) of the sky covered by clouds. In U.S. weather observing procedures, this is reported with the contraction "SCT."

Showers

A descriptor, SH, used to qualify precipitation characterized by the suddenness with which they start and stop, by the rapid changes of intensity, and usually by rapid changes in the appearance of the sky.

Rain

Precipitation that falls to earth in drops more than 0.5 mm in diameter.

Thunderstorms

A local storm produced by a cumulonimbus cloud and accompanied by lightning and thunder.

Frost

(Abbrev. FRST) - Frost describes the formation of thin ice crystals on the ground or other surfaces in the form of scales, needles, feathers, or fans. Frost develops under conditions similar to dew, except the temperatures of the Earth's surface and earthbound objects falls below 32°F. As with the term "freeze," this condition is primarily significant during the growing season. If a frost period is sufficiently severe to end the growing season or delay its beginning, it is commonly referred to as a "killing frost." Because frost is primarily an event that occurs as the result of radiational cooling, it frequently occurs with a thermometer level temperature in the mid-30s.

Flurries

Snow flurries are an intermittent light snowfall of short duration (generally light snow showers) with no measurable accumulation (trace category).

Snow

Precipitation in the form of ice crystals, mainly of intricately branched, hexagonal form and often agglomerated into snowflakes, formed directly from the freezing [deposition] of the water vapor in the air.

Sleet

(PL) - Sleet is defined as pellets of ice composed of frozen or mostly frozen raindrops or refrozen partially melted snowflakes. These pellets of ice usually bounce after hitting the ground or other hard surfaces. Heavy sleet is a relatively rare event defined as an accumulation of ice pellets covering the ground to a depth of 1/2" or more.

Hail

Showery precipitation in the form of irregular pellets or balls of ice more than 5 mm in diameter, falling from a cumulonimbus cloud.

Freezing Fog

A suspension of numerous minute ice crystals in the air, or water droplets at temperatures below 0º Celsius, based at the Earth's surface, which reduces horizontal visibility; also called ice fog.

Freezing Rain

Rain that falls as a liquid but freezes into glaze upon contact with the ground.

There are some qualifiers that are used with the precipitation descriptions that I also ferreted out.

Possible

not defined

Chance

A National Weather Service precipitation descriptor for 30, 40, or 50 percent chance of measurable precipitation (0.01 inch). When the precipitation is convective in nature, the term scattered is used. See Precipitation Probability (PoP).

Slight Chance

In probability of precipitation statements, usually equivalent to a 20 percent chance.

Slight Risk

(of severe thunderstorms)- Severe thunderstorms are expected to affect between 2 and 5 percent of the area. A slight risk generally implies that severe weather events are expected to be isolated.

Likely

(abbrev. LKLY) In probability of precipitation statements, the equivalent of a 60 or 70 percent chance.

Occasional

not defined

23 October 2008

Observing Location	PKR
Observational Period	1230-1245 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 46° F Wind Calm Humidity moderate Barometric Pressure 30.65" Hg Steady Feels Like Cool Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081023.1230 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.995 AU 8m 16s Angular Size 32' 12.5" Altitude 38.2° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.14° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 3.91° Parallactic Angle (P) 25.57° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075

20 October 2008

Observing Location	VP
Observational Period	1215-1230 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 52° F Wind Gentle Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.22" Hg Falling Feels Like Slightly Cool Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081020.1215 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.996 AU 8m 17s Angular Size 32' 10.9" Altitude 29.2° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.41° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 44.72° Parallactic Angle (P) 25.85° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

19 October 2008

If the black band of the wolly caterpiller is broad in autumn it will be a severe winter.

Observing Location	PKR
Observational Period	1200-1215 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Scattered Clouds Temperature 51° F Wind Light Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.36" Hg Rising Feels Like Cool There was a lot of moderate opacity stratus on the southern horizon. Transparency Good Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081019.1200 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.996 AU 8m 17s Angular Size 32' 10.4" Altitude 38.8° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.49° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 56.95° Parallactic Angle (P) 25.93° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen There is nothing showing in the SOHO images but Active Region Explorer is still showing 1006 as a pore near the NW limb.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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NASA is going to move Atlantis back to the VAB tomorrow, where it will wait for a chance to launch it for the HST repair mission. I

On Wednesday, 14Oct08, NASA got HST reconfigured to transmit data again and began bringing the science instruments online on Thursday, 16Oct08. During the end of that process they experienced several anomalies and everything was put into safe mode where it remains while they try to figure out what happened.

18 October 2008

Fall Wind Pods of summer crowd around the door; I take them in the autumn of my hands. Last night I heard the first cold wind outside; the wind blew soft, and yet I shiver twice: Once for thin walls, once for the sound of time. William Stafford

It is windy enough and the temperature is dipping far enough that NOAA is posting wind chill temperatures.

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Observing Location	CT
Observational Period	1000-1015 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 46° F Wind Moderate Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.19" Hg Rising Feels Like Cool The wind is making it feel nippy. Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081018.1000 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.996 AU 8m 17s Angular Size 32' 9.9" Altitude 27.7° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.57° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 71.24° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.01° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen Space Weather indicates that Group 1005 has disappeared altogether and Group 1006 is hard on the western limb. In the high resolution image it is only a single pixel. Active Region Explorer is still indicating 1005 as a pore and that 1006 has grown by between 25% and 50% since yesterday.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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Observing Location	McGraw Ave, Pugsley to Metropolitan, Bronx, NY
Observational Period	1730-1745 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 55° F Wind Light Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.18" Hg Steady Feels Like Cool Transparency Excellent Seeing
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Venus Constellation Sco Category Planet Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081018.1730 EDT Comments Not Seen I don’t know if the planet was behind the rooftops, behind the clouds above the rooftops, or if I just wasn’t seeing it or wasn’t looking in the right place. Starry Night Starter graphic Object Class Classical Planet Phase Gibbous Elongation 34.3° E % Illuminated 81.8% Distance Light Time (from Earth) 1.29 AU 10m 42s Distance (from Sun) 0.728 AU Angular Size 13.1" Magnitude -3.97 Altitude 17° 36.384’ Meridian graphic

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Observing Location	McGraw Ave, Pugsley/Metropolitan, Bronx, NY
Observational Period	1935-1950 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 77° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.09" Hg Rising Feels Like Cool It was clear enough tonight that I was seeing dim stars between the stick figures of the constellations. Transparency Excellent Seeing
Instruments	Naked-eye - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Iridium 23 Flare Constellation Aqr Category Satellite Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081018.1947 EDT Comments This flare was just below the eyes of Pegasus and must be right on the border with Aquarius. I picked it up as it was descending through the head of Pegasus (I think) and tracked it until it was down near Sadalmelik. It was a brilliant chrome white. Starry Night Starter graphic CalSky graphic   Heavens Above CalSky Time 1947:09 EDT 1947:09 EDT Alt. 45° 44.9° Az. 146° SE 145.7° SE Mag. -8 -6.8 Surface   MMA1

17 October 2008

Observing Location	PKR
Observational Period	1200-1215 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 56° F Wind Gentle Breeze gusting to Moderate Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.11" Hg Steady Feels Like Mild Transparency Good Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081017.1200 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.996 AU 8m 1718s Angular Size 32' 9.4" Altitude 39.5° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.65° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 83.33° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.06° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen Space Weather indicates Groups 1005 and 1006 but in the high resolution image they do not show.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

15 October 2008

Observing Location	CT
Observational Period	0945-1000 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Scattered Clouds Temperature 59 Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.16" Hg Rising Feels Like Mild It diesn’t feel as cool as the thermometer indicates. The clouds today are stripes of cirrus going in all directions around the sky. Transparency Good Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081015.0945 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.997 AU 8m 17s Angular Size 31' 8.2" Altitude 26.4° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.81° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 110.94° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.16° Carrington rotation number (CR) 20-75 Nothing Seen The spot is still visible in the SOHO image but appears to be compacted horizontally and fatter vertically.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

14 October 2008

Observing Location	PSC
Observational Period	1100-1145 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Broken Clouds Temperature 64° F Wind Light Breeze Humidity High Barometric Pressure 30.25" Hg Falling Feels Like Cool There was no boiling evident so I addressed seeing as I. If I had factored in the cloud texture that was passing over the Sun I would have had to have dropped it to a III or IV. Transparency Poor Seeing I
Instruments	Canon 15x50 IS binocular w/Baader AstroSolar filter film - Charlie Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081014.1100 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.997 AU 8m 18s Angular Size 31' 7.7" Altitude 36.1° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 5.88° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 123.45° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.20° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Since I didn’t see the spots with the Brunton binocular on Sunday I dug out the defunct Canon IS binocular and dusted off the filter figuring even if I could only see through half of it I might see the spot with the increased magnification. I had forgotten how nice the white sun looks filling up nearly the entire FoV of the Baader filtered 15x IS binocular. The electronics seem to still be working so the view was rock solid but the right side is messed up somewhere along the line.   Groups Spots R North 1 0 11 South 0 0 0 Total 1 1 11 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots) Group 1005 Heliographic Latitude 41° Heliographic Longitude 143° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Mcintosh System Axx This is a Cycle 24 group. I started observing with the Brunton so I wouldn’t know where to look for the spot when using the lower magnification and didn’t see anything. With the Canon IS I saw one spot that looked like a hyphen.

I went past my communal roost on the way home and it is absolutely quiet.

13 October 2008

Observing Location	Metropolitan Avenue @ Mcgraw Ave (SW corner), Bronx, NY
Observational Period	1730-1830 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Scattered Clouds Temperature 72° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.25" Hg Steady Feels Like Mild Transparency   Seeing
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

I read Marie Winn’s chapter on species specific communal roosts, Birds Asleep, in Central Park in the Dark today and decided to go out tonight to observe the fly-in at the holly tree. For both the robins and grackles it occurred shortly after sunset so I went out about 45 minutes before that to be sure I was there in time. As soon as I stepped out of the front door of my building I knew I was too late. I could hear the racket in the tree already in progress and the tree is over 300 feet away across a major traffic street, and not far from the elevated subway.

When I got there the first thing I found was that the holly tree is really a Hardy Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) according to my old Master Tree Finder. The leaves are bent and curled which gave them the appearance of points like a holly leaf has. It is also the only tree around that still has full, dark green leaves.

There were birds flitting among the branches of the tree but I couldn’t get my binocular on any of them. It was very disconcerting trying to get the binocular on the branch I wanted to examine and it doesn’t focus close enough to focus on the closest branches. I did see a couple of dusky breasts on small birds so I think most of the calls wee twitters but they were a variety of other calls that all came from the same area of the tree and after a while a starling-sized bird flew out and alighted on a traffic light where I got a good look at it. I think it was some type of flycatcher but the variety of calls, which stopped when the bird left the tree and started again when it returned, suggests a mockingbird. It had a long sharp bill and a dark patch from the base4 of the bill around the eye. The breast an back of the neck were covered with black spots. The wings had broad bands of russet from shoulder to tip. I think the legs were dark. A couple of times the smaller birds would get into an argument and come racing out of the tree and back in in another location. They always appeared to be plump sparrows.

Several times the racket stopped abruptly. One time I realized that a man had removed a free paper from one of the ubiquitous corner distribution boxes and had let the spring-loaded door slam. Another time I couldn’t immediately identify the cause until I saw a cat come walking across the side street and under the tree. No further calls were heard until after it had disappeared for a while under a line of parked cars. About 1815 EDT the calls stopped abruptly for no identifiable reason. A short while later the started again at a decreased volume. At 1820 EDT they stopped again and only a few calls wee heard in the remaining 10 minutes that I stood there.

One similarity I noticed between my tree and the Great Lawn robin dormitory three is that they are both the most exposed trees around. At the Great Lawn the dormitory is at the end of a row of trees so is exposed on three sides. My tree is an isolated tree in a small island of grass in an “L” of the building. The three is at least 20’ from the nearest part of the building and completely exposed on two sides. The streets are lines with primarily London plane trees that lean out over the street away from the buildings. There are also trees in the island down the center of Metropolitan Ave. Most of the trees have interlocking crowns like the rows of trees around the Great Lawn. This is the only real solitary tree in the area.

12 October 2008

I got home late last night after the monthly sea chanty sing and set the alarm clock for 0230 EDT intending to get up to try to see the launch of Soyuz TMA-13 from Baikonur delivering Expedition 18 to ISS. When the alarm went off I turned on the weather radio to start my morning ritual and after listening for a while I realized that they weren’t going to announce the Climatology report for another two hours and that wasn’t why the alarm had gone off. After waiting an eternity for Vista to boot I found that I did have an internet connection and eventually got connected to NASA TV and caught the last 15 minutes of the countdown and launch.

The Soyuz capsule seems to be much roomier than similar US capsules were. The commander has an L-shaped tool that appears to be about 15” long that he uses to throw switches on the control panel; not that there are that many switches that need to be thrown. The Russian capsules appear to be much more automatic than US capsules. Mostly what the commander did was write down meter readings that were relayed to ground control ever five minutes or so. The stack gets delivered to the launch pad complete only a few days before launch in contrast to the Shuttle that can spend months on the launch pad while the payload is installed.

TMA-13 is scheduled to dock with ISS at 0432 EST on 14Oct08. I have not found anything saying that there will be an visible passes before then and don't know if it is ever visible. It doesn't much matter though since we won't have an ISS visible pass until 20Oct08.

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Observing Location	Home
Observational Period	0645-0700 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 54° F Wind Calm Humidity High Barometric Pressure 30.51" Hg Rising Feels Like Mild The air doesn’t feel as moist as the forecast says it is. The sky is a light gray. Transparency Excellent Seeing
Instruments	Naked-eye - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Iridium Flare Constellation UMa Category Satellite Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081012.0654 Comments Not Seen After having gotten to bed late last night and waking up a couple of hours later for the Soyuz launch I wasn't really interested in getting up when the alarm went off for this event but I did anyway. I needn't have bothered. The sly is bright. If the flare is a mag -8 as Heavens Above is predicting I should have seen it. If it is a -6.9 like CalSky says I should probably still have seen it. But I don’t think I have ever seen a twilight flare.   Heavens Above CalSky Time 0654:35 0654:36 EDT Alt. 57° 56.8° Az. 11° N 10.5° N Mag. -8 -6.9 Surface   MMA1

While I was standing around waiting for the flare I heard a loud twittering of birds in the holly tree behind me. I wondered if I had found a communal roost similar to the robin roost at the NW corner of the Great Lawn. At the end of observing I stood under the tree trying to see who was in there. I could see movement among the branches but couldn't identify any birds. While I stood there the volume dropped down in several steps and eventually the birds became silent (or all left). I saw a couple of sparrows fly out of the tree. Most of the calls were twitterings but there were six different sounds that I heard that all seemed to come from the same area of the tree and I suspect that there is at least one mockingbird in there.

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Observing Location	PSC
Observational Period	1045-1115 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 62° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.54" Hg Falling Feels Like Mild Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	SAR: Coulter CT-100 Newtonian reflector - Charlie Celestron Omni 20mm (21x) Celestron Omni 2x Barlow Baader AstroSolar filter film
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081012.1045 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.998 AU 8m 18s Angular Size 32' 6.6" Altitude 35.2° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 6.03° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 149.96° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.25° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 I could see Group 1005 in the telescope. C   2 y   3 c       l      e        Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 C   2 y   4 c       l      e        Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 T   S o   p t   o a   t l   s   Groups Spots R North 1 2 12 South 0 0 0 Total 1 2 12 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots) Group 1005 Heliographic Latitude 34° Heliographic Longitude 110° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Mcintosh System Bxo

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Observing Location	PKR
Observational Period	1145-1200 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 65° F Wind Light Breeze Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.54" Hg Steady Feels Like Warm Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081012.1145 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.998 AU 8m 18s Angular Size 32' 6.6" Altitude 40.5° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 6.02° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 149.41° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.25° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen I brought the binocular out this afternoon to see if the spots I found in the telescope were big enough for me to see them in the binocular. They weren’t.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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In a news story posted yesterday the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, said that it is unlikely that the crew size on ISS will be increased next year. It appears that the Russians are the ones who have a concern of some kind that they will be raising with ESA next week.

Bravenet News story

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Observing Location	MO
Observational Period	1900-2045 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 62° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.46" Hg Steady Feels Like Cool At 2000 EDT the RH seemed to increase markedly but there was no chante in transparency. There was no boiling around the Moon. Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	SAR: Coulter CT-100 Newtonian reflector - Charlie Celestron Omni 20mm (21x) Celestron Omni 2x Barlow
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Jupiter Constellation Sgr Category Planet Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081012.1905 EDT Comments I don’t detect any banding. Three moons were observed. Object Class Classical Planet Elongation 84.4° E Distance Light Time (from Earth) 5.14 AU 42m 47s Distance (from Sun) 5.14 AU Angular Size 38.3" x 35.8" Magnitude -2.2 Central Meridian I/II 206°/189° Altitude 26.5° Moons Starry Night Starter graphic

Target Moon Constellation Category Lunar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 2008 EDT Comments Lunation 1061 Phase Waxing Gibbous Age 13d 14h 57m Distance Light Time (from earth) 373,900 km 1.25s Elongation 155.2° E % Illuminated 95.4% Morning Terminator Colongitude (λ E) 71.2° Evening Terminator Colongitude (λ W) 251.2° Libration in Latitude -3° 21' Libration in Longitude -5° 28' Magnitude -12.2 Angular Size 31.96' Altitude 23° 3' Virtual Moon Atlas graphic Terminator In Sunlight Feature Diameter (km); Class In Shadow <<< Anaximander 67; 5   <<< Babbage 143; Y   <<< Oenopides 67; VO >>>   Harding 22 >>> <<< Lichtenberg 20; Y   <<< Briggs 37; Y     Eddington 118; O >>>   Krafft 51; O >>>   Cardanus 49; 2 >>> <<< Cavalerius 57; 1   <<< Hevelius 115; 5     Hedin 150; VO >>>   Riccioli 139; 3? >>>   Grimaldi 172; 5 >>>   Rocca >>> <<< Lacus Aestatis 90   <<< Crüger 45; EO   <<< Darwin 120; VO   <<< Byrgius 87; 3   <<< Lagrange 225; VO >>> <<< Piazzi 134; 1   <<< Inghiraim 91; 2   <<< Bailly 287; VO >>> Looks like a central peak in Babbage but it is another crater (Babbage A) I see a stripe of lighter color arcing past seleucus. It appears in the Rükl map along with another. They might be rays coming off Hedin or Olbers. Cherrington says: Lots of rays off Tycho, fewer from Copernicus, and fewer still from Aristarchus I see a small dark patch that might be shadow on the back side of Mons Rumker There is a wide light stripe going past Euclides that appears to end in a drowned crater to the NE. This would be Mons Riphaeus. Gassendi is not visible so much as a structure but as a very circular white spot with several chalky white smaller spots in and around it I think I see a stripe of darker color where Vallis Inghirami should be but it runs into the terminator too quickly to be certain of it. The mountains on Mare Imbrium can be identified as white spots but do not exhibit any relief. The bright white of Aristarchus makes it look like a recently disturbed area that hasn’t had as much time to become “tarnished” as the rest of the Moon.

11 October 2008

Observing Location	VP
Observational Period	0815-0830 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Clear Temperature 54° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.42" Hg Rising Rapidly Feels Like Cool The sky to the west had smog up to ~15°, gray at the horizon and pink above. Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081011.0815 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.998 AU 8m 18s Angular Size 32' 6.0" Altitude 12.5° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 6.10° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 164.53° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.26° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen There is a group of a couple of spots (1004) in the NE corner of the Sun but it is too small for me to see. Now that I know there is something there it will be worth going out with SAR.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

I thought I heard a couple of sea gulls in the distance and when I looked up in that direction I saw a flight of geese heading to the SW. They were so high up and I was busy reading to misinterpreted the call. Another sign fall is on the way. When I got home there was a squirrel in front of the building that had a very puffy tail.

Squirrel's tail fluffy, winter will be blustery.

But it is warm right now and I am declaring Indian Summer. It isn't really Indian Summer yet, but close enough. NWS says "true Indian Summer is a period of abnormally warm weather after the first killing frost." We haven't had a killing frost in NYC yet although it was cold here last week.

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I checked into NASA TV to see if they had any coverage of the Soyuz TMA-13 launch activities and it seems they are having a problem in ISS due to a teletry black box in the Russian module that put the Station into Survival Mode. They are also having problems with the Station toilet and are going to have to use the one in TMA-12 until it is resolved. This is just what they need when they are getting another three people up there tomorrow.

10 October 2008

Observing Location	CT
Observational Period	0945-1000 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Isolated Clouds Temperature 62° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.22" Hg Rising Feels Like Mild There are a very few isolated stripes of cirrostratus clouds around, otherwise it is a perfectly clear blue sky Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Brunton 8x21 compact binocular w/Welco gold shade 14 welder's filter - Charlie
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Sunspots Constellation Vir Category Solar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081010.0945 EDT Comments Distance Light Time 0.998 AU 8m 18s Angular Size 32' 5.4" Altitude 27.7° Heliographic Latitude (B0) 6.16° Heliographic Longitude (L0) 176.90° Parallactic Angle (P) 26.27° Carrington rotation number (CR) 2075 Nothing Seen There is nothing showing on the SOHO imagery.   Groups Spots R North 0 0 0 South 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 R = (Groups * 10) + Spots)

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Observing Location	MO
Observational Period	1815-2045 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Temperature 63° F Wind Calm Humidity Moderate Barometric Pressure 30.25" Hg Rising Feels Like Mild It was just bearable in shorts and a short sleeve shirt. Transparency Excellent Seeing I
Instruments	Golden Gate 7x35 binocular – Charlie SAR: Coulter CT-100 Newtonian reflector - Charlie Celestron Omni 20mm (21x) Celestron Omni 2x Barlow
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

1600 EDT

Neptune Rises

1613 EDT

Moon Rises

1713 EDT

Uranus Rises

1715 EDT

Saturn Sets

1731 EDT

Pluto Transits

1824 EDT

Sunset
Civil Twilight begins

1838 EDT

Jupiter Transits

Target Moon Constellation Aqr Category Lunar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081010.1845 EDT Comments Lunation 1061 Phase Waxing Gibbous Age 11d 14h 32m s Distance Light Time (from earth) 384,979 km 1.28s Elongation 130.5° E % Illuminated 82.5% Morning Terminator Colongitude (λ E) 46.7° Evening Terminator Colongitude (λ W) 226.7° Libration in Latitude -0° 34' Libration in Longitude -5° 51' Magnitude -11.4 Angular Size 31.04' Altitude 24° 23' Virtual Moon Atlas graphic Terminator In Shadow Feature Diameter (km); Class In Sunlight   Philolaus 70; 1 >>> ? Anaxamenes 80; 5 ?   J Herschel 165; EO >>>   Horrebow 24; Y >>> <<< Pythagoras 142; 1     Harpalus 39; 1 >>> <<< Babbage 143; EO   <<< South 104; EO     Mairan 40; 1 >>> <<< Aristarchus 40; 1 >>>   Prinz 46; O >>>   Marius 41; 5 >>>   Flamsteed 20; 1 >>>   Latronne >>>   Winthrop 17 >>> <<< Hansteen 44; 5   <<< Billy 45; 5 >>> <<< Mersenius 84; Y >>>   Liebig 37; 1 >>> <<< Cavendish 56; 3   <<< Fourier 51; 2 >>> <<< Schicard 206; 5 >>>   Schiller 180; 3 >>>   Segner 67; 3 >>>   Zucchius 64; 1 >>>   Bettinius 71; 1 >>>   Kircher 72; 1 >>>   Wilson 69; VO >>> I started observing the Moon then realized that Jupiter would be setting before I finished with the Moon so switched targets then got Neptune before moving back to the Moon The terminator passed through Aristarchus and Schicard. Montes Carpatus were not visible. Individual peaks of Montes Alpeninus were visible but not the range. A lighter color in the area is the only indication of Montes Ch\aucusus and Montes Alpes. The inside of NE Sinus Iridum is very bright where the Jura Mountains are lit up. Mare Crisium looks like a lake emptying through a river at Proclus with Palus Somni fanning out into the ocean of Mare Tranquilitatis as a delta. In low power there were some rays emanating from Copernicus and fewer from Tycho. The ray up through the middle of Mare Serenitatis is visible.

1851 EDT

Civil Twilight ends
Nautical Twilight begins

Target Jupiter Constellation Sgr Category Planet Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081010.1855 EDT Comments I can see one moon [Ganymede] way out to the east and two moons [Io and Europa] close to the planet on a diagonal line to the west. Object Class Classical Planet Elongation 86.2° E Distance Light Time (from Earth) 5.11 AU 42m 31s Distance (from Sun) 5.14 AU Angular Size 38.5" x 36" Magnitude -2.2 Central Meridian I/II 238°/237° Altitude 27° Moons Starry Night Starter graphic

1904 EDT

Mars Sets

Target Neptune Constellation Cap Category Planet Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081010.1910 EDT Comments Neptune is very faint. The Klieg lights are causing problems with contrast. Object Class Classical Planet Elongation 123.6° E Distance Light Time (from Earth) 29.5 AU 4h 5m Distance (from Sun) 30.0 AU Angular Size 2.27" Magnitude 7.9 Altitude 25.4° Starry Night Starter graphic

1923 EDT

Nautical Twilignt ends
Astronomical Twilight begins

1945 EDT

Venus Sets

1955 EDT

Astronomical Twilight ends

Target Uranus Constellation Aqr Category Planet Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20081010.2015 EDT Comments Uranus might have a faint blue tinge. Object Class Classical Planet Elongation 151.6° E Distance Light Time (from Earth) 19.2 AU 2h 40m Distance (from Sun) 20.1 AU Angular Size 3.56" Magnitude -5.7 Altitude 16.5° Starry Night Starter graphic

2112 EDT

Neptune Transits

2142 EDT

Moon Transits

2232 EDT

Pluto Sets

2259 EDT

Uranus Transits

2317 EDT

Jupiter Sets