Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC | 1

The Newsletter of the Halifax Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada

Volume 37 | Number 1 | February 2006PO Box 31011, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3K 5T9 www.halifax.rasc.ca halifax@rasc.ca

NovaNotes

Astro photo sketches of the Month Michael Gatto, Mars 2005 September 25/05 3:55–4:35 a.m.

Hellas/Syrtis MajorOctober 3/05 3:45–5:00 a.m.Mare Cimmerium

November 8*/05 10:25–11:00 p.m. Mare Sirenum

November 13/05 10:25–11:30 p.m.Solis Lacus/Mare Sirenum

November 18/05 9:15–10:00 p.m. Aurorea Sinus/Solis Lacus

November 25/05 10:00–11:00 p.m. Meridiani Sinus/Aurorea Sinus

November 28*/05 10:25–11:00 p.m. Hellas/Sabaeus Sinus/Meridiani Sinus

October 22/05 3:00 a.m. Dust storm in Aurorea Sinus (compare with image Nov 25)

* These dates may be out by a day or so, I had a mix-up on my log sheets and “rebuilt” the timeline with Starry Night.

My main observing goal in 2005 – other than my never-ending spring list of Finest NGC’s – was to complete aseries of sketches illustrating a complete rotation ofMars. I was unable to do this back in 2003, but thistime around I felt better prepared: I had a few better eye-pieces; I had installed a fan to hasten the cooling of mymirror; and was generally more determined to succeed.And to my surprise I got lucky with the weather, whichis what it all comes down to in the end. I was able tocapture all the major features of Mars centered on theface of the planet. They are represented here in the first7 sketches, with each one labelled as to which majorfeature is visible, see the 2005 Handbook, p. 189 forany smaller feature names. The eighth sketch representsthe dust storm that developed – then luckily dissipatedin a few days – around the end of October. The duststorm appeared on that night as 3 bright segmentswhich were easily viewed with or without filters.

The sketches here were all completed from my backyardin Dartmouth, under better than average seeing condi-tions. There were many more nights that I tried toobserve but quickly packed it in when I saw the poorseeing. Generally I would observe at 300X (5mm Tak LEeyepiece) with an 8" (1550mm focal length) newtonianon a dobsonian mount, sometimes I would briefly pushthat to 600X with a barlow. I would use green, red andneutral density colour filters. My routine consisted of firstlooking at the image unfiltered to see what I could pickup and gauge the seeing, do a check in green, then domy sketching in red for the major albedo features andshading. I would then switch back to a neutral densityfilter to check for atmospheric effects like limb brighten-ing or the North Polar Hood, and any bright areas orchanges in colour. I would always go back to an unfilteredview to evaluate the sketch, and see if I felt it was anaccurate representation of what I was picking up visually,and would revise only if needed. Then I scan the imageand balance the intenstities of the dark areas inPhotoshop, and add in some tone so that I could add insome highlights to the image. �

December 2005?? You may be wondering if you missed the

December issue. Well rest assured that you did not, due to the lateness

of the October issue, we have wrapped up Nova Notes 2005 with 5

issues and we are starting 2006 off on the right foot - on schedule!

2 | Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC

NovaNotesThe Newsletter of the Halifax Centre of the RASC

PO Box 31011 Halifax, Nova Scotia B3K 5T9Articles on any aspect of Astronomy will be considered for publication.

Nova Notes is published bi-monthly in February, April, June,August, October and December. The opinions expressed hereinare not necessarily those of the Halifax Centre.

Contact the editor at the following:

Michael Gattoagatto@ns.sympatico.ca453-5486 (Home)

Nova Notes is also available as a PDF file on our Centre’swebsite at www.halifax.rasc.ca

If you are a person who downloads the latest issue of NovaNotes off of the web to print it at home, then you may beinterested in taking your name off of the mailing list for theprinted version. If so, please email me at the address abovewith the subject line “Remove from mailing list” and you willno longer be mailed a paper copy.

Battered Trophy getsNew Lease on LifeMary Lou Whitehorne

The Simon Newcomb Award trophy leadsa dangerous life. Every time the prize isawarded to a society member, it getspacked up and shipped to the winner.Usually it changes hands at the GeneralAssembly. The previous winner mightbring it to the GA in person, or ask theircentre rep to bring it, or it gets shipped tonational office and Bonnie Bird carries itto the GA. At the GA it is presented to thenew winner, who then has to find a wayto get it home. The trophy is so well trav-eled that it should be collecting frequentflyer points.

Things do not always go smoothly. Thetrophy was awarded to me in 2004 at theSt. John’s GA. Circumstances preventedme from carrying it home. To make a longstory short, the trophy went from St. John’sto Winnipeg, then to Halifax and back toWinnipeg, before finally returning to its

rightful place in Halifax. When I openedthe box, the trophy came out in pieces.

Sixteen months later I finally got approvalto have this unique trophy repaired. Takea look at the before and after pictures tosee what can be done with $50 and lotsof legwork. It looks suitably prestigioussitting on my living room table. It’s a trophy worth writing for, and one to beproud of once achieved. So what are youwaiting for? Start writing!

The Simon Newcomb Award was initiatedin the Halifax Centre to honour one ofNova Scotia’s own – the world-renownedastronomer and mathematician SimonNewcomb. The Award is intended toencourage members of the RASC to writeon the topic of astronomy for the Societyor the general public, and to recognize thebest published works through an annualaward.

More information on this award is on theRASC Web site at:http://www.rasc.ca/awards/ �

Mars Images Michael Boschat

October 21/05 October 30/05 November 01/05 November 07/05

11cm f/10 refractor, 112Xto 209X with #21 Orangefilter from Halifax, N.S.

Material for the nextissue should reach theeditor by March 17/06

Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC | 3

Meeting ReportOctober 2005Chris Beckett

President Craig Levine welcomed allmembers both new and old alike andintroduced potential new members to thebenefits of joining the RASC. Mary LouWhitehorne stood up and presented someastronomy related “prizes”, including aStarry Night Companion DVD to thosewhom had identified themselves as non-members or new members.

This month’s special guest was AlanWhitman, a former Halifax Member and meteorologist who now observes inthe Okanagan of British Columbia. Hispresentation to the Halifax Center focusedon his observations made from the southernUS states as well as countries below theequator. Alan began his slide showdescribing his journeys to some of the firstreal star parties in Texas in 1982/3 wherehighlights of his observing including viewingOmega Centuri and Centaurus A in hiseyepiece.

In July of 1991 Alan traveled south of theequator to Mazatlan for some eclipseviewing. He also traveled south of the

equator in 1998 when Sky and Telescopepresented him with an opportunity to dometeorological consultation for two shipschasing a solar eclipse that year off ofGranada and St. Thomas. The slide showwent from beautiful daytime images tothose of deep space objects which heobserved while the ships kept their lightsoff so passengers could take in the southerndeep sky wonders.

Moving from his eclipse trips Alan presented us with some beautiful slides of his observing experience with theAstronomical Society of New South Walesnorth of Sydney Australia. Alan prepareda list of 250 objects for the trip and rec-ommends that anyone making a similartrip be prepared to spend some time withtheir scope firmly pointed at 47 Tucanae.The description of several objects like thenearby spiral NGC 4945 and others werefascinating to listen to for those of us whohave yet to make a trek south. Alan rec-ommends leaving your scope behind andhooking up with locals such as TonyBuckley who might be kind enough toshare his club’s 14.5-inch f/7 dob orAndrew Morley with his 20-inch dob!

Alan focused on many deep sky objectsfrom bright/dim nebula, globular clusters,galaxies and, my personal favorite, dark

nebula. For more information on hisobserving please see, August 2005Jewels on Velvet and August 1998 TheOuter Limits: Seeking Summer’s DarkNebulae.

After Alan’s presentation we had our usualsnack break followed by Blair MacDonald’ssecond part in his series “Astro Photos101”. This month Blair focused on histograms and image stretching for gettingthe most out of your deep sky digital shots.

According to Blair there are four importantsteps for this function;

1. Histogram and equalization to spreadthe image for a custom spread.

2. Create a transfer function for the histogram shape

3. Invert

4. Apply to image

Following Blair’s brief but detailed lessonour Observing Chair, Daryl DeWolfe askedthe observers to focus on Mars this monthand to sketch and log their observationsin order to solidify your memories. �

From the LibraryAlex LeCreux, Centre Librarian

Happy New Year everyone!

I’ve made a resolution this year to addressthe issue of a large quantity of outstandingbooks from the library. When I began theposition of Centre Librarian a little morethan a year ago, I inherited a fairly longlist of over due books, some of which wereloaned out prior to the year 2000. I wouldreally like to see these books returned tothe library so other members could haveaccess to them. I’m sure some are lostand will not be recovered. Please checkyour bookshelves at home for any thatmay have been forgotten about. I havehad to turn down requests from membersfor several books over the past monthsthat were due to be returned and remainoutstanding. Your assistance in this matterwould be greatly appreciated. �

National Office E-mailsPat Kelly

In order to serve members of the society,the national office keeps track of e-mailaddresses of members, when that infor-mation is provided on membership application and renewal forms. This infor-mation, in turn, is passed on the the centrein our monthly membership updates. Thecentre uses this information primarily tomake announcements of important eventsthat cannot wait for the next issue ofNova Notes (such as changes to meetingdates or locations, or astronomy speakersbrought in by other groups).

Currently the national office uses these e-mail addresses for two main functions.In an effort to reduce postage costs, thefirst membership renewal notice now goesout to the e-mail address on record. Theelectronic version of the Journal is available

on the society’s web site before the printedversion arrives and e-mail is used toannounce its availability. If you are notreceiving these notices you either do nothave an e-mail address on file, or the oneon file is incorrect.

If you want to have your e-mail addressadded to your membership information, orcorrect one that is out of date, send theinformation to nationaloffice@rasc.ca. Itis hoped in the near future that memberswill be able to update their own contactinformation at the national web site.

If you have any concerns about the privacy of this information, the society’sprivacy policy can be found at

http://www.rasc.ca/privacypolicy.htm

and the centre’s privacy policy can befound at

http://halifax.rasc.ca/documents/privacy.pdf.

�

4 | Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC

The Lunar X-Files: anOccasional Feature nearthe Crater Wernerby Dave Chapman

Introduction

Every month–or to be more precise, every29.530589 days–the Moon cycles throughits phases and alternately reveals and hidesthe features on its surface. As experiencedlunar observers know, the appearance of aparticular surface feature depends on therelief of the feature (that is, the height ofthe feature above or below the surroundingterrain) and the angle of the illuminationof the Sun. One of the most interestingregions on the Moon to observe on anygiven night is the terminator, that is, thedemarcation between the dark and lightportions of the lunar surface. The term“line” is used very loosely here, as the terminator can become quite convolutedin especially rough areas on the Moon. In extreme cases, one can see mountainpeaks and crater walls that have been“caught in a noose of light” and stand outbrilliantly against the surrounding blackness.This high contrast is aided by the lack ofan atmosphere on the Moon, as there isnothing to scatter sunlight into the shadowsand soften the illumination.

One of the most interesting features thatone can observe at the terminator is an X-shaped structure that appears at coordinatesS 25 degrees, E 5 degrees, near the craterWerner. Although it must appear everymonth, it does not seem to be well known.Although it most certainly has beenobserved before, the author observed theWerner X first in August 2004 and for asecond time not until November 2005.Others have seen the X on these dates,some dates in between, and evidentlybeforehand. If one knows when and whereto look, the Werner X can be observed byanyone with a modest telescope.

August 22, 2004: the author’s first view

On August 22, 2004, at the Nova Eaststar party at Smiley’s Provincial Park nearWindsor Nova Scotia, the author trainedhis TeleVue Ranger 70 mm telescope onthe Moon just as dusk was gathering atabout 9 p.m. Other amateur astronomerswere making their own preparations for

an evening of under the dark sky, but itwas a little too soon for serious observing.Having a glance at the nearly first-quarterMoon seemed like a good way to start thenight. The author focussed his telescopeon the terminator and immediately noticeda bright X-shaped feature on the dark sideof the terminator. Unlike many otherastronomical views through a telescope,this observation took no imaginationwhatsoever, and the surrounding group ofastronomers soon joined in the observation.Tony Jones took a picture of the Moon atthis time. As the phase of the Moon wasfirst quarter, the Moon was roughly duesouth at sunset, and proceeded to setthroughout the evening, eventually becomingtoo low in the sky to comfortably observe.

Previous observations of the Lunar X

Following the observation, research on theinternet and in astronomy books turnedup very little information, other than asingle astrophoto taken on June 24, almostexactly 59 days earlier. (The photo wasposted to the Lunar Picture of the Dayweb site after the Nova East observationwas announced.) Veteran lunar observerCharles Wood was aware of this appearance,but no other, and noted that several peoplehad seen the X in August. Word of the Xspread, and the author was contacted byDana Thompson in Hebron, Ohio, whoreported seeing this feature (in Newark,Ohio) in 1978, but had not seen (or lookedfor) it since. Dana recalls that–with theunaided eye–he first saw a point of lighton the dark side of the terminator, whichturned out to be an X in the telescope.(Dana does not have observing records fromthat date, but he has correspondenceindicating that the event took place 324lunations before the Nova East sighting,on June 12, 1978.) Mike Boschat founda photo of the X in Dinsmore Alter’s LunarAtlas, plate 111, page 247. Pat Kellywondered why the X had not been men-tioned before, as observers often concentrateon the terminator, because of the interestingdetail to be seen.

A Digression on Lunar Months and Solar Days

At first thought, one would expect that theX would appear every month, at about thesame time just before first quarter. Whywould it not be very well known? Theanswer could be a combination of twoeffects: (1) the apparition may only last a

few hours, and (2) the lunar month is notan exact number of 24-hour days. If onesaw the X one evening in a given month,then it would appear again 29 1/2 dayslater, but the 1/2 day would mean thatthe Moon would have set at the originallocation and be unobservable; however,an observer on the other side of the worldwould be in a good position to see the Xon that occasion.

On the other hand, an interval of 2 lunarmonths works out to 59 days and 88minutes. As the X was seen 59 days earlierfrom Eastern North America, then therewas a good chance it could be seen againslightly later on the evenings of October 20,December 18, and perhaps February 15.However, at first quarter, there is only ashort interval of time–perhaps 4-5 hoursbetween sunset and moonset–that the Mooncan be seen. The residual 88 minutesmeans that the Moon would be that muchcloser to setting at the observer’s locationeach successive time the X appears.Eventually, the X would appear so late inthe evening that the Moon would havealready set. Because the Moon sets later(in Universal Time) as the observer moveswest, this implies that the optimum longi-tude for seeing the X would gradually movewestward by 3 time zones every 4 months.A persistent observer may see the X everyother month for several appearances, butthen there would be a long hiatus of ayear or so during which the X would notbe seen.

Subsequent views of the Lunar X the following October, December (2004),and February (2005)

A letter by the author featuring the TonyJones photo appeared in the Nov/DecSkyNews magazine, alerting observers to the events. The author also posted therelevant information to the RASC nationaldiscussion list. The Lunar X was discussedin several astronomy newsgroups, but it is almost impossible to document thesediscussions.

This is what was seen in Fall 2004:

On the night of October 20, it was cloudyin Halifax, but around 22:00 ADT TedDunphy of Fredericton independentlyobserved the X and took a photograph.Only afterwards did he learn about theauthor’s observation and the SkyNews letter.Curt Nason of St. John also saw the X.

Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC | 5

These sightings were reported in theAutumn 2004 issue of Horizon, thenewsletter of the RASC Moncton Centre.

On December 18, it was again cloudy inHalifax, but Joe Carr and Bill Weir fromthe RASC Centre in Victoria, B.C., bothobserved the X. Note that they observe far to the west of Nova Scotia and NewBrunswick.

On February 15, 2005, Bill Weir ofVictoria made a lengthy and detailedobservation of the X: the centre becamevisible at 8:30 p.m. PST, and the X wasfully illuminated from 9:15 p.m. until atleast 11:00 p.m. At these times the Moonwould have already set in the Maritimes.Bill’s observations, and the absence ofany observations from the East, confirmsthat the optimum longitude for observingthe X gradually moves westward from oneappearance to the next.

This was the last of this sequence ofobservations from North America duringeven-numbered months.

Attempts to view the Lunar X in July and September (2005)

In between the sequence of observationsabove, there were rumours of observationsof the X from “down under” in Australia,during odd-numbered months. No detailsare available. Due to the westward drift ofoptimum observing longitude, it was onlya matter of time before this sequence madeits way to North America. On July 12/13,Bill Weir observed the first quarter Moonin B.C. until midnight, but says it was“too soon” for the X. On September 10, theauthor and others observed in the East,and it was also deemed to be “too soon”.These unsuccessful observations are notsurprising.

November 8, 2005: the author’s second view

On the evening of November 8, 2005, theauthor was able to observe the X almostas soon as the Sun set. The Moon wasvisible earlier, but the poor contrast indaylight made detailed observation of theMoon difficult. Many observers fromEastern Canada supplied reports, drawings,and pictures of the Lunar X (see Table 1)

These observations help define the tem-poral extent of the visible extent of thephenomenon, but are not definitive, as

the commencement is uncertain. It seemsthat the effect lasts at least 4 hours.Observations from the evening of January 6,2006, will be most valuable. Ultimately,the phases of commencement, peak visi-bility, and termination of the lunar X nearcrater Werner will be linked to values ofselenographic colongitude. This identificationwill assist future observers in capturing thephenomenon.

Why is the Lunar X not better known?

It is evident that alerted observers haveno difficulty finding and observing theLunar X. However, there seems to bealmost no evidence that the X has beenobserved previous to recent times. Perhapsit was observed, but because an observerin a given location may have difficultyrepeating the observation, it has not beenreported. For a start, the X does not appearat every lunation if observed from a givenlocation. Also, from a given location, thereis a long interval of time during which theillumination of the X and the appearanceof the Moon in the sky of do not coincide.The combination of the synodic lunar monthand the solar day results in a quasi-periodic,almost random, sequence of apparitions.Perhaps cognitive psychology could shedsome light on the apprehension of theLunar X. Another interesting question iswhether the almost instantaneous com-munication between widely-separatedobservers afforded by the internet has aidedin the observation of such phenomena.Have we entered an era of network-enabled astronomy? In a future article theauthor and collaborators hope to moredeeply explore these concepts. �

Table 1Time (UT) Mode Observer Location Remarks

2030 visual Dave Chapman Halifax, N.S. (X visible, but contrast low due to daylight)2043 photo Mike Boschat Halifax, N.S.2100 visual Dave Chapman Halifax, N.S. (definite X visible)2115 visual Chris Hanham Halifax, N.S. (confirmed X visibility )2145 video Roger Hill Milton, ON2200 visual Ted Dunphy Fredericton, NB (peak of effect)2215 visual Paul Gray Fredericton, NB (middle of half-hour session)???? video Kevin Fetter Brockville, ON

2330 video Roger Hill Milton, ON2355 photo Chris Beckett Halifax, NS (middle of 20-minute session)2356 sketch Paul Heath Halifax, NS (middle of half-hour session)

+0014 photo Clarence Hemeon Halifax, NSphoto Simon d’Entremont Halifax, NS

+0130 visual Dave Chapman Halifax, N.S. (surroundings of X filled with sunlight)+0215 visual Curt Nason St. John, NB (X still visible, but surroundings illuminated)

Figure 1: Mike Boschat took one of the best imagesof the Lunar X on 2005 November 8, 2045 UT.

Figure 2a: A close-up by Roger Hill in Ontario at2145 UT,

Figure 2b: Roger Hill shows the surroundings of the X filling in at 2330 UT.

6 | Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC

RASC, Halifax Centre2004/2005 Treasurer’sReport2004/2005 has been a reasonablygood financial year for the Halifax Centre.Paul Evans, our outgoing treasurer hadexpected a large deficit for this year.That prediction was based on a “regular”year for revenue (last year’s revenue wasvery high as a result of the donationsreceived in the memory of Bill Thurlow),and that we would be making use ofsome of those funds, thus increasingour expenses this year. The plans for theuse of those funds have been developedmore slowly than expected, the yearended with only a small deficit.

At our September 30th year-end, wehad a deficit of $495.82. The originalforecast of a deficit had assumed thatwe would have a profit from Nova East.Since the accumulated “surplus” fromNova East had grown fairly large, theNova East committee, with the approvalof the Centre executive, decided to usesome of that surplus to bring in JohnDobson this year. The net loss for NovaEast was $1546.37.

Following a motion of the executive atits September 1999 meeting, two-thirdsof the profit is to be recorded as profitearned by the other two astronomy clubsthat co-hosted Nova East. Ordinarily,the RASC would have paid the profit tothese clubs, however neither the MinasAstronomy Club nor the Nova CentralAstronomy Club have bank accounts.(See also Assets – Cash.) In this casethe net loss was similarly divided, withthe Centre’s third being about the sameas this year’s deficit. Thus the actualdeficit actually came from our accu-mulated Nova East profits and was nota true operating deficit.

Counting the observatory, we are nowworth (at least on paper) just over$50,000 with no significant liabilities.

I would like to thank JohnnyMcPherson, our auditor for the 2003/2004 books. He has raised some goodpoints that could be used to improvethe way that the books and year endreport are done. I am hoping to incor-porate many of his suggestions into the books over the coming year.

Below are some explanatory detailspertaining to the Income Statementand Balance Sheet.

Respectfully submitted, Patrick Kelly, Treasurer

Details of the 2004/2005 IncomeStatement

REVENUES:

Membership Fees $3,145.16 : Despitethe recent fee increase membershipfees are down slightly from last yeardue to a drop in membership numbers.At September 30, 2005 the Centre had184 members (153 regular, 9 youthand 22 life. Regular membership is$55 of which $22 is retained by Centre.The Society retains $33 to providenationally delivered services to members. For youth members, thenumbers are $34.25, $13.70, and$20.55 respectively.

Life Members Grant $500.00 : Thisamount represents the life membergrant we receive from National Officeeach year.

Donations and Observatory Donations$734.91 : Over $500 was donated tothe Centre by The Atlantic Space SciencesFoundation. We have also started toreceive donations as a result of theSociety’s new sustaining membershipprogramme.

Interest $46.31 : This was earnedmainly in our money market mutualfund, we are looking at putting some of the funds in an account that payshigher interest.

Handbook Sales (net) $153.70 :Handbook sales are up from last year.

Sales of Merchandise (net) $437.92 :Merchandise net sales were lower thanlast year mainly due to having a lot of2005 calendars left over. We haveordered less for the current year.

Nova East (Net) $0.00 : As mentionedin the introduction, Nova East ran adeficit this year.

EXPENSES:

Meetings and Newsletter $1,399.52 :This expense is comparable to last year.$336.81 was spent on our meetingtreats. Nova Notes cost $573.96 to printand $495.38 to send to our members.

Office Administration $154.57 : Thisincludes the cost of postage for routinecorrespondence, office supplies, and therental of our post office box.

Legal Expenses $25.00 : This is theannual fee paid to the ProvincialGovernment to maintain our registrationunder the Society’s Act.

Educational Activities $113.85 : Thiswas for the rental of the advertising signfor our summer sidewalk astronomy dayevents.

Insurance $1,316.00 : This is entirelythe insurance for the observatory. Ourinsurance costs increased by 10% overlast year – and the previous years haveseen increases of 20% and 31%. Hopefully,the rate of increases will continue to slow.

Awards and Donations $191.75 : About$54 was for the Cunningham Astro-photography Award. For a one-year periodthe Centre is returning its share of thelast two membership fee increases. Theremaining $138 is the amount for July,August, and September of 2005.

Observatory — Operating $759.63 :This figure includes the $1.15 annualland lease with the balance being foroperating expenses such as batteries,cutting keys, propane for the furnace,and other operating expenses for theobservatory buildings and surroundingproperty. There were no major expensesthis year. Capital spending that has beenexpensed on the observatory has totalled$21,869.64 since the project wasstarted in the spring of 1996.

Details of the 2004/2005 Balance Sheet

Cash $9,049.42 : This represents thecash balance at the TD Bank in Halifax onSeptember 30, 2005 (but not includingthe profits from Nova East attributed tothe Minas Astronomy Group and theNova Central Astronomy Club, see below).

Cash – Nova East Profits $1,055.12 :This represents two-thirds of the totalprofits from the Nova East star parties(year 2000 to present) which are attrib-uted to the Minas Astronomy Group andthe Nova Central Astronomy Club. Thisprofit is currently held in our regular TDbank account but recorded separatelywithin our accounting system.

Handbook Inventory – $116.91 : If you arewondering how you can have a negative

Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC | 7

COMPARATIVE INCOME STATEMENT FOR 2003/2004 AND 2004/2005 MEMBERSHIP YEARS

Year Year IncreaseOct 2004 to Oct 2003 to over Sept. 2005 Sept. 2004 2003/2004

REVENUEMembership Fees $ 3,145.16 $ 3,429.23 $ –284.07Life Members Grant 500.00 457.60 42.40Donations and Obs. Donations 734.91 4,738.09 –4,003.18Interest 46.31 50.96 –4.65Handbook Sales (Net) 153.70 70.64 83.06Sales of Merchandise (Net) 437.92 786.30 –348.38Nova East (Net) 0.00 876.18 –876.18Miscellaneous $ 0.00 $ 0.00 $ 0.00

Total Income $ 5,018.00 $ 10,409.00 $ –5,391.00

EXPENSESMeetings & Newsletter $ 1,406.15 $ 1,399.52 $ 6.63Nova East (Net) 1,546.37 0.00 1,546.37 Equipment & Supplies 0.00 296.03 –296.03Office Administration 154.57 149.27 5.30Legal Expenses 25.00 25.00 0.00Educational Activities 113.85 0.00 113.85Insurance 1,316.00 1,208.00 108.00Awards & Donations 191.75 0.00 191.75Observatory - Operating 759.63 3,639.27 –2,879.64Miscellaneous Expenses $ 0.50 $ 147.31 $ –146.81

Total Expenses $ 5,513.82 $ 6,864.40 $ –1,350.58

NET INCOME $ –495.82 $ 3,544.60 $ –4,040.42

Approved by: Pat Kelly, Treasurer Craig Levine, President

COMPARATIVE BALANCE SHEET FOR 2003/2004 AND 2004/2005 MEMBERSHIP YEARS

Year Year IncreaseOct 2004 to Oct 2003 to over

Sep 2005 Sep 2004 2003/2004

ASSETSCash $ 9,049.42 $ 8,768.27 $ 281.15Nova East Profits (MAG/NCAC) 1,055.12 2,086.03 –1,030.91Undeposited Funds 0.00 324.97 –324.97Accounts Receivable 0.00 0.00 0.00Handbook Inventory –116.91 796.00 –912.91Merchandise Inventory 2,241.92 2,789.22 –547.30Investments 2,000.00 2,000.00 0.00Accrued Interest 768.96 726.82 42.14Estimated Library 3,556.42 3,417.50 138.92Observatory Equipment 9,542.77 9,542.77 0.00Estimated Miscellaneous $ 452.54 $ 452.54 $ 0.00

Total Assets $ 28,550.24 $ 30,904.12 $ –2,353.88

LIABILITIESAccounts Payable $ 0.00 $ 1,858.06 $ –1,858.06Fees owed to National Office 0.00 0.00 0.00Other Liabilities $ 0.00 $ 0.00 $ 0.00

Total Liabilities $ 0.00 $ 1,858.06 $ –1,858.06

EQUITY $ 28,550.24 $ 29,046.06 $ –495.82

Observatory Investment to Date $ 21,869.64 $ 21,869.64 $ 0.00

Approved by: Pat Kelly, Treasurer Craig Levine, President

MEMBERSHIP 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

157 164 180 192 209 211 184

inventory, that makes two of us. It seemsto be due to the way our accountingsoftware is set up to track inventory andthere was a shipment of handbooks thatwe were not charged for. Since this onlybecame apparent at the end of the fiscalyear, there was not enough time toresolve it.

Merchandise Inventory $2,241.92 :This consists of our inventory of BOGS,Skyways, T-Shirts, Calendars, lapel pins,RASC stickers, RASC embroidered crests,mugs, and key chains. This number isusually high at the end of September aswe have just purchased the 2006handbooks and calendars.

Investments $2000.00 : The HalifaxCentre holds a money market accountwith the TD Bank.

Accrued Interest $768.96 : Accruedinterest on our money market accountas reported on four quarterly statementsfrom the TD Bank.

Estimated Library $3,556.42 : Thisvalue represents an estimate of all themoney invested in the library. $138.92was spent on books for the library thisyear.

Observatory Equipment $9,542.77 :The value of our observatory equipmentis unchanged from last year.

Estimated Miscellaneous $452.54 :These other holdings of the Centre wereunchanged this year.

Historically, $250 has included a slideprojector, a mirror grinding apparatus,and some slides and material availablefor use at the planetarium.

Observatory Investment to Date$21,869.64 : This amount representsthe total amount of money that theCentre has spent on the St. CroixObservatory for capital expenses (i.e.concrete slabs, landscaping, the mainobservatory buildings) that are deem tobe fixed and that could not be moved ifwe were to leave the St. Croix site. �

Web-only version of Nova Notes?Michael Gatto

If you are the type of person whodownloads the latest issue of NovaNotes off of the web to print it athome, then you may be interested intaking your name off of the mailing listfor the printed version. If so, pleaseemail me at agatto@ns.sympatico.cawith the subject line “Remove frommailing list” and I will do just that. If enough people opt out then I willconsider sending out the issue to members in a large group email. Butfor now, you will be responsible fordownloading the issue yourself eachmonth, and will not be added to thelist again unless you email me again to reinclude yourself.

Thanks, Michael �

8 | Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC

November 19th, 2005Annual MeetingAndrea Misner

Our fearless president, Craig Levine,kicked off the annual meeting with abellowing, “hello everyone!” After theregular introductions for the RASC,Craig began his summary of the HalifaxCentre in 2005, stating that we havehad a great year with lots of speakers,a rise in meeting attendance, and anincreasing observing group at St. Croix.In addition, public outreach was also asuccess with Nova East 2005 beingone of the most attended.

Within the centre’s membership, Mary Lou Whitehorne received the LasCumbres Amateur Outreach Award, forher outstanding effort in the outreach of astronomy education. Further, DaveLane and Paul Gray, in a co-discovery,uncovered a supernova. It was laterannounced as Supernova 2005B on 1AUCircular 8462. Craig finished off hisyearly report by thanking the teamworkof the RASC exec, as well as SaintMary’s for the use of their classrooms.

Pat Kelly was up next with his Treasurer’sreport, and then Daryl Dewolfe with hisObserving Chairman’s report. Motionswere carried out to elect an Auditor forthe new year, and last year’s minuteswere approved by Dave Lane. �

The Modern ArmchairAstronomer?Dave Lane

Every amateur astronomer can generallybe classified as either an “observer” oran “armchair astronomer”. What an“observer” does is pretty obvious, butwhat are “armchair astronomers”?Typically, they are those who pursuetheir hobby through books, magazines,and/or the Internet without the use oftheir own telescope. Many “armchairastronomers” also enjoy reading aboutthe activities of the more “active” par-ticipants whether that be learning oftheir observations or looking at theirsketches or the pictures they take.Although some people waffle back andforth between the two camps during

their lives, at any given point in timethey are usually in one camp or another.

As some of you may have noticed Ihave not spent much time at the eye-piece in the last couple of years. I’vebeen occupying my time available forastronomy activities either engaged inRASC national politics, upgrading myECU planetarium software, or runningthe Abbey Ridge Observatory supernovasearch program with Paul Gray of theMoncton Centre. This has left me withnot much time to get out to St. Croix oreven visually observe from my backyard,which I actually regret not being able todo (well, maybe not in the winter!).

I have always considered myself anobserver, but perhaps I am morphinginto an armchair astronomer! I wouldnever have thought this was possible,however an event which happened lastevening makes me think differently.

The story begins on the evening ofTuesday, January 10th – a rare perfectlyclear night. Clear weather usually meansa productive night observing (imaging,not looking) galaxies for our supernovasearch program. That night, I imaged 598galaxies giving Paul Gray a couple ofevenings of work looking for new objects.

On Thursday evening at about 8:30 p.m.,while watching TV from my armchair,Paul called me and asked me to look ata galaxy image which had an interestingextra “star” on it. This is a fairly regularoccurrence because many of these sus-pects are near the limit of the telescope’scapabilities and therefore subsequentlyturn out to be noise. We have techniquesthat we use to tell the difference betweennoise and real stars. For example, noiseusually occupies only one or two pixelson the image – stars are blurred outover many pixels. We also compare theshape and size of the suspect star toother stars of similar brightness.

This particular suspect looked enoughlike a real star that it had to be fol-lowed up. We would have liked to beable to image the star ourselves but itwas cloudy (when Paul calls, I alwaysstep out on the deck for a quick look atthe sky before heading to the computerto look at an image). The Clear SkyClock showed that it might clear laterso I programmed the observatory tomonitor the sky. If there was 15 min-utes of clear skies in a row the dome

was to open up, take the image, andthen close up. I didn’t hold up muchhope that the sky would clear.

Since time is of the essence, we useour “network” of people that we knowcan help us obtain another image of thegalaxy. I sent off an email with the detailsafter which all we can do is wait. So, backto the armchair and the TV.

To set the scene, my armchair backs on a large picture window that overlooksthe observatory which is about 20 metersfrom the house. I have a laptop on mycoffee table so I am able to watch forincoming e-mail.

It wasn’t long before Tom Glinos of theToronto Centre emailed me to tell methat his telescope was down for repairs.He has a remotely controlled telescopelocated in David Levy’s backyard inArizona. Jack Newton’s email was receivednext. It was clear at his winter home inArizona and he would be on the case assoon as it was dark enough there. Andthen David Levy, also in Arizona, repliedand indicated he would give it a go aswell!

By 11:30 p.m. it was bedtime and onmy way to bed I glanced at my officecomputer and noticed to my surprisethat not only had it cleared, but the domehad opened, done its programmed task,closed and the images were ready for myinspection. All this took place withoutmy knowledge 20 meters behind myback and while in my armchair! Iinspected the images – unfortunatelythe suspected object was gone andtherefore there was no supernova.

Jack Newton’s first image had also justarrived and confirmed my conclusion. Bymorning, Jack had sent me a better imagetaken with his 16" Meade scope andDavid Levy’s images had arrived as well.

In the future we may have to redefinewhat an “armchair astronomer” is. Thisterm may refer to amateur astronomerswho are able to practice serious observingfrom the comfort of their home whilesitting in their favorite armchair. Centremember Doug Pitcairn joked, perhaps10–15 years ago, that in the future we’dbe able to “observe” using our TV by justselecting the appropriate channel onthe remote control – perhaps this “joke”will become reality before too long! �

Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC | 9

National CouncilRepresentative ReportPat Kelly

A meeting of the National Council washeld on October 29th of last year, hostedby the Hamilton Centre. I attended byteleconference.

Most of the discussion was on publicationsand finances.

Despite recent fee increases and cost-cutting measures, the society is stillrunning large deficits. This is due toincreases in cost, reduced sales of publications, and the continuing highvalue of the Canadian dollar. Two by-lawchanges were approved in an attempt todeal with the problem. The first change isto replace the current single member-ship fee which is divided between thesociety (60%) and centres (40%) withseparate society and centre fees. Thesecond change changes delivery of theRASC Journal so that all membersreceive access to the electronic copy ofeach issue. Those wishing a printedcopy will have to pay an additional fee.Normally by-law changes are approvedat the annual meeting, but it was feltthat these had changes needed to beadopted as quickly as possible. As aresult a special meeting of the societywas called for early February. You willhave already received information aboutthis meeting, and the meeting will likelyhave happened before you read this. I willget a report of the special meeting andthe following national council meetingin next Nova Notes.

You have also probably noticed that yourlast issue of SkyNews arrived on-time!Based on a new agreement with TerenceDickinson, the publisher of SkyNews,society members issues will now bemailed out along with the copies for thenormal subscribers for a cost to thesociety of less than $300 per year. Italso turns out that our previous processof mailing SkyNews and the Journaltogether, even though each has a publi-cations assistance subsidy, was actuallyin violation of postal regulations andthey were about to start enforcing theregulations which would have cost between$9,000 to $12,000 per year.

Another item that came up relating topublications was that starting in 2006,Sky Publishing will no longer be sellingitems that do not have their brand on it.They normally sell a considerable number

of handbooks (900 last year), calendars(750) and Beginners Observing Guides(20). There may be reduce this effect (amailout to their past customers, and ad inSky & Telescope, etc.) but it will likely meanthat there will be a further significantnegative impact on national finances.

Three editors have retired after years ofdedicated volunteer service; Dr. WayneBarkhouse (Journal); Dr. Rajiv Gupta(Observer’s Calendar); and Mark Bratton(Annual Report). Our own Dave Lanewas approved as the new editor of theObserver’s Calendar! Late last year, dueto work and family commitments, Rajivalso reluctantly stepped down an editor ofthe Observer’s Handbook. Replacementsfor the three open positions are beingsought and may be announced at thenext council meeting

The policies the govern national awards(Chant Medal, Ken Chilton Prize, ServiceAward, and Simon Newcomb Award) havebeen streamlined and made consistent.

When renewing memberships, while youcan pay by credit card, the society losessome money as there is a transactionfee for credit card payments. The nationalsociety has been giving centre their fullshare of the membership fee and absorbingthe entire service fee. That will no longerbe the case and renewals paid by creditcard will now have that fee shared betweenthe centre and the national society. If youcan renew by cheque both the centreand society will have more funds. As itturns out, credit card payment doesn’treally make things easier at nationaloffice. Read on.

There was a presentation from the infor-mation technology about the currentcomputer systems in place at the nationaloffice to handle membership, sales tocentres, and sales at our on-line store.These systems do not work well witheach other and in some cases do notgive the benefits that one might expect.One example is that sales made on thee-store and paid by credit card are notautomatically processed. Instead thecredit card information has to be printedand then processed by manually enteringthe credit card number, amount, etc. Therewere several options presented on howto deal with the problems. It is likely thatit will be replaced with a new system inthe near future.

Well those were the main topics. I willmake an effort to make more timely reportsof future national council events. �

A Novice on ScopesJohn Vandermeulen

The weather-man had it right. It is1:30 p.m., and as I am typing this it is snowing along the South Shore andworking its way north-east to Halifaxand surroundings. Certainly no day toset up my little 4.5" reflector (OrionStarblast). So, just the sort of weatherto stay indoors, and re-read the test-report on ‘Bargain Starter Scopes’ inthe recent issue of SKY & Telescope(December, pp. 86–90).

With the upper limit set at $200 US,which really is in the bargain range,one would expect the sort of low-pricedinfamous starter scopes with lousy opticsand feeble tripods. One can thereforesense the pleasure of the good folks atS&T when they came up with eleven (!)scopes that clearly out-performedeverything else in that price range, orat the very least ‘did better’. This is notunexpected, as all eleven scopes borebig brand names – one Celestron, oneBushnell, one Edmund Scientifics, fourMeades, and four Orions. All 11 scopeshad been examined rigorously withrespect to optics, mechanicals, etc. andwere then ranked. In order, the fourOrions came out on top, placing 1–4,next the Edmund Scientifics (Astroscan)at 5, Celestron at 6, the Meads at 7–10,and the Bushnell came last at 11. Tomy great delight the Orion 4.5" Starblastcame in second, as I have one of these.In fact the little scope (it is only about20" tall) was described as a “hands-down winner”. Wow! But…

Before I had bought my Starblast I hadread everything written by experts thatI could find on the web. But have youever noticed that the same line-up ofcritics, writers, experts all, never includesa beginner? Yet these telescopes aretouted as beginner telescopes. So, wherewas the beginner in this crowd ofreviewers? It seems to me that for anything labeled beginner, the reviewershould at least briefly step into, or seeka beginner’s shoes.

So, here with, as a reasonably ablebeginner, are my thoughts on theStarblast (complete moniker the Orion4.5" reflector Starblast on a dobsonianmount) as it came to me in the box. Ishould add that the packing of the scope(cardboard box & foam) was superb.

10 | Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC

1. Optics. Optics look good to me (butthen I really don’t know any other). Thescope comes with two eyepieces – 17mmand 6mm, fully coated, Orion ExplorerII’s. (Plossl designs)

2. Red-dot finder. The EZ-Finder II, con-sists of a plastic mount, on which ashort tube sits about 1" long by 3/4"diameter, with a small lens affixedinside. When switched on, a red dot isprojected onto this small lens, markingthe center of the view field. It took mea good five minutes, and a telephonecall for help (Clint S.), but once I fig-ured it out it worked fine. Incidentally,the little nickel-size battery is availableanywhere and lasts forever. As to thefinder’s purpose, I had not used a red-dot finder before, but this really is slickonce I had figured out how to mount itby looking at the Orion web-site. I con-fess that initially I had it on backward.

More problematic is the way the finderis affixed. It is mounted very close tothe tube, and one has to lever the headaround at an unusual angle to lookthrough it. After about five minutes ofthis a very painful crick in the neckdevelops trying to get that dot lined upwith the object. And if you have neckproblems, forget it. Something shouldbe done about mounting that finder ona taller support.

3. Construction and material. The scopeis very nice to look at, and sturdy – thetube is metal, no cardboard anywhere.The dob mount itself is of some sort ofpressed wood that seems rigid. I don’tknow how that wood frame would standup if it were left outside in the rain. The“lazy-Susan” base worked fine, smooth, norough spots. The scope is certainly manytimes better than any scopes seen nowand again at camera stores at the Mall.

The dob mount is constructed of somesort of above mentioned compressedwood, which does feel remarkably solid.For this scope the mount consists of awooden lazy-Susan, with a single pieceof triangular-shaped wood mounted ver-tically on it. (Think of a single triangularsail on a very flat boat.) The scope isfixed onto the ‘sail’ with a single pointof attachment, i.e. the tube is supportedon one side only. Initially I had misgivingsabout the stability of this, but I couldnot find fault with it.

4. Aiming and focussing. Here I raninto trouble. The main problem ismaneuvering the scope on that dob-mount, the very feature that gives this

scope its low cost. I hunted throughoutthe review article for any mention of thescope/mount combination but, oddlyenough, there was none concerning thatmount.

This setup allows two directions ofmovement – tilting the tube up anddown, (motion controlled and tightenedwith a large handy knob), and turningthe scope left and right by swinging thewhole thing on the lazy-Susan. There isno way of locking it into place.

Finding objects is done manually bynudging the tube by hand – which takesa fair bit of time. For example, if I wantto look at a double, as described in oneof the star-atlas books, I have to first lineup the scope as best I can, and then dothe careful zero-ing in by nudging andpushing the scope tube. I am sure thatthere are numerous scopes aimed byhand, but I expect that novice viewerswill have some problems here.

The second problem derived from the dobmount (as is the case with all simpledob mounts) is that in order to keep anobject centered in the eyepiece view,one must keep at least one eye glued tothe ocular, while simultaneously nudg-ing and tapping the scope to keep it ontarget. This may be less of a problemwith larger dob-mounted scopes with adifferent length to weight ratio, but withthe Starblast this has to be done verygently as the length of the tube vs theweight represents a lot of unwantedleverage. Thus the whole affair can veryeasily be thrown off target, plus set thetube into vibration.

Changing lenses in mid-flight is reallysuicidal, as the tube then vibrates andgoes off target instantly.

Could the pivoting of the scope beimproved? It does not have to be a pre-cision guidance system. Something likea pair of very simple alignment levers, onefor each direction, adjusted by turningtwo knobs – would that be possible? Iam surprised that some handy tinkererhas not already thought of this. Theredoes exist a ‘computerized’ dob version,but you still have to manually push/nudgethe scope. The computerized bit is onlya simple indicator of how close you areto your object. I agree, sounds weird.

By now the dob-enthusiasts are probablybecoming a bit testy with my ‘com-plaining’, that larger dobs do not havethese problems, that I am too impa-tient, and so on. Perhaps so, but the

novice really wants to use the scope“now”, and not spend a month first get-ting familiarized. Also, very shortly onewonders, if those guys with the heavy-duty scopes (including the monster dob-mounted reflectors) and smooth slow-motion controls can have those fea-tures, why can’t I? The obvious validreply is that the dobsonian mount wasnot designed for such, and if that iswhat you want, then spend more moneyand/or have more patience. All true, butplease note that this particular scope israted a beginner’s scope, so why notfathom a beginner’s impressions?

Another point – might the mantra of‘dob-mount for beginners’ be wrong forsome, and that for a beginner an alt-azimuth mount might be better, even agoto? That way she or he can get ontarget, without all the hassle. I oftenwonder how many small dob-mountedscopes may be sitting in closets? �

New equipment purchasein memory of Bill ThurlowIn October 2004 a request was madefor members to submit proposals toCouncil for a suitable use of the moneythe Centre recieved as part of Dr. BillThurlow’s memorial bequest.(See Nova Notes October 2004.)

At the Council meeting held on Friday,January 20, 2006 a motion for the purchase of large binoculars on an alt-azmount was passed. The motion stemmedfrom a proposal that was originallyresearched and submitted by membersPaul Evans and Daryl Dewolfe. Largebinoculars were suggested for the following reasons: binoculars are easy to use for beginners and experiencedobservers; they would be portableenough to be used at public eventssuch as public observing nights andNova East; they are ideal instrumentsfor observing Messier objects – one ofDr. Thurlows favourite objects.

Sometime in the next month or so theCentre will purchase a pair of APM100mm binoculars and a Vixen alt-azfork mount. Watch upcoming NovaNotes for more details.

Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC | 11

Part of your membership in the Halifax RASC includes access toour observatory, located in the community of St. Croix, NS. Thesite has grown over the last few years to include a roll-off roofobservatory with electrical outlets, a warm-room and washroomfacilities. Enjoy dark pristine skies far away from city lights, andthe company of like minded observers searching out those faintfuzzies in the night.

Members’ NightEvery weekend closest to the new Moon there is a Members’ Night at St. Croix. The purpose of members’ night is to attractmembers from the Centre to share an evening of observing with other members. It’s also a great night for beginners to try outdifferent scopes and see the sky under dark conditions. For more information or transportation arrangements, please contact theObserving Chair. Dates for Members’ Nights for the following few months are:

Directions from Halifax(from Bayers Road Shopping Centre)

1. Take Hwy 102 (the Bi-Hi) to Exit 4 (Sackville).2. Take Hwy 101 to Exit 4 (St. Croix).3. At the end of the off ramp, turn left.4. Drive about 1.5 km until you cross the St. Croix

River Bridge. You’ll see a power dam on your left.5. Drive about 0.2 km past the bridge and take

the first left (Salmon Hole Dam Road).6. Drive about 1 km until the pavement ends.7. Drive another 1 km on the dirt road to the site.8. You will recognize the site by the 3 small white

buildings on the left.

Become a St. Croix Key HolderFor a modest key fee, members in good standing for more than ayear who have been briefed on observatory can gain access to theSt.Croix facility. For more information on becoming a key holder, contact the Observing Chair.

R U L E S F O R T H E 1 7 . 5 " S C O P E( O R A N Y R A S C S C O P E A T S C O )On Members’ Nights the 17.5" scope must be shared by allmembers. The 17.5" scope can be used by anyone, but all viewshave to be shared with anyone interested in taking a look.

On non Members’ Nights the scope can be used by individualswishing to work on personal observing projects. Membersshould try to limit their use to under 45 minutes when othermembers are waiting to use it. Preference will be given tomembers who send an email to the hfxrasc list, or call theobserving chair on the night they want to go out. If no oneelse wants to use the scope then feel free to use it all night,but it would be considerate every so often to ask membersthere if anyone has been quietly waiting to use it.

Please contact the Observing Chair for more information.

February – Friday 24 or Saturday 25 March – Friday 31 or April 1

12 | Nova Notes | The News le t t e r o f the Ha l i f ax Cen t re o f the RASC

Meetings begin at 8:00 P.M.

Members of the general public are welcome.

All members—but especially new ones—are invited to

come to the meetings 20 - 30 minutes early to partici-

pate in our new informal “Meet and Greet”. It’s a chance

to ask questions about astronomy, the RASC, memberships,

or to just say hello.

Room 176 Loyola BuildingSaint Mary’s University (See Map Below)

The Halifax RASC

Executive meetings

begin at 7:00 P.M.,

and members are

welcome to attend.

Meeting AnnouncementsHalifax Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada

Meeting LocationMeetings are held every third Friday of the month, except for the months of July andAugust. Meetings take place in room 176, Loyola Building (#3 on map) at Saint Mary’sUniversity.

1. McNally

2. Sobey Building

3. Loyola Academic Complex

4. Loyola Residence

5. Patrick PowerLibrary

6. Science Building

7. Burke Building

8. Bookstore

9. Alumni Arena

10. The Tower

11. Rice Residence

P = Parking

Halifax RASC Executive 2006

Honorary President Dr. Roy Bishop

President Craig Levine 852-1245

1st vice-president Paul Evans 423-4746

2nd vice-president Marc Bourque 835-2589

Secretary Andrea Misner 425-5074

Treasurer Pat Kelly 798-3329

Nova Notes Editor Michael Gatto 453-5486

National Rep. Pat Kelly 798-3329

2nd National Rep. Mary Lou Whitehorne 865-0235

Librarian Alex LeCreux 404-5480

Observing Chairman Tony McGrath Filled!

Councilor Jim Dorey Filled!

Councilor Wesley Howie Filled!

Councilor David Tindall Filled!

February 17What heats the chromosphere and corona of the Sun?An astrophysical mystery.

Dr. C. Ian Short, Assistant Professor, Department of Astronomy &Physics, Institute for Computational Astrophysics St. Mary’s University

March 17The SCO committee will be putting on a presentation aimed at beginningobservers. (tentative - watch the website for more details as the datenears)

Two Council spots need to be filled –Observing Chair and CouncillorWhat’s involved in being the Observing Chair? Being the Chairman ofthe St. Croix Observatory Management Committee; loaning out our loaner telescopes; organizing public observing sessions; handling the“What’s Up” at the Centre meetings; and taking charge of our monthly“Members’ Nights” at St. Croix. You’ll also have the other SCO Committeemembers to back you up and help out. This is an important position forthe Centre, and if you are a frequent SCO user, frequent observer, andsomeone who enjoys public outreach why not give it a shot?

What’s involved in being the a Councillor? Councillors attend themonthly exec. meetings and give their opinions on issues before thecouncil – basically a sober second opinion.

If you are interested in taking a leadership role in a group that has givenyou so many benefits call president Craig Levine at the number below.

Filled! Thanks David and Tony!