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50
SEPTEMBER 2015
Multiverses
SCIENCE
OR
SCIENCE FICTION? p. 28
THE LATEST: Rendezvous
with an outbursting comet p. 44
Eclipse of the Super Moon p. 56
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SEPTEMBER 2015
VOL. 43, NO. 9
COLUMNS
Strange Universe 10
CONTENTS
BOB BERMAN
Secret Sky 18
FEATURES STEPHEN JAMES OMEARA
24 36 50 Observing Basics 22
GLENN CHAPLE
Starmus will honor The Sky this Month The weirdest star
Stephen Hawking in 2016 Totalitys long embrace. in the universe Astro Sketching 68
Next summer, the science festival MARTIN RATCLIFFE AND Astronomers dreamt up the idea ERIKA RIX
will revolve around the life of the ALISTER LING of Thorne-ytkow objects
renowned theoretical physicist. dead stars inside dying stars in QUANTUM GRAVITY
DAVID J. EICHER 38 the 1970s. Only recently have
they tracked one down. Snapshot 9
StarDome and
28 COVER STORY YVETTE CENDES Astro News 12
Path of the Planets
Multiverses: Science or RICHARD TALCOTT;
science fiction? ILLUSTRATIONS BY ROEN KELLY
56 IN EVERY ISSUE
BOB BERMAN explores the strange
Eclipse of the
ideas that drive theorists to be- 44 Super Moon From the Editor 6
On September 27, the biggest
lieve in parallel universes. Rendezvous with an Letters 10, 14, 22
Full Moon of the year will pass
evolving comet through Earths shadow. Web Talk 26
34 As Comet 67P/Churyumov- DEAN REGAS
Ask Astro Gerasimenko heads closer to the New Products 69
Moon musings. Sun and grows more active, the
60 Advertiser Index 70
Rosetta and Philae spacecraft
scrutinize its complex behavior.
Astronomys sixth annual Reader Gallery 72
RICHARD TALCOTT
Star Products
PHIL HARRINGTON Breakthrough 74
Visit Astronomy.com/toc
for bonus material its
ONLINE
exclusive to Astronomy
magazine subscribers.
FAVORITES
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FROM THE EDITOR
BY DAV I D J. E I C H E R
Editor David J. Eicher
Art Director LuAnn Williams Belter
EDITORIAL STAFF
The
Senior Editors Michael E. Bakich, Richard Talcott
Production Editor Karri Ferron
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Editorial Associate Valerie Penton
ART STAFF
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John Shibley, Raymond Shubinski
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B
efore last year, a little more on that, you can read many of the community
piece of our knowledge Senior Editor Richard seem to take these images Kalmbach Publishing Co.
of the cosmos was Talcotts story, Rendezvous for granted. President Charles R. Croft
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In the collective his- beginning on p. 44. sense of brand new adven- Vice President, Consumer Marketing Nicole McGuire
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tory of humans studying the Taken simply at a level of ture that quickly? Art and Production Manager Michael Soliday
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the lander shut down, only day, the spacecraft produces exploration left ahead of us BN 12271 3209 RT. Not responsible for unsolicited materials.
waking up again in June as new imagery and data to be to enjoy in many ways and
sunlight generated power. analyzed that uncovers excite us again and again, if
Meanwhile, the Rosetta things never seen before. only for a few months at a
spacecraft is busily stream- I remember back several time! Follow Astronomy
ing data and fresh images all months to the fantastic
the time. Lets set aside the excitement felt by the whole Yours truly,
incredible science we will astronomy community. Now, www.twitter.com/ www.facebook.com/ plus.google.com/
AstronomyMag AstronomyMagazine +astronomymagazine
reap from this mission for just a few months later,
6 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
MOREHEAD STATE UNIVERSITY
FE
LIM
CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY
70%
R
LECTURE TITLES
R 3
off
1. Matter, Energy, and Entropy
OR
2. The Nature of Light and Matter
BE
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D
M 3. A New Theory of Matter
BY S E P T E 4. The Structure of Atoms and Molecules
5. The Stellar Atom-Building Machine
6. The Amazing Periodic Table
7. Ionic versus Covalent Matter
8. The Versatile Element: Carbon
9. The Strange Behavior of Water
10. Matter in Solution
11. Interactions: Adhesion and Cohesion
12. Surface Energy: The Interfaces among Us
13. The Eloquent Chemistry of Carbon Compounds
14. Materials for Body Implants
15. The Chemistry of Food and Drink
16. Fuels and Explosives
17. The Air We Breathe
18. Materials: The Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages
19. Again and Again: Polymers
20. Recycling Materials
21. Resistance Is Futile: Superconductors
22. Resistance Is Useful: Semiconductors
23. Out of Many, One: Composites
SNAPSHOT
Part-time
believers not
needed
Why do so many people believe in a
blend of science and science fiction?
TONY HALLAS (VAN DEN BERGH 142); NASA/CXC/M. WEISS (SPACE-TIME FOAM, FAT BLACK HOLES); LISA ESTEVES/UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO (ALIEN WEATHER)
Ive been fascinated by the landscape
of social media posts lately. Astronomy
enthusiasts are a smart bunch, but even
many of those who are experienced in the
details of the science seem to believe in a
blend of science and science fiction.
Why couldnt we travel across the
galaxy? (Answer: Maybe we could, but
the evidence laws of matter and mass
and relativity and gravitation suggests
it would be difficult, if not impossible,
regardless of technological advances.)
Why cant you travel through black
holes? (Answer: They would shred you
into a string stellar black holes at least
and therefore the whole travel idea
becomes irrelevant.)
This amalgam of science and science
fiction that dominates so many peoples
minds intrigues me. To many, what is
perceived as science is really corrupted by
wishful thinking.
In reality, you either believe in the prin-
ciples of science or you dont. Science is a
long, slowly developing process of discov-
ery that sharpens our knowledge of how
the universe works. You either buy into it
and are a scientific thinker, or you are not.
Science doesnt work with part-time
believers. David J. Eicher The unusual reflection nebula van den Bergh 142 lies within the larger cloud of emission nebulosity IC 1396 in Cepheus.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 9
STRANGEUNIVERSE
BY BOB BERMAN
FROM OUR INBOX
Spooky shadow
I am thankful for Stephen James OMearas May 2015 column
September (p. 14) about the spooky shadow effect. I have seen the effect
many times and have wondered what was the explanation for
it. Beside my bed is a small lamp with a thin black cord. When
eclipse oddities
I lie in bed looking at the cord from approximately 200 milli-
meters away and point at the cord at half that distance, it looks
like when my finger seems to touch the cord, the cord jumps
onto my finger! Its always a pleasure reading OMearas col-
Lets discuss the weird stuff about this lunar event. umn. Bent Pedersen, Stenlille, Denmark
We welcome your comments at Astronomy Letters, P. O. Box 1612,
Waukesha, WI 53187; or email to letters@astronomy.com. Please
I
ts not often that nearly hour. What other object in
include your name, city, state, and country. Letters may be edited for
the whole Western the known universe travels
space and clarity.
Hemisphere sees a total through space at the rate of
lunar eclipse. It wont hap- one diameter per hour? None.
pen again until 2019. Plus, The Moon is the only one. Not
this September 27 event is in weird enough to build a reli- the Moon is still so bright that Pisces above the Moon? Its
prime time; no one has to set gion around, but very cool. our pupils and retinas, and a rare chance to evaluate the
an alarm. Only folks in Alaska When the partial phase also camera sensors, create effect of moonlight gradations
and Hawaii miss totality. has advanced about halfway, the proper exposure to view it on the starry heavens. If youre
Lets focus on the oft- around 9:40 p.m. EDT, casual clearly, thereby underexposing observing from a big city, for-
neglected oddities. observers often think it looks everything else in the vicin- get this project and grab some
The noticeable part of the like the Quarter Moon. This ity. The shadow looks black pizza instead.
eclipse begins at 9:07 p.m. EDT resemblance to something because its seriously under- Now comes totality. It will
when the left side of the Moon seen biweekly detracts from its exposed. But at some late point last for 1 hour, 12 minutes.
first encounters our planets strangeness. But weirdness fully in the partial eclipse, too little During all that time, the top
dark inner shadow, the umbra. returns around 10 p.m. EDT Moon remains. Our visual of the Moon should appear
The next 15 minutes offer a when the Moon once again architecture adapts accordingly, much darker than the bot-
Dali-esque surrealism. The adopts an appearance that increases our sensitivity, and tom. Thats because only
black chunk taken out of the resembles nothing else. This is now reveals the shadows true the Moons northern limb is
Moons edge leaves the remain- a good time to drag children coppery color. near the umbras center, the
ing lunar disk a bizarre shape shadows murkiest part. Non-
that cannot be mistaken for any
normal lunar phase.
NON-CENTRAL TOTALITIES LIKE THIS central totalities like this one
typically create fascinatingly
Even though Earths umbral ONE TYPICALLY CREATE FASCINATINGLY nonuniform colorations. That
shadow tapers like a chopstick NONUNIFORM COLORATIONS. night, narrating such informa-
to only about half its original tion to the intriguing neighbor
size at the Moons distance, out to see something that seems Does this happen at different who recently moved in next
thats still twice as big as our straight out of a dream. times for each person, seeing as door might create admiration
lone natural satellite. So the A wonderful observational retinas are individual? It would that, who knows, could result
large black curve on the Moon project during this hourlong be great, if you have no social in someone falling in love with
is obviously the shadow of a partial stage is to decide when life and plenty of time on your you. Let me know if a wedding
bigger body. It also reveals the black bite taken out of hands, to make note of exactly ever results from this, to aid me
the Moon to be nearby: Our the Moon changes color. Our when the eclipse shadow turns in my ongoing efforts to distin-
shadow never reaches anything planet always casts a reddish from black to red. If you send guish fantasies from real life.
else. Thus the ancient Greeks shadow. Our atmosphere pro- in your report, Ill save it and Finally, for those in the
proclaimed the Moon as the duces a ring of fire all of maybe ultimately create some- westernmost U.S. and Canada,
nearest object in the heavens, Earths combined sunrises and thing that resembles science. the Moon will rise already
smaller than Earth, and that sunsets that surrounds the Also, this event unfolds eclipsed, providing dramatic
our planet itself is a sphere nighttime hemisphere. And yet during the Milky Ways most photographic opportunities
because only a globe always during that first half of the par- prominent display of the year, thanks to foreground objects
casts a round shadow. These tial eclipse, from 9:07 p.m. EDT provided youre at a dark site. in the same frame.
were smart, observant people. until at least 9:45 p.m. EDT, our Well go from a Full Moon This is a good event, riddled
It takes 1 hour, 4 minutes for shadow looks inky black. And night to a moonless one in with curiosities.
the Moon to fully push itself not just to our eyes. Photos a single hour. So, at which
into our shadow. This reveals show the same thing. eclipse stage does the Milky Contact me about
that our satellites orbital speed Whats happening is very Way materialize? When can my strange universe by visiting
http://skymanbob.com.
propels it its own width in an interesting. During this time, you first see the faint stars of
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W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 11
ASTRONEWS EUROPAN SEA SALT. Scientists discovered that dark material lining features on Europas surface could be salt
from the moons underground ocean, baked by radiation from Jupiters strong magnetic field.
VOLCANO WORLD.
This artists depic- BRIEFCASE
tion shows how thick
clouds of material from COSMIC BBQ GIVES HOT START TO LIFE
eruptions on the par- DNA is the backbone of life on Earth. Explaining the dou-
tially molten surface ble helixs origin has consumed careers since James
of 55 Cancri e could Watson and Francis Crick announced it in 1953.
shroud the planet in Researchers from Berkeley Lab and the University of
gas and dust, thus rais- Hawaii looked at its molecular precursors and found cos-
ing its temperature. mic hot spots near dying carbon-rich stars are prime
NASA/JPL-CALTECH/R. HURT (IPAC) places to form these nitrogen-rich molecular rings,
according to an April 20 Astrophysical Journal paper.
HIGH SCHOOL TEAM FINDS
STRANGE PULSAR
Massive stars explode as supernovae when they die, with
RAPID CHANGES ON A SUPER-EARTH some leaving behind pulsars rapidly spinning neutron
stars that shoot radio waves in bright beams. Only a
small number of those sit in binary star systems. And a
N
earby super-Earth 55 Cancri e is a involves massive volcanic eruptions that
teenage team found the widest known orbit of any such
dynamic place not to mention smother the world in gas and dust, block- pulsar so far once every 45 days using data from
inhospitable. This planet twice ing thermal emission from the planet. the Green Bank Telescope. Cecilia McGough from
the radius of Earth and eight times 55 Cancri es surface might be par- Strasburg High School in Virginia and DeShang Ray of
Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Baltimore made
as massive whirls around its star once tially molten anyway, but eruptions the find during a National Science Foundation workshop.
every 18 hours and is tidally locked so that could cause the rapid change in condi- It was published June 1 in The Astrophysical Journal.
one side always faces the broiling sun and
the other the cold of space. In the span
tions astronomers observed with NASAs
Spitzer Space Telescope. Co-author Nikku
HUBBLE PICKS OUT A STAR NAMED NASTY
Its big, bad, and dying fast. Astronomers writing in
of two years, astronomers have seen the Madhusudhan explains, The present Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society say
planets dayside temperature swing from variability is something weve never seen the strange star, called Nasty 1, could be living through a
1,800 to 4,900 F (1,000 to 2,700 C). It anywhere else, so theres no robust con- brief transition phase experienced by massive stars. Nasty
is a Wolf-Rayet star. Its much bigger than our Sun and
marks the first time scientists have been ventional explanation. But thats the fun evolves fast, shedding hydrogen outer layers and reveal-
able to discern such clear variability on in science clues can come from unex- ing a hot, bright helium-burning core. That rapid evolution
an exoplanet. The researchers need more pected quarters. His team submitted their also makes it hard to track its formation. Nasty is unique
analysis before they can be sure of the results to Monthly Notices of the Royal because its surrounded by a pancake-like disk stretching
for trillions of miles. This could indicate Wolf-Rayets form
cause, but their current most likely theory Astronomical Society. Korey Haynes by stealing material from other stars. Eric Betz
NASA/ESA
MERCURY
124 birthdays
VENUS
48 birthdays
MARS
15 birthdays Densest star cluster
(and 39 days until your next one) (and 53 days until your next one) (and 34 days until your next one)
glows in infrared
YOUNG, BRILLIANT, AND HIDDEN. The Arches
Cluster, about 25,000 light-years away toward the Milky
URANUS NEPTUNE Way center, is the densest star cluster in our galaxy. Only
19,727 days until 49,231 days until 2 to 4 million years old and full of massive young stars,
your first birthday your first birthday the region is swamped with gas enriched by earlier
supernova explosions and thick dust that hides the star-
JUPITER SATURN light from visible-light instruments. The Hubble Space
2 birthdays 1 birthday PLUTO Telescopes infrared camera spied through the murk to
(and 2,041 days until (and 10,561 days 79,820 days until take the above image. While the Suns nearest stellar
your next one) until your next one) your first birthday neighbor is just over 4 light-years away, the Arches Cluster
is only 1 light-year across. Yet in that cosmically tiny space,
HOW OLD? Lets say today is your 30th birthday on Earth. How many would you have celebrated on the the Arches packs in thousands of stars, including over 150
other planets? Because Mercury and Venus orbit the Sun faster than Earth, you would have enjoyed more of the brightest stars in the galaxy, up to 100 times the
birthdays on those worlds not as many on the outer planets, however. ASTRONOMY: MICHAEL E. BAKICH AND ROEN KELLY Suns mass, that will die in supernova explosions. K. H.
12 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
ASTRONEWS ANCIENT MAGNETISM. The recently deceased MESSENGER spacecraft used its last days buzzing Mercurys surface
to uncover evidence for the planets magnetic field arising over 3.7 billion years ago.
QUICK TAKES
Curtains of GALACTIC DEATH
NASA/JPL-CALTECH/SSI/PPI
salty seas
DELTAS FRIEND
Variable star Delta Cephei,
Scientists suspect Saturns moon prototype for a well-known
Enceladus has a liquid ocean beneath class of variable stars called
its global shell of ice, with volcanism ICY ERUPTIONS. This simulation shows how curtains of fine icy particles could erupt Cepheids, has a smaller com-
that drives geyser-like eruptions. But from fractures in the surface of Saturns moon Enceladus and appear as distinct jets. panion, undetected for the
new research shows the distinct jets 230 years astronomers have
seen shooting up from the surface jets appear, says the Planetary Other research summarized in May studied its partner.
might have been an optical illusion,
according to scientists on NASAs
Science Institutes Joseph Spitale,
who is lead author on the May 7
by the journal Geochimica et Cosmo-
chimica Acta analyzed the pH of those
SUPERFLARE STARS
Cassini mission team. Instead, their Nature paper. If you rotate your per- plumes and found a salty surprise. A team of Japanese astrono-
evidence indicates curtain eruptions spective around Enceladus south The water packs an ammonia-like mers found Sun-like stars with
occur along massive fractures called pole, such jets would seem to appear alkaline pH around 11 or 12. large sunspots that host
tiger stripes on the moons south and disappear. Whats more, Enceladus oceans superflares, with energies
pole. These eruptions look like jets His group paired Cassini observa- have the same salt content as Earths 1010,000 times greater than
in images because the fractures are tions with computer models of how but hold higher levels of sodium car- the Suns largest flares.
squiggly instead of straight.
The viewing direction plays an
the curtains would appear and found
such eruptions explain most, but not
bonate closer to our planets soda
lakes, including Mono Lake in
FLUFFY GALAXIES
important role in where the phantom all, of the jets observed. California. E. B. Astronomers used the Keck
Observatory in Hawaii to find
fluffy galaxies as big as the
Supernova slams star, helps explain standard candles Milky Way in size but contain-
ing only 1 percent of the stars
in our galaxy.
On May 3, 2014, the intermediate
Palomar Transient Factory (iPTF),
WISE FIND
a robotic observatory, spotted a NASAs WISE telescope discov-
strong ultraviolet light source from ered a new record-setting
the vicinity of a galaxy in the Coma brightest galaxy. Most of the
Cluster 300 million light-years away. brightness is probably due to
Astronomers checked the scopes material lighting up as it falls
observations and confirmed nothing into the galaxys central super-
was there the previous night. Theyd massive black hole.
caught a supernova in action.
For decades, the uniform bright-
ALMA EYES MIRA
ness of type Ia supernovae has earned ALMA saw a massive flare on
these exploding objects an empirical the well-known red giant star
place as standard candles for mea- Mira, which is close enough
suring distances and the speed of cos- for the telescope array to see
mic expansion. And astronomers know surface details.
the process starts when at least one
white dwarf the core of a dead star
10,000 TELESCOPES
explodes in a binary system. But Jean and Ric Edelman donated
beyond that, type Ia origins remain
COURTESY OF DAN KASEN
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 13
FORYOURCONSIDERATION
BY JEFF HESTER
Brains in a box
Pleistocene thinking in a post-Pleistocene world.
Y
our ancestors had to dangerous and painful, and we
ISTOCK.COM/DASEUGEN
do four things well. are born totally helpless. That
They had to eat. is all due to the troublesome
They had to avoid mechanics of squeezing such a
being eaten. They big brain through a pelvis.
had to cope with the elements. So yes, that fancy pattern
Our brains evolved to keep us alive in a time when the law was eat or be eaten. It is up
And they had to reproduce. If recognition engine between our to us to evolve our thinking if we want to survive todays more rapid rate of change.
they had failed at any of those, ears is nice to have. But evolution
you wouldnt be here. favored brains that were abso- Kicking down those walls it not for the fact that we dont
There are lots of ways to tackle lutely no bigger than they needed wasnt easy. It meant redefining live in the Pleistocene anymore.
those challenges. Some species to be. You might say we have our very concept of knowledge. It When faced with a challenge,
went the route of sharp claws and Goldilocks brains. Smart enough, meant replacing comfortable millions of years of evolution
big teeth. Others learned to hide. but not too smart, our brains fit modes of thought with bold cre- scream at us to hold tight to
Still others just bred faster than in a box that was just right for ativity and cold reason. It meant traditional beliefs and behav-
predators could eat. the world where they evolved. following observation and experi- iors. But heeding that cry in
Evolution took humans down If you want to see one of the ment where they led, regardless of todays world could be our
a different path; were smart, walls of that box, look at the whether we liked the destination. downfall. Modern humans see
and we work together. Evolution boundary between classical and Humans will never grasp elec- more change in a month than
provided us with curiosity, tool- modern physics. Were naturals trons or the Big Bang in the same our ancestors saw in many life-
using intelligence, adaptability, at throwing and catching a base- visceral way we grasp notions times. Fighting a rearguard
and the capacity for language ball, but get anywhere near the like day or rock, but intellec- action against an inexorable tide
and culture. As our brains got speed of light, and things get tually we got there! And when we of changing social, economic,
bigger and more complex, we seriously counterintuitive. Try to did, it changed the world. and technical realities is a path-
fared very well, indeed. think about elementary particles, The difference between billiard way to irrelevance or worse.
Now we are on top of the and its even worse. As Niels balls and quarks is hardly the only The stakes are high. Today
heap. Hallelujah! We won! Bohr famously said, Anyone place we run up against the limi- our species shares a globally
Well, sort of. Big brains are who is not shocked by quantum tations of our programming. For connected and interdependent
great for thinking, but they have theory has not understood it! most of our evolutionary history, planet. Huddling with our tribe
some serious evolutionary down- Relativity and quantum physics generation after generation faced and snarling at the shadows
sides. For one thing, that 3-pound are hard to think about for a very the same basic challenges. So if might scare off a lion hiding in
(1.4 kilograms) tangle of neurons straightforward reason. Thinking your ancestors solutions worked the bushes, but threats like over-
inside your skull is expensive to like that didnt help your great- for them, there was a pretty good population, global warming, or
feed! While making up only a few many-times-removed grandpar- chance they would work for you the ecosystems destruction
percent of your body mass, your ents find their next meal! too. Your tribes very existence dont frighten so easily.
brain uses something like 20 per- Yet we have broken outside was recommendation enough for The human brain came
cent of the calories you burn. that box. We know about cos- its way of doing things. of age inside a box. It also
Physical size is another prob- mology and curved space-time. In that world, it paid to be evolved the ability to break out
lem. Human childbirth is both We know about wave functions. conservative because conserva- of that box when it needed to.
tive worked. Questioning the Weve done it before. But tak-
status quo truly was dangerous. ing control of our own drives
FROM OUR INBOX Better can be the enemy of
good enough, and while think-
and instincts cuts a lot closer
to the bone than rethinking
Leave God out ing was great, try to be too clever, Newtonian physics.
I enjoyed your coverage of the Starmus Festival in the May 2015 and you might not survive to Our fate is in our hands.
issue (p. 54) of Astronomy. I agree with Editor David J. Eichers become anybodys ancestor! Time will tell if we are up to
concern about the general lack of public support for science. So evolution added to the box the challenge.
Unfortunately, the quote from Stephen Hawking, there is no around our brains. Its difficult to
god, was unhelpful, and it would probably have been better break free of tradition, group- Jeff Hester is a keynote speaker,
if Hawkings personal religious views were omitted from the think, conformity, and tribalism coach, and astrophysicist.
article. Warren Morrison, Cavan, Ontario because they are hard-wired in. Follow his thoughts at
jeff-hester.com.
Which is all well and good, were
14 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
FOCUS ON
The Werner Schmidt Observatory
South Yarmouth, MA
The observatory located on the grounds of the Dennis-Yarmouth
Regional High School is the only public observatory on Cape Cod. It
has generated interest in astronomy. The project was funded by the
Cape Cod Astronomical Foundation and built by the Cape Cod
Regional Technical High School students. The building was designed
to provide people with disabilities access via a CCD camera and
monitor screen. It has been a welcome addition
TwiLight I
to the educational community.
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W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 15
ASTRONEWS SINISTER MATTER. Scientists discovered a left-handed twisting magnetic field that could explain why most of the
universe today comprises left-handed normal matter instead of right-handed antimatter.
THE FUTURE
OF HAWAIIAN
ASTRONOMY This year has seen a storm of protests over
the upcoming $1.4 billion Thirty Meter
Telescope (TMT) construction near the
summit of Hawaiis Mauna Kea. The Big
Islands central peak is the premier observ-
ing location in the Northern Hemisphere
perhaps in the world and is also
CONTESTED LAND. Protests over land use on Mauna Kea in Hawaii came to a head this spring when con-
deeply connected to Native Hawaiian cul- struction officially started on the Thirty Meter Telescope. The telescope will move forward as planned, but it will
ture and traditions. Since the University of be the last new site cleared on the mountains summit. TMT INTERNATIONAL OBSERVATORY
Hawaiis 2.2-meter telescope saw first light
there in 1970, Mauna Kea has amassed 13 At the end of March, they blocked con- of TMT, and no new footprints can be
telescopes owned by research institutions struction access to Mauna Keas summit, established, meaning all future telescopes
from around the globe with science span- resulting in dozens of arrests and prompt- must be built on pre-existing sites. An older
ning the radio to optical wavelengths. ing Hawaiis governor, David Ige, to issue plan set in 2010 also outlined this goal, but
The sites dark skies and clear weather a construction moratorium April 7 while the university will make it legally binding.
are unparalleled for astronomical use, the groups involved the state of Hawaii, The first telescope to cease operations will
but many Native Hawaiians and conser- the TMT Observatory Corporation, the be the California Institute of Technologys
vationists argue that the mountain peak University of Hawaii (who manages the Submillimeter Observatory, effective this
has surpassing importance as a cultural land), Hawaiian cultural groups, and others month. The University of Hawaii promised
and natural site that insensitive scientific searched for an agreeable resolution. to complete a plan for the additional obser-
activities and especially the latest round On May 26, Ige announced a compro- vatories to be closed by the end of the year.
of construction are destroying. Hawaiians mise: Construction on TMT would resume, In his statement, Ige explicitly upheld
opposing what they see as further desecra- but 25 percent of the telescopes currently TMTs legal adherence (including comple-
tion of sacred land have protested TMTs on the mountain (all of which are active) tion of an environmental impact study) and
placement since its site selection. must be dismantled before the completion right to proceed but also acknowledged that
in many ways, we have failed the moun-
tain. The state of Hawaii leases the land
Hubble spots migrating white dwarfs under and around the telescopes known
as the Mauna Kea Science Reserve to
LATER MASS LOSS. Using
the Hubble Space Telescope to the University of Hawaii, who manages its
study globular cluster 47 Tucanae use and is tasked with stewardship of the
in ultraviolet light, astronomers mountain. In light of concerns over this
for the first time have captured
snapshots of the 40-million-year stewardship, when the universitys lease
migration of stellar remnant white expires in 2033, more than 40 of the 45 acres
dwarfs (visible as tiny bright blue that constitutes the reserve will return to the
specks in this image) from the
core of the dense star cluster to
Department of Land and Natural Resources
its outskirts as they slowly lose (DLNR). The DLNR also will extend the
mass. The surprise came when the lease (for the land immediately under the
study, whose results appeared in observatory facilities) for substantially less
the May 1 issue of The Astrophysical
than the original 65-year term.
NASA/ESA/H. RICHER AND J. HEYL (UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA)
16 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
ASTRONEWS TINY STAR, BIG PLANET. Scientists, with the help of an amateur observer, discovered
a puffy Saturn-mass planet orbiting close to its tiny, cool star, HATS-6.
Temperature (kelvins)
ESA/HUBBLE/L. CALADA (ESO)
620
Quiet Sun
580 Active Sun
300
are not pristine bod-
spark powerful jets
Altitude (kilometers)
40
Cumulonimbus clouds Weather
balloon STRATOSPHERE
billion
years old
all galaxies with jets showed signs
of recent collisions.
This implies that mergers are
20 Airplane contrails Cirrus clouds
TROPOSPHERE
only one of multiple requirements
for forming these high-powered
Age of the most streams of material. The team Objects not to scale
distant galaxy as plans to use ALMA to expand the
measured by the survey and hunt for these addi- THE SPACE BEFORE SPACE. Theres a lot going on between Earths surface and the
Keck I Telescope in tional causes in the future. Their Krmn line the boundary of our atmosphere and outer space. And while those heights can
study was published June 20 in seem vast to a stargazer, even the International Space Stations height is roughly equivalent to
Hawaii. The Astrophysical Journal. K. H. the distance between New York City and Boston. ASTRONOMY: ERIC BETZ, ROEN KELLY, AND JAY SMITH
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 17
SECRETSKY
BY STEPHEN JAMES OMEARA
Rainy eclipse During the eclipse, an aureole the innermost ring of the images corona appeared
off-center. These pictures show a large asymmetrical aureole around a roughly 60 per-
cent eclipsed Sun (left) and a small asymmetrical corona around a roughly 40 percent
The author reflects on an eclipse in a puddle.
waxing crescent Moon. ALL PHOTOS: STEPHEN JAMES OMEARA
EDITORS NOTE: Because this column recounts an observation of the cloud acted as a natural filter
Sun without a filter, we sought the opinion of B. Ralph Chou, profes- (absorbing and scattering light),
sor emeritus of the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the reducing the Suns brilliance by
University of Waterloo, one of the foremost researchers in the field of some 50-fold and making the
eye safety. In his reply, he said, The technique of observing the Sun by eclipse comfortable to observe
its reflection off water dates back several thousand years. It is quite safe without optical aid.
because the reflection in the visible spectrum is of much lower intensity As I watched the Moons dark
and the reflected flux of ultraviolet and infrared radiation is extremely silhouette sink its teeth into the
small and therefore of no concern. Although the Suns image is bright, it solar surface, I noticed it had an
is not hazardous for the brief observing times that the author used. irregular shape. This distortion is
common to reflections tilted to
I
almost made it to the used because I happily shared it the plane of sight. Imperfections When the author viewed the reflected
image of the partially eclipsed Sun, he
remote Norwegian island of with hotel staff and guests who in the waters surface distorted noted its irregular shape and several
Svalbard on March 19, 2015, were thrilled to watch as the the event, which I found fascinat- other effects.
to view the next days total Moon covered 86 percent of the ing. The minute undulations,
eclipse of the Sun. But a tight Sun at maximum. At one point, some barely visible, acted like been the other way around. It
connection, last flight, and other I happened to look down at my another layer of tilted mirrors took but a moment for me to
logistical nightmares ended my feet and into a puddle where I creating all manner of optical realize that this was an illusion
travels that day. So, I settled into saw the eclipsed Sun, naturally effects, including crescents and created by a crescent-shaped
a hotel in Oslo, where I awoke filtered by the water, sur- other shapes in a glitter path and, cloud edge, almost concentric
on eclipse morning to a gray sky rounded by a glowing corona at times, a crisp polygonal edge with the Sun, which obscured
and lots of drizzle. (an atmospheric one). to the Moons silhouette. the greater half of the aureole.
As the time of first contact The effect recalled a tele-
neared, however, breaks in the A ripple effect Muddle in a puddle scopic observation of the Skull
weather allowed glimpses of the The puddle acted like a mirror, The puddle view also revealed Nebula (NGC 246), a planetary
Sun. So outside I went, armed reflecting the image to my eyes. a beautiful aureole the nebula in Cetus. It has a cen-
with a camera and a solar filter The dark asphalt background innermost ring of the colorful tral star that appears off-center
the latter of which I seldom combined with the thinning atmospheric corona. It consisted because the nebulas eastern
of a pale blue inner region (indi- rim is exceedingly faint and
cating scattering of blue light by fully one-quarter of the shell is
COSMIC WORLD tiny water droplets in the cloud) all but invisible through small
NO SCIENTISTS (NASA); WHAT WARP DRIVE? (SPR, LTD); ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY (DIY DETECTOR); BUOYANT BARISTA (ISA)
18 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
ASTRONEWS BALANCING ACT. Rosetta has seen a 100-foot-wide (30 meters) boul-
der on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko balancing on a narrow rim.
z
Dt
Andromeda gets a lot bigger h
,W
HUGE HALO. Hubble
viewed distant, bright dW
objects called quasars to
determine the extent of dD
the Andromeda Galaxys
halo. If they saw a dip in
the quasars light at cer-
tain wavelengths, they
Invites
could tell they were peer-
~2 million light-years Astro-photographers
ing through the fuzz of
the halo. NASA/ESA/A. FEILD (STSCI) and Astro-Tourists to the
Worlds First Astronomy Resort
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 19
ASTROCONFIDENTIAL
ASTRONEWS BY K ARRI FERRON
Nanoflares are spontaneous solar heating
bursts that each reach some 18 million
degrees F (10 million degrees C).
FAST
FACT
ASTRONEWS EATING HABITS. Astronomers read galaxy NGC 1512s past eating habits in the processed clumps of gas scattered
across its face, material that it must have absorbed from other smaller galaxies.
20 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
ASTRONEWS SPACE CIRCLES. Astronomers found small exoplanets have mostly cir-
cular orbits, in contrast to the eccentric paths of many larger exoplanets. Telescopes.net
APOGEE IMAGING ASA ATIK CANON CELESTRON CORONADO EXPLORE SCIENTIFIC FARPOINT FLI JMI KENDRICK LUMENERA LUMICON MEADE MOONLITE
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Scientists For the
best prices and
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globular contact:
cluster
surprises
Globular cluster science got
even more exciting and
strange this spring as
scientists revealed in The
Astrophysical Journal the dis-
covery of a possible precursor
to such a conglomeration of
stars as well as a few outli- CLUSTER FORMATION FIRST.
ers from what we thought Using ALMA, scientists studied
we understood about these various molecular clouds in the
objects. Most globular clusters Antennae galaxies and found one
observed today, including the incredibly massive and dense
150 known in the Milky Way, example (bottom image) that likely
formed some 12 billion years will become a globular cluster.
ago, so newborn finds are rare HUBBLE (NASA/ESA)/B. WHITMORE (STSCI); K. JOHNSON
(UVA); ALMA (NRAO/ESO/NAOJ)
Daniel Dr. D Mounsey
and the environments that
would create such dense stel-
lar clusters have never been the most ancient and extreme dark globular clusters contain
seen until now. Using the modes of star formation in the far more mass than their bright-
Atacama Large Millimeter/ universe, says Kelsey Johnson nesses indicated they should.
submillimeter Array (ALMA), of the University of Virginia in The team, led by Matt Taylor, a
scientists have discovered a Charlottesville and lead author Ph.D. student at the Pontifical
star-free cloud containing 50 of the June 10 paper on the Catholic University of Chile in
million times the mass of the protocluster. Santiago, mentions various
Sun in molecular gas in the Meanwhile, scientists using possibilities for the extra mass
merging Antennae galaxies. the Very Large Telescope to sur- in their May 20 paper, including
They believe this environment vey 125 globular clusters in the intermediate black holes and
is sufficiently dense to survive giant galaxy Centaurus A found dark matter, but they conclude
the forces that will try to pull a group of outliers that dont that right now these objects
the developing cluster apart. fit the brightness-to-mass ratio are a mystery that will require
We may be witnessing one of typical of these objects. These further study. K. F.
Altair
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tur
to Veg
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Antares Nearest ISOLATION CHAMBER. The magnitude 1.16 star 5348 Topanga Canyon Blvd.
39.12 to Alpha Centauri neighbor Fomalhaut often goes by the moniker The Solitary
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One because no other bright star lies in its vicin- Woodland Hills, CA 91364
Fomalhaut herna ity. But is this denizen of Piscis Austrinus the most
39.11 to Ac
isolated of the skys luminaries? Not quite. A look at
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llu the closest neighbors for all of the night skys bright- Mon-Sat: 9am-6pm (PST)
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ASTRONOMY: RICHARD TALCOTT AND ROEN KELLY
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 21
OBSERVINGBASICS
BY GLENN CHAPLE
27
N
astronomers call an X-ray
binary. The systems official
designation is Cygnus X-1
(the brightest source of X-rays
found in Cygnus). While the
Cygnus X-1 d
CYGNUS
traditional stellar-mass black
hole is the product of a super-
nova explosion/implosion, the
Cygnus X-1 black hole seems
V
isual wow its true nature. The aware- The relatively nearby black hole Cygnus material from the supergiant
objects those ness that the hazy oval blob in X-1 has a 9th-magnitude blue super- continues to be gravitationally
giant companion that shines brightly
telescopic show- Andromeda is the combined enough to show up through backyard drawn to the black hole. These
pieces that awe and light from hundreds of billions telescopes. ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY gases spiral inward, forming a
amaze even the most of unresolved stars in an enor- whirlpool called an accretion
uninitiated observer are rare mous galaxy 15 million trillion If youre unsure where east is disk. The closer the gases get
indeed. You can expect guests miles away (a much more jaw- in the eyepiece field, just center to the black hole, the more rap-
at a public star party to gasp dropping figure than the stan- Eta in the field, turn off the idly they spin. Near the event
at the sight of lunar craters, dard 2.5 million light-years) drive if the scope has one, and horizon (the outer edge of the
Saturns rings, or a splashy star evokes an intellectual wow! wait. The stars will follow Eta black hole), they whirl around
cluster. Unfortunately, the vast This month, well take a tele- across the field. The brighter at 60 percent the speed of light!
majority of cosmic bodies show scopic voyage to HDE 226868. member of the pair is HDE Temperatures here reach many
up in the eyepiece as either tiny The name is impressive, but 226868 (entry 226868 in the millions of degrees, and mas-
specks (stars, including novae does it pack a visual or an intel- Henry Draper Extended star sive quantities of X-ray radia-
and supernovae; asteroids; lectual wow!? To find out, go catalog produced by Harvard tion are released.
quasars) or faint fuzzies (galax- outside and train your telescope College in the late 1920s and Now that you know that
ies, nebulae, unresolved star on the 4th-magnitude star early 1930s). A 9th-magnitude HDE 226868/Cygnus X-1 is
clusters). Turn your telescope Eta () Cygni. The StarDome star, its definitely not a visual far more than an insignificant
toward the Andromeda Galaxy map at the center of the maga- wow. But HDE 226868 has an dot, take another look this
(M31), one of the 10 wonders zine shows its location about invisible companion, and thats time with your mind. Picture a
of the night sky, and a novice midway between Beta () and where the wow comes in. gigantic blue-white star locked
viewer might wonder if their Gamma () Cygni. Scanning Our story begins in 1964 in the gravitational embrace of
breath fogged up the eyepiece. the area around Eta with a low- when a pair of Aerobee rockets a black hole, material from its
To be wowed at the sight of power eyepiece, youll notice a launched from White Sands surface being stripped away and
a mere stellar speck or fuzzy pair of faint stars less than 0.5 Missile Range in New Mexico dragged into a swirling mael-
patch, we need to understand to its east-northeast. detected a powerful X-ray source strom and ultimate oblivion.
in Cygnus, which was eventu- Cygnus X-1 is a cerebral wow
ally pinpointed to HDE 226868. if there ever was one!
FROM OUR INBOX Scientists already had identified
this star as a blue supergiant
The next time you look into
the eyepiece and see a stellar
Nothing strange about this with a mass some 20 times that speck in the middle of the field,
I have enjoyed Astronomy magazine for quite some time. The of the Sun. Even a cosmic beast pause to imagine what youre
first article that I look for and read is Bob Bermans Strange of these proportions couldnt looking at. It might be an X-ray
Universe. I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed Bobs story release the quantity of X-rays binary like Cygnus X-1 or a
The nature of empty space in the June 2015 issue (p. 30). detected. Besides, the nature of distant supergiant star in its
Thanks, Bob. And thank you Astronomy for giving Berman the X-rays indicated a source death throes, soon to explode
some space about space. John Gardner, Newnan, Georgia that was exceptionally small. as a nova or supernova. Then
Where were they coming from? again, it could be a star similar
Composer, too! In 1971, observations to the Sun a mere dot until
This is just a footnote to Ralph Wilkins fine article on the showed that HDE 226868 has you realize that it may harbor a
Herschel Museum in the May 2015 issue (p. 62). While it is a close companion with a mass system of planets, one of which
widely appreciated that in addition to his many other talents, about 15 times that of the Sun. may be teeming with life. In
Herschel was a gifted musician, its less well known that he was The source had been found! the night sky, everything is a
also a very accomplished composer. He wrote no fewer than What could be incredibly mas- wow object.
24 symphonies, a dozen concertos, several sonatas, and other sive, incredibly small, and give Questions, comments,
works. While not as popular or complex as those of his contem- off a boatload of X-rays? A or suggestions? Email me at
poraries, including Mozart and Hayden, his symphonies are black hole! gchaple@hotmail.com. Next
nonetheless melodious and original. Klaus Brasch, Flagstaff, Arizona HDE 226868 and its invis- month: When is bright not so
ible companion are what bright? Clear skies!
22 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
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W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 23
Starmus will honor
Stephen Hawking
in 2016
Next summer, the science festival
will revolve around the life of the
renowned theoretical physicist.
A
t a press conference in in London. The third Starmus The festival will again include
April, a distinguished Festival will take place June 27 a Sonic Universe Concert featur-
group announced that July 2, 2016, in Tenerife, Canary ing legendary rock stars who
next years Starmus Islands, Spain, the same loca- also are interested and involved
Festival will honor tion as the first two events. with science. In addition to
the life and times of theoretical Among the big-name speak- May, Starmus participants and
physicist Stephen Hawking. The ers at Starmus III, in addition board members have included
event will gather the greatest to Hawking, Israelian, and the great keyboardist Rick
minds in astronomy and related May, will be 10 Nobel Prize Wakeman, famous for his solo
sciences, music, and the arts for winners, including chemists work and for his time in the
a memorable weeklong celebra- Harry Kroto and Eric Betzig; group Yes, and Peter Gabriel,
tion. The theme will be Beyond physicists Robert Wilson, Adam celebrated for his work with
the Horizon: Tribute to Stephen Riess, and Brian Schmidt; and Genesis and his long solo career.
Hawking. Astronomy magazine biologists Carol Greider and Starmus III will take place
will proudly again be the prima- Elizabeth Blackburn. Also mostly in Tenerife but also on Garik Israelian, the founder and director
of the Starmus Festival, is an astrono-
ry media partner for Starmus. speaking will be astronauts La Palma, at the worlds largest mer at the Institute for Astrophysics on
Starmus founder and direc- including American Rusty optical telescope, the 10.4-meter Tenerife. MAX ALEXANDER/STARMUS
tor Garik Israelian, astrophysi- Schweickart and Canadian Gran Telescopio Canarias. It
cist and Queen guitarist Brian Chris Hadfield, as well as also will feature a Mount Teide will have its own soundtrack
May, and Stephen Hawking astronomers Kip Thorne, Lord star party under some of the performed by the progressive
revealed the theme and date at Martin Rees, Neil deGrasse greatest, darkest skies on Earth rock band Nosound.
the Royal Astronomical Society Tyson, and Neil Turok. that, as with the second festival, More speakers will be
announced as plans develop.
Starmus also will feature an
astrophotography contest and
an astrophoto school.
For more information on
the 2016 Starmus Festival, see
www.starmus.com.
Astronomy magazine and
our website, Astronomy.com,
will carry updated information
frequently as plans develop.
24 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
JOIN ASTRONOMY MAGAZINES
AURORA ADVENTURE
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6 nights of dark-sky aurora viewing Lectures and night sky viewing
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the MS Nordnorge Guided tours by local experts
3 days exploring past and present Sami culture And much more!
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W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 25
Whats new at Astronomy.com.
WEBTALK BY KARRI FERRON
REGISTER TODAY! Go to www.Astronomy.com/register
for access to bonus articles, photos, videos, and more.
26 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
Exclusive podcasts from Astronomy magazine
Superstars Insights from sciences
greatest minds
of
Astronomy Hear what the top names in astrophysics, planetary
science, cosmology, and planetary defense have to say
about the hottest topics in astronomy today
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 27
Bursting the bubbles
Multiverses
SCIENCE
OR
SCIENCE FICTION?
Bob Berman explores the
strange ideas that drive theorists
to believe in parallel universes.
T
ighten your seat belt. This odyssey takes us beyond
our universe to a realm of parallel dimensions. We
will not just explore todays popular multiverses
theories that suggest ours is one marble in an infinite
bag; well see why some physicists regard them as a
threat to science.
Few scientists would dispute that theres lots of stuff over
the cosmic horizon, beyond what we can ever see. Light from the
farthest visible objects traveled for more than 13 billion years, from
galaxies currently located some 40 billion light-years away. Theres
no reason for galaxies to simply stop existing at this visible bound-
ary. Moreover, the strong evidence that space is flat on large scales
means that the vast bulk of the universe must lie over the horizon,
beyond where objects recede at light-speed. In fact, many cosmolo-
gists think the overarching universe may be infinite in size and thus
ALL ILLUSTRATIONS: ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY; ASTRONOMY: WILLIAM ZUBACK (CHILD)
28 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
OUR COSMIC HISTORY
380,000 years
100 seconds
BEGINNING 1032 second 1 second
OF THE
UNIVERSE
INFLATION
Our universe sees an LIGHT AND
MATTER FORMS LIGHT AND MATTER
accelerated expansion. ARE COUPLED LIGHT AND MATTER
Dark matter clumps and forms a SEPARATE
cosmic web structure. Protons and electrons form atoms.
Light travels freely to become the
cosmic microwave background.
30 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
13.8 billion years
Billions of years
300500 million years
String discord
A different multiverse involves string theory. Originally, STRING THEORY AND THE
theorists postulated tiny strings along with many hypoth-
esized extra dimensions as a hopeful way to explain the
MANY WORLDS INTERPRETATION
Three Four
four fundamental forces gravity, electromagnetism, Two dimensions dimensions
and the strong and weak interactions and the standard dimensions
model of particle physics. One
dimension
It has not succeeded. Beyond the utter lack of evi-
dence for extra dimensions, it does not predict our uni- Ti m e
verse, nor can it explain the accelerating expansion of
You
the cosmos discovered in 1998. So its increasingly
You
viewed as a failed theory. But it does predict 10500 dif- You
ferent ways reality can materialize. This itself is vague to
the point of useless. You
You
A very different multiverse is based on quantum theo-
rys many worlds interpretation (MWI). You
Weve known for over 80 years that the act of observa-
You You
tion can alter experimental results. But why? Moreover,
why does an electron, when it comes to a fork in the road, You
go one way and not the other?
The MWI, a mainstream if minority interpretation of You
reality, claims that every choice in nature creates a sepa- You
rate universe that then breaks off from the others and You
continues on. If you turn left at an intersection instead of
You
turning right, another you materializes who does indeed
You
turn right. An entire new universe continues with that
reality permanently enshrined. You are never aware of any
You
other universe but the one you know, and the same is true
of all the other yous that made other choices.
Separate universes even sprout up when a leaf falls here
and not there, a few inches away. Many worlds multi-
verses thus keep increasing their numbers wildly.
You
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 31
PERFECT EQUATION dental fillings. No, there are infinite duplicate yous. There
MATH MODEL also must be an endless army of yous with one opposite
personality trait. None of them would ever leave a dirty
glass in the sink.
Doesnt smell right? Happily, theres been a recent anti-
Other universes infinity trend among physicists. Last year, a prominent
pair of theorists, mathematician George Ellis and physicist
Strong Joseph Silk, wrote an editorial in the journal Nature
nuclear Weak
force nuclear Electromagnetic encouraging cosmologists to heed the warnings of math-
force Gravity force ematician David Hilbert, who died in 1943. Although
Our
+ + + = universe You infinity is needed in mathematics, it occurs nowhere in the
physical universe, the pair opined.
In any case, internal mathematical consistency is not
enough to adequately support a multiverse theory, whether
Math makes it real it involves strings, inflation, or hypothesized higher-
Then you have the mathematical universe hypothesis, also dimensional colliding membranes that could smack our
called the ultimate ensemble. This multiverse contains universe into another. Thats because math can diverge
everything that is mathematically possible. Its cham- from physical reality, as Zeno showed in 450 b.c. with his
pioned by those, like Tegmark, who think mathematics famous Achilles and the tortoise thought experiment.
is the basic reality of the cosmos as opposed to being a But multiverse hypotheses generate deep objections that
human conceptual tool. This view says that everything go beyond their underlying math. Critics say they are non-
that can happen mathematically does happen in its own falsifiable and thus indistinguishable from philosophy and
separate universe. no more useful than saying, God did it. Last December,
The anthropic principle provides more multiverse Ellis and Silk wrote, The imprimatur of science should be
rationales. This is the theory that while our universe is awarded only to a theory that is testable.
simple in many ways, it contains dozens of physical con-
stants whose values are Goldilocks-perfect for life to exist.
If the fine-structure constant that governs the strength of INFLATION
the electromagnetic force was barely different, or the
power of the strong force or the strength of gravity were
THEORY
slightly tweaked, there could be no atoms, no stars, and no
chance for life. Ours is a universe so precisely fine-tuned
for life, science must ask why.
32 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
Science is useful insofar as it explains and predicts In a Newsweek cover story in 2012, Columbia
why things are the way they are and not some other way, University cosmologist Brian Greene wrote: Evidence for
he wrote. A Theory of Anything is useless because it the multiverse might come from potential collisions
does not rule out any possibility and worthless because it between our expanding universe and its neighbors. Such a
submits to no do-or-die tests. cosmic fender bender would generate an additional pat-
Still, parallel universes are such a sci-fi staple, theyre tern of temperature variations in the microwave back-
more familiar to the public than most other aspects of ground radiation [the remnant radiation of the Big Bang]
theoretical physics and astronomy. TV science specials that sophisticated telescopes might one day detect. Many
remain in love with the multiverse idea and usually let its consider this the most promising possibility for finding
champions make on-screen claims of putative evidence. evidence in support of the multiverse. That there are ways,
In 2014, the most convincing ever astrophysical sup- long shots to be sure, to test the multiverse proposal
port emerged for the multiverse and made front pages reflects its origin in careful mathematical analysis.
around the world. Nevertheless, because the proposal is unquestionably ten-
tative, we must approach it with healthy skepticism and
Evidence clouded invoke its explanatory framework judiciously.
It was a South Pole experiment called BICEP2. Yet dra- Tegmark agrees: Parallel universes are not a theory,
matically and amazingly, within a few short months, the but [theyre] predictions of certain theories which are
find was discredited. Turned out, it wasnt the experiment arguably testable, for example cosmological inflation. This
but the interpretation that proved faulty. Globally head- is why theyre discussed not only in science fiction, but
lined as the first-ever verification of gravity waves that are increasingly also at science conferences.
the supposed signature of inflation the wild expansion
of the newborn universe the observations Not even wrong?
are now thought to be at least most- Its noteworthy that highly cre-
ly, if not completely, due to the dentialed individuals still
existence of cosmic dust use equivocal language
particles in our Milky as they describe even
Way Galaxy. the most plausible
Before the BICEP2 multiverse models
results were discred- out there. Evidence
ited, they were cited by might one day be
some multiverse cheer- ES
A
AN
detected for certain
DT
leaders as support for the HE
PL A
theories which are argu-
N CK
chaotic inflation model, CO L
L ABO
R AT I O N
ably testable?
which was in turn offered as evi- Is such fuzziness good enough to
dence for parallel universes. Critics howled qualify as science?
at what they characterized as chains of unwarranted Given the current multiverse infatuation, it may be
assumptions. Some continue to ask why the multiverse fairest to give the last word to a prominent skeptic.
idea always seems exempt from sciences normally strict Columbia University mathematical physicist Peter Woit,
standards and is allowed to tiptoe along the shorelines of who maintains the popular multiverse-critical blog Not
mere conjecture. Even Wrong, pulls no punches.
Actually, as long as speculative cosmological models Physicists had huge success in coming up with power-
are allowed into the party, its also possible that reality lies ful compelling fundamental theories during the 20th cen-
in the opposite direction from the multiverse. Were talk- tury, he explains, but the last 40 years or so have been
ing about the notion that even our own cosmos is simple difficult, with little progress. Unfortunately, some promi-
rather than multifarious. nent theorists have now basically given up and decided to
Ancient Greek thinkers like Parmenides and Zeno take an easy way out. The multiverse is invoked as an all-
were among the first to argue that the cosmos (or Being) purpose, untestable excuse. They allow theoretical ideas
is a single undifferentiated entity. By this account, there like string theory that have turned out to be empty and
are no separate events happening around us. Rather, the consistent with anything to be kept alive instead of aban-
cosmos is a single event. This view of fundamental one- doned. Its a depressing possibility that this is where phys-
ness, which has some modern quantum support, has ics ends up. But I still hope this is a fad that will soon die
appeared in nearly all cultures through the centuries and out. Finding a better, deeper understanding of the laws of
is antithetical to multiverses. physics is incredibly challenging, but its within our capa-
The bottom line seems to be that while multiverse is bility as humans, as long as the effort is not overwhelmed
mind-stretching and certainly possible, it may be pointless by those selling a non-answer to the problem.
and even counterproductive as an explanation for our vis- Whoa, intense. Weve got to toss the multiverse if we
ible universes properties. Meanwhile, debate rages over care about physics!
whether any observation could ever disprove multiverse Of course, if an infinite multiverse does exist, some
models which pushes them outside the realm of science. other Woit is out there saying the exact opposite.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 33
ASKASTR0 Astronomys experts from around the globe answer your cosmic questions.
MOON
A: Mars moons are easily vis- the Sun during the daytime Q: WHAT EXACTLY IS A it difficult for a moons moon
ible at night from the surface in an annular or even a partial DEGREE IN TERMS OF THE to find a stable orbit.
of the Red Planet. Phobos solar eclipse. DISTANCE BETWEEN STARS? In 2008, some scientists
the nearer, larger, and brighter Deimos appears much Stephanie Johnson claimed that an electromag-
of the two would be obvi- smaller but is easily visible and Maple Grove, Minnesota netic detector on board the
ously non-round. A sharp-eyed brighter than any star in the Cassini spacecraft had found
observer would be able to make martian sky at night. It is a A: A measurement in degrees rings around Saturns moon
out the moons largest craters little outside the areostationary has nothing to do with the true Rhea. This claim did not hold
and see the jaggedness of its orbit it goes around Mars distances between celestial up when the larger community
terminator the dividing line almost as fast as the planet objects. When we talk about carefully checked it out, but
between light and dark. Pho- spins. So it is visible for a cou- apparent distances or sizes, how- some astronomers still believe
bos rises in the west and sets in ple nights, then gone for a few ever, degrees do come into play. that markings around Rheas
the east in the span of around nights, and then back. During Heres an example: The equator are the remnants of
four hours a couple times each the night, the stars move past Moons true diameter is 2,159 an ancient ring that fell onto
martian day and is up at some it, but it does rise in the east miles (3,474 kilometers). But the surface.
time each night. It also notice- and set in the west. Eclipses the width that we see of the Iapetus, another moon of
ably changes phase between involving Deimos are rare but Full Moon its apparent Saturn, is best known for its
rising and setting. From the do occur near the solstices. diameter is . Thats how highly contrasting bright and
Curiosity rovers point of view, During dust storms, the much of an angle it subtends at dark hemispheres. But it has
on some evenings Phobos rises rising and setting of the moons its distance from us. To prove several other mysterious char-
out of the slowly fading blue- would be lost in the murk, theres no connection between acteristics, including a bulging
gray twilight in crescent phase, but they still would be visible true and apparent diameter, shape that indicates it once
transits as a quarter moon, and when they are high in the sky lets imagine that we can dou- spun much faster than it does
sets as a gibbous moon. Near at night. Out of dust storms, ble the Moons distance from now as well as an equatorial
fall or spring equinox, it goes Phobos is sometimes visible Earth. Its apparent size would mountain range. Some scien-
into eclipse before becoming in daylight, high in the early shrink to from our vantage tists have proposed a model
full. Near the start or end of morning or late afternoon sky. point, but its true diameter involving an ancient moon
totality, Phobos would remain Mark Lemmon would remain unchanged. around this moon, which might
faintly visible. And on a few Texas A&M University Michael E. Bakich have produced both features as
days each year, it also transits College Station Senior Editor it spun inward toward Iapetus
and then broke up into a ring.
It is actually impossible in
Moving the Moon Q: CAN A MOON HAVE ITS most cases for a moon around
OWN MOON? a moon to be stable in the
Garvin McDaniels long term because nearly all
Benton, Kansas moons rotate once per orbit so
they always keep the same face
Moons distance from Earth A: Yes, it is possible for a moon toward their planet (Earths
to itself have moons and/or Moon is the best-known exam-
Twice the Earth-Moon distance
rings, and there are a few ple). Such a slow rotation rate
places where scientists have means that any moon-orbiting
Degrees of sky are irrelevant to true distance between stars. If the Moons suggested that this is (or was) object would orbit faster than
distance from Earth doubled, its apparent size would shrink by half, even the case. However, moons tend the moon rotates, which would
though its physical diameter would remain unchanged. ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY to rotate slowly, and this makes cause the moon-orbiting object
34 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
Spurious spots
to spiral inward toward the the red giant phase and the
moon (rings, by the way, are asymptotic giant branch phase.
not affected by this process). Eventually, the outer layers are
Most planets, by contrast, shed in a slow wind, and the hot 1 2 3
rotate quickly, so their slow- core of the star is exposed. This
orbiting moons gently and hot central core, in the process
safely spiral outward (the of becoming a white dwarf, has
exceptions, Mercury and temperatures of around 100,000
Venus, have no moons, likely kelvins. This is hot enough to
due to the same effect). emit a lot of ultraviolet radia- 1 3
Brightness
Matthew Tiscareno tion, which ionizes the blown-
Cornell University off material, causing it to glow
Ithaca, New York and become a planetary nebula. 2
There are two factors that Time
cause this phase to be short-
Q: SIRIUS, OUR BRIGHTEST lived. One is simply that the
STAR, IS ORBITED BY A material blown off the star
WHITE DWARF A DEAD continues to drift away and
STARS CORE. WHERE IS THE eventually dissipates into the 1 2 3
PLANETARY NEBULA THAT interstellar medium. Addition-
WOULD HAVE FORMED ally, as the central star cools
WHEN IT SHED ITS SKIN? and becomes a white dwarf, its
Mark Socha luminosity drops to the point
Saginaw, Minnesota where it would be inefficient in
ionizing the gas, even if it were
Brightness
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 35
SKYTHIS Visible to the naked eye
T
he first half of 2015 fea- higher the two objects will est elongation September 4, you have exceptionally clear
tured lots of evening appear. From New York City, when it lies 27 east of the Sun. skies September 14, you might
planets, but as autumn for example, they stand 11 Although that sounds pretty spot Mercury 7 to the left of
begins, the focus shifts to above the eastern horizon impressive, Mercury remains a a waxing crescent Moon.
the predawn sky. Venus, when Aldebaran returns to horizon hugger for Northern Saturn is a much more
Mars, and Jupiter return to view at 12:40 a.m. EDT. Hemisphere observers. The attractive target for evening
prominence on September The Moon passes in front
mornings. Although the eve- of a much bigger and brighter Neptune near its peak
ning sky quiets some, Mercury star September 13. The target
briefly pokes above the hori- this time is the Sun, and Luna
zon and Saturn continues to obscures part of it for people
look spectacular. Meanwhile, in southern Africa, southern
the overnight hours offer some Madagascar, and parts of the
of the years best views of Indian Ocean and Antarctica.
Uranus and Neptune. The best sites on land for this
But Septembers star attrac- partial solar eclipse are
tion lies closer to home. The around Cape Town, South
Moon takes center stage three Africa, where the event starts
times during its monthly tour shortly before sunrise and
of the sky. In the first act, peaks at 5h43m UT. The
Earths satellite passes in front Moon then blocks 30 percent
of 1st-magnitude Aldebaran of the Suns surface area.
before dawn September 5. The Moons final and most
Observers along a line that impressive act arrives the
runs from the western shore of
Lake Superior to Floridas east Martin Ratcliffe provides plane-
coast will see the star emerge tarium development for Sky-Skan,
from behind the Last Quarter Inc., from his home in Wichita,
Moons dark limb as the pair Kansas. Meteorologist Alister
The bluish outer planet reached opposition in late August and remains a
rises. The farther north and Ling works for Environment tempting target during September. This amateur image also captures the
east of this line you live, the Canada in Edmonton, Alberta. planets brightest moon, Triton, at upper left. RON WARNER
36 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
RISINGMOON
Lunar ray of a different stripe Maginus and its sunrise ray
There should be a ray of hope wait until late evening when the
(OK, sunshine) spreading across Moon dips low in the west. See
the floor of the battered crater Catch some Moon rays in the
Maginus on the evening of July Astronomy for more exam-
September 20. This 100-mile- ples of sunrise and sunset rays.
wide impact feature sports a Dont confuse the Maginus
bulged-up floor, central moun- ray with the much more com-
tain peaks, and a low rim. The mon ejecta rays best seen
last attribute is the most critical around Full Moon. The latter
for the craters appearance on formed when large, relatively Ray
the 20th because it allows a recent impacts excavated
N
prominent V-shaped splay of lighter-hued material and dis- Maginus
sunlight to reach across the persed this debris in streaks
otherwise dark floor. across the Moons face. The E
Like so many events in most spectacular ejecta rays
A normally inconspicuous crater in the southern highlands, Maginus
astronomy, timing is everything spread from Maginus northern comes alive at sunrise when a beam of light shines through its battered
when it comes to seeing this ray. neighbor, Tycho. eastern wall. THOMAS MCCAGUE; INSET: NASA/GSFC/ASU
On the evening before, Maginus Maginus lies deep in the
remains in complete darkness; Moons southern hemisphere the globe curving away from us. September 27, the Sun lies high
by the evening after, the Sun has at a latitude of 50. It appears For the same reason, circular cra- in the lunar sky and shadows
risen high enough to illuminate closer to the lunar limb than you ters near the limb appear oval. have disappeared. All that
nearly the entire crater. For the might expect, however, thanks By the time Full Moon remains of Maginus are subtle
best viewing, you might have to to the foreshortening effect of and a total eclipse arrives features for patient selenophiles.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 37
N
STAR
DOME
CA M81
ME
How to use this map: This map portrays the
LO
PA M82
RD
sky as seen near 35 north latitude. Located AL
IS
inside the border are the cardinal directions
and their intermediate points. To find
stars, hold the map overhead and
orient it so one of the labels matches PE
NE
NG
RS C8
the direction youre facing. The EU 84 N C P Polaris
stars above the maps horizon S NG
C8 R
now match whats in the sky. 69 A
C MINO
SS U R S A
IO
CE
AN
PE PH
The all-sky map shows
T
IA EU
RI
DR
S
how the sky looks at:
AN
OM
10 P.M. September 1 GU CO
ED
RA
LU
9 P.M. September 15
A
D
M
8 P.M. September 30
33 M
M
Planets are shown
31
at midmonth
LA
PISC
C
ER
De
TA
ne
b
ES
CY
a g
GN
PEGASUS
Ve
US
U ra n u s
LY R A
E
M57
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ho
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ft
27
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VULPEC
ULA
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(e
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LP
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EQ
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U
S
U
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US
STAR
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MAGNITUDES A
Q AQUIL
U A
Sirius A
R
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0.0 S M11
3.0
SCUT
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1.0
4.0 7
2.0 5.0 M1
0
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PI PR
Fo
STAR COLORS SC IC
m
AU OR
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t
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38 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015 S
Note: Moon phases in the calendar vary
in size due to the distance from Earth
SEPTEMBER 2015 and are shown at 0h Universal Time.
SUN. MON. TUES. WED. THURS. FRI. SAT.
MAP SYMBOLS
R
JO
MA
SA
UR Open cluster
1 2 3 4 5
Globular cluster
Diffuse nebula
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Planetary nebula
NW
I
ES IC
Galaxy
r 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
N
iza
V
A
M 51
M
ES
20 21 22 23 24 25 26
M NIC
C RE
A
BE
O
27 28 29 30
Calendar of events
ES
urus
T
Arct
NA
solar eclipse
S
P EN 14 The Moon is at apogee
Full Moon occurs at
R D A 10:50 P.M. EDT; total
S E AU (252,565 miles from Earth),
C lunar eclipse
7:27 A.M. EDT
s 28 The Moon passes 1.0 south of
re 15 The Moon passes 5 north of Uranus, 9 P.M. EDT
ta 4
An M Mercury, 2 A.M. EDT
Asteroid Vesta is at opposition,
M6 Asteroid Ceres is stationary, 11 P.M. EDT
7 S
SW 2 P.M. EDT
PU 30 Mercury is in inferior
LU 17 Mercury is stationary, conjunction, 11 A.M. EDT
US 9 A.M. EDT
PI 23
1
OR 6
SC GC 18 The Moon passes 3 north of
N
Saturn, 11 P.M. EDT
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 39
PATH OF THE
PLANETS The planets in September 2015
UM a
Objects visible before dawn
PER AN D
L AC
LYN
C Vn LMi AUR
Comet 67P/Churyumov-
Gerasimenko TRI
C OM GEM PEG
Path of the Sun (ecliptic) AR I Eunomia
CNC
Amphitrite
LEO s Path of th
Mar e Moon A total lunar eclipse
Jupiter OR I Uranus occurs September 27/28 E QU
PSC cross the Americas,
CMI TAU
Europe, and Africa
Sun
SEX Venus shines at its brightest Celestial equator
in Septembers morning sky AQR
MON Papagena
C RV H YA ERI CET
C RT
Asteroid Vesta reaches Neptune
CM a LEP
opposition September 28
Lutetia
15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
30 29 28 27 26 25
The planets These illustrations show the size, phase, and orientation of each planet and the two brightest dwarf planets
for the dates in the data table at bottom. South is at the top to match the view through a telescope.
in the sky
Mercury Uranus
Mars
W E
N Saturn Pluto
Ceres
Jupiter
10"
Venus Neptune
Planets MERCURY VENUS MARS CERES JUPITER SATURN URANUS NEPTUNE PLUTO
Date Sept. 1 Sept. 15 Sept. 15 Sept. 15 Sept. 15 Sept. 15 Sept. 15 Sept. 15 Sept. 15
Magnitude 0.1 4.8 1.8 8.4 1.7 0.6 5.7 7.8 14.2
Angular size 6.8" 42.0" 3.8" 0.6" 31.0" 16.1" 3.7" 2.4" 0.1"
Illumination 60% 22% 98% 98% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
Distance (AU) from Earth 0.994 0.397 2.460 2.296 6.361 10.330 19.089 28.985 32.571
Distance (AU) from Sun 0.466 0.726 1.644 2.962 5.393 9.996 19.985 29.962 32.947
Right ascension (2000.0) 12h14.9m 9h05.2m 9h44.7m 19h56.3m 10h37.2m 15h51.1m 1h12.4m 22h39.1m 18h54.8m
Declination (2000.0) 340' 1044' 1451' 3141' 940' 1818' 657' 924' 2100'
40 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
This map unfolds the entire night sky from sunset (at right) until sunrise (at left).
Arrows and colored dots show motions and locations of solar system objects during the month.
DR A
Objects visible in the evening Jupiters moons
H ER C Vn UM a Dots display positions
C YG LMi Io
LY R
of Galilean satellites at
BO
7 A.M. EDT on the date Europa
C OM
shown. South is at the
VUL CrB A partial solar eclipse occurs top to match
S
DE L September 13 across parts of the view
SGE southern Africa and Antarctica LEO Ganymede
through a W E
SE R telescope. N Callisto
AQL SE R
OPH Sun SE X
1
VIR
LI B
CAP 2
SCT
Mercury CRT HYA
3
Pluto C RV
Saturn 4
Ceres 5
ANT
SGR LUP 6 Jupiter
CrA SCO
CEN
TE L 7
ARA
8
Early evening
To locate the Moon in the sky, draw a line from the phase shown for the day straight up to the curved blue line. 9 Europa
Note: Moons vary in size due to the distance from Earth and are shown at 0h Universal Time.
10
11
24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12
12
13
14
15 Ganymede
16
Jupiter
Mars 17
Earth
Venus 18 Callisto
Autumnal equinox
is September 23
19
20
21 Io
Ceres
22
Mercury
Greatest eastern elongation 23
is September 4
24
25
Jupiter
The planets 26
ILLUSTRATIONS BY ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY
Uranus
in their orbits 27
28
Arrows show the inner planets Neptune
monthly motions and dots depict Saturn 29
the outer planets positions at mid-
month from high above their orbits. 30
Pluto
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 41
Continued from page 37
Venus dazzles before dawn
WHEN TO VIEW THE PLANETS Castor
GEMI NI
Pollux
EVENING SKY MIDNIGHT MORNING SKY
Mercury (west) Uranus (southeast) Venus (east)
Saturn (southwest) Neptune (south) Mars (east) Procyon
Neptune (southeast) Jupiter (east)
Uranus (southwest)
Venus
due north of the planet Sep- nearby. Pluto spends Septem- Mars
tember 7 and 23 and due south ber between 0.6 and 0.7 west Regulus
on the 15th. A trio of 10th- of this star. Sketch or photo- L EO
Alphard
magnitude satellites Tethys, graph the area, and return to Jupiter
Dione, and Rhea orbit it a few nights later. The star 10
closer in and show up through that moved is Pluto.
4-inch and larger scopes. Neptune reached opposi- September 21, 1 hour before sunrise
Looking east
Remote and mysterious tion and peak visibility on the
since its discovery 85 years final evening of August, and The morning star gleams at its brightest of the year September 21,
ago, Pluto remains distant but its appearance in September though it remains a beacon all month.
is far less enigmatic thanks to barely suffers. The planet
the eagle-eyed sensors aboard appears in the southeast as The ice giant world lies telescope will help confirm
NASAs New Horizons space- darkness falls and climbs roughly midway between Neptunes identity. Under
craft. Experienced observers nearly halfway to the zenith in 4th-magnitude Lambda () moderate magnification and
can spy the magnitude 14.2 the southern sky as midnight and 5th-magnitude Sigma () steady seeing, youll see its
dwarf planet north of the approaches. Youll need bin- Aquarii. Dont confuse Nep- 2.4"-diameter disk and blue-
Teapot asterism in Sagittarius oculars or a telescope to spot tune with a nearby magnitude gray color.
through an 8-inch or larger its magnitude 7.8 glow among 6.9 star in early September. As Neptune climbs higher
telescope. Fortunately, magni- the background stars of cen- On the 4th, the planet slides in the southeastern sky,
tude 3.5 Xi2 (2) Sagittarii lies tral Aquarius. 3.6' due north of this star. A Uranus appears low in the
COMETSEARCH
Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Rosettas target comes into view
N
Lets piggyback on the excite- these estimates, an 8-inch scope
ment stemming from the will pick it up nicely; if not, youll CANCER
Rosetta spacecrafts ongoing need a 12-inch or larger instru- i h
encounter with Comet 67P/ ment. In a final, ironic twist,
Path of Comet 67P
Churyumov-Gerasimenko by we view the comets dusty Sept 10
looking at the icy visitor with tail through the veil of debris j 13
16
our own eyes. City and suburban left behind by countless other 19 a
E 22
lights will overwhelm the com- comets. Known as the zodiacal d
25
ets fuzzy glow, so youll need to band, this soft glow envelops
observe under a dark sky. The the path of the planets where
M44 c
object climbs highest in the east 67P resides. e
b
shortly before dawn. The best On September 10, you can
observing window opens as the find the comet 1 south of 6th-
waning Moon exits the morning magnitude Lambda () Cancri.
sky around September 10 and The pair lies almost directly 1
lasts about two weeks. above the stunning conjunc- September provides a nice opportunity to spy this periodic comet from
Comets are notorious trick- tion of the crescent Moon afar while the Rosetta spacecraft examines it from up close.
sters, even those like 67P that and Venus. A week later, 67P
have returned to the inner passes 2 north of the Beehive Theres a slim possibility sky. The two comets cross paths
solar system several times. star cluster (M44). Closest that 67P could get upstaged September 1 when less than 1
Astronomers offer a wide range approach occurs the mornings by Comet 141P/Machholz if the separates them. Unfortunately,
of predictions on how bright it of September 16 and 17. The latter ends its life with a major the Moon is just past Full phase
will be, from a dim magnitude 5th-magnitude star Gamma flare-up. Coincidentally, this then, making any visual observa-
10.5 to a feeble magnitude 13.5. () Cancri lies 0.4 south of the dissolving ball of ice and dust tion a challenge even with Luna
If were on the lucky side of comet on the 17th. is traveling in the same area of on the opposite side of the sky.
42 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
A partial eclipse for southern Africa
LOCATINGASTEROIDS
A dwarf planets looping stroll
Typically, the farther out in the 6-inch telescope at low power.
solar system an object lies, the It lies in a sparse region of
more leisurely it moves rela- Sagittarius some 20 east of
tive to the background stars. that constellations Teapot
Because orbital motion slows asterism. The best time for
HINRICH BSEMANN
dramatically in the outer reach- hunting the asteroid is mid-
es of our planetary system, evening, when the Archer
its rare to see a nearby object climbs highest in the south.
Observers across the southern tier of African countries and parts of
trudge along at an outer bodys Ceres fades from magnitude
Antarctica can watch the Moon pass in front of the Sun on September 13. pace. But thats exactly what 8.2 to 8.7 during September.
seems to happen in September Youll find two noticeably
east. The seventh planet, which September 21 when it shines when asteroid 1 Ceres (275 mil- brighter stars in the field
will reach opposition in mid- at magnitude 4.8. lion miles from the Sun) travers- magnitude 7.1 SAO 211624 and
es the same amount of sky as magnitude 7.4 SAO 211729.
October, trails about two hours Fortunately, the ecliptic
Uranus (1.86 billion miles away). Sketch the five or six brightest
behind its more distant cousin. stands nearly straight up from
Ceres still orbits the Sun at a stars, and then come back a
Uranus resides in a faint part the eastern horizon before
faster speed than its cousin, few nights later to locate the
of Pisces (although, lets face dawn at this time of year, so
but our line of sight from Earth object that moved slightly
it, all of Pisces is faint), in the angular distance from the Sun makes the asteroid navigate a this is Ceres. The task is easiest
same binocular field as mag- translates into altitude. How loop that extends barely 1. around September 16 and 17
nitude 5.2 Zeta () Piscium. much difference does this The upshot is that Ceres when the asteroid passes a
You will find Zeta 17 east- make? Consider that Mercury remains in the same field of nearly identical 8th-magnitude
southeast of Algenib (Gamma lies 27 east of the Sun at view through a typical 4- or background star.
[] Pegasi), the star that forms greatest elongation September
the southeastern corner of the 4 but appears only 3 high a Ceres meets the Archer
Great Square of Pegasus. half-hour after sunset. On the N
Once you locate Zeta same day, Venus stands 28
Oct 1 SAGIT TARIUS
through binoculars, Uranus west of the Sun and climbs
should be a snap. On Septem- 16 above the eastern horizon 21
E
ber 1, the planet lies 0.5 (the 30 minutes before sunrise. Path of Ceres SAO
diameter of a Full Moon) due The beginning of Septem- 11 211624
SAO
south of Zeta and about half ber finds Venus in southern 211729 Sept 1
that distance west-northwest Cancer and Mars 9 to its 0.25
of 88 Psc, a magnitude 6.0 star. north. A waning crescent
NASA/JPL-CALTECH/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
Uranus shines at an intermedi- Moon passes between the two
ate magnitude of 5.7. The plan- worlds on the 10th; Jupiter
ets westward motion relative adds to the spectacle when it
to the starry background dur- rises an hour before the Sun.
ing September carries it to a Venus crosses from Cancer
position 1.2 southwest of Zeta into Leo on September 24,
by months end. coincidentally the same day
If you target Uranus Mars passes 0.8 due north While the Dawn spacecraft probes Ceres from orbit, Earth-based viewers
through a telescope, youll of the Lions luminary, 1st- can follow the asteroids path through eastern Sagittarius (inset).
immediately notice its non- magnitude Regulus. The Red
stellar appearance. The worlds Planet shines at magnitude 1.8
disk spans 3.7" and has an and offers a lovely color con- three planets will garner lots Although Mars is too small
obvious blue-green hue. trast with the slightly brighter of attention, but its also worth (4" across) to show appreciable
The relatively subtle plea- blue-white star. Jupiter gleams targeting Venus through a tele- detail through a telescope,
sures of the overnight hours at magnitude 1.7 just 10 scope. On the 1st, its beautiful Jupiter spans a more impres-
quickly give way to a dazzling below Mars. The gap between 9-percent-lit crescent measures sive 31". Youll have a narrow
display of three bright planets these two worlds tightens in 52" from cusp to cusp. By window of visibility between
before dawn. Venus leads the late September; the pair will months end, the planets the time it rises and the onset
way, rising before twilight meet in mid-October. diameter shrinks to 33" and of bright twilight to view its
commences and appearing far The stunning naked-eye the Sun illuminates 34 percent dynamic cloud tops and four
brighter than either Mars or and binocular views of the of the disk. bright moons.
Jupiter. Venus reaches its
greatest brilliancy of the year GET DAILY UPDATES ON YOUR NIGHT SKY AT www.Astronomy.com/skythisweek.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 43
Rubber ducky
O
n November 12, 2014, the European stop. Unfortunately, it ended up in an awkward posi-
Space Agencys (ESA) Rosetta space- tion tipped on its side and in the shadow of a cliff.
craft jettisoned some of its most pre-
cious cargo. Rosetta, which had been No time to waste
orbiting Comet 67P/Churyumov- The cliff created a sense of urgency back on Earth.
Gerasimenko (67P for short) for three months, Mission planners designed Philaes battery to oper-
released the Philae lander from an altitude of ate for about 60 hours. This pioneer comet landers
14 miles (22.5 kilometers). solar panels would recharge the battery continuously
The washing machine-sized probe fell toward the A LARGE CRACK when they were in sunlight, however, allowing Philae
comet for seven hours before touching the surface. (part of which crosses to operate for several weeks or months.
Unfortunately, it didnt stick around. Philae was sup- the center of this But the deep shadows would not cooperate. The
posed to land on its three legs and then secure itself by image) runs across craft received only 1.5 hours of sunlight during each
shooting two harpoons into the comet, but they failed the comets neck. 12.4-hour day. It survived 57 hours on its battery
to fire. The probe was off to explore new frontiers. ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/OSIRIS TEAM power, during which it accomplished roughly 80
Philae bounced off the surface at a speed of 15 percent of what scientists had planned.
inches (38 centimeters) per second, a significant frac- The probes cameras photographed its surround-
tion of the comets escape velocity. But gravity won ings. Some instruments sniffed 67Ps atmosphere,
out, and the probe started to descend again. Data finding molecules containing hydrogen and carbon.
returned by the Rosetta Lander Magnetometer and Others examined the comets surface, which turned
Plasma Monitor (ROMAP) show that it hit the out to be as hard as ice in contrast to the soft and
ground again about 45 minutes later. We think that fluffy consistency scientists expected. But the shut-
Philae probably touched a surface with one leg only ters on one instrument failed to open and a drill on
perhaps grazing a crater rim and after that the another could not penetrate the surface to deliver
lander was tumbling, said ROMAP co-principal samples for onboard analysis.
investigator Hans-Ulrich Auster from the Technische THIS HIGH CLIFF
As Philae neared its final hours November 14,
Universitt in Braunschweig, Germany, in November. FACE at the edge of controllers on Earth raised the craft 1.6 inches (4cm)
Philae embarked on another excursion, this one the Hathor region and rotated it 35. They hoped this would orient the
lasting 65 minutes and reaching an altitude of about reaches 330 feet
0.6 mile (1km). After hitting the surface a third time, (100 meters) high. Richard Talcott is an Astronomy senior editor and author of
the lander bounced several feet and then came to a ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/OSIRIS TEAM Teach Yourself Visually Astronomy (Wiley Publishing, 2008).
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 45
Babi Baset
Hathor
The view from above
While Philae rested, Rosetta did not stand idly by. The spacecraft
the first to orbit a comet continues to reveal 67P in extraordi-
nary detail. Mission controllers have adjusted its flight path many
Aten
times to give both global and close-up views of the comet. The
initial orbits had it about 60 miles (100km) from the comet. Later
Khepry Ash in 2014, Rosetta spent time in circular orbits 18 miles (29km), 11.6
miles (18.6km), and 6.1 miles (9.8km) from 67Ps center.
Afterward, Rosetta embarked on a series of close flybys, some
dipping to within 4 miles (6km) of the surface. But in the months
Imhotep before 67Ps August 13 perihelion the comets closest approach
to the Sun in its 6.44-year orbit Rosetta had to back off.
Seth Like all comets, 67P grows more active as it nears the Sun. Our
stars light heats ices on or just below the surface, causing them to
Aker
turn directly from solids into gases in a process known as subli-
Apis mation. As the gases escape in powerful jets, they carry with them
dust particles and larger bits of rock embedded in the ice. These
liberated substances form a tenuous atmosphere, or coma, as well
as gas and dust tails.
It all proved a bit too much during Rosettas close flyby in late
Rosetta scientists have identified 19 different regions on Comet
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, 10 of which show up in this view
March. The spacecraft uses star trackers to navigate and orient
looking from the comets body toward its head. In keeping itself, but 67Ps dust production grew so high that the trackers
with the ancient Egyptian theme used for both the Rosetta and started mistaking cometary debris for stars. Hundreds of false stars
Philae spacecraft, the regions are named for Egyptian deities. confused the star trackers enough that Rosetta went into a safe
ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/OSIRIS TEAM
mode, switching off its science instruments and awaiting help
from Earth. Mission controllers recovered the spacecraft within
24 hours but quickly moved it into a safer, more distant orbit.
largest solar panel so that as 67P neared the Sun in mid-2015, the Rosettas first 10 months at 67P delivered exquisitely detailed
added illumination would revive the probe. information. The comet is a contact binary shaped like a rubber
The effort paid off. On June 13, Philae phoned home. The craft ducky with one large lobe (the body) joined to a smaller lobe (the
had survived its seven-month hibernation in great shape despite
Rosetta captured this view of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
temperatures that dropped to around 240 F (150 C). As this
from a distance of 12.4 miles (19.9 kilometers) March 28. The two-
issue went to press in late June, Philae remained awake and alert, image mosaic shows part of the comets Imhotep region at a resolu-
though it had yet to resume science activities. tion of 5.6 feet (1.7 meters) per pixel. ESA/ROSETTA/NAVCAM
head) by a narrow neck. The body measures 2.5 by Significant amounts of water also exist across the
2.1 by 1.1 miles (4.1 by 3.3 by 1.8km) and the head comets day side while little is on the night side.
spans 1.6 by 1.4 by 1.1 miles (2.6 by 2.3 by 1.8km).
More importantly, the mass and volume of 67P Scientists: Rewrite the textbooks
reveal that the comet has a density less than half that For decades, astronomers have watched comet ices
of water and a porosity a measure of how much frozen water and frozen carbon dioxide (dry ice),
empty space lurks inside of more than 60 percent. ROSETTA CAST ITS for example sublimate. The gases created quickly
Dust in the nucleus outweighs ice by roughly four to SHADOW (bottom) break up into their constituent atoms. Most research-
one. And the surface is exceedingly dark, reflecting onto the comets sur- ers thought that energetic solar photons did the job,
only about 6 percent of the sunlight hitting it, or half face from 4 miles but Rosetta data have made them change their tune.
that of the Moons surface. (6 kilometers) up. Observations made with the Alice spectrograph,
Rosetta scientists argue that these stats suggest the ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/OSIRIS TEAM an instrument that splits the comets light into its
nucleus is a mix of dust grains, organic compounds, component colors and thus allows scientists to iden-
and ice cemented together. Furthermore, they contend tify the unique spectral fingerprints of coma gases,
that the substances likely mimic the organic-rich soup show the Sun needs a lot of help. Alice operates at
created during the collapse of the solar nebula that far-ultraviolet wavelengths, where it can detect the
gave birth to our solar system. If true, astronomers hydrogen and oxygen atoms released from the break-
would be approaching a better understanding of the up of water molecules and the carbon atoms freed
solar systems origin and evolution one of the key from carbon dioxide molecules. (A similar Alice
reasons scientists wanted to send a mission to rendez- spectrograph flies on the New Horizons spacecraft
vous with a comet. The Rosetta team bases these find- that flew past Pluto in July.)
ings on orbiter observations of the gases released from The Alice team found that the molecules split in
the nucleus and stress that a Philae analysis of surface a two-step process. First, a high-energy solar photon
BOULDERS
materials could change their thinking. ABOUND near the strikes a water molecule in the coma and strips an
edge of the comets electron from it. The liberated electron then hits
A magnetic non-attraction broad and largely another water or carbon dioxide molecule and
Rosetta has proven to be a trailblazer. For example, smooth Imhotep breaks it apart.
no previous spacecraft encounter yielded much infor- region. ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/ The discovery were reporting is quite unex-
mation about cometary magnetic fields. From studies OSIRIS TEAM pected, said S. Alan Stern, a planetary scientist at the
of meteorites, astronomers know that iron, some of
it in the form of magnetite, existed in the solar sys-
tems earliest days. Some thought that magnetic fields
might help matter clump together and build comets,
asteroids, and other protoplanetary bodies.
But Philaes ROMAP instrument quashed this
idea. The landers bouncing trek actually improved
the data. If the surface was magnetized, we would
have expected to see a clear increase in the magnetic
field readings as we got closer to the surface, said
Auster when reporting on the teams findings at an
April meeting of the European Geosciences Union in
Vienna, Austria. But this was not the case at any of
the locations we visited, so we conclude that Comet
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is a remarkably non-
magnetic object. The comets magnetic signature
instead derives from the solar wind, which carries the
Suns magnetic field throughout interplanetary space.
Close-up views of 67P also allow Rosetta to
resolve the behavior of individual regions, something
impossible to do from Earth. Since last September,
the Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter
(MIRO) has studied the distribution of water mol- The lander Philae set down on the comets nucleus in
November, where it operated for approximately 57 hours
ecules in the comets coma. The team finds the high- before entering hibernation. The two images contained in
est concentration of water above the neck, where the this mosaic, the first taken by Philae, recorded one of the
density is up to 100 times larger than elsewhere. landers three feet (bottom left). ESA/ROSETTA/PHILAE/CIVA
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 47
covering the surface with a thin veneer and leaving
little exposed ice. A 1-millimeter-thick [0.04 inch]
layer of dark dust is sufficient to hide the layers
below from optical instruments, said Holger Sierks,
OSIRIS principal investigator at the Max Planck
Institute for Solar System Research in Gttingen,
Germany, in a June statement.
But scientists using OSIRIS narrow-angle cam-
era did discover water ice in more than 100 patches
on the comets surface. These areas are typically
several feet (a few meters) across and up to 10 times
brighter than the surface average. Some occur in
isolation, often on boulders that seem to have been
transported from elsewhere. Others appear in clus-
ters and usually lie in debris fields at cliff bases.
These might be regions exposed by recent erosion
Philae came to rest next to or a cliffs collapse.
a cliff (topographic model,
above) that blocked sun- The researchers claim the bright areas must be
light from reaching its solar water ice because that substance would be stable
panels. The lander man- under the Suns illumination at the observation time,
aged to image part of the
wall (left). ESA/ROSETTA/PHILAE/
while both carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide
CNES/FD; INSET: ESA/ROSETTA/PHILAE/CIVA ices would have sublimated under the same sunlight.
The bright patches should shrink or even disappear
as the comet approaches perihelion, but new ones
Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, could appear in recently exposed areas.
and Alices principal investigator, in a June statement.
It shows us the value of going to comets to observe Second chances and longer looks
them up close, since this discovery simply could not The next few months should provide a fascinating
have been made from Earth or Earth orbit with any GASEOUS PLUMES look at the changes a comet undergoes as it nears the
existing or planned observatory. VENT from the Sun. Perihelion occurs in mid-August at a distance
Scientists also have learned that Comet 67Ps comets nucleus June of 116 million miles (186 million km). With any luck,
weak gravity still has the power to hold onto com- 15, just two months Philae should be operating throughout this period.
etary debris. At first blush, the jets spewing from the prior to perihelion. After waking up June 13, the lander contacted
comets surface seem strong enough to shoot any ESA/ROSETTA/NAVCAM Rosetta a half dozen times in the following 10 days,
dust particles well beyond the nucleus sphere of though the two craft still were trying to establish a
influence. After all, the dust tail forms when the reliable communications link.
weak pressure of solar radiation pushes away these Scientists know Philaes solar panels were receiv-
ejected grains. ing nearly three hours of sunlight each day and pro-
But Rosettas main camera system, the Optical, viding the probe with 24 watts of peak power, enough
Spectroscopic, and Infrared Remote Imaging System to raise its internal temperature to 31 F (35 C).
(OSIRIS), targeted the motions of cometary particles Those values should improve as the comet nears the
located in a 12 by 12 area of sky. It tracked four Sun and the probe experiences more daylight hours.
debris pieces ranging from 6 inches (15cm) to 20 Assuming that the communications problem gets
inches (50cm) across for which mission scientists ironed out, the science team will activate Philaes
could calculate orbits. Three of the particles appar- SEVERAL JETS instruments in a specific order. The first to awaken
ently orbit 67Ps nucleus and likely were ejected dur- ERUPT from the will include ones that dont move and drain little
ing the comets last perihelion passage in 2009, while comets small lobe power, such as those that measure temperatures and
the fourth definitely is on an escape trajectory. just after the Sun magnetic fields. Next up are ones that require a bit
set over the region. more power, which include the camera systems.
An icy demeanor? ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/OSIRIS TEAM Power-hungry instruments in particular the two
Sublimation of 67Ps ices drives away many, but ovens that analyze the chemistry of comet samples
not all, dust particles the comets dark surface belong to the final group.
proves that. Some of the dust remains on the surface Philae scientists also may try to revive the drill if
as ices underneath sublimate. But much more gets they can do so without upsetting the lander, which
released slowly and then falls back somewhere else, came to rest on its side. But some researchers think
48 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
Rosetta dipped within 4.9 miles
(7.9 kilometers) of the comets sur-
face October 19 when it snapped
this view looking across the objects
neck from the small lobe toward
the large one. ESA/ROSETTA/NAVCAM
dust may have made its way into the ovens during the probes mul-
tiple bounces, so there may already be material ready to analyze.
Scientists got one final piece of good news June 23 when ESA
announced it would extend the mission until the end of Septem-
ber 2016, nine months longer than originally planned. (Dont
expect any further reprieves, however, because Rosetta will be
nearly out of propellant by then and the Sun will be so distant that
the solar panels wont deliver enough power.)
This is fantastic news for science, said Rosetta project scien-
tist Matt Taylor in a statement responding to the decision. Well
be able to monitor the decline in the comets activity as we move
away from the Sun again, and well have the opportunity to fly
closer to the comet to continue collecting more unique data. By Although dust covers most of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenkos
comparing detailed before-and-after data, well have a much bet- surface, Rosetta has revealed more than 100 patches of water ice,
ter understanding of how comets evolve during their lifetimes. including the four in these false-color images. ESA/ROSETTA/MPS/OSIRIS TEAM
FOR THE LATEST IMAGES AND SCIENCE FROM ROSETTA AND PHILAE, VISIT www.Astronomy.com/toc.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 49
Cannibal star
e
vers
Astronomers dreamt up the
ni
idea of Thorne-ytkow
u
objects dead stars inside
dying stars in the 1970s.
e
Only recently have they
h
tracked one down.
by Yvette Cendes
In an infinite universe,
ar in t
even the most bizarre thought
experiments by astronomers per-
t
haps conceived late at night, perhaps
s
proposed simply to see how weird
stars can get can come to pass.
t
Imagine a massive star, near the end
s
of its life and puffed up to the red
supergiant phase, with a tiny neutron
e
50 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
Emily Levesque and collaborators used the 6.5-meter Magellan II Clay Telescope at Las Campanas
Observatory in La Serena, Chile, to observe the spectrum of HV 2112 and unlock its hidden nature as a
Thorne-ytkow object. LAS CAMPANAS OBSERVATORY/CARNEGIE INSTITUTE OF WASHINGTON
At first glance, HV 2112 looks like an ordinary if bright red supergiant, shining clearly in
this Spitzer infrared image of one corner of the Small Magellanic Cloud. SPITZER/JPL/NASA/CENTER DE DONNES
ASTRONOMIQUES DE STRASBOURG
A working theory the fireworks are over, this future TZO system is already exotic
TZOs are named after Kip Thorne and Anna ytkow, two the normal, lower-mass star is now paired with a rapidly rotat-
astronomers who worked out detailed calculations of what this ing neutron star with a radius as tiny as 6 miles (10 kilometers),
strange system would look like in 1977 at the California Institute composed entirely of neutrons packed so tightly that they test the
of Technology. They proposed a completely new class of star with extremes of quantum mechanics.
a novel, functional model for a stellar interior. Scientists had Astronomers already have observed many such neutron star/
explored the idea of stars with neutron star cores when neutron normal star systems. As the two orbit each other, gas from the
stars were first thought of in the 1930s, but their work lacked a normal star can flow onto the outer layers of the neutron star,
detailed analysis or any firm conclusions. causing bright X-ray flares. These flares are millions of times
The origin of a TZO goes like this: For reasons not yet clear, more luminous than the X-rays emitted by normal stars and are
the majority of the massive stars we observe in the universe are in fact some of the brightest sources of X-rays in our galaxy.
in binary systems. These stars are several times more massive But such systems raise a question: What ultimately happens to a
than our Sun (at least eight times bigger, though stars as large as system where a neutron star and a regular star orbit each other, but
their orbits are unstable? This could occur for a variety of reasons,
such as the supergiants puffed-off gas layers dragging down the
TZOs are important because they neutron star and causing it to spiral in or as a result of the super-
nova explosion that tore apart the first star. In many cases, the
have the potential to tell astronomers neutron star will get a gravitational kick that ejects it from the
system. But for others, the binary system may reach a final stage
where some of the more exotic of evolution wherein the neutron star orbits closer and closer to its
companion, which by this stage is nearing the end of its own life
elements in the universe come from. and is a red supergiant star. Eventually, the two stars merge, the
red supergiant swallowing the neutron star, and a TZO is born.
In a galaxy the size of our Milky Way, containing hundreds
hundreds of solar masses have been observed) and spend their of billions of stars, such mergers should be happening routinely.
fuel much more quickly. The largest stars in the universe burn In fact, scientists have proposed that as many as 1 percent of all
all their fuel in just a few million years, while a star the size of red supergiants might actually be TZOs in disguise. Mergers
our Sun burns for several billion. In a binary system where the between a neutron star and a star are common, confirms Selma
two stars masses are unequal, then, the larger of the two runs de Mink, an astronomer at the University of Amsterdam whose
out of fuel and dies before its partner. The massive component research focuses on stellar evolution. The question is, what does
explodes in a fiery supernova as bright as an entire galaxy. When that look like? For me, that is the big excitement this happens
all the time, but we have no clue. She explains that some sort of
Yvette Cendes is a Ph.D. candidate in radio astronomy at the University transient and observable event should occur at the moment of
of Amsterdam. She is on Twitter @whereisyvette. the merger perhaps there is a flare of energy in the X-ray or a
52 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
This neutron star X-ray source hidden inside a supernova remnant stumped
astronomers for years while they tried to explain its slow rotation period.
The solution might in fact be that it is the ghost of a Thorne-ytkow
object. SA/XMM-NEWTON/A. DE LUCA (INAF-IASF)
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 53
DOUBLE STANDARDS
Binary stars end their lives in all hot, dense white dwarf. The other
kinds of dramatic and interesting star lags behind and, either as a
ways, and as with all stars, the spe- Sun-like star or a red giant, starts
cifics of their stories depend mostly to leak material onto its white
on the mass of the stars involved. dwarf companion. When the white
Thorne-ytkow objects (TZOs) dwarf has gorged itself on enough
may be astronomical oddities, but star stuff to overcome a precise
one of the most famous examples 1.4-solar-mass limit, it explodes as a
of binary stars that end their lives supernova.
in an explosive and illuminating In the other scenario, the two
fashion resembles a TZO at two stars begin their lives more evenly
different stages. Type Ia superno- matched and both progress to the
vae are stellar explosions used as white dwarf stage. As with TZOs,
standard candles, or distance the exact catalyst is unknown, but
indicators, by astronomers because something causes these partners
they explode with a predictable to spiral toward one another and
amount of energy, which means crash together, again lighting up in
their brightness varies neatly with a supernova explosion.
their distance from us. While these may sound like very
But two different kinds of binary different events, from a distant
systems give rise to these explo- spectators point of view through a
sions. In one case, the system is a telescope, the differences between
mass-mismatched binary, similar these two scenarios are subtle.
Astronomers saw a type Ia supernova explode in the relatively nearby to but less extreme than the early Astronomers are still working to
Cigar Galaxy (M82) in January 2014. These two images were taken only stages of a TZO. The more massive figure out how many of our stan-
a month apart and highlight the brilliance of the new supernova. UCL/ star rushes through its lifetime but, dard candles are caused by each of
UNIVERSITY OF LONDON OBSERVATORY/STEVE FOSSEY/BEN COOKE/GUY POLLACK/MATTHEW WILDE/THOMAS WRIGHT instead of exploding, fades into a these processes. Korey Haynes
Hunting for TZOs unusually behaving bright red supergiants, however, she was
But tracking these mysterious objects down is not an easy task. intrigued. Emily Levesque, an astronomer at the University of
To an outside observer, TZOs look very much like extremely Colorado at Boulder, spearheaded the work with Massey, whom
cool and luminous red supergiants, explains ytkow, now at the she has been researching red supergiants with ever since an
Institute of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge in England. undergraduate summer internship in 2004. Two years later, they
This means they are nearly indistinguishable from the thou- discovered several red supergiant stars in the Magellanic Clouds
sands of other normal, bright supergiant stars that many surveys satellite galaxies of our own that were unusually cool and
observe. However, they are somewhat redder and brighter than variable in brightness. This avenue of research eventually attracted
stars such as Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion, she says, nam- ytkows attention, so she asked whether the team had considered
ing the famous red supergiant familiar to stargazers. the possibility that these stars might be TZOs.
The only way to distinguish a TZO from a regular bright super- The potential to find the first TZO was exciting, but identify-
giant is to look at high-resolution spectra patterns of light ing a candidate from within the sample of red supergiants would
require higher-resolution spectra than ever taken
before. Levesque, along with her former mentor
Since we proposed our models of stars with neutron Massey and additional collaborator Nidia Morrell
of the Carnegie Observatories in La Serena, Chile,
cores, people were not able to disprove our work. secured time to observe a sample of several dozen
red supergiants both in the Milky Way and in the
If theory is sound, experimental
. confirmation shows Magellanic Clouds using the 3.5-meter telescope at
Apache Point Observatory, New Mexico, and the
up sooner or later. Anna Zytkow 6.5-meter telescope at Las Campanas Observatory,
Chile, respectively. They observed each of the stars
with some of the most powerful spectrographs
astronomers use as stellar fingerprints to find the specific lines available and then began the meticulous task of identifying the
caused by the unusual elements more abundant in TZOs than in various emission lines in the data and working out the relative
typical stars. Such work is severely complicated by the massive elemental abundances in each star.
number of complex spectral lines from other elements and mol- It wasnt immediately obvious at a glance if we had a TZO,
ecules in the star, which easily number in the thousands. It is a Levesque recalls, but there was one star that jumped out at us.
needle in a haystack kind of problem, says de Mink. A star called HV 2112 in the Small Magellanic Cloud had a par-
Despite this, a team of astronomers thinks they might have ticularly bright hydrogen emission line astronomers saw even in
found the first needle. Nearly four decades and several unsuc- the raw data they glanced at as it came in. In fact, it was so
cessful searches have passed since ytkow initially worked on unusual that it prompted Morrell to joke at first look, I dont
the theory behind TZOs. When she saw new research on some know what it is, but I like it!
54 A ST R O N O M Y SEPTEMBER 2015
How to make a TZO
Thorne-ytkow object
Pulsar
Massive star
A Thorne-ytkow object (TZO) starts its life as a After the supernova, the massive partner leaves The stars circle each other on decreasing orbits
normal binary star. One partner is close in mass behind a tiny neutron star (even less to scale!). The until they merge. The moment of the merger
to the Sun while the other is significantly hotter Sun-like star consumes its hydrogen fuel more should be observable, but astronomers arent
and more massive (images not at all to scale). The slowly and expands into a red supergiant. At some sure exactly what to look for. From most perspec-
heavier star burns through its fuel quickly and point, the stars orbits become unstable, and they tives, the newly formed TZO now appears as a
explodes as a supernova. begin to spiral toward each other. normal, if bright, red supergiant.
It turns out there was much more to like about HV 2112 it Research also has focused on finding the remnant of a TZO
had unusually high concentrations of the elements lithium, molyb- after it has died. Recently, an international team of astronomers
denum, and rubidium, which are predicted TZO signatures. While examined the abstrusely named X-ray source 1E1613485055, which
finding a star with an unusual abundance of one key element can has perplexed scientists since its discovery several years ago. Initial
happen for a variety of reasons, this was the first time astronomers results suggested its power comes from a neutron star 1E161348
saw all the critical elements in the same star; the team published 5055 is in fact located in a supernova remnant estimated to be just
their results identifying HV 2112 as a TZO candidate in the sum- 2,000 years old but its rotation period is 6.67 hours. Such a young
mer of 2014. It could still turn out not to be a TZO in the long run, neutron star should be rotating thousands of times faster; this slow
explains Levesque, but even if not, its definitely a very weird star. period is more indicative of a neutron star that is several million
This discovery was also satisfying for ytkow, who was instru- years old. Several theories have been suggested over the years
mental in pushing for telescope time and analysis of the spectral perhaps the neutron star has a stellar companion, or perhaps it has
lines. Work on the discovery of a candidate object which Kip an unusually high magnetic field but no one has explained this
Thorne and I first predicted many years ago is great fun, ytkow mysterious X-ray source to everyones satisfaction.
says. Since we proposed our models of stars with neutron cores, A TZO ghost may fit the bill. As a TZO, it might have burned
people were not able to disprove our work. If theory is sound, for up to a million years. But a TZOs outer layers are not as dense
experimental confirmation shows up sooner or later. as a normal stars, meaning this envelope of material is prone to dis-
sipating over reasonably short time scales. The strong stellar wind
Revisiting stellar evolution common in larger stars could be all thats needed to blow the outer
While finding a star within a star sounds intriguing in itself, envelope away. This would leave behind a shell similar to a super-
the discovery of a TZO is particularly interesting to astronomers nova remnant and a neutron star that is far older than its environ-
for what its existence can tell them about stellar evolution. Major ment suggests exactly what astronomers see in 1E1613485055.
research advances in recent years in areas such as stellar convec-
tion allow astronomers to update their models for TZOs. These Looking deeper
changes may yield new elemental abundances for observers to Astronomers also are considering whether some parts of our
watch for. Astronomers also want to know whether TZOs can galactic neighborhood might be easier hunting grounds for TZOs.
explain where some of the heavy elements come from: Rough esti- Globular clusters present a particularly appealing target. Stars in
mates so far suggest there could be enough TZOs to explain their a globular cluster all formed around the same time, are densely
formation, but the numbers are highly uncertain. packed, and are old, meaning they have few of the heavy elements
With only one observed TZO in their stable, how do astrono- that enrich newer stars. A crowded globular cluster hosts the ideal
mers estimate how many TZOs are still in the wild, waiting to be circumstances to give a neutron star the needed kick to merge
discovered? This is not easy to answer: For one thing, no one is with a red supergiant star, and the unusual spectroscopic lines
sure how long TZOs can be stable. Some models predict that they would stand out more easily in the metal-poor population.
would be very short-lived objects lasting only a few thousand As spectrographs and telescopes improve and surveys probe
years either due to being torn apart by extremely strong stellar ever deeper into our celestial surroundings, TZO-hunters will keep
winds or collapsing into a black hole. Computationally, this is trying to learn more about these weird stars, how they form and
one of the hardest things out there to model, says de Mink, so how they die, and how many others are waiting to be discovered.
we arent sure. As Levesque explains, It is very exciting to see whats out there.
FOR ANOTHER WEIRD STAR, CHECK OUT A BINARY PULSAR KNOWN AS A BLACK WIDOW AT www.Astronomy.com/toc.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 55
LUNAR OBSERVING
PENUMBRA
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 57
To my great surprise, hundreds attended. People gathered on
PEGASUS the observatorys east-facing lawn and anxiously awaited moonrise
AN DROM EDA
over the verdant hillside.
To our credit, we managed the crowds expectations well.
People definitely werent expecting a Moon twice as large as nor-
AQUAR I US mal; rather they were simply thrilled to be outdoors with fellow
Eclipsed Moon stargazers and neighbors, watching a celestial dance on a beautiful
spring evening. They stopped for longer than a moment to experi-
A RIES PISCES ence something in the heavens.
Fomalhaut
And then the Super Moon rose. It seemed hesitant at first, a
delicate, faint glowing orb emerging from the spring haze. I see it!
CETUS I see it! a first-grader jumped up shouting. There it is, a woman
10 in red whispered, Oh, its so beautiful.
Id seen countless moonrises, but never before had I shared one
with so many people. I looked around at the awed glowing faces
basking in the moonlight. Parents held their childrens hands or
lifted them up onto their shoulders, pointing and smiling. Couples
September 27, 9:47 P.M. CDT with arms entwined beamed. People kissed. The word wow
Looking southeast
reverberated through the crowd.
The totally eclipsed Super Moon on September 27 lies in southern Pisces For an astronomer, watching others enjoy astronomy so much
the Fish, below the Great Square of Pegasus. ASTRONOMY: RICHARD TALCOTT AND ROEN KELLY was as good as it gets. Finally, my emotions exploded, and I
screamed out, Super Moon! at the top of my lungs. The crowd
echoed with a howl of their own. We shared something with the
the Puny Moon. That is like comparing a 16-inch pizza to a universe that night.
14-inch pizza, or the sizes of a quarter and a nickel. The Cincinnati Observatory repeated this celebration June 22,
In the second century b.c., the Greek astronomer Hipparchus 2013, and August 9, 2014, and twice more the power of the Super
noticed this changing Moon size with his naked eye. He con- Moon moved me. We had even larger crowds lining the hillsides to
structed a device called a diopter, a 6-foot-long (2 meters) stick observe together. Some were attending for the first time; others
with a sighting circle on the far end. After utilizing the diopter were loyal Super Moon enthusiasts. This festival of the Moon
through several lunar cycles, Hipparchus discovered that the seemed to fill everyone with such joy.
Moons angular size changed as it moved from perigee to apogee Now Im a Super Moon lover. Why not celebrate once a year
(its farthest point from Earth). Using simple geometry, Hipparchus and establish an event around something so beautiful? At first the
compared the two extremes and discovered the proportional shift Super Moon was an excuse to get people outside and looking up.
from a Super to a Puny Moon. Now its not only a teachable moment but also a commemoration
Nevertheless, celebrating a Super Moon and even worse of our place in the universe. It should be an astronomical holiday.
creating a public event around it produces one of the biggest con-
troversies in todays astronomy education. On the one hand, this is Perfect media event
a non-event to astronomers, a moment that occurs once every 14 The Super Moon of 2015 will go viral. Not only will the Full Moon
months and is neither dramatic nor scientifically significant. on September 27 be the closest one of the year, but it also will be
On the other hand, the media and the
general public eat it up. If astronomers cre-
ate hype over this non-event just to satisfy
the public interest, are they selling out?
This photograph of the
October 8, 2014, total
An astronomical holiday lunar eclipse encapsu-
The media love the Super Moon. It is a lates the peacefulness
of the event. Most
story they can understand, communicate
lunar eclipses play out
well, and display graphically. All media over hours, rather than
platforms have broadcast the Super Moon minutes or seconds like
successfully for the past four years. In some other astronomi-
cal events. JOHN CHUMACK
2011, the Cincinnati Observatory fielded so
many calls about the Super Moon that I felt
forced to meet public demand.
Still skeptical then, I begrudgingly
scheduled an open house to view the Super
Moon in 2012. What ultimately sold me
was its timing. It would occur on a
Saturday night in May, and a weekend
night would maximize public attendance
during a month known for ideal local
weather conditions.
58 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
Because of the length of lunar eclipses,
photographers have the opportunity to image each stage.
This sequence records the total lunar eclipse of April 15, 2014. RICHARD BRYANT
the Harvest Moon (the Full Moon closest to the September equi- Plan for the astronomical event of 2015
nox) and complete a tetrad (a rare cycle of four total lunar eclipses Whether youre associated with an astronomy club, planetarium,
in a row, each pair separated by about six months). science center, observatory, or just have an interest in astronomy,
The media love coincidences, so social media might just take advantage of this event. Host a Moon-watching celebration,
explode. Religious types may interpret these events as signs from an eclipse event, a lunatic block party, or a Super Moon extrava-
above, new doomsday prophets may foretell the end of all things, ganza. Weather permitting, you will be guaranteed an enthusiastic
and history buffs may delve into old records looking for the last audience, and this will be your chance to wow them.
time this occurred. Select a memorable viewing location so that the Moon will rise
In this case, any press that gets people to step outside that eve- above a foreground of trees, a city skyline, or distinguishable local
ning to behold an astronomical sight is good press. Say what you landmarks. Invite guests to bring lawn chairs, blankets, family,
will about a Super Moon, but a lunar eclipse will not disappoint. friends, and picnics. Hire a band. Interact with the crowd and
For viewers on the West Coast and in the mountain states of answer questions, point out other astronomical objects in the sky,
America, the Moon will rise already in partial eclipse just after or introduce a telescope to share a closer look. For many people,
dark, creating the perfect prime-time backdrop for a skyline or a this will be their first astronomical experience.
national park. In the Midwest and East, Moon-gazers will have These opportunities challenge us as educators and enthusiasts.
several hours to watch Luna arc above the eastern horizon and During this eclipse, we can turn passing interests into a memo-
shift through its many eclipsing color variations. It surely will be rable night and foster curiosity and delight in the field we love.
shining in the background of the Denver Broncos at the Detroit
Lions Sunday Night Football broadcast. Barring clouds, it will be Dean Regas is the astronomer at the Cincinnati Observatory and co-host
viewed by millions of people. of the PBS program Star Gazers.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 59
2015 Astronomys sixth annual
STAR PRODUCTS
by Phil Harrington
M
anufacturers from around the world
continue to introduce innovative
products that enhance the amateur
astronomers quality of life. Here are 35 note-
worthy astro-wares, arranged in alphabetical
order by manufacturer, that have caught the
attention of our non-resident equipment
expert during the past year.
ARCTURUS LABS
2 Magnifi
Many adapters allow you to couple your iPhone to your telescope for quick shots of the Moon, but only the
Magnifi serves the dual purpose of adapter and case. A clever two-piece bayonet design locks the removable eye-
piece adapter to the case with a simple counterclockwise twist. The manufacturer constructed the Magnifi from
impact-resistant polycarbonate plastic and wrapped the phones body with a stainless steel band.
60 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
ASTROSYSTEMS CELESTRON
4 Dew Guard 6 NexStar Evolution 9.25
Newtonians are great in damp Celestrons RASA is for photos only,
environments because, unlike but its new NexStar Evolution 9.25 is
refractors and catadioptric for everyone. As the name implies,
instruments, their long tubes with no front lenses usually this instrument raises the bar to the
keep dew from forming on the optics. Unless your Newtonian next level. The NexStar Evolution
doesnt have a tube, that is. Truss designs cool the mirrors 9.25 is the first Schmidt-Cassegrain
faster but leave the optics exposed to dampness. While cloth telescope with integrated Wi-Fi.
light shrouds keep primary mirrors fog-free, secondary mirrors That means you can forget a sepa-
at the front of the truss remain susceptible. AstroSystems Dew rate hand controller. Instead, the
Guard secondary mirror heating system pastes a circuit board Evolutions built-in Wi-Fi syncs
to the back side of the secondary to automatically sense the to your smartphone or tablet
ambient air temperature and compare it to the mirrors tem- (iOS and Android), allowing
perature. It then maintains the secondary at an adjustable pre- you to control the night using
set temperature just above that of the air. If you live in a damp Celestrons SkyPortal app. The
environment, this could extend your viewing time for hours built-in lithium-ion recharge-
after everyone else has packed up. able battery promises up to
10 hours on a single charge.
CELESTRON
5 Rowe-Ackermann Schmidt CHATTANOOGA MILLWORKS
Astrograph
7 ZLOMOTION
For those advanced deep-sky astrophotographers looking to No doubt about it, manual
augment their arsenal with a large-aperture, fast-focal-ratio Dobsonian mounts used
system, Celestrons 11-inch RASA could be your next pur- with Newtonian reflectors
chase. Optical design- are wonderfully simple
ers Dave Rowe and to use except when it
Mark Ackermann comes to tracking. Enter
have come up the ZLOMOTION dual-
with an update to axis slow-motion control
Celestrons classic system, available for most
Schmidt Camera popular 8- to 12-inch instruments. By turning a pair of micro-
that accepts both adjustment knobs, the observer can slowly tweak the telescopes
42mm T-thread aim without losing a challenging object. To change vertical
and 48mm cam- aim, the ZLOMOTION system uses a dual-rod device attached
era adapters. This between telescope tube and ground board. Tweak the horizon-
means that dedicated tal aim by twisting a second wheel attached to a belt-driven
CCD imagers as well as pulley system mounted to the base. To make large altitude
popular DSLR cameras changes, loosen a lock on the sleeve.
can produce outstanding
results when coupled
to this fast, large DAYSTAR INSTRUMENTS
instrument. 8 Quark
If you own a small f/4 to f/9 refractor and
long for stunning views of solar promi-
nences, filaments, and other chromo-
spheric features, Daystars all-in-one Quark
Hydrogen-alpha (H) eyepiece filter is for
you. The unit combines a 4.2x telecentric
Barlow lens, adapters, and an electronically
Phil Harrington is an controlled, temperature-regulated H filter
Astronomy contribut- into one simple assembly that slips into
ing editor and author of your scopes focuser. Two models are avail-
Cosmic Challenge: The able, one optimized for prominences and a
Ultimate Observing List second for the chromosphere.
for Amateurs (Cambridge
University Press, 2010).
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 61
EXPLORE SCIENTIFIC
9 Twilight I 12 IOPTRON
SkyGuider
Explore Scientifics Twilight I All of iOptrons mounts are
alt-azimuth mount and included among the best sold today,
matching tripod make a perfect including this portable equato-
grab-and-go pair for a quick mid- rial dedicated to guided night-
week viewing session through your scape photography through
small- to medium-sized refractor your DSLR. Sharing some of the same
or catadioptric scope. The combo mechanics as the companys iEQ25 tele-
has a payload capacity of 15 scope mount, the SkyGuider can track
pounds (6.8kg) and mates with reasonably heavy cameras and lenses
any telescope that uses a Vixen- across the sky. You can attach ball
style dovetail bracket. Further, heads to the mounts cradle as well as to the end of the counter-
you can tilt the mounts head to 45 for weight shaft, allowing two cameras to operate simultaneously.
easier viewing near the zenith. Flexible cables attached to slow-
motion controls on both axes turn smoothly and easily, even if
you are wearing gloves. JMI TELESCOPES
13 MOTOFOCUS
10 FOX
Cosmos
JMI is well known for its innovative
accessories for all brands and mod-
els of telescopes. Recently, the
Rather than simply remake company has expanded its
the classic Carl Sagan PBS line of MOTOFOCUS
miniseries Cosmos, Sagans electric focusers
widow, Ann Druyan, and to include retrofit
Family Guy creator Seth kits for Crayford
MacFarlane followed their focusers made
own unique path for bringing by Guan Sheng
the universe into our homes. Optical, found on some of
Now available on Blu-ray, todays most popular instruments. The
Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey uses spectacular imagery and MOTOFOCUS attaches directly to the focuser with-
well-written dialogue narrated by Neil deGrasse Tyson. The out drilling. Once its in place, just attach the hand controller
new Cosmos tells two stories: one about the universe and the to the MOTOFOCUS using the supplied coiled cable. A 9-volt
other of how we humans continue to figure it out. battery in the controller powers the MOTOFOCUS motor,
while push-buttons on the box control the direction of focuser
travel. A three-position switch adjusts the focusing speed.
11 HOTECH
Advanced CT Laser Collimator
There are plenty of laser collimators for reflectors, but few 14 KENDRICK ASTRO INSTRUMENTS
Camera-Cozy
designed specifically for Schmidt-Cassegrains. HOTECH
addresses this dilemma with its Advanced CT Laser Does dew do you in when youre photographing the sky?
Collimator. Consisting of three perfectly aligned lasers Kendrick, known for its innovative anti-dew systems, now sells
attached to a bulls-eye target, the beams simulate parallel rays one designed to keep your camera lens clear of dew and frost-
of starlight. By installing the supplied Reflector Mirror into the free all night. The Camera-Cozy includes a wrap-around heater
focuser and align- strap for the lens, a controller to regulate temperature, and
ing the target and an unheated body
telescope, the laser sock. The body sock
beams pass through slips over your DSLR
the telescope twice to keep the inter-
and back onto the nals dry but cool to
target. Adjust every- prevent introducing
thing per the instruc- image noise. Kendrick
tions, and you have a also offers several
collimated telescope 12-volt battery packs
ready to go. to power the heater.
62 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
MALLINCAM
15 Pro Dob II
Have a Dobsonian and want
to try your hand at astrovid-
eography? MallinCams new
Pro Dob II camera is designed
with you in mind. Housed in
a 2-inch-diameter tube, the
Pro Dob II slides into your
focuser just like an eyepiece.
Powered by 12 volts DC, the
Pro Dob II electronically ORION
triples a telescopes aperture, 18 EON 130mm ED
instantly displaying a color
or black-and-white image (your choice) showing details invis- Triplet Apochromatic
ible through an eyepiece. The company includes a specially Refractor Telescope
designed 2" C-mount adapter and a 0.5x focal reducer, and sells Its tough to design a telescope that satisfies the demands of
an 8-inch LCD monitor separately. astrophotography and produces great visual views of star clus-
ters and nebulae, all while maintaining a down-to-earth price.
But Orions EON 130mm ED succeeds. The secret to its perfor-
NIKON mance is the 5.1-inch air-spaced triplet lens made with extra-
16 D810A low dispersion glass. Its f/7 focal ratio suppresses spurious false
color, while three internal baffles eliminate contrast-robbing
Earlier this year, Nikon intro- reflections. The EON comes with a solid 3" dual-speed rack-
duced its first DSLR camera and-pinion focuser, tube rings, and a custom-fitted hard case.
designed specifically to
capture the vivid Hydrogen-
alpha (H) red wavelength ORION
(656 nanometers) so prevalent 19 Mini Deluxe Pro AutoGuider
in emission nebulae. In the
D810A, Nikon uses a specially Package
constructed optical filter it attaches to the front surface of the One of the biggest obstacles to successful astrophotography
cameras 36-megapixel CMOS sensor to gain four times greater is accurate tracking. Orions Mini Deluxe Pro AutoGuider
transmission of H than its standard D810. The D810A, like Package offers a solution for observers who use telescopes up
its predecessor, can enlarge the live view through the lens up to to a focal length of 1,500mm. The heart of the system is a com-
approximately 23x for better focusing accuracy. pact 50mm guide scope coupled to the companys StarShoot
AutoGuider Pro monochromatic camera. This pair attaches to
the side of the imaging telescope using a standard finder scope
OPTIQUES FULLUM dovetail base, which Orion supplies. Weight isnt an issue, since
17 50-inch telescope the system adds a scant 21.2 ounces (600 grams) to your sys-
tem. And tracking accuracy is excellent.
Got aperture fever? Award-winning Canadian telescope maker
Normand Fullum has the cure. Optiques Fullum makes cus-
tom telescopes, including a 50-inch f/3.5 folded Newtonian
reflector. Fullum manufactures everything in-house, includ-
ing the Techno-Fusion honeycombed primary mirror. The
folded design, which adds a mirror between the primary and
the elliptical secondary, lowers
the height of the eyepiece by
about 50 percent, which means
most observers can reach the
eyepiece by climbing only three
steps. The open truss instru-
ment comes equipped with the
ServoCat/Argo Navis GoTo
System. And despite the tele-
scope weighing an estimated
1,400 pounds (635kg), a person
can move it in altitude or azi-
muth with just one finger.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 63
20 QUANTUM
QSI 690
SCIENTIFIC IMAGING
21 SCOPESTUFF
RED Dot Finder for SLR Hotshoe
DSLR shutter-release
control and includes other
preprogrammed settings that
If you use a dedicated allow you to create spectacular
camera drive, such as time-lapse videos.
Sky-Watcher USAs Star
Adventurer (No. 23), then
you know the challenge of
aiming your camera toward
a specific part of the sky.
Images in viewfinders are 24 SOFTWARE BISQUE
TheSky Mobile
just too faint to see much of
anything. ScopeStuff offers a red dot finder that makes aiming Many would say that the planetarium software market was
a snap. The unit comes with a bracket designed to slip into an born in 1983 when Software Bisque introduced TheSky for
SLRs hotshoe base. Simply adjust the aim of the finder as you DOS. Today, several iterations later, TheSky has expanded into
would on a telescope, secure the locking thumbnut at the base, the mobile device market with the introduction of TheSky
and adjust the red dots brightness to your liking. Mobile for iPhones and iPads. The product retains many popu-
lar features from the desktop version, including expandable
object databases and field-of-view overlays, while also adding
22 SKY-WATCHER
StarGate 18" Dobsonian
Wi-Fi telescope control that lets you operate your telescope
directly from your device.
64 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
25 SONY
7S 28 STELLARVUE
SV60EDS APO
This changes With Stellarvues
everything. With a new SV60EDS apo-
12-megapixel full- chromatic refractor,
frame 35mm sen- small is big news. At
sor, the Sony 7S is the core of it all is a
designed to shoot in 2.4-inch f/5.5 dou-
extremely low light blet objective that
conditions at astronomi- features one element
cally high ISO settings up to 409,600. made from OHara
Admittedly, there is a lot of noise at that extreme setting, but FPL-53 glass. FPL-53 is well known as one of the finest materi-
it allows you to set up a shot before shooting at a lower speed als for smothering unwanted chromatic aberration and boost-
setting. At ISOs around 50,000 with quick exposures, unguided ing contrast. This little guy weighs a trim 3 pounds (1.4kg) and
wide-field images taken with the 7S record amazing detail comes with a 2" dual-speed rack-and-pinion focuser, a mount-
in Milky Way star fields. As astrophotographer Ian Norman ing ring, and a foam-padded airline carry-on case. A photo-
said in his online review, The 7S is so sensitive that it almost graphic field flattener is available optionally.
overexposed the Milky Way!
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 65
ASTRONOMYS STAR PRODUCTS 2015
# COMPANY PRODUCT PRICE WEBSITE
1 Amazing Sky Publishing Nightscapes and Timelapses $24.99 www.amazingsky.com
2 Arcturus Labs Magnifi $79.99 www.arcturuslabs.com
3 Astro-Physics 1100GTO German Equatorial Mount $8,800 www.astro-physics.com
4 AstroSystems Dew Guard $37 to $47 www.astrosystems.biz
5 Celestron Rowe-Ackermann Schmidt Astrograph $3,499.95 www.celestron.com
6 Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25 $2,099.95 www.celestron.com
7 Chattanooga Millworks ZLOMOTION $249 to $369 www.zlomotion.com
8 Daystar Instruments Quark $995 www.daystarfilters.com
9 Explore Scientific Twilight I $199.99 www.explorescientific.com
10 FOX Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey Blu-ray $38.99 www.foxconnect.com
11 HOTECH Advanced CT Laser Collimator $455 www.hotechusa.com
12 iOptron SkyGuider $489 www.ioptron.com
13 JMI Telescopes MOTOFOCUS $179 www.jmitelescopes.com
14 Kendrick Astro Instruments Camera-Cozy $159 to $184 www.kendrickastro.com
15 MallinCam Pro Dob II $399.99 www.mallincam.net
16 Nikon D810A $3,799.95 www.nikonusa.com
17 Optiques Fullum 50-inch telescope $197,500 www.normandfullumtelescope.
com
18 Orion EON 130mm ED Triplet Apochromatic $2,999.99 www.telescope.com
Refractor Telescope
19 Orion Mini Deluxe Pro AutoGuider Package $519.99 www.telescope.com
20 Quantum Scientific Imaging QSI 690 $3,395 to $4,290 www.qsimaging.com
21 ScopeStuff RED Dot Finder for SLR Hotshoe $31 www.scopestuff.com
22 Sky-Watcher StarGate 18" Dobsonian 3,799 www.skywatcher.com
23 Sky-Watcher USA Star Adventurer Photo Package $319 www.skywatcherusa.com
24 Software Bisque TheSky Mobile $14.99 to $29.99 www.bisque.com
25 Sony 7S $2,499.99 www.sony.com
26 Stargazer Steve 8-Inch f/6 Ultimate Reflector Kit $529 www.stargazersteve.com
27 Starlight Xpress Lodestar X2 Autoguider $649 www.sxccd.com
28 Stellarvue SV60EDS APO $599 www.stellarvue.com
29 Surplus Shed The Amateur Scientist on CD-ROM $29.50 www.surplusshed.com
30 Takahashi Quadriceps Turret Revolution $595 www.takahashiamerica.com
31 Tele Vue Optics BIG Paracorr Type-2 $1,060 www.televue.com
32 Vixen Optics Sphinx SX2 Mount $1,399 www.vixenoptics.com
33 Vixen Optics Astrograph VSD100F3.8 $6,299 www.vixenoptics.com
34 Waite Research Renegade 20 $9,495 www.waiteresearch.com
35 William Optics WO-Star71 Imaging APO $1,068 www.williamoptics.com
66 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
31 TELE VUE OPTICS
BIG Paracorr Type-2
Owners of superfast Newtonians know that
Tele Vues Paracorr Type-2 coma corrector
is a must-have for eliminating coma and
improving image sharpness across the field
of view. Now Tele Vue has heard the call
of astrophotographers who want the same
benefit across the full field of their large
CCD chips. The BIG Paracorr Type-2 does
just that. With a housing measuring 3 inches across, the BIG
T2s optical design eliminates coma across CCDs measuring up
to 52mm diagonally, with spectacular results. Adapters are also
available to use the BIG T2 visually.
32 VIXEN OPTICS
Sphinx SX2 Mount
Vixens latest addition to its cadre of 34 WAITE RESEARCH
Renegade 20
portable German equatorial mounts
is the Sphinx SX2. The Sphinx SX2 Less is more when it comes to transporting and viewing
offers complete go-to control and pre- through large-aperture Newtonians. Observers will have no
cise tracking. Stepper motors on both need to ascend a tall ladder to enjoy the view through Waite
the right ascension and declination Researchs 20-inch f/3.3 minimalist Dobsonian-mounted
axes drive the mount, while the reflector. Featuring the companys superb optics, Baltic Birch
new Star Book One hand control- construction, and stainless steel hardware, the Renegade 20
ler allows you to locate thou- includes high-end components such as a Starlight Feather
sands of objects stored in the Touch focuser, Moonlite truss hardware, an AstroSystems spi-
internal database. The mount der, and a Kendrick anti-dew system.
can track the sky at sidereal,
solar, lunar, and King rates,
and slew to targets at up to 999x sidereal rate. Vixen included
periodic error correction and a standard autoguider input. The 35 WILLIAM OPTICS
WO-Star71 Imaging APO
SX2 also cleverly locates the drive motors so that they act as
built-in counterweights. Small telescopes may require no addi- Like the Vixen astrograph described earlier (No. 33), the
tional counterweights. William Optics WO-Star71 apochromatic refractor is built
for astrophotography. Using FPL-53 glass for color-free per-
formance, the WO-Star71s objective contains five elements
33 VIXEN OPTICS
Astrograph VSD100F3.8
in a three-group arrangement. The scopes 2.5" dual-speed
rack-and-pinion focuser terminates in a male M48x0.75 thread
that accepts camera T-mount adapter rings. For those ama-
Vixens new VSD100F3.8 astrograph is a superfast imaging teur astronomers who want to use the scope visually, William
telescope designed with one thing in mind: to produce the Optics also sells a 1" dielectric mirror diagonal and adapter
best possible images of wide star fields and striking nebulosity. that threads onto the telescopes focuser tube.
And it succeeds beautifully thanks to its advanced five-element
objective lens design that includes a super-low dispersion lens
in the front and an extra-low dispersion lens in the rear. Using
those, the VSD100F3.8 achieves superb color correction. The
blue halos so often seen around bright stars in photographs
taken with traditional four-element objectives are gone. And
for photographers who want to go big, the oversized focuser
accepts 645 medium-format cameras without difficulty.
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 67
ASTROSKETCHING
BY ERIKA RIX
Sketch
Minkowskis
nebulae
If you caught my previous With several interesting
column, you may have tried small nebulae to choose
your hand at using the white- from, Ill share two of my
on-black sketching technique favorites.
for deep-sky objects. Now its Tucked within the parallel-
time to step it up a notch. The ogram of the constellation Lyra
challenge isnt always in the is a beautiful 13th-magnitude
complexity of the object, but planetary nebula, M164 (PK
rather its size. 64+15.1). At only 17" in diam-
In 1946, a German- eter, its often overshadowed by The author sketched M164 here as seen through a 16-inch f/4.5 Newtonian reflector
American astronomer the more obvious Ring Nebula with a 8mm Plssl eyepiece and Oxygen-III filter, for a magnification of 225x. She
named Rudolph Minkowski (M57). You can locate M164 sketched both targets using a Gelly Roll 08 white gel pen, a white watercolor pencil,
white charcoal, a No. 1 blending stump, and black Strathmore Artagain paper. She used
(18951976) released a new nearly halfway between the
a gel pen to draw 3-inch diameter sketch circles onto the paper. She removed the
list of 103 nebulae. He dis- Ring and Zeta () Lyrae. rough edges of the stars and added star glow in Adobe Photoshop. Sketches are
covered these by examining Through an 8-inch tele- rotated so that north is at the top, west is to the right. ALL SKETCHES BY ERIKA RIX
objective-prism survey plates scope, it appears as a soft gray
obtained by William C. Miller disk of uniform brightness. Its increasing the aperture to 16 Looking through an 8-inch
with a 10-inch refractor at shell becomes detectable using inches, the nebula brightens to telescope, M192 is stellar, but
Mount Wilson Observatory. a 12-inch scope, and when form a ring. Although the cen- it softens at 200x. Youll notice
tral star isnt visible, you should an elongation using a 12-inch
be able to spot a faint star at its scope so that it resembles a
north rim. This object responds close double. Pushing the mag-
well to Oxygen-III and ultra- nification of a 16-inch scope
high contrast filters. reveals its distinctive footprint
Smaller objects require appearance, though depend-
precision sketching tools. Use ing on sky conditions, you
a " (No. 1) blending stump may not see a separation. The
to apply a thin, round layer of northwest lobe is brighter and
white pastel within the star nearly two-thirds the size of its
field to render the planetarys tapered southeast component.
disk. If you observe the shell, I drew the large circular
add its gentle glow softly with a lobe with a white pencil and
white pencil. then blended with a No. 1
Smaller yet is Minkowskis stump. I needed only slight
Footprint (M192), a bipolar dabs to soften its edges while
reflection nebula in the con- leaving the center bright. I
M1-92 stellation Cygnus. Due to its used the residue that remained
diminutive 4.5" by 11.5" size, on the stumps tip to smudge
I used the magnitude 5.4 star in the heel.
9 Cygni as a home base and Be sure to check out my next
then star hopped 20' north- column for a demonstration on
northeast until I recognized sketching solar prominences,
the ladle-like star pattern in and as always, feel free to share
which the nebula resides. A comments or questions with
For the observation of tiny nebula Minkowskis Footprint (M192), the author used a
16-inch f/4.5 Newtonian reflector with an 8mm Plssl eyepiece and a 2.5x Barlow, for a magnitude 9.7 star lies another me at erikarix1@gmail.com.
magnification of 563x. 1' farther north. Clear skies!
68 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
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W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 69
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W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 71
READER
GALLERY
1. STELLAR SAPPHIRES
The Southern Pleiades (IC 2602) is
a dazzling open star cluster in the
constellation Carina the Keel. Some
observers call it the Theta Carinae
Cluster because its luminary is the
magnitude 2.7 star of that name. At low
power, this object looks like two clus-
ters separated by a 0.3 gulf. (16-inch
Dream Telescopes Astrograph at f/3.75,
Apogee Alta U16M CCD camera, HRGB
image with exposures of 180, 30, 30,
and 30 minutes, respectively)
Kfir Simon
2. FUTURE STARS
The region of the Taurus Molecular
Cloud includes a vast amount of dust
and ultra-cold gas that eventually will
condense to form stars. Astronomers
have found many complex molecules
organic as well as inorganic
within the cloud. (Canon 6D DSLR,
Nikon 600mm f/4 ED IF lens set at f/4
and f/6, ISO 1600, two hundred and
sixty 10-minute exposures, stacked) 2
Scott Rosen
72 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
3. FORTUNATE LINEUP
M46 is a gorgeous open cluster in
the constellation Puppis. In the same
line of sight but definitely not part
of the cluster is planetary nebula
NGC 2438. The stars in M46 lie 5,500
light-years away, while the planetary is
some 2,500 light-years closer. (3.6-inch
Astro-Tech AT90EDT refractor at f/6.7,
SBIG ST-8300 CCD camera, LRGB image
with exposures of 120, 40, 40, and 40
minutes, respectively) Dan Crowson
4. UNDERWHELMING GLOB
Observers often overlook magnitude
9.5 NGC 6366 in the constellation
Ophiuchus the Serpent-bearer. It cov-
3 ers only as much sky as one-quarter
of the Full Moon and is so sparse that
it barely looks like a globular cluster
at all. (10-inch Astro Systeme Austria
astrograph at f/6.8, SBIG STL-11000M
CCD camera, LRGB image with expo-
sures of 75, 70, 60, and 50 minutes,
respectively) Ron Brecher
5. TRIPLE TREAT
The crescent Moon, complete with
earthshine, passed a duo of planets
in February. Reddish Mars sits to our
4 satellites lower left while Venus shines
much brighter a bit farther away.
(Nikon D800E DSLR, 28-300mm Nikkor
lens set at 98mm and f/5.3, ISO 6400,
0.2-second exposure, taken February
20, 2015, from Newark, California)
Jacques Guertin
7. IN A MIRROR DIMLY
Reflection nebula van den Bergh 106
lies in the constellation Scorpius. It
forms part of the vast nebulous com-
plex in that area and surrounds the
triple star Rho () Ophiuchi. (8-inch
Officina Stellare RH200 astrograph,
Quantum Scientific Instruments QSI
683wsg CCD camera, LRGB image with
2.5 hours of exposures) Remus Chua
W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 73
BREAK
THROUGH
A once and
future Sun
Roughly 7 billion years
from now, the Sun will
have exhausted all the
hydrogen and helium in
its core and ballooned
into a red giant (for a
second time). Then, it will
puff off its outer layers to
form a planetary nebula
like the Medusa (Abell 21)
seen here. Named after
the Gorgon Medusa from
Greek mythology, which
famously had snakes
instead of hair, the nebu-
las serpentine tendrils are
actually the dying stars
expelled gases. In this
image from the European
Southern Observatorys
8.2-meter Very Large
Telescope, hydrogen
glows red and ionized
oxygen green. ESO
74 A ST R O N O M Y S E P T E M B E R 2015
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