From: TerryMosel
aol.com
Date: Fri, 20 Feb 2004 16:14:32 EST
Subject: 4 Transits, TV, Comet
Hi all,
1. Mark Stronge has notified us of this rare event:
On Saturday 21st February at 11:17hrs, Progress-M1 11, Soyuz-TMA 3, the ISS
and Progress-M-48 will all transit the Sun visible in the Carryduff to
Saintfield region. They will all transit in less than two minutes, and three of them
within one minute!!! Don't blink!!!
Mark & I have conferred re locations, and the best option seems to be the two
laybys on either side of the Carryduff - Saintfield road, just outside
Carryduff (about 3/4 mile from the roundabout in C'duff. The better of the two for
all round viewing would be the one on the Left side of the raod as you leave
C'duff, but other vehicles tend to use it. If it's busy, use the one on the
other side of the road
You are all very welcome to come along on Saturday morning but you must try
and bring a telescope, solar filter and if possible, a camera, video camera,
webcam or something to try and capture this. Even a video camera looking at
projected image on a card is an option. The transit is only visible within a 6
mile radius, so the location is critical.
This should be a good test to hone your skills in astrophotography in
preparation for the Venus transit in June. Hopefully there will be a sunspot or two
on the photosphere to make things a bit more interesting, though there was very
little today! Mark wrote "Each of the satellites are around 9.5 arcseconds in
diameter so we should hopefully see some detail in the structure of each
satellite.", but my notes indicate that the ISS will be about 2-3 times that size,
but the others will be a lot smaller. Mark will have updated details.
You would need to be there & set up & ready to go by about 11.00 to be safe.
Whatever you do, don't come at the last minute & interfere with those already
there & ready - you won't be popular if you do! The whole thing will be over
in two minutes, so you won't get a second chance!
Unfortunately I can't go, as I have a funeral to go to.
2. "The Day The Earth Was Born", Channel 4, Sat 21st, 7.p.m. A programme
looking at the events shaping the first 100 million years of the Earth's life, and
asking how did life begin?
3. Comet C/2002 T7 (LINEAR) is brightening slowly, moving slowly to the SW
each evening, below the bottom left star of the Square of Pegasus. It's about
7th magnitude, and has a short tail. It's best seen from a dark-sky location.
Clear skies,
Terry Moseley
