Members are invited to make nominations for the BAA Council Ballot for session 2008/9.

For your convenience download this form, print, complete and return to Ron Johnson as soon as possible.

Following early January’s Quadrantids, the opening months of the year are generally regarded as a rather thin time for meteor observing, with only minor shower and low background sporadic activity in evidence. Even the most dedicated observers find the minimal rates - sometimes only one or two meteors per hour - in February and early March rather a trial on their patience. 

Following Tom Bole’s discovery of supernovae 2008X and 2008af on February 7th and 9th respectively, he had even more reason to feel pleased with himself when he discovered 3 more and all within a single night. 

(SN2008ai - Tom Boles discovery image) 

Saturn will be at opposition on 24 February 2008 and so will be well placed for observation over the next few months. It will be in the constellation of Leo, lying to the east of Regulus. The planet’s apparent retrograde motion will carry it towards Regulus and the two objects will be a fine sight both with the naked eye and with binoculars. They will start to separate again in early May.

At opposition, the south pole of the planet and hence the south face of the rings will be tilted towards the Earth by approximately 8 degrees. This narrow tilt will make the rings more difficult to detect in the very smallest of telescopes, but they will still be readily visible in telescopes of approximately 7 cm aperture.

(Figure 1. General view of Saturn. Image taken by David Arditti 12 December 2007 with a C14 Schmidt Cassegrain.)