BAA Back to Basics, Beginners Workshop. Clanfield.
Clanfield Memorial Hall, South Lane, Clanfield, Hampshire, PO8 0NW
The cost will be £7.50 BAA members and £12.50 non-members. Bookings with remittance should be sent no later than 5th January 2008 using the following booking form.
The day starts at 09:45 with registration and finishes at 17:00. Lunch and all refreshments are included.
Programme
0945 Registration – Tea/coffee
1015 Official welcome – BAA President, Roger Pickard
1020 So what astronomy can I do? – Mrs Hazel Collett
1030 What equipment & books do I need? – BAA Section Director Dr Stewart Moore
1100 Solar observing – BAA Speaker, Peter Meadows
1120 Lunar observing – BAA Speaker - Martin Morgan-Taylor
1140 Observing Saturn & Jupiter – BAA Section Director, Mike Foulkes
1200 Observing variable stars – BAA Section Director, Roger Pickard
1220 Lunch
1330 3 x 30 minute workshop sessions
1500 Afternoon tea
1530 2 x 30 minute workshop sessions
1630 Feedback and Q&A session
1645 Closing address – BAA President, Roger Pickard
Organisers: Hazel Collett (BAA) and Hampshire Astronomical Group
Due to circumstances the scheduled speakers were unavailable. Replacement programme:
17.30 - BAA OM
17.45 - 18.00 Val White - The Otford (Kent) scale model of the solar system
18.00 - 18.20 Richard McKim - The latest images of Mercury from the Messenger spacecraft and the ground-based record
18.20 - 18.45 Roger Pickard - Sky Notes
18.45 - 19.00 Sheridan Williams - Eclipses and Easter, equinox and solstice
19.00 - 19.20 John Rogers - Jupiter (the global upheaval of 2007)
19.20 - 19.40 Bob Marriott - Opening of the Black Country Museum Observatory
19.40 - 19.55 Nick James - NEOs etc
19.55 - 20.00 Close
Speakers
Andy Green "Triumph & Tragedy - the Highs & Lows of Space Exploration"
Nigel Bannister "An Auroral Imaging instrument for low Earth Orbit - which could perhaps find its way to Jupiter eventually"
Venue: Royal Astronomical Society Lecture Theatre, Burlington House , Piccadilly, London
10.30 Registration and introductions
11.00 "Observing Jupiter and Saturn" Mike Foulkes
12:00 "Imaging the Moon with a webcam" James Jefferson
12:30 "High-resolution imaging of the bright planets" David Arditti
13:30 Lunch
14:30 Practical workshop: Computer processing of planetary images, in small groups, led by Mike Foulkes, James Jefferson, David Arditti and Martin Lewis
16:00 Tea
16:30 Questions to all the contributors
17:00 Close
Venue - Berrill Lecture Theatre, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA
The final programme for the 2008 Deep Sky Section Meeting is shown
below. There are a couple of changes to the previously advertised
programme. Gain Lee has unfortunately had to pull out but his place has
been taken by Owen Brazell (Assistant Director to the Deep Sky Section)
who will give a talk on the Abell Planetary Nebula Project. It has also
proved impossible to get anyone from the Galaxy Zoo project to talk to
us.
Everyone welcome. Admission L7 payable at the door (to include refreshments).
For queries concerning the venue please contact Callum Potter
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Doors open 10am
10.30 Coffee
11.00 – 11.30 Welcome and Review of Year - Stewart Moore
11.30 – 12.15 Peter Grego - From Moon to Deep Sky, Sketching with a PDA
12.15 – 13.00 Paul Roche - Bringing the Deep Sky down to Earth: Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network
13.00 Lunch
14.30 – 15.15 Owen Brazell – The Abell Planetary Nebula Project
15.15 – 16.00 Callum Potter - Wide Field DSLR Imaging
16.00 Tea
16.30 – 17.15 Paul Downing - Galaxy Interactions and Peculiarities
17.15 – 17.30 Meeting round up - Stewart Moore
17.30 Close
The following sales stands hope to be in attendance:
BAA
Webb Deep Sky Society
SCS Astro
Aurora Books
Exhibitions of deep sky material by Section Members is encouraged.
Please contact the Callum Potter
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if you want to have a display.
We look forward to seeing you on the day.
Venue: Century Hall, Shurdington, Cheltenham, GL51
4TB
Organisers: Stewart Moore & Callum Potter
Speakers:
Sam George – Extra Solar Planets & Their Auroral Processes
Jeff Lashley – Jupiter Radio Noise and the BAA RAG up-date
Richard Miles – Sky Notes
Venue: Royal Astronomical Society Lecture Theatre, Burlington House , Piccadilly, London
The Alfred Curtis Memorial Lecture will be given by Dr. Arne Henden, Director of the AAVSO. "Variable Stars"
Other speakers to include:
Neil Bone, "Observing with a small telescope"
Michael Folkes, "Saturn"
David Bryant, "Meteorites"
Dr. Richard Crittenden, "Dark Matter"
Ian King, "Hands on introduction to image processing"
Paul Haley, "Solar observations as part of the International Heliophysical Year"
Peter Wise, "Modern developments of the telescope"
plus Exhibitors
Sparsholt College is about 5 miles west of Winchester and has good train and motorway links. This new location provides en suite accommodation in modern student hall of residence, dark un-obstructed rural skies, plenty of room and plenty of parking. Clear skies cannot be guaranteed but observing will be encouraged (please bring equipment).
To book a place, please complete the Booking Form accompanying the December BAA Journal, or contact the BAA Office for a booking form.
Prices:
Resident (Friday to Sunday) BAA Member £160
Resident (Friday to Sunday) Non-BAA Member £180
Day visitors:
Friday evening (no meals) £15 or (including dinner) £30
Saturday all day (including lunch) £35 or (including lunch & dinner) £50
Sunday to afternoon (including lunch) £25
The British Astronomical Association (BAA) 2008 Out of London
meeting is being held in conjunction with the American Association of
Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) from April 10th to 13th, in Cambridge.
Accommodation is available from the evening of Thursday 9th. Friday
10th is devoted to Variable Star Observing, and the theme continues
into the Saturday 11th for the BAA Out of London meeting which is
followed by an evening banquet with a guest speaker. Sunday 13th sees
an optional tour to Stonehenge and Avebury.
BAA Members have to register for the meeting either by completing the Booking Form (pdf) (printed copies of this are being circulated with the February Journal) and returning to the BAA Office with payment, or online at http://www.regonline.com/aavso-baa
Bookings must be made by March 26 2008.
Please note that BAA Members wishing to attend just the Out of London meeting do still need to register.
Programme
(Correct at 2008/01/31 - programme may change without notice)
Thursday Afternoon 10th April
Suggested trip to the AmericanMilitaryCemetery
for those arriving early
(Make own arrangements by
bus or walk).
Thursday Evening
19.00
Dinner on Campus
20.00
Visit to Cambridge Institute
of Astronomy old telescopes - no charge
Friday Daytime 11th
April
09.20 - 09.30
Welcome, BAA President,
Roger Pickard and AAVSO Director
Dr Arne Henden
09.30 - 10.00
Dr Paula Szkody, WashingtonUniversity, Coordinated HST and Ground
Campaigns on Cataclysmic Variables
10.00 - 10.30
Des Loughney, VSS, Eclipsing
Binaries - Observational Challenges
10.30 - 11.15
Short Presentations and
poster papers from AAVSO and BAA Members
11.15 - 11.45
Tea/coffee break
11.45 - 12.45
Short Presentations and
poster papers from AAVSO and BAA Members
12.45 - 14.00
Buffet Lunch
14.00 - 14.45
John Toone, VSS, Charles
Butterworth
14.45 - 15.30
Robin Leadbeater, VSS,
Chasing Rainbows - The European amateur spectroscopy scene
15.30 - 16.00
Tea/coffee break
16.00 - 16.45
Dr Tom Lloyd-Evans, VSS,
Long term monitoring and the Carbon Miras
16.45 - 17.30
Dr Boris Gaensicke, WarwickUniversity, Cataclysmic variables from
large surveys - a silent revolution
17.30
Close
Friday Evening
19.00 - 20.00
Dinner on Campus
20.00 - 21.00
Informal lecture: Prof Mike
Bode, LiverpoolJohnMooresUniversity, title TBA
Saturday Daytime 12th
April
10.00 - 10:25
Registration - Tea/coffee
available
10.25 - 10:30
Welcome, BAA President,
Roger Pickard and AAVSO Director
Dr Arne Henden
10.30 - 11:15
Dr Rene Oudmaijer, LeedsUniversity, Star Formation
11.15 - 12:00
Dr Arne Henden, AAVSO, The
MJUO/AAVSO Collaboration
12.00 - 13:30
Buffet Lunch
13.30 - 14:15
Guy Hurst, BAA Novae and
Supernovae: from visual to remote robotic observations
14.15 - 15.00
Lee MacDonald, BAA,
Observing the Sun with Small Telescopes
15.00 - 15:45
Tea/coffee break
15.45 - 16:30
Dr Giulio Del Zanna, Mullard
Space Science Laboratory, Changes in the solar corona during the last cycle
16.30 - 17:30
Prof Douglas Gough, Inst. of
Astronomy, Cambridge,
The Sun as a Variable Star
17.30
Close
Saturday Evening
19.00 - 19.30
Assemble for Banquet (Smart
casual attire will suffice)
19.30 - 21.00
Banquet
21.00 - 22:00
After Dinner lecture by
Guest Speaker Prof John Brown, Astronomer Royal for Scotland, Some Musings on 50
Years in Astronomy and Magic
Meeting of the Instruments and Imaging Section
Saturday, 10 May 2008
Wootton Working Men's Club, Wootton, Northampton
Doors open 9.45; meeting begins 11.00
£3 entry, including morning and afternoon refreshments
Programme
400th Anniversary of the Invention of the Telescope
Bob Marriott : The early days of the telescope
Dr David Whitehouse : The Digges telescope - before Lippershey
Ron Arbour : Commissioning telescopes
Nick James : Refurbishment of the James observatory
Dr Allan Chapman : The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
Bob Marriott : A brief history of astronomical photography and imaging
Dr David Whitehouse is a former BBC Science Correspondent. He has recently completed a biography of Digges, and is now working on a television documentary.
Wootton Working Men's Club - formerly The Red Lion - is a real-ale pub with a private function room incorporating lecture facilities (including full black-out) in congenial surroundings, with comfortable seating and a bar. It is listed in the CAMRA Guide, and is the current recipient of the CAMRA Regional Award. The Yeoman of England - 70 yards distant - is open at 10 am for breakfast, and serves a comprehensive menu all day until 9 pm. The landlord of the Yeoman has given his permission for use of the car park
Photographs of the venue, and a location map, are on the Section web site , which has been completely redesigned. Recent additions include several members' observatories and instruments, a selection of images, and all (113) of Tom Boles' supernova discoveries - in all, 267 pages.
The British Astronomical Association (BAA) 2008 Out of London meeting is being held in conjunction with the
Irish Astronomical Society
at University College, Dublin (UCD).
Ireland uses the Euro (€) as its currency and the current exchange rate is around £1=€1.25. A good guide to Dublin with plenty of maps can be found on the
Dublin tourist website.
Programme
The weekend starts with a trip to
Birr Castle
on Friday, September 5th
to see the restored 72-inch Lord Rosse telescope followed by an evening visit to
Dunsink Observatory.
The main meeting on Saturday has a full programme of talks followed by a formal dinner and after-dinner talk by
Leo Enright.
Finally, on Sunday we are fortunate to have 40 places to visit the
Newgrange Passage Tomb,
a 5,000 year old monument which has many astronomical connections.
Full details are on the
Programme and booking form.
You can also download the schedule for the coach trips - please assemble for the trips 10 minutes before departure time.
Venue
The Saturday meeting is being held in Theatre N, Newman Building, which is in the centre of the Belfield campus of University College Dublin. The Newman Building is location 39 on the
campus map. The campus is around 3 miles southeast of Dublin city centre on the Stillorgan Road (N11).
Buses take 20-30 minutes from the centre of Dublin and bus numbers 3, 10, 11B and 17 provide direct connections to the Belfield campus. Timetables are available from the
Dublin Bus website. Simply enter the route number in the appropriate box.
Accommodation
Accommodation in Dublin is at a premium due to the All Ireland Hurling Final which is taking place at
Croke Park on the Sunday. This means that it is important you book as early as possible.
The main hotel for the weekend is the
Montrose.
This hotel is just across the Stillorgan Road from the venue and it is the base for the coach trips. The BAA has negotiated a special rate of €129 per night for a twin room at this hotel. To book call the hotel on 00 353 1 269 3311 and quote reference BAA040908. If you search around on the web you may be able to book alternative rooms at this hotel more cheaply but these seem to come and go. The next nearest hotel on the same road is the
Stillorgan Park Hotel a little further down the Stillorgan Road.
If you are travelling to the venue/Montrose by public transport we suggest that you book a hotel near to the 10 or 46B bus routes (see the
Dublin Bus
website for maps and details). These buses stop outside the Montrose and they run regularly from early in the morning until late at night. Hotels in the centre of Dublin near these routes would be a good choice.
For example, low cost B&B is available from
Mercer Court which
offers student rooms in the centre of Dublin from €62 per night and which
is a few minutes' walk from the bus routes.
Alternative hotel accommodation should be available via websites such as
Dublin hotels and
Ryanair.
Many other options will be found by googling "Dublin hotels".
Once you have booked accommodation
please let us know where you are staying by e-mailing us the details using this
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.
Travel to Dublin
There are many low-cost flights to Dublin from UK airports. For a selection go to the
plan your trip
page of the
Dublin airport website.
Venue: University College, Dublin, Ireland.
Organisers: Hazel Collett, Nick James (BAA) and Deirdre Kelleghan (IAS)
The BAA Variable Star Section is organising a Variable Star Observing Workshop in Edinburgh on Saturday 18th October 2008. The workshop will be held at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh.The workshop will last from 10.30 am to 4pm. There will be a £10 charge which will include lunch. Included in the day will be a short presentation by the RO of its Crawford collection.
All BAA members and variable star observers are welcome. Also welcome are members of astronomical societies and interested members of the public.
I would be grateful if you could let Des Loughney know if you intend to come to the workshop. Nearer the date he will forward a full programme. The Workshop is aimed at those who are thinking of observing variable stars or are new to it, and will provide information on current observing campaigns which will be of interest to more experienced observers.
Please circulate this notice to anyone you consider would be interested.
Des Loughney, BAA VSS Eclipsing Binary Secretary:
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BAA Back to Basics Workshops provide a programme of talks and practical sessions to help you learn basic techniques and develop your interest to its full potential. Experienced people will be on hand to answer your questions.
Cost of the event is £8.00 to BAA Members and £13.00 to non-members. Price includes all refreshments and a buffet lunch.
You can download this Booking Form (pdf, 188kb) which includes further details. Bookings must be made by October 17th.
Venue: Priory Street Centre, Priory Street, York, YO1 6ET.
Organisers: Hazel Collett (BAA) & Martin Whillock (York AS)
Guy Hurst – A Study of Exploding Stars with Robotic Telescopes
Dale Holt – The Rev T.H.E.C. Espin 1858-1934, Eccentric vicar and dedicated astronomer.
Sky Notes - Nick James
