[BAA Comets] NEW - Interactive comet finder charts

[Graham Relf]

On 24/05/2013 22:37, willian souza wrote:
> Hello Graham,
>
> That is amazing, great tool!
> It works even on my samsung galaxy S II running android 4.1.2.
> Regards,
> Willian Souza
> Sao Paulo/Brazil
>
> -----Original Message-----
>
> From: Graham Relf
> Sent: 24 May 2013 18:12:33 GMT
> To: BAA Comets discussion list
> Cc: Sheridan Williams
> Subject: [BAA Comets] NEW - Interactive comet finder charts
>
> In response to requirements elucidated at the Comet Section meeting on
> 18th May, the comet ( http://britastro.org/computing/charts_comet.html )
> and asteroid ( http://britastro.org/computing/charts_asteroid.html )
> finder charts on britastro.org/computing will have a new feature from
> now on. A preliminary sample can be seen at
> http://britastro.org/computing/ch/_63PTest.html (63P/Wild).
>
> As you move the mouse over the chart certain data for the nearest star
> are displayed below it:
>
> Star id (Flamsteed/Bayer or H... Hipparcos or T... Tycho)
> V magnitude (+ "variable" if the star is variable in the Hipparcos/Tycho
> data)
> B - V (colour index; just a few stars do not have the data for this)
>
> The id is given so that further information can be found elsewhere if
> desired.
> V magnitude is given to enable visual comet magnitude estimation using
> the defocussing technique (see J.Shanklin, BAA Observing Guide to
> Comets, 2002).
> B - V is given so that stars with a similar colour index to the Sun can
> be used. Dust comets are reflecting sunlight so comparison magnitudes
> need to be for similar stars. The Sun's B - V value is reckoned to be
> 0.66 (see
> http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?bibcode=1992PASP..104.1035G&db_key=AST&data_type=HTML&format=&high=44b52c369023103
> David F. Gray, The inferred colour index of the Sun, 1992).
>
> The chart also displays green boxes around the most Sun-like stars:
> those in the range 0.60 < B - V < 0.72.
>
> The interaction is done using standard HTML/JavaScript techniques that
> have been around for many years and so should work in all browsers. It
> has been tested in FireFox 20 and Internet Explorer 10. The code is
> generated automatically by our own chart generator using Hipparcos/Tycho
> data. Once you have the chart in your browser no further internet
> connection is need for the interaction.
>
> If you print the chart you will not get the star data. The idea is that
> you select the stars you want and make a separate note of their
> characteristics, perhaps written on the print. However, if you save the
> whole page from your browser you should be able to view it from disc
> with the full interaction.
>
> The interactivity is not yet in the red-on-black versions of the charts
> but that will come soon.
>
> Please tell us about any problems or modifications you think would be
> useful. I have already had feedback that the star data do not follow the
> mouse in early versions of FireFox. It would be useful to know about
> other exceptions, though I am not sure at this stage what could be done.
>
> I hope I have demonstrated with this that having our own chart generator
> is an advantage because we can make it do what we really need. (And I
> enjoy the challenges involved.)
>
> Graham
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Willian,

Thanks for that information - I'm delighted to know that it works in 
Android.

Graham