Archive for May, 2009
The Moon For All Mankind
Monday, May 11th, 2009
Monday, 11 May 2009
The UK has the opportunity to take part in an exciting IYA2009 special project: The Moon for All Mankind
This project is being run by the IYA2009 Malta Committee. They have divided the Moon into 45 sections, which will be imaged in different countries around the world and combined in a collage which will be circulated globally by the IYA2009 global task group.
The UK has been assigned sections 41 and 42 (see image above) which includes Tycho crater. We are therefore looking for amateur astronomers to take part in this project and image the relevant sections of the Moon.
The images are to be taken on either 9th May or 7th June 2009, during the full Moon.
If you are interested in being involved in this project, please email the UK Coordinator Steve Owens at: steve@astronomy2009.co.uk
Mark Hurn – “Sir Robert Stawell Ball”
Wednesday, May 6th, 2009
Wednesday 6th May 2009
The history of astronomy is a popular topic for Papworth meetings, so we were pleased to have Mark Hurn give us a talk on Sir Robert Stawell Ball for our May meeting before the summer break. (That’s Sir Robert in the picture above – not Mark!)
Sir Robert was a nineteenth century Irish astronomer who became Astronomer Royal for Ireland and later worked at the University of Cambridge where he had special accommodation built for his extensive family. His observational astronomy days ended prematurely after removal of one of his eyes, but he made significant contributions to mathematics and particularly to the popularization of astronomy through his many books.
Mark Hurn is librarian at the Institute of Astronomy so has access to a number of old books written by Ball which he brought along to the meeting to show us. Mark made the point that it is fascinating to read about past astronomical theories in the light of our present knowledge. Ball, for example, believed that meteorites came from earth, not from the solar system and argued his corner vigorously. We now know of course that many of these objects come from Mars, but one can imagine how this might have been difficult to envisage over 100 years ago. Sir Robert Ball died in 1913 and is buried in Cambridge in the Ascension Parish Burial Ground, near Storey’s Way.
Astronomy Quiz Champions
Friday, May 1st, 2009
Friday 1st May 2009
Papworth were returned as Champions of the Annual Astronomy Quiz after an exciting dual with Bedford and Sawtry.
Although they led from the first round, Papworth were taken to the wire to win by just one point from Bedford, with Sawtry just one more point behind.
I’ll post the names of the team members pictured above once I have them.
Annual Quiz
Friday, May 1st, 2009
Vinter Room, Papworth Everard
Friday, 1 May 2009, 19:30
Papworth will be competing with Sawtry and Bedford AS for The Admiral Smyth Trophy in the annual astronomical quiz. Papworth were last year’s winners, but we can’t rest on our laurels!
The Admiral Smyth Trophy was presented by the Bedford Astronomical Society in 1991, the winners in that year. Its named after the astronomer William Henry Smyth (1788–1865), Gold Medallist of the Royal Astronomical Society. After retiring from the Navy, Smyth built and equipped an astronomical observatory at Bedford, where for many years he carried out observations of stars and published works on astronomy.
See the Meetings page for a map of how to get to the Vinter Room.