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Club Newsletters 19/08/10 Astronomia Visit Astronomia of Dorking have requested a visit to the Observatory and meet our members. The visit will take place on Tuesday 7th September from 19:30. So come and meet the Astronomia team and find out about the equipment they can supply. Phil Alner September 1st sees the start of the Cody Astronomical Society's 10/11 season. The committee of the Cody Astronomical Society welcomes you all to the 2010/2011 season, the 13th in the Society's history. Subscriptions Being the beginning of the new season, payment of subscriptions is now due, £20. Please pay your subscriptions ASAP as we can then concentrate on doing Astronomy. Please pass subs (Cheques payable to Cody Astronomical Society) to myself (address below). Payment of subs can also be made at our events. If any of your personal details have changed in the last year please use the attached 'update form' and send to me. Holders of the 'Site Access Pass' will be required to pay their subs by the 19th September, so that I can arrange the issue of a new pass on the 1st October.
A I will be contacting New Invited membership applicants in due course. Lectures This year we plan to have a formal lecture each month throughout the year, 11 in all. The lectures that have been booked so far are :-
We also hope to have a BBQ early in the season and the Christmas party as usual.
Observing
Ad-Hoc observing will be notified by email. Notification of viewing nights will be by email as soon as we have confidence that it is going to be clear, and possibly with less than 24hrs notice.
Deep sky.
Lunar. We hope that these evenings will entice those new to amateur astronomy to come and have a look through the Zeiss telescope and learn about telescopes and what can be seen in the night sky. For seasoned observers, we hope you'll bring along your own telescopes to give the evenings a real "star party" feel. We hope to foster a bigger interest in getting out there and doing observing, rather than just listening to someone lecturing about it. We would welcome any member wishing to help by taking an active role in these observing evenings or even just to suggest objects they might like to observe. Membership access to the observatory We have introduced an 'Induction' process for everyone attending the observatory. This is in the form of a document containing all known Health & Safety aspects relative to our activities at the Observatory plus other operational information. Members will be given a briefing and asked to sign that they have received the briefing. Members are encouraged to gain 'Key Holder Status' allowing them total access to the observatory once they have attended a briefing session. Those attending the briefing will be given an Observatory Guide. The guide contains everything observers need to know to operate the observatory properly and safely. Those wishing to use the observatory will need to familiarise themselves with the guide and follow it when using the observatory. We hope that the improved access to the telescope, coupled with the Society monthly observing sessions, will encourage more members to have a go using the observatory and develop their interest in astronomy. Basic astronomy Thanks to a grant from the Farnborough Area Association of the Civil Service Sports Council, we now have a digital projector fitted in the clubroom. This season our Monthly Basic Astronomy classes (8 in total) will be tailored to our 'students' requirements. To receive details of the Basic Astronomy course please book your place with me. Those booking early will have the option of choosing the topics for the course. Recruitment Stand Sometime in September, date to be decided we will have our recruitment stand in the Concourse of Qinetiq. We will also be looking for volunteers to man the stand. Even if it's only for 15 minutes it will help. Thursday Surgery I attend the observatory each Thursday from 11:00 to 14:00, this is for members who wish to do day light / Solar observing, training on the Zeiss Telescope, using the library etc. And I'm there to help members with any astronomy-related problems or even just a chat. I also use the time to maintain the observatory and telescopes..or even to collect SUBS. I am also thinking about setting up an evening surgery for those can't make the lunchtime session. If this would be of interest to you please let me know. Other Activities / Events The Society is a member of the Southern Area Group of Astronomy Societies (SAGAS) that have quarterly meetings and other events, including
Federation of Astronomy Societies (FAS)
Intech at
Society of Popular Astronomy (SPA). Cody Society is a member.
Herstmonceux Astronomy festival, 3rd to 5th September The Society is involved in Outreach training of Astronomy to :-
Volunteers Required to help Observatory Email As most of you know we now have Internet access at the observatory. We can now receive Email. The address is cody.observatory@googlemail.com . Phil D Alner Fleet Hants GU51 3DF Tel:- 01252 640379
13/02/10 Astro BAA Variable Star Observing Workshop ======================================================================BAA electronic bulletin No. 00475 http://www.britastro.org/ ====================================================================== The BAA Variable Star Section is organising a Variable Star Observing Workshop in collaboration with the Hampshire Astronomical Group (HAG) - see www.hantsastro.org.uk - at their Observatory Compound, which is at the top of Hinton Manor Lane, Clanfield, Hampshire PO8 0QR on Saturday 13th March 2010. Tel: 02392 595281. A detailed map is available on their web site under 'Tour of Observatory' and then go to Map. There is plenty of car parking available on site. Light refreshments will be available during the day and lunch may be obtained from a local inn about 5 minutes drive away or sandwiches may be purchased more locally. Otherwise there will be no charge for the day. All BAA members and variable star observers are welcome although there will be a limit on numbers of around 35 and so booking is essential. Also welcome are members of astronomical societies and interested members of the public. I would be grateful if you could let me know if you intend to come to the workshop which is aimed at those who are thinking of observing variable stars or are new to it. It will also 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 but do urge them to contact me promptly due to the limit on numbers. Programme 10.30 Welcome and Intro - Why Variable Stars? Roger Pickard 11.00 Why Observe Visually in the 21st Century? John Toone 12.00 Observing Eclipsing Binary Stars. Tony Markham 12.30 Lunch 14.00 Using a DSLR to study Variable Stars. Des Loughney 14.45 Basic CCD Observing. Roger Pickard 15.30 Tea 16.00 Follow-up observations of Novae and Supernovae. Guy Hurst 17.00 Observing programmes for the Visual observer. Gary Poyner 17..30 Close A bus time table for buses from Havant Railway Station to Clanfield (Rising Sun) and from Petersfield Railway station to Clanfield (Rising Sun) may be found on the BAA VSS web site at http://www.britastro.org/vss/. Anyone who wishes to stay the night beforehand can stay at the Hampshire Hog, London Road, Clanfield, Hampshire, PO8 0QD , England Tel: 023 9259 1083. Roger Pickard, Director BAA VSS 1/09/09 September 1st sees the start of the Cody Astronomical Society’s 09/10 season. The committee of the Cody Astronomical Society welcomes you all to the 2009/2010 season, the 12th in the Society's history. Subscriptions Being the beginning of the new season, payment of subscriptions is now due, This year, as agreed at the AGM, the subscription cost is now £20. This is due to the increased fees that our lecturers are claming. Please pay your subscriptions ASAP as we can then concentrate on doing Astronomy. Please pass subs (Cheques payable to Cody Astronomical Society) to myself (address below). Payment of subs can also be made at our events. If any of your personal details have changed in the last year please use the attached 'update form' and send to me. Holders of the 'Site Access Pass’ will be required to pay their subs by the 19th September, so that I can arrange the issue of a new pass on the 1st October. Please note that Site Security requires that all members requiring SA Passes will need to go through a Basic Clearance check which is valid for 3 years. Also note that Site Security is cutting back on the issue of the plastic Site Access pass. Some 'retired' members and Invited members will, following Basic Clearance, be cleared to receive a Green (unescorted) pass on each entry to the site. A Visitors Pass (Red) will be available to our New 'Invited' members so they can attend events happening before their basic clearance has been completed. I will be contacting New Invited membership applicants in due course. Lectures This year we plan to have a formal lecture each month throughout the year, 11 in all. We are still in the process of arranging our September lecture but I will inform you as soon as we have more details. See events page for details of all lectures. We also hope to have a BBQ early in the season and the Christmas party as usual Observing A programme of monthly observing/club evenings is being organised throughout the season, to be held at the observatory on Ball Hill. The events will take place mid month until February then it will be the beginning of the month to avoid light pollution from the Moon. We hope that these evenings will entice those new to amateur astronomy to come and have a look through the Zeiss telescope and learn about telescopes and what can be seen in the night sky. For seasoned observers, we hope you'll bring along your own telescopes to give the evenings a real "star party" feel. We hope to foster a bigger interest in getting out there and doing observing, rather than just listening to someone lecturing about it. We would welcome any member wishing to help by taking an active role in these observing evenings or even just to suggest objects they might like to observe. There will of course be other observing opportunities ‘fitted in’ when there are special Astronomical events and the sky is particularly clear, or to observe the Moon. As with the formal lectures, the observing/club evenings will begin at 7.30pm and will take place on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday night. The dates for all these events will be published shortly so please keep a look out. Ad-Hoc observing will be notified by email and possibly with less than 24hrs notice. Membership access to the observatory We have introduced an 'Induction' process for everyone attending the observatory. This is in the form of a document containing all known Health & Safety aspects relative to our activities at the Observatory plus other operational information. Members will be given a briefing and asked to sign that they have received the briefing. Members are encouraged to gain 'Key Holder Status' allowing them total access to the observatory once they have attended a briefing session. Those attending the briefing will be given an Observatory Guide. The guide contains everything observers need to know to operate the observatory properly and safely. Those wishing to use the observatory will need to familiarise themselves with the guide and follow it when using the observatory. We hope that the improved access to the telescope, coupled with the Society monthly observing sessions, will encourage more members to have a go using the observatory and develop their interest in astronomy. Basic astronomy Thanks to a grant from the Farnborough Area Association of the Civil Service Sports Council, we now have a digital projector fitted in the clubroom. This season our Monthly Basic Astronomy classes (8 in total) will be tailored to our 'students' requirements. To receive details of the Basic Astronomy course please book your place with me. Those booking early will have the option of choosing the topics for the course. Recruitment Stand As last year, we will again be manning a recruitment stand in the concourse sometime in September; date to be decided. We will also be looking for volunteers to man the stand. Even if it's only for 15 minutes it will help. Thursday Surgery I attend the observatory each Thursday from 11:00 to 14:00, this is for members who wish to do day light / Solar observing, training on the Zeiss Telescope, using the library etc. And I'm there to help members with any astronomy-related problems or even just a chat. I also use the time to maintain the observatory and telescopes……or even to collect SUBS. I am also thinking about setting up an evening surgery for those can't make the lunchtime session. If this would be of interest to you please let me know. Other Activities The Society is a member of the Southern Area Group of Astronomy Societies (SAGAS) that have quarterly meetings and other events. The Society is involved in Outreach training of Astronomy to :-
Observatory Email As most of you know we now have Internet access at the observatory. We can now receive Email. The address is cody.observatory@googlemail.com . 27/08/09
Astro Event The Great Look Up - Friday 28th
August http://www.surrey.ac.uk/greatlookup/ The BBQ will be open from 7.15 for astronomers to grab a bite before the
general public turn up, general public from 7.45pm.
You'll need to park temporarily to unload, then repark. There will be security
to mind kit during this period, but that is from 7.00 If you arrive before then
there should be enough of us there to keep an eye on things. Several of us from
GAS will be there from 6. Please can you all remember that you'll need to keep
an eye on your Eyepieces, so don't leave a nice case full of EPs in plain view.
It might be best to bring just a couple, and keep them in pockets. Hopefully
there won't be any issues in this area, but it's sensible to take care. Please
also take sensible precautions with any green lasers that you might bring, we
don't want kids picking them up to play with. We'll need to be packed up and
off the site by midnight - else we all turn back into pumpkins! 25/11/08 December Observing and Xmas party Our December observing CLUB-NIGHT and Xmas Party takes place on Thursday 11th December from 7:30pm at the Observatory Free to members that have paid their subs, partners welcome ( you will need to book them in on the visitor system ) The evening will also contain other items of astronomical interest. Members are also invited to bring their own Telescopes . If sky is clear on the night, , we will be using the area adjacent to the Observatory for the telescopes. Normal parking restrictions will apply. I need to know numbers for catering so PLEASE email me :- if you intend to be there, partners full name ( I can book invited members partners in to the visitor system) if you intend to bring your telescope. ---------------------------------------------- Thank you to the members that have paid their Subs for this season. If you haven't bring them along on the night. 1 1/09/08Recruitment Stand As was mentioned in the 'Start of the Season' email we are holding a recruitment stand in the Qinetiq Concourse. This will take place on Tuesday 16th September 10:00 to 15:30. Let me know if :- you can help, manning the stand on the day even for 10 minutes. you have items that could go on the stand and help promote Cody Astro Soc Because we had built the stand for the QQ funday, there is no preparation to do. Phil AlnerChairman Cody Astronomical Society 01/09/08 September 1st sees the start of the Cody Astronomical Society’s 08/09 season. The committee of the Cody Astronomical Society welcomes you all to the 2008/2009 season, the 11th in the Society's history and is pleased to offer another years membership to all our current 'Invited membership' holders. Subscriptions Being the beginning of the new season, payment of subscriptions is now due, This year, as agreed at the AGM the subscription cost stays at £15. Please pay your subscriptions ASAP as we can then concentrate on doing Astronomy. Please pass subs (Cheques payable to Cody Astronomical Society) to myself (address below). Payment of subs can also be made at our events. If any of your personal details have changed in the last year please use the 'update form' and send to me. Holders of the 'Site Access Pass’ will be required to pay their subs by the 19th September, so that we can arrange the issue of a new pass on the 1st October. Please note that Site Security requires that all members requiring SA Passes will need to go through an ID check. I will be contacting those members individually. A Visitors Pass will be available to our New 'Invited' members so they can attend events happening before their Site Access pass is issued after 1st Oct. Lectures This year we plan to have a formal lecture each month throughout the year, 10 in all. Our first lecture will be on Thursday 18th September, Kevin Johnson from the Science Museum talking about the History of Telescopes. On 15th October, Lee Macdonald will be talking about the Isaac Newton Telescope. Other Speakers are in the pipeline but we don't have details set up as yet. We will also be holding our usual Christmas event at the observatory. We also hope to have a BBQ early in the season. Observing A programme of monthly observing/club evenings is being organised throughout the season, to be held at the observatory on Ball Hill. The events will take place early or late each month to avoid light pollution from the Moon. We hope that these evenings will entice those new to amateur astronomy to come and have a look through the Zeiss telescope and learn about telescopes and what can be seen in the night sky. For seasoned observers, we hope you'll bring along your own telescopes to give the evenings a real "star party" feel. We hope to foster a bigger interest in getting out there and doing observing, rather than just listening to someone lecturing about it. We would welcome any member wishing to help by taking an active role in these observing evenings or even just to suggest objects they might like to observe. There will of course be other observing opportunities ‘fitted in’ when there are special Astronomical events and the sky is particularly clear, or to observe the Moon. As with the formal lectures, the observing/club evenings will begin at 7.30pm and will take place on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday night. The dates for all these events will be published shortly so please keep a look out. Membership access to the observatory We have introduced an 'Induction' process for everyone attending the observatory. This is in the form of a document containing all known Health & Safety aspects relative to our activities at the Observatory plus other operational information. Members will be given a briefing and asked to sign that they have received the briefing. Members are encouraged to gain 'Key Holder Status' allowing them total access to the observatory once they have attended a briefing session. Those attending the briefing will be given an Observatory Guide. The guide contains everything observers need to know to operate the observatory properly and safely. Those wishing to use the observatory will need to familiarise themselves with the guide and follow it when using the observatory. We hope that the improved access to the telescope, coupled with the Society monthly observing sessions, will encourage more members to have a go using the observatory and develop their interest in astronomy. Basic astronomy
This season our Monthly Basic Astronomy classes (8 in
total) will be tailored to our 'students' requirements.
The first class will be on Thursday 24th
September. Recruitment Stand
As last year, we will again be manning a recruitment
stand in the concourse sometime in September;
date to be decided. Thursday Surgery I attend the observatory each Thursday from 11:00 to 14:00, this is for members who wish to do day light / Solar observing, training on the Zeiss Telescope, using the library etc. And I'm there to help members with any astronomy-related problems or even just a chat. I also use the time to maintain the observatory and telescopes……or even to collect SUBS. I am also thinking about setting up an evening surgery for those can't make the lunchtime session. If this would be of interest to you please let me know. Observatory Email
As most of you know we now have Internet access at the
observatory. The address is cody.observatory (at ) googlemail.com Phil AlnerChairman Cody Astronomical Society 30/07/08 Total Solar eclipse of 2008 Aug 01 This Friday there is a total eclipse of the Sun. We will only see a 20% coverage. DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN More information can be found at http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/29jul_solareclipse.htm For those who wish to view this through the proper equipment I will be at the Observatory from just after 09:00 BST. Eclipse TypeThe eclipse will be partial from the Cody Observatory (20%) Timing InformationBeginning of partial phase
Maximum eclipse
End of partial phase
Phil Alner Chairman Cody Astronomical Society 17/07/08 Astro July Club night As we don't have a lecture arranged for this month we are holding an 'End of Season Showcase' On Tuesday 22nd July in the Whittle Theatre from 19:30 Members are invited to share their pictures, observing results and experiences with the other members. There will also be discussions on various topics of astronomy and a chance to Please come along and join in the fun
Phil Alner 15/06/08 Astro Thursday Surgery For the next 3 Thursdays Roy Mitchell and Gordon Lloyd will be in the chair from 11:30, while I'm on leave. And don't forget the Lecture on Thursday 19th. Phil AlnerChairman Cody Astronomical Society 01/06/08 Qinetiq Funday
As you are all aware we have a recruitment stand at the
Qinetiq Funday on Saturday 7th June. For those attending on the day you will need to register by filling in the attached form otherwise you not get through the gate. Please complete the form and send it to Ann Gurney via the link on the form by Wednesday also to play safe please copy the email to me. Also attached is an information leaflet about the day. We will be preparing the stand on Thursday evening 5th and building and setting it up on Friday 6th. All help gratefully received on both evenings.
Phil Alner Astro May / June 2008 news letter With the coming of summer, this month sees the end of dark sky observing till august. So night time observing at the observatory, will only take for special Astronomical events. (Watch out for the emails) Hopefully with clearer skies day light observing will continue especially during the Thursday surgery. Which, for this week (15th May) will be run by Roy Mitchell from 12:45 BST as I'm away again. I will also be away on the 19th 26th June and 3rd July. Roy may again take the reigns but we will keep you posted. Lectures The May lecture Weather for Astronomy by John Murrell from Croydon AS should be very interesting. And the June lecture Astrophotography by Phillip Perkins gives you the chance to see some of his fantastic 'wet film' photography from Wiltshire and France. The July one has yet to be fixed. Basic Astronomy We have moved the date of the final class this month to the 28th May. This is because we had 3 events happening on consecutive nights. We are starting to at what subjects to include for next seasons Basic Astronomy. If you have any suggestions please let Gordon or my self know. Qinetiq 'Funday' Saturday 7th June. This event is for families of employees of the Cody Site and is a show case of the work done on site plus a lot of fun things to do. The Astronomy Society have been invited to have a stand in the Concourse at this event so the committee have decided to have our recruitment stand at the event rather than our usual time in September. On the stand we will have the usual displays plus active telescopes showing what can be seen during the day, we may even have a link to the Zeiss in the Observatory. All this does require manpower so we will be looking to all our members to offer their help, setting up before the event as well as on the day. If you can help please let me know even if its only for 30 minutes on the day. 2008 AGM The committee has set the date for our AGM. Wednesday 11th June 12:30 at the Observatory.
We have be running the Society with out a Secretary for
the past two years and really MUST get one in post this
year. So if you would consider standing or proposing
somebody that would stand please let me know. From the
Constitution the Secretary shall be an Ordinary Member
i.e. not an invited member. Chairman Cody Astronomical Society 21/01/08 Happy Birthday Cody Astronomical Society To-day - Monday 21 Jan 2008 is the Tenth Anniversary of the Society's inauguration. There will be a feature at our Lecture this week to celebrate the fact. And the Lecture is:- 14 Pioneers of Astronomy by Bob Mizon. On Thursday 24th Jan at 7.30 pm Please book your place. ------------------------- Our Future Lectures are :- Thursday 21st Feb Wide Field CCD imaging by Ian King Thursday 20 March Antikythera Decoded by Andrew Ramsey 04/09/07
September 1st sees the start of the
Cody Astronomical Society’s 07/08 season.
The committee of the Cody Astronomical Society welcomes you all to the 2007/2008 season, the 10th in the Society's history and is pleased to offer another years membership to all our current 'Invited membership' holders. Subscriptions Being the beginning of the new season, payment of subscriptions is now due, This year, as agreed at the AGM the subscription cost stays at £15. Please pass subs (Cheques payable to Cody Astronomical Society ) to myself (address below). Payment of subs can also be made at our events. If any of your personal details have changed in the last year please use the update form and send to me. Holders of the 'Site Access Pass’ will be required to pay their subs by the 19th September, so that we can arrange the issue of a new pass on the 1st October. Lectures This year we plan to have a formal lecture each month throughout the year, 10 in all. Our first lecture will be on Thursday 25th October, James Fradgley will be talking about Variable Stars. Doug Bateman will be talking about Sundials including the Qinetiq Noon-day dial on Thursday 22nd November. Others Speakers in the pipeline but we don't have details set up as yet. This is due to not having a Talks Organiser, as yet. The Committee would welcome offers from any member willing to take this on. We will also be holding our usual Christmas event at the observatory. But to start the season we are having a BBQ and Star Party, Friday evening 21st September 7:30pm. Venue:- Phil's house. Book your place NOW by replying to this email and no later than Mon 17th September. Please indicate if there are any special dietary considerations. Cost £3 per head. Members are invited to bring their Partners, Young people accepted. Bring your own drink, the food will be subsidised by the Society. Please bring your own telescopes. Observing A programme of monthly observing/club evenings is being organised throughout the season, to be held at the observatory on Ball Hill. The events will take place early or late each month to avoid light pollution from the Moon. We hope that these evenings will entice those new to amateur astronomy to come and have a look through the Zeiss telescope and learn about telescopes and what can be seen in the night sky. For seasoned observers, we hope you'll bring along your own telescopes to give the evenings a real "star party" feel. We hope to foster a bigger interest in getting out there and doing observing, rather than just listening to someone lecturing about it. We would welcome any member wishing to help by taking an active role in these observing evenings or even just to suggest objects they might like to observe. There will of course be other observing opportunities ‘fitted in’ when there are special Astronomical events and the sky is particularly clear, or to observe the Moon. As with the formal lectures, the observing/club evenings will begin at 7.30pm and will take place on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday night. The dates for all these events will be published shortly so please keep a look out. Membership access to the observatoryAll members will have total access to the observatory once they have attended a briefing session. Those attending the briefing will be given an Observatory Guide. The guide contains everything observers need to know to operate the observatory properly and safely. Those wishing to use the observatory will need to familiarise themselves with the guide and follow it when using the observatory. We hope that the improved access to the telescope, coupled with the Society monthly observing sessions, will encourage more members to have a go using the observatory and develop their interest in astronomy. Basic astronomy We will fit in some Basic Astronomy classes at the observatory as we have done in the past. These are for those who are new to Astronomy and those wishing to reinforce their knowledge. Recruitment Stand As last year, we will again be manning a recruitment stand in the concourse on Tuesday September 25th. from 10:00am to 3:30pm If you have any Astronomy pictures you have taken over the past year, or other material suitable for the stand and would allow us to use them, please let me know ASAP. We will also be looking for volunteers to man the stand. Even if it's only for 15 minutes it will help. Thursday Surgery I attend the observatory each Thursday from 11:00 to 14:00, this is for members who wish to do day light / Solar observing, training on the Zeiss Telescope, using the library etc. And I'm there to help members with any astronomy related problems or even just a chat. I also use the time to maintain the observatory and telescopes……or even to collect SUBS.Phil Alner 13/07/07 Dates for your diary
Working Weekend at
the Observatory - Volunteers
required We are continuing the refurbishment of the Zeiss by having the mirrors re-silvered before the start of the observing season.
Recruitment Stand in the Concourse
:- Also we need Volunteers to man the stand on the Tuesday. It doesn't have to be for long (15 minutes will help). The stand will be manned from 9:30 to about 3:30. Phil Alner
Astro Event
7th, 8th & 9th September 2007
Camp under the backdrop of the historic domes and enjoy a packed weekend. This year, speakers on Saturday will include:
There will also be informal talks given by the Sky at Night team who are supporting the event this year.Dr Anton Vamplew will be speaking on Sunday as part of the family activity fun day along with rocket demonstrations, rocket making and launching plus much more. For more information please visit our website: www.the-observatory.org Alternatively you can contact the centre on 01323 833731.Don't miss out on this fantastic weekend. Come and soak up the atmosphere at the UK's home of astronomy and hopefully take a look through the historic telescopes, weather permitting of course! Sandra Voss Ph:01323 832731 Registered charity number: 298542
Astro outcome of the 10th AGM 12th June 2007 Please find attached the Chairman's report of the year 06/07. I am pleased to announce that the AGM returned Dr Graham Coley as our President. Your committee for the coming season is :-
As you will see we are still short of a Secretary and a Talks organiser. These are important posts in the Society and need to be filled. Phil Alner 11/05/2007 ASTRO NEWS May 2007 CONTENTS
----------------------- 1. The Cody Astronomical Society AGM will take place on Tuesday 12th June at the observatory starting at 12:30pm. The calling notice and agenda will be sent out 14 days before. David Harden, our present Secretary, is standing down. David has served the society as Secretary for several years and in that time has devoted a lot of time and effort in building the society for which we will always be thankful. So, we are looking for a replacement. The post of Secretary is essential to the smooth running of a well-organised Society. The nominee for Secretary :-
We also have a vacancy for a Talks organiser (this post was not filled at the last AGM). We need nominations for these posts either another member or yourself. With out a Secretary it is going to be difficult to run the Society. If you would like to talk to David Harden or Phil Alner about the posts please do so. ----------------------------------------
The next meeting of SAGAS takes place on Saturday 19th May at the Southdowns Planetarium, Chichester. It is an afternoon meeting with possibly a presentation in the planetarium afterwards. The agenda has not been announced as yet. I will be attending and if any Cody member would like to join me please contact me. SAGAS Summer Meeting 14th July 2007 T he SAGAS Summer 2007 meeting will be held on Saturday 14th July at Vectis Astronomical Societies Observatory at Watery Lane, Newchurch, Isle of Wight . (Latitude: 50° 39' 17" N Longitude: 1° 13' 00" W for those with a GPS.More details on the SAGAS website www.sagas.org.uk
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If this is granted permission the sky glow from this development will be horrendous. The observatory is about 700 metres from it and we will loose the ability to observe our western sky. The plans are for a 24 / 7 mega distribution depot. Apart from the light pollution there will be about 600 HGV's per day using the local roads admittedly heading for the M3, but we have all experienced when there is an accident on the M3 and the motorway is closed the local area clogs up but we will then have put up with all those extra lorries. Not only that but as the local unemployment figures are very low the workers required will have to be brought in from elsewhere adding to the traffic problems. I have taken the liberty to attach a document, which has been sent to me from the SPLAT (Stop the Pyestock bLot Act Today) HQ www.pyestock.comEmma Whittaker (the case officer for Hart District Council) has advised that, she will now only accept objections if they include the following: Name Postal address The Planning Application number (07/00764/MAJOR) and reasons for the objection (examples included in the attached note)
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23/02/2007
February Newsletter
Thursday surgery 1st March, will be run by Roy Mitchell from 13:00 I will be away on leave. Back on the 3rd March. Golf driving range From the last newsletter you will be aware of the planning application to modify the Southwood golf course and add a floodlit driving range. You may have seen in the local Star newspaper, two articles, one on the front page dealing with a mix-up with the deadline for comments and on the back page an interview I had with their reporter. Since then I have spoken the applicants i.e. Peter Amies head of Rushmoor Community leisure. He has said that although the application has gone in they are testing the water to see what response there is from the public and what controls will be applied by the planning dept. Subject to these factors and the cost of running the facility it could be that it doesn't go ahead. Mean time there is to be a public exhibition at Southwood on Thursday 8th March from 6pm to 9pm and on Saturday 10th from 9am to noon. Following an indication that he is willing to have a meeting with Cody Astro Soc. I have offered to hold one at the observatory on Thursday 8th either lunchtime before the exhibition or preferably, from our point of view, after the exhibition in the evening, about 9:30pm. This would be attended by himself, his 2-IC, the developers and any one from our side. I will also be suggesting that someone from the planning dept should attend. This will be confirmed after I get back from leave on the 3rd March. The object of this meeting will be to discuss the implications of the application and try to demonstrate how the light pollution will affect observing from the observatory. Mean time we still need as many objections to this application as possible. The new dead line for objections is now 23rd March. It is very easy to do on line. Click on the following link :- http://www.ukplanning.com/ukp/searchsubmit/performOption.do;jsessionid=8142372871F3F8D2EE8D98941AD526A6.wam2?action=searchAnd then type in the application number 07/00059. This takes you to the Case page. There is a link at the top of the page to 'Comment on the application' Lunar eclipse The only Lunar eclipse visible from the UK this
year will be on Saturday 3rd March. Gordon is away at the moment so we don't know if
he will be at the observatory that night. Mean time watch-out for an email clarifying the
situation. Wednesday 07th March. GCSE Chapters 10,11, 14 The subject is The Solar system, The Sun, Comets, meteors and meteorites. Zeiss lens The reconfiguring of the Objective lens is progressing and with a bit of luck could be back in the telescope ready for our March observing window. Failing which there will be other telescopes available. Cody Observing Our March window of observing opportunity is from 8th to 16th March Lecture Tuesday 27 March. Guy Hurst will be giving us a lecture on 'The first 40 Years of the Astronomer'. A periodical astronomy magazine Group visits to the observatory. As you know we are asked by organisations such as the Cubs and Scouts to give them the opportunity to experience the night sky via a large telescope. The month of March we have two visits. 1st Farnborough Cubs will be coming on either Thursday 22nd or Friday 23rd date to be finalised. Churt Cubs will visit on Monday 26th. I would welcome any help from our members on these two nights. The start time could be 19:00 and would only be for about 90 mins. Please contact me if you can help. Phil Alner 10/01/2007 Comet McNaught
"Further to BAA e-bulletin 262 this comet is now a
spectacular object in the
early evening twilight. Denis Buczynski reports that he saw the comet tonight from a site north of Inverness. In the evening twilight he estimated that the comet was as bright as Jupiter and a tail of several degrees was visible with the naked eye.
"Over the next few nights the comet will be best
seen in the evening sky. You
will need a clear western horizon and should start looking as soon as the Sun sets. The comet should be obvious at an azimuth of around 240 degrees and the tail will be pointing almost straight up from the horizon. The comet is also visible in the morning sky at an azimuth of around 110 degrees around 30 mins before sunrise but circumstances are not as good as in the evening.
"By perihelion on January 12th the comet could be
brighter than Venus. It
has been seen through gaps in the cloud so make an effort even if the weather prospects look poor. This is a rare opportunity to see a very bright comet." Phil Alner |