The seeing was pretty bad, leading to bloated stars in the image, unusual conditions for Hale Pohaku. Still a nice subject for the AT6RC and 60D camera. I expect I should shoot this target again.
Postcard from the Universe – M22
New Moon
Mercury at Maximum Elongation
Today Mercury reaches maximum elongation, the furthest point it will reach from the Sun in the sky and the highest it will be above the sunrise for this morning apparition. The planet is easily visible as a bright, starlike object about 15° above the rising Sun as the twilight begins. Over the next couple weeks Mercury will slide back into the sunrise, heading for superior conjunction on September 10th.
Atop Mt. Hamilton
The visitor directions on the website had specifically cautioned that the summit road was curvy, something I found to be a drastic understatement. From the very bottom it is curve after curve all the way up, with almost no straight sections. S-curves followed sharp bends leading to hairpins. Nearer the observatory the curve intensity only increases as the road narrows. Local history indicates that the horse-drawn wagons that transported heavy equipment up this road could not negotiate steep grades, the only solution was to follow the contour of the mountain, resulting in an incredibly curvy road.
On a sunny Saturday afternoon there were other users, the road is apparently popular with local cyclists. With the density of the sharp curves there was often little choice but to follow at bicycle speeds at times. I would much rather drive up Mauna Kea than this road again. Next time up Saddle to the summit I will recall Mt. Hamilton road and consider myself lucky.
The reason I was climbing this winding road was simply to be a tourist. Unlike the previous seven days, this day was to be fun. For much of the previous week there had been full day sessions of lectures and labs covering the intricacies of adaptive optics systems. Spending a full week in Santa Cruz might be considered a vacation, aside from the fact there had been very little open time to explore the surrounding area. There was only one open day in my travel plans, and I had specific plans for that day, a visit to an observatory.
Gold Dust Day Gecko
A Thin Moon and Mercury
Tomorrow morning a thin Moon will join Mercury in the dawn. The 4.6% illuminated Moon will be a bit under 6° from the planet, with the planet closer to the sunrise. The pair will be over 15° above the horizon at sunrise.
Mars, Saturn and Spica
Mars will pass between Saturn and Spica this evening. Currently moving in retrograde, the red planet will be directly between the ringed planet and the star. All three will be close to 1st magnitude. Saturn and Spica are currently about 4.5° apart. Mars will be just under 2° from the star.
The trio will be close for a couple weeks. On the 21st a thin crescent Moon, 24% illuminated, will join to create a very nice quartet.
The Moon and Venus
Tomorrow morning, August 13th, the Moon and Venus will meetup for a nice conjunction. Separated by only 1°17′ the pair will be a nice match. The Moon will show about 16% illumination compared with Venus at -4.3 magnitude. A telescopic view of the planet will show that Venus is also at a partial phase, about 50% illuminated.
Viewers further north will be able to witness an occultation, Venus will slide behind the Moon during the middle of the day when high in the sky.
Jupiter will be about 22° west, higher in the sky. While Mercury is still visible just ahead of the rising Sun.
Postcard from the Summit – Azimuth Wrap
The massive set of cables going into the telescope must twist as the telescope rotates. Besides cables there are also hoses to carry high pressure oil, glycol coolant and compressed air. To accommodate the rotation, these cables and hoses go through a large assembly called the Azimuth Wrap. Looking a bit like an oversize bicycle chain with cable laced through the links, the wrap insures the cable does not kink, tangle or stretch as the telescope sweeps back and forth.
Lacing new cable through the wrap is an intricate task of threading through the metal comb that supports the cables in each link. See the little pink one in the middle, just did that…
The Moon and Jupiter
Tomorrow morning, August 11th, will see the Moon quite close to Jupiter. The pair will be a mere 2° apart. A bright Jupiter at -2.2 magnitude will be a nice match for a 33% illuminated Moon.
An even brightener Venus will be located about 22° east of Jupiter, closer to the horizon. You could also look for Mercury, 28° east of Venus and 16° above the horizon at sunrise.
In two more days, on the morning of August 13th, the Moon will rendezvous with Venus, for a closer conjunction, only 1° away from the planet.