A Darker View

Poli’ahu i ke kapu

Poli’ahu is the goddess of snows who calls Mauna Kea her home. Poli’ahu i ke kapu, recently released by Hāwane, is a tribute to Poli’ahu, the divine snow goddess of Mauna Kea.

True, the sales of the song on iTunes go to KAHEA’s Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance Mauna Kea Legal Defense Fund. This is the same group that opposes telescopes on the mountain. The Enemy? Not really. In this case I respect those who stand up for what they believe, even if I disagree. KAHEA does needed work on other fronts across the islands.

Besides, it is a good song…

Keck Lecture Webcast Link

Here is the stream for tonight’s Keck lecture. Nothing to see if you stop by early (or late). Come by at 7:00pm HST to see Dr. Richard Wainscoat of the University of Hawai’i Institute for Astronomy, “City Dark: Search for Night on a Sleepless Planet.”

Better yet… drop by the Kahilu Theater in Waimea to see the talk in person.

Live broadcasting by Ustream

Reminder- Keck Lecture Tomorrow Night

You are invited to attend a free Keck Observatory lecture…

Earth at Night — A view of the Earth compiled from nighttime shots from the DMSP satellites during October 1994 to March 1995. Image credit NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

City Dark: Search for Night on a Sleepless Planet
Dr. Richard Wainscoat
University of Hawai’i Institute for Astronomy

Kahilu Theater
Thursday, April 5th, 2012
7:00pm

The advent and spread of electrical lighting has made it ever harder to find the dark skies valued by professional and amateur astronomers, not to mention lovers of starry skies in general. Dr. Wainscoat tells the story about light pollution and astronomy, with special emphasis on light pollution’s effects on the world’s best astronomical observing site: Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawai’i. Dr. Wainscoast is an astronomer as well as an accomplished photographer.

There is no charge for admission to any events in the Makana series.

Presented by W.M. Keck Observatory.

Toby

Canon Introduces the 60Da

Most of my astrophotos are taken with my venerable Canon 20Da, a special version of the EOS 20D that was produced for astrophotography. Normal DSLR cameras work quite well for astrophotography, with one major drawback… The filter placed in front of the sensor blocks much of the Hα light emitted by many nebulae.

NGC1976 or M42, the Great Orion Nebula, taken with the Canon 20Da and a AT6RC telescope.

This light, emitted at 656mn, a wavelength deep in the red, give emission nebulae their characteristic shades of rich red. Hα is the strongest component of light produced by emission nebulae. Without this light, the nebulae will often appear bluish in photographs, as the next strongest component OIII dominates.

Specifically for astrophotography, Canon produced a special version of the 20D with a re-designed filter that allowed Hα light to reach the sensor, the Canon 20Da. The camera also featured on-screen focusing, a feature now found on most DLSR cameras, but unusual back in 2005.

The 20Da was discontinued in 2006. Astrophotographers wanting a DSLR camera with a filter that admits Hα light must buy a standard camera and remove the filter, or have it modified by specialist that offers a conversion service.

Continue reading “Canon Introduces the 60Da”

Postcard from the Reef – Roommates

Just another whitemouth moray. But then, I hadn’t seen anything interesting to photograph for a few minutes as I wandered along the reef face. May as well shoot a few frames. Wait? There is a second eel in the cavity! A dwarf moray?

Recycling Galaxies Caught in the Act

W. M. Keck Observatory press release…

When astronomers add up all the gas and dust contained in ordinary galaxies like our own Milky Way, they stumble on a puzzle: There is not nearly enough matter for stars to be born at the rates that are observed. Part of the solution might be a recycling of matter on gigantic scales – veritable galactic fountains of matter flowing out and then back into galaxies over multi-billion-year timescales.

Now, a team of astronomers led by Kate Rubin of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany has used the W. M. Keck Observatory to find evidence of just such fountains in distant spiral galaxies.

In the Milky Way, it’s estimated that every year about one solar mass (an amount of matter equal to that of our Sun) worth of dust and gas is turned into stars. Yet a survey of the available raw materials shows that our galaxy could not keep up this rate of star formation for longer than a couple of billion years. Star ages and comparisons with other spiral galaxies show that one solar mass per year is a typical star formation rate. So the puzzle appears to be universal.

Continue reading “Recycling Galaxies Caught in the Act”

Postcard from the Universe – C/2009 P1 Garradd

Currently passing through Usra Major, comet C/2009 P1 Garradd, is bright enough to appreciate in small telescopes. It is well placed for observation, well up in the sky through much of the night. At about magnitude 6.8 it is also bright enough to make an attractive photographic target.

I am not totally happy with the photo, I could have really used more time on target. Another issue, the exposures I used were a bit too long for this fast moving target, the coma is elongated in the frames. I will probably re-shoot the comet if I get a chance soon.

Venus and the Pleiades

Over the next few days, the planet Venus will transit the Pleiades star cluster. Tonight sees the planet about two degrees from the cluster center, tomorrow the planet will have closed to just over a degree from Merope. April 2nd and 3rd will see the planet essentially among the primary stars of the cluster. On the 2nd the planet will be only 25′ from Merope, on the 3rd it will be 14′ from Atlas.

At -4.4 magnitude the planet will be far brighter than the brightest stars of the cluster which are 3rd and 4th magnitude. Still, it should be an interesting sight to see the brilliant Venus surrounded by a cluster of stars.

Employment Opportunity at Keck – Network Manager

Computer and Network Systems Manager

The W.M. Keck observatory operates two of the largest and most scientifically productive optical/infrared telescopes in the world. The twin 10-meter telescopes are located amidst several other world class observatories on the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii, one of the premier sites for astronomy.

The observatory seeks an experienced computer systems administrator manager to lead a talented team of technical professionals responsible for the computer and network systems at the observatory. The networked computing environment is distributed over multiple locations and includes well over one hundred Unix nodes, several hundred Windows desktops, tens of Windows servers, and extensive video conferencing. Unix systems are primarily used for controlling the twin telescopes and science operations while the Windows systems are primarily used for office, administration and engineering functions. Desired competencies include: proven computer and networking skills, demonstrated ability to plan, manage and implement use of new computer and network technologies for a 24/7 operation.

The ideal candidate should be a creative and highly motivated, self-starter who can manage multiple projects and priorities within a fast paced environment and is expected to have the ability to lead the systems administration team in adopting new technologies to deliver cost effective best-in-class service to 120 plus customers. The successful candidate is expected to have significant hands-on systems management and deployment experiences with Linux operating systems. An understanding of virtualized computing infrastructures and experience migrating to virtualized solutions is highly desirable.

This position requires you to submit your resume on-line at: http://keckobservatory.iapplicants.com/ViewJob-290885.html with your cover letter that states why you are uniquely qualified for the position.

Additional information about WMKO and this position may be found on our web site at www.keckobservatory.org.
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