Constellations Eighty-Eight

  Kuiper belt is a circumstellar disc in the outer Solar System.  Image source and credit:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt It begins at  30 AU from the sun and stretch till 50 AU from the sun. Analysis indicates that Kuiper belt objects are composed of a mixture of rock and a variety of ices such as water, methane, and ammonia. Want to know more about object in kuiper belt, refer to below list-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_brightest_Kuiper_belt_objects Note- Information is based on wiki link-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) O que é o cinturão de Kuiper?  O cinturão de Kuiper é um disco circunstelar no Sistema Solar exterior. Começa a 30 UA do sol e se estende até 50 UA do sol.  A análise indica que os objetos do cinturão de Kuiper são compostos de uma mistura de rocha e uma variedade de gelo, como água, metano e amônia.  Quer sab...

Image source & Link-https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21906   Ceres( with diameter 940 km) having its own gravity is the object in asteroid belt. It is falls in the category of dwarf planet. Its apparent magnitude varies from 6.7 to 9.3. To more more in depth about its interesting surface features refer to below web site in note section below. Note -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceres_(dwarf_planet) All above information is taken from above link. Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) Ceres - Planeta Anão Ceres (com diâmetro de 940 km) com sua própria gravidade é o objeto no cinturão de asteróides.  Ele se enquadra na categoria de planeta anão.  Sua magnitude aparente varia de 6,7 a 9,3.  Para obter mais detalhes sobre suas características de superfície interessantes, consulte o site abaixo na seção de notas abaixo. Nota: Fonte da imagem e Link-https: //photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21906

You might have often seen names of nebulae, galaxies staring with prefix "NGC" such as "NGC xxxx".  NGC refers to "New General Catalogue" for deep sky objects including including galaxies, star clusters, emission nebulae and absorption nebulae.   The list has 7,840 objects, below is exhaustive list of objects https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_NGC_objects  The Revised New General Catalogue and Index Catalogue (abbreviated as RNGC/IC) is a compilation made by Wolfgang Steinicke in 2009. It is a comprehensive and authoritative treatment of the NGC and IC catalogues.   Note - information is from below wiki link  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_General_Catalogue Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) O que é o catálogo NGC? Você deve ter visto frequentemente nomes de nebulosas, galáxias com o prefixo "NGC", como "NGC xxxx".  NGC refere-se ao "Novo Catálogo Geral" para ob...

Mars Weather Latest Refer below to latest weatherupdates from Mars taken by NASA

 Oort cloud is thought to be shell of icy objects. Image source: Oort Cloud Illustration – laurinemoreau.com( https://space-facts.com/oort-cloud/#:~:text=The%20Oort%20Cloud%20is%20an,comets%20that%20have%20been%20observed.) It is located in the farthest reach of our solar system at around 2000 AU. Its range is form 2000 AU(inner limit) to 200,000(outer limit). It may get  disrupted by the nearby passage of a star, nebula, or by actions in the disk of the  Milky Way . Note - Above information is based on below link- https://space-facts.com/oort-cloud/#:~:text=The%20Oort%20Cloud%20is%20an,comets%20that%20have%20been%20observed. limit range from wiki link - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oort_cloud Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) O que é a nuvem Oort?  A nuvem de Oort é considerada uma concha de objetos gelados. Ele está localizado no alcance mais distante do nosso sistema solar em cerca de 2.000 UA...

  Mars Society is active organization encouraging future settlement on planet Mars. It host lots of competition and challenges. There  are lots of outreach activities going on and you will be interested in it. If you are interested on latest updates please refer to below website  there is lot on the website  https://www.marssociety.org/

  Moon phase chart is often handy. It tells the phase of moon and tides. Always plan night sky observation as per moon phase. Check the validity of such chart before buying.

 The Jupiter trojans are a large group of asteroids that share the planet Jupiter's orbit around the Sun. Image source - wiki link mentioned in the Note section As per new estimates, the total number of Jupiter trojans with a diameter larger than 2 km is  1)6,300 ± 1,000 in the L4(lagrange point) swarms and  2)3,400 ± 500  and L5(lagrangepoint) swarms Each swarm stretches for about 26° along the orbit of Jupiter, amounting to a total distance of about 2.5 AU Note- Information is based on below wiki link- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter_trojan#Physical_properties

 Leonid meteor shower is very spectacular night sky event.  Image source: https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/leonids.html One may observer 100s/ 1000s of shooting star in clear dark night sky. When the earth passes through the debris created by 55P/Tempel–Tuttle comet, the debris is attracted towards earth gravity. As this debris enters earth's atmosphere, due to friction it produces colorful event as per the chemical composition of debris material. The event is observed in Mid November . Note- For more details please visit below website and change the location as per you destination to get time  and direction the of shower. https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/leonids.html  

  Draft of a letter to Leonardo Donato, Doge of Venice, August, 1609, and Notes on the Moons of Jupiter, January 1610. The above image should should be keep in mind the way Galileo saw the Jupiter and its moon, as the moon appeared as tiny spot. In March 1610, Galileo published his discoveries of Jupiter’s satellites and other celestial observations in a book titled  Siderius Nuncius (The Starry Messenger) Galileo used a crude refracting telescope(with  20x magnification ) for his observations for Sidereus nuncius. It had a convex objective lens and a concave eyepiece in a long tube. Note- Image Of Draft latter is taken for below website https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/307/galileos-observations-of-the-moon-jupiter-venus-and-the-sun/ Telescope details from below website- https://www.atnf.csiro.au/outreach/education/senior/astrophysics/galileo.html https://www.atnf.csiro.au/outreach/education/senior/astrophysics/galileo.html Below is translation of above text in...

  https://www.moonsociety.org/ Moon society is an organization which encourages future human settlements on the Moon. They host conference and moon challenges( competitions which has prizes.) you may join the organization ( refer to link ,there could be joining fees ) also publish your ideas. Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) Sociedade Lunar  A sociedade lunar é uma organização que incentiva futuros assentamentos humanos na lua.  Eles organizam desafios de conferências e lunares (competições com prêmios).  Você pode ingressar na organização (consulte o link, pode haver taxas de adesão) e também publicar suas idéias. https://www.moonsociety.org/

Image above image and below information source- http://irfu.cea.fr/dap/Phocea/Vie_des_labos/Ast/ast.php?t=actu&id_ast=2615 Dunhuang Chart is one of the oldest sky chart with more than 1300 stars. It is  was composed around the years +(649-684). It was found inside "Buddhist Mogao cave complex". If you are interested to research more, follow below links- http://irfu.cea.fr/dap/Phocea/Vie_des_labos/Ast/ast.php?t=actu&id_ast=2615 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunhuang_Star_Chart  

Astropy is very useful and important python programing library for Astronomers and Astrophysicists. It provides many useful functions and astronomical constants. You can use functions in the library for your Astronomy projects which may be related to calculations or working with  FITS image file such as accessing information form it. Click on the below link to know more https://www.astropy.org/

https://breakthroughinitiatives.org/ Are we alone or are their any habitable planets - Breakthrough Initiatives has several space program which are trying to find the answer. "If You" are interested in the program(rather want help the Cause ) then refer to below link https://breakthroughinitiatives.org/initiative/1   

The Infrared photo of Andromeda galaxy highlights cooler region of galaxy. Note - Image credit and source given below The Andromeda Galaxy, viewed using conventional optics and IR. Credit: Kitt Peak National Observatory source :https://www.universetoday.com/33475/messier-31-andromeda/

Messier Catalogue consist of 110 astronomical objects(called Messier objects which start with letter "M"). It was created by Charles Messier, and later publish around 1774. This catalogue consists : nebulas, planetary nebulas, open clusters, globular clusters, galaxies, mostly of Northern Hemisphere. Below is the complete list- Messier Objects (M1 - M110): M1 - Crab Nebula (Supernova Remnant) in Taurus M2 - Globular Cluster in Aquarius M3 - Globular Cluster in Canes Venatici M4 - Globular Cluster in Scorpius M5 - Globular Cluster in Serpens M6 - Butterfly Cluster (Open Cluster) in Scorpius M7 - Ptolemy's Cluster (Open Cluster) in Scorpius M8 - Lagoon Nebula (H II Region) in Sagittarius M9 - Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus M10 - Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus M11 - Wild Duck Cluster (Open Cluster) in Scutum M12 - Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus M13 - Hercules Globular Cluster in Hercules M14 - Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus M15 - Globular Cluster in Pegasus M16 -...

 Aries lies in Zodiac belt.  Two stars are used for navigation - Alpha (Hamal) and Beta (Sheratan) Star starts with magnitude 2+, so some of them are visible by naked eyes. Interesting deep sky object is NGC 772 ( 10.3 magnitube) spiral galaxy. It can be seen through telescop. For more details about the Aries constellation refer link mentioned in notes. Note - all information including images are taken from wiki link below  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aries_(constellation)

Hero-X is platform where you would find Space related Challenges! Be Sure to check the eligibility before working on any challenges Refer to Below website https://www.herox.com/crowdsourcing-projects

What are cosmic Rays?  Cosmic Rays are particles with high energy that travels close to speed of light through the space. From where they come? 1)Sun 2)distant galaxies 3)some super novae For more information read below article https://astronomy.com/magazine/greatest-mysteries/2019/07/21-where-do-cosmic-rays-come-from

Watch Live Osiris-Rex mission. Don't miss interesting event. Note - link refer to live nasa tv 📺 

 http://exoplanets.org/ Visit above website to get detail information on Exoplanets .

 Stellarium is free open source planetarium software for Desktop for various operating systems. It also has Webversion. Enjoy this software by inserting your location coordination .( of after installing it) Get to know the live locations of most astronomy objects in your sky.Also you can go back in past and future to know the locations of astronomy objects.  To download, please go to below link  http://stellarium.org/en/

Dumbbell Nebula - Image using Robotic Controlled Telescope from MicroObsevatory. Originally in FITS format, further processed in JS9-4L online software   Technical Details of the Telescope- SIMPLE = T / Conforms to FITS Standard BITPIX = 16 / 16 Bits per pixel NAXIS = 2 / Table is a two-dimensional matrix NAXIS1 = 650 / Width of table row in bytes NAXIS2 = 500 / Number of rows in table EQUINOX = 2000.0 / Epoch of celestial coordinate system used FILENAME= 'DumbbellNebu201018001455.FIT' / FILENAME + MMddyyHHmmss(GMT) DATE-OBS= '2020-10-17T20:14:55.740-0400' / Start date & time of observation, LT DATE-END= '2020-10-17T20:15:57.808-0400' / End date & time of observation, LT LST-OBS = '17:17:33' / Local mean siderea...

 The Caldwell catalogue is an astronomical catalogue. It is created by Patrick Moore( well know amateur astronomer) It consists of 109 star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies for observation by amateur astronomers.  It is like a extension to Messier Catalogue( as it misses out some objects from Southern sky) For more details refer to below link  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caldwell_catalogue Note - above information ( including image )is based on wiki link provided above.

 OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer) is a NASA asteroid-study and sample-return mission. The mission's main goal, which  is to obtain a sample of at least 60 grams (2.1 oz) from 101955 Bennu( a carbonaceous near-Earth asteroid) and return the sample to Earth for a further analysis.  On October 20, 2020, around at 6:12pm EDT will attempt to collect sample from the surface. The sample-return system, called Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM), consists of a sampler  head with an articulated 3.35 metres (11.0 ft) arm. Note -above information and image is from below wiki link https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/OSIRIS-REx

 This Constellation has very faint star, most of them above 6+ magnitude. Two of the most interesting deep sky objects in this constellation are mentioned below 1)Dumbbell Nebula (M27) has 7.5 apparent magnitude 2)Hen 2-437 Nebula has 15 apparent magnitude Note-Images above are from wiki link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulpecula

  Choose or buy Telescopes or Binoculars based on objects you would like to see. Check the magnitude of objects (stars, planets,deep sky objects etc ) ! Refer to below chart from "Sky & Telescopes " website- Want to know more , go to below link https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-resources/the-stellar-magnitude-system/ Note- above image has been taken from above link .

 Astro chats is Playlist on YouTube which host series of interesting talks by professors and research students on various astronomy related topics.  Below is the YouTube link  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2TJ0Y_PLXCxFlwY1BorheO_bI9eqxBFO

  Caution - Never watch sun directly because it is harmful to your eyes . Always use good solar filters.

  Sky View is mobile software used to locate stars,planets,deep sky objects, man made stations and telescope like ISS & Hubble etc. It uses mobile GPS to give accurate location of the objects in the sky 

 IMO ( International Meteor Organisaton) Is non profit organization where you can submit your meteor observations.  For every meteor you see -You need to record following : FROM -Ra,dec of origin, nearest constellation star ( such as alpha ,beta gamma) TO-Ra,dec of origin, nearest constellation star ( such as alpha ,beta gamma) Magnitude-  Color- Fireball/Normal - Time - in Universal standard Time  Flight time - in seconds  Comments - IMO accept visual observing  in specific format ( refer to below website ) . If your observations is in synchronized with others 100 or 1000 observers, your name shall be appeared in the Observations! IMO accept observations in various ways  video records , manual,  radio frequency . How to submit, please refer to below website  https://www.imo.net/

 It is a handy tool use to know positions of stars in sky from specific location.  When you buy it check whether it is suitable for your location. Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) O que é um  mostrador de estrelas É uma ferramenta de mão,  para saber a posição das estrelas no céu de um local específico.  Ao comprá-lo, verifique se ele é adequado para o seu local.

Flipped video of Mars. Polar cap observer on top .  Video creater and owner Bhushan Nokti( uploaded with his permission). Technical specifications  Mars....  Telescope: 10 inch dobsonian Eyepiece: 10mm Camera: POCO F1 mobile Phone

 Constellation is an specific area in sky, it is  "a group of visible stars" forming a shape/pattern. This shape/pattern may represents an animal, an object or creatures/person from ancient stories. Below is translation of above text in Portuguese by Elaine (Teacher from Brazil, In São Paulo) O que é uma Constelação? Constelação é uma área específica do céu, é "um grupo de estrelas visíveis" formando uma forma / padrão.  Esta forma / padrão pode representar um animal, um objeto ou criaturas / pessoas de histórias antigas.

 Below is the list which has list of all 88 constellations in the sky ! Andromeda Antlia Apus Aquarius Aquila Ara Aries Auriga Boötes Caelum Camelopardalis Cancer Canes Venatici Canis Major Canis Minor Capricornus Carina Cassipoeia Centaurus Cepheus Cetus Chamaeleon Circinus Columba Coma Berenices Corona Australis Corona Borealis Corvus Crater Crux Cygnus Delphinus Dorado Draco Equuleus Eridanus Fornax Gemini Grus Hercules Horologium Hydra Hydrus Indus Lacerta Leo Leo Minor Lepus Libra Lupus Lynx Lyra Mensa Microscopium Monoceros Musca Norma Octans Ophiuchus Orion Pavo Pegasus Perseus Phoenix Pictor Pisces Piscis Austrinus Puppis Pyxis Reticulum Sagitta Sagittarius Scorpius Sculptor Scutum Serpens Sextans Taurus Telescopium Triangulum Triangulum Australe Tucana Ursa Major Ursa Minor Vela Virgo Volans Vulpecula