TAAS - The Albuquerque Astronomical SocietyAffiliated With The Astronomical League and
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TAAS General Meeting Saturday, May 17, 2008.Dr. Ylva Pihlstrom from the UNM Physics and Astronomy Department will talk about "Lasers in the Sky".Strongly beamed emission from interstellar molecules was discovered more than 40 years ago, and it was quickly realized that the emission could only be explained in terms of maser (laser) amplification. Because of the compactness and brightness of these masers, they have provided information about the molecular gas at the highest angular resolutions currently achievable. Dr. Pihlstrom will talk about the environments where masers are detected, and the lessons learned from the observations. The TAAS General Meeting is held at Regener Hall on the Main Campus of UNM. The meeting is free and open to the public. Start time is 7 PM, with a social hour after the meeting. Please join us! Map of Regener Hall, UNM Main Campus in Albuquerque.
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Members' Photos PageWARNING! This page contains many photos and could take a long time to load. Access at your own risk. |
Cosmic Carnival Recap and Pictures Cosmic Carnival 2008 is now more than a week behind us. However, the memories
linger on.
On behalf of all the children of New Mexico I wish to thank all of the
volunteers who made this year's Cosmic Carnival the big success that everyone is
talking about. Dee Friesen, TAAS President. |
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School Star Party at
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Observing Challenges in 2008The Annual TAAS Messier Marathon at GNTO is a great event. This year it is new and improved with 50% more marathon - maybe more precisely it is 50% less. In addition to the usual Marathon of 110 objects, we have a list of exactly one-half the Marathon with 55 objects that can be observed by midnight for those whose dedication might wane with the chilly March night. If your goal is to eventually find all 110 Messier objects, then a few hours during this year’s Marathon plus another similar stint in our Fall Half-Marathon is a relatively painless way to do it. The half-marathon is a great way to be part of this fun event without spending the whole night at it. Half Marathon and Full Marathon charts and lists are available here or through Barry Spletzer (found in Contacts, top of page). The TAAS Messier SIG (Special Interest Group) will once again attempt to observe all 110 of the Messier objects during the 2008 calendar year. We invite everyone that is interested to join us as together we learn the night sky. As we observe the Messier Objects, we also learn the constellations, many prominent stars and of course each other. We are going to expand our efforts in 2008 by including a special program for observing with binoculars. Double stars are also being included in the monthly observing lists. Many double stars are best viewed with binoculars. For all the details, go to The TAAS Messier SIG Website. Next, TAAS is having two observing contests, one for the Messier 110 and one for the TAAS 200. Prizes will be awarded to the first members to complete each list. Contact Larry Cash (299-4686 or 307-1880) for additional details. Barry Spletzer has also created a fall "half messier marathon", targeted at late September. It is located here. If the 310 objects in the Messier and TAAS lists just aren't enough for you, Barry Spletzer has combined the Messier and TAAS lists with the Herschel 400 for a total of 555 objects. If you want the list, just call Barry Spletzer (found in Contacts, top of page). Finally, Bill Wallace, a TAAS member, has started an asteroid SIG (Special Interest Group). The asteroid SIG web site is located at http://complex.org/~bwalls/ |
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Sky Quality Meter (SQM) is now available!For information on the new SQM, check out our dark sky page. Then, page down to the Sky Quality Meter section. This handy tool can be used to actually measure how bad the light pollution is in our valley or how good that "special observing site" really is. Find out if the east mountain area is darker than Belen, and how Chaco compares with the big star parties. And if our night sky is as bad as we fear, check out the rest of the dark sky page, and get involved! David would love some help protecting our precious starry nights. |
GNTO ObservingSaturday, May 3For many amateur astronomers, star parties are the best part of belonging to a club. TAAS members and their guests are welcome to join us at GNTO for a night of stargazing, telescope discussions, and fun. GNTO nights are generally scheduled for the Saturday night closest to the new moon. They are only held if the weather is clear or partly clear. For any last minute information on cancellations, please call the TAAS hotline at (505) 254-8227, option 2 (Special Events) or check the TAAS-L listserv. If you aren't a member, meet us at one of our General Meetings, as listed above, and join the club! |
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The TAAS Sidereal Times Online |
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The May issue is ready to download, along
with back issues from previous years.
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- Upcoming TAAS Events - |
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| For information on Board of Directors meetings, Contact our President here | ||
| For information on GNTO, Contact the GNTO director here | ||
| May | ||
| 2 | Fri | Sidereal times deadline |
| 3 | Sat | GNTO Observing |
| 3 | Sat | Chaco Canyon Star Party |
| 6 | Tue |
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| 7 | Wed | ATM Meeting |
| 10 | Sat | GNTO Training and Observing |
| 15 | Thu | TAAS Board Meeting |
| 17 | Sat | TAAS General Meeting |
| 31 | Sat | Oak Flat Star Party |
| June | ||
| 3 | Tue | New Moon |
| 5 | Thu | GNTO Committee Meeting |
| 7 | Sat | GNTO Observing |
| 10 | Tue | Moon First Quarter |
| 12 | Thu | Board of Directors Meeting |
| 18 | Wed | Full Moon |
| 26 | Thu | Moon Last Quarter |
| 27 | Fri | Sidereal Times Deadline |
| 28 | Sat | General Meeting & Picnic @ Oak Flat |
| 28 | Sat | Oak Flat Star Party |
| In addition, TAAS offers free viewing in front of the UNM Campus Observatory on Friday nights after sunset, weather permitting. | ||
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A copy of the New Mexico Dark Sky map, with the New Mexico road map, is located here Map of New Mexico Dark Skies. TAAS member Eric Edwards created this map using one of the maps from The Night Sky in the World |
For a full year calendar of TAAS and local astronomical events, visit the TAAS Calendar Page |
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Today's Clear Sky Clock for AlbuquerqueFrom Clear Dark Sky. A quick and cool forecast of astronomical observing conditions. Click in the image for legend and help. |
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