Pembrokeshire Astronomer: July 2022

Wednesday, 20 July 2022

Currently there is a beautiful prominence on the solar limb.

Earlier this evening I captured a few Ha images with the PST.

The Sun also has filaments, plages and sunspots a plenty at the moment.

All good news for the solar astronomers.

The phone camera I use is good at capturing prominences, but terrible at revealing any surface detail.

Time for a new type of camera I guess... Hmmm... I wonder!

Recently found this on my external hard drive.

I've just realised I hadn't put the year of observation in the details.

Mars apparition 2020

I used to often type up my observing sessions on the typewriter. I will have to dig through my journals to find a few more to post on blogger.

The Sun has finally decided to cook the county of Pembrokeshire.

As I write this (10:21 UT) the downpour of heat is starting to feel intense.

Time to find some shade I think!

Huge prominence on display this morning, will be checking its progress throughout the day.... from the shaded doorway of my shed.

This was a poster I made for the Preseli Astronomy Group back in December 2011.

I haven't seen this poster for many years. I happened to find it whilst surfing the mighty Google.

All the photos you see on the poster were taken with our now long deceased Nikon D50 camera, an excellent camera for a bit of astrophotography.

The poster asks you to "Take a peek at your closest neighbours" !

It sounds as if I was literally asking you to train your telescopes onto the house next door!

I was actually referring to the the Moon and Planets. 😃😮

Some weeks ago I was rummaging through a box, at one of our local car boot sales.

I found an intriguing item.

It appeared to be a fountain pen, but on closer examination it opened out into a small refractor.

It works well considering the 1/2 inch aperture of the objective glass.

I christened it The Mighty Atom.

Last night the clouds were sauntering once again around Pembrokeshire, and the Moon low on our neighbour's trees, could occasionally be glimpsed.

I grabbed the Mighty Atom, put it over the lens of the digicam and captured this shot.

Also I have found, that if you reverse the scope and look through the objective glass, it makes a really handy microscope..

If you ever happen upon a box full of dubious junk, and see a Mighty Atom, buy it...you won't be disappointed.

**This post was originally published on July 8th 2011. Eleven years ago! ...... Time, it seems, does fly!

"Frequently consider the connection of all things in the universe...

We should not say 'I am an Athenian' or 'I am a Roman' but 'I am a citizen of the Universe".