Speaker: Historical Supernovae: Wendell Shuster

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Wednesday, October 11th, 2017 at 7:30 PM

Room A104, Bob Wright Centre, University of Victoria

RASC Victoria Centre’s Monthly Meeting

This talk will focus on how various cultures around the world were influenced by the sudden appearance of Supernovae. Further discussion includes where supernovae were seen, how bright they were and how they were identified by modern scientists (archaeologists, geologists, paleo-astronomers and astrophysicists).  The final segment goes briefly into the astrophysics of the two main Supernovae types tying in how we know the distances and what the Supernovae may have looked like to these cultures even though historical records are very scant at best.
There will also be a short presentation on the outreach program at the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory, (DRAO) which is located near Penticton.

Wendell Shuster has been a member of RASC for 37 years, first in Vancouver and since 2000 in Penticton. He is currently the Tour Guide at the DRAO. He has served on executive positions of the Okanagan Centre of RASC as well as it’s predecessor the Okanagan Astronomical Society. Wendell has made numerous astronomical presentations on a wide variety of topics. His devotion to the science is truly astronomical. Who else do you know that has the entire collection of 1872 glass plates from the Palomar Sky Survey in his basement? Don’t miss this one!

SPEAKER: The Formation, Development, and Geology of the Moon – Ted Stroman

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Wednesday, September 13th, 2017 at 7:30 p.m., University of Victoria, Bob Wright Centre Room A104 – RASC Victoria Centre’s Monthly Meeting

The Apollo program boosted our understanding of the Moon. However the latest robotic missions and new research has brought new data and our view of the Moon has been transformed. The Moon has complex geochemical history, amazing formations and hold the keys to knowledge of how the Earth and the Solar System developed. With new missions and technological progress a lot has changed over the last 50 years, yet many questions and mysteries remain.

Come and hear the dramatic story of how the Moon was formed, how it developed and how new approaches are unveiling its secrets. Knowing this you may find a better understanding of what future Moon missions may accomplish and some of the challenges of a permanent Moon base.

Ted Stroman is a long standing member of RASC Vancouver.  His 1st Moon Landing Program was started in the 1990s and have brought the excitement and awe of the Apollo missions & and the Moon to many classrooms and public events throughout the province.

He is an avid reader/researcher on the Moon’s development, geology, and future space missions. The moon is his favourite observation target on a night but also follows the planets and DSOs with his Giant Binoculars & 4.5″ reflector.

He has a background in Health Sciences and works for WorkSafeBC. He is married and has one daughter.

President’s Message – September 2017

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The summer of 2017 will be noted for a relatively rare event, a solar eclipse visible across North America. Many Victoria Centre members travelled to see totality including me. That was my first total eclipse and it was an extraordinary experience. I now understand why many members of the club make it a priority to view total solar eclipses. The totality was all too short but even that 2 minute experience made the trip worthwhile.

I viewed the eclipse at the home of friends in western Idaho; in all, 22 of us set up to watch the eclipse. We put chairs in front of their garage as that faces east and got ready for the eclipse to begin. With the garage door open, we had a shaded space where we could get out of the sun’s heat as needed. As the eclipse progressed, we noticed that we did not need that shade as the sun’s rays no longer felt hot. That happened some time before the amount of light was reduced so it was an interesting sensation.

We looked around for objects projecting the sun and it was great to see the effect of the spaces between leaves as the sun became an increasingly narrow crescent. We had my solar telescopes set up to provide a view of the sunspots and prominences. I noticed that the progress of the eclipse was more evident with the magnification of the telescope than though eclipse glasses. We also put out a white sheet to see if we could see the shadow bands. We did see them at both ends of totality.

Totality was amazing. Having that all too brief diamond ring and then the sudden appearance of the sun’s corona was magical. I had a good look to see if I could see some of the stars but I only saw Venus. As the seconds ticket by, we knew it would soon be over, but did our best to enjoy the spectacle. Sure enough, another diamond ring appeared and the light started coming back. It was a letdown that it was over but the experience is not to be forgotten.

Now we are back into the “regular” time of the year monthly meetings resume on Wednesday, September 13  at 7:30 p.m. in room A104 in the Bob Wright Centre at UVic. Astro Café resumes at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, September 11 in a temporary location while our regular room is renovated. We will be posting the schedule of other events as they are completed. As a reminder, the November meeting is our AGM. That will be held on the evening of Saturday, November 18 at the Cedar Hill Golf Course. Please keep an eye on the website for details about upcoming events.