Astronomy Cafe – Dec 1, 2025

• Intro & New Members – Randy Enkin
  • Gordon – biomedical engineer, interested in rocketry and the night sky
  • Dennis – biomedical engineer, need some help with a new telescope
  • Keith – military night time guard duty, Southern Cross, Orion’s belt
  • Johnathan – degree in space science, spiritual scholar, bought a 12″ telescope
• Canadian meteorite fall events: Keep looking up – Phil McCausland, Fireballs Specialist, University Western Ontario
  • Amateurs involved in meteor fall events
  • Grimsby event in 2009 – title image
  • Mars Science Launch “Curiosity” in 2011
  • Tagish Lake fireball in 2000
    • Peter Brown and Alan Hildebrand – field team along with Phil
    • Image/painting by Beat Korner, image by Wealk Lemke
    • Fragments dropped onto ice-covered Tagish Lake
    • Jim Brook first to collect fragments – Jan 2000
    • Spring collection in April and May 2000
    • Cut ice blocks around fragments
  • Meteorite basics
    • Types: Irons 5%; Stony-Irons 1%; Stony 94%
    • Material from early solar system
  • 72 meteorites have been discovered in Canada
  • Famous Canadian Meteorite Falls
    • Shelburne, Ontario 1904
    • Innisfree, Alberta 1977 – first with a known orbit thanks to an observation network (MORP)
    • St. Robert, Quebec 1994
    • Grimsby, Ontario 2009
    • Golden, BC 2021
      • News item: meteorite fell on Ruth Hamilton’s bed
      • Photos of fireball taken from Lake Louise and Sunshine Sky resort in Banff
    • Asteroid 2022 WJ1
      • Caistor Observatory, Niagara
      • Cataline Sky Survey forecast this impact
      • Dave Clark, Paul Wiegert, Rob Weryk observed the event.
      • Peter Jedicke’s video taken at 3:27AM
      • Doppler weather radar can detect falling fireballs
      • Drone surveys for impact holes
  • Since about 2000, security, all-sky cameras and other outdoor cameras and sensors have accelerated measuring of meteorite falls
  • Global Meteor Network – public involvement
  • American Meteor Society – fireball reporting, mainly amateur observations
  • Q&A
• Eagle Nebula astrophoto – Dave Payne
  • Very low altitude astrophoto
  • Molecular cloud dynamics – dispersion
  • Comparison of 3 images from: Dave’s backyard, Hubble, JWST
• “The Fall of Icarus” – Randy Enkin
  • Enkin’s Daily Moon – on Facebook and Instagram
  • Andrew McCarthy images profiled in space.com article and Youtube
  • A skydiver profiled in front of the Sun
• Announcements – Randy Enkin pastpres@victxoria.rasc.ca
  • Need hosts for last Astro Cafes of the year: Dec 8, 15, and possibly 22
  • Newcombe Singers Concert – Dec 13 & 14 at 2:30PM at St. Mary’s Church
    • Volunteers for the Glass Orchestra – 8 volunteers already – Dec 9 & 12 rehearsals happening
    • RASC astrophotos will be shown during the concert
    • Volunteers needed to setup their telescopes outside by 5:30PM – Saturn
    • See event details in Nov 3 Astro Cafe meeting notes
  • David Lee david@victoria.rasc.ca
    • Beginners SIG tomorrow night online
    • Book recommendation – David Lee
    • Painting the Cosmos – Nia Imara
    • How about book reviews for next week’s Astronomy Cafe? – contact Randy Enkin
  • FDAO Winter Solstice event Dec 20th – Lauri Roche
    • Pancake breakfast in the morning
    • Evening presentation Ghosts and Ghouls and observing if the weather is clear
• Two Personal Observatories – Garry Sedun
  • Former observatory in southern Arizona – 20″ and 25″ telescopes
    • Diane Bell enjoyed visual observing
    • Lots of astrophography by Garry, Joe Carr, John McDonald
  • New observatory – being constructed in a North Saanich vineyard
    • Two 10’x10′ structures on tracks – one for each telescope
    • Electrical systems design
    • Renewing the two classic telescopes
    • Should be ready for first light in a few months

Next Monday’s Astronomy Cafe will be hosted by Lauri Roche with a presentation by Dennis Crabtree.

Video transcript of meeting