A June Night, Some Moonlight and You!

It's time to relax under a (not-so-dark) sky with your friends. The Moon will be near its first quarter, preventing a truly dark sky, but will provide nice views of lunar maria, craters and mountains. Two planets, red Mars and bright Venus, will be prominent, and swift Mercury will show itself above the western horizon, setting around 9:30. THE MEETING WILL BE HELD AT FAIRFIELD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, (NO, IT'S NOT IN FAIRFIELD!).

What to bring? Binoculars (optional), warm clothes, some-thing relaxing to sit or lie on, mosquito repellant, a flash-light in a paper bag or with a red filter (to keep lights dim). Please remem-ber that the school's restrooms are not available.

How to get there? Fairfield School is located at the intersection of Road 32 and Road 96. Take Russell Blvd (Road 32) west 4 miles beyond the High-way 113 over crossing until you come to Road 96. Watch for the school crossing sign; the school is on the right side corner.

What is there? You will find a large grassy area (for chairs and blankets) and an area of asphalt (for telescopes, etc). As usual, toilet facilities will NOT be available so please plan accordingly.

DAVIS SKY IN JUNE

PROMINENT CONSTELLATIONS visible around 9:00 PM in
(1) in the West: Leo (the Lion);
(2) overhead: Ursa Major (the Big Dipper) and Bootes (the Herds-man);
(3) in the East: Hercules (the Hero) Lyra (the Lyre) and Cygnus (the Swan) and
(4) in the South-east: Scorpius (the Scorpion) and Sagittarius (the Archer). Come to the meeting and we'll show them to you!

THREE PLANETS are quite prominent in the evening sky in June. Mars, Venus and Mercury are prominent at sunset. Venus reaches its greatest angular distance from the sun (43 degrees) on the 10th and don't miss the sight of Venus and the Moon on the 16th. Mercury reaches its greatest angular distance from the sun (26 degrees) on the 28th. Mars begins to grow fainter as it continues to travel with the star Spica. Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus are best seen in the pre-dawn sky. The sun passes through the summer solstice, its northernmost position in the heavens, at 6:49 p.m. June 21st

MAY'S MEETING "SCOPE ROUNDUP" ON MAY 22.

Approximately 20 members attended our Astronomy Day meeting on telescopes. Three ATMs (amateur telescope makers) were on hand to show examples of their handiwork and help several newcomers to amateur astronomy get the most from their scopes. Thanks to Tim Feldman, Larry Snyder, and Alvin Huey for their expert advice and help. Tim brought along his binocular viewer, Alvin his 16 inch Dob, and Larry brought his new 12.5 inch Dob.

Because the weather was warm, clear and breezy, we dispensed with the usual slide show presentation, and spent the entire time outdoors. We viewed an Iridium satellite flash, a bright meteor, the half moon and several other sights-including a large number of screech owls flying around Explorit. Despite the clear sky, a large amount of dust in the atmosphere from the strong north winds may have prevented decent views of the Martian surface. We had a good time discussing our summer observing plans, looking through the many scopes, speculating on what that "next" telescope would allow us to do, and the delightful absence of mosquitoes (due to Alvin's sonic mosquito repeller?). Thanks to you all for a memorable evening!

The Astronomy Club is hosted by Dennis Smith with the assistance of Tim Feldman and other eager astronomy buffs. The club is for everyone - adults, children, knowledgeable or ignorant. Come to listen, look and learn, or to share your expertise or experience.