Site hosted by Angelfire.com: Build your free website today!

P.O. Box 714 Cottonwood, AZ 86326 Volume II Issue 16 July, 1999

Editor: Stanley R. Spoors

©Copyright 1999 Astronomers of Verde Valley, All Rights Reserved



A.V.V. General Meeting



The next scheduled General Membership Meeting of Astronomers of Verde Valley will be held on July 17, at 7:00 pm in the old conference room at Marcus J. Lawrence Hospital.

Matthew Morris will give a short presentation regarding his science fair project in which he studied sunspot activity. Following a short break, Mel Boreham will be showing a video tape about meteors. Please plan to arrive early, and as always, we encourage our members to invite friends and their families to attend.



The Sky At A Glance



As we wait for the summer-time Milky Way to rise higher in the sky for better viewing, we are treated to six very fine globular clusters and one very bright galaxy in July. All of the objects in this month's list are large enough to be viewed through binoculars, and most are even easily seen with even small binoculars.



M3 - This is one of the brightest globular clusters in our sky. It is located in the constellation Canes Venatici, and is easy to see with small binoculars as a bright, glowing patch of light. Small telescopes will begin to resolve M3 into individual stars.







M5 - This is a big, bright globular cluster in the constellation Serpens Caput. It is another easy object with small binoculars, in that it lies near a 5th magnitude star, making it easier to find than M3. Small telescopes begin to reveal the true majesty of this fine example of globular clusters.



M53 - Going back to Canes Venatici, we find M53. While not as big or bright as its neighbor, M3, it is still easily seen in binoculars. In telescopes, it is easy to find, as it shares the same low-power field as Coma Berenices.



M68 - This is a difficult but possible object for binoculars. It is an 8th magnitude globular cluster in Hydra, and appears as a faint, fuzzy spot with averted vision. Apertures of 12" or more are needed to begin to resolve it.



M83 - Our galactic showpiece this month, M83 is a face on spiral galaxy in Hydra. It is one of the brightest galaxies in the southern sky, and its well defined spiral arms give a strong impression of whirling motion. Burham lists its distance as 10 million lights-years, with a total magnitude of 8. The two principal arms of the galaxy form a back wards "S" and there is a third, fainter arm stemming from the nucleus on the southern side.



M4 - Located near Antares, this bright globular cluster is another easy binocular target, appearing as a round snowball. In telescopes it is partially resolved, with a line of bright stars crossing its center.





M80 - This is the smallest and faintest object in our July tour of Messier's Catalogue, and although possible, it is a very tough objects for binoculars. The cluster is located in the constellation Scorpius, and even in moderate telescopes it still appears much like a comet. It has a bright central nucleus surrounded by a small faint fuzzy patch of light.



Other notable events for this month include a very nice view of the young crescent Moon just two degrees from Venus on July 15. A telescopic look at Venus will show that its phase is very similar to the Moon's.

Lunar Prospector To Crash

ALPO - The Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers has issued the following observing alert for July 31, 1999 09:52 hrs. UT:

The highly successful Lunar Prospector Mission is coming to a close and NASA scientists have decided to end the mission in a most interesting manner. Plans are o crash the spacecraft into a permanently shadowed crater near the south pole of the Moon (Mawson) that is suspected of containing water ice. It is hoped that evidence of water ice will be detectable in the impact debris cloud. The impact is currently scheduled for 09:52 UT on July 31, 1999.

NASA has asked the ALPO to encourage anateur astronomers to watch the area around the Kunar south pole for signs of this event. Visual, video and ccd observations are needed to confirm or deny that this has happened. Observation reports, positive or negative, should be sent to:



Bill Dembowski

ALPO Coordinator, Lunar Topographical Studies

210 Old Bedford Pike

Windber, PA 15963



Astro Images Still Needed For Website

We are still in need of astro- images and AVV related photographs for our Website. To date we have received a response from only one of our members. This is necessarily a club project, and as such, the membership is encouraged to take part in its development. If you have ccd images or photographs that you would like to see on our site, please submit them to me via mail at the club's mailing address, my home address (195 S. 7th Street Apt # 403 Cottonwood 86326) or by email at:

verdeveil@sedona.net. All Photos that are submitted will be scanned and returned to the owner.