6:30 pm – Introductory Presentation
Title: The Fall Night Sky
Presenter: Dr. Mary Turner
TAAA’s Chief Observer, Mary Turner, takes us on a tour of the fall night sky, with a quarterly look at celestial objects and some skylore.
Main Presentation: 7:30 P.M.
Title: A Tale of Epsilon Eridani – How Debris Disks Tell Us about Exoplanetary Systems
Presenter: Dr. Kate Su, astronomer from Steward Observatory
Epsilon Eridani, a young solar-like star—at a distance of 10.5 light years from the Sun—is one of the closest stars with a planetary system. Dr. Su’s talk will focus on how astronomers use the emission from orbiting dust to reveal the underlying planetary architecture of Epsilon Eridani. Her main research—with the goal of understanding the origin and evolution of our own solar system—involves interpreting data obtained from ground-based telescopes around the globe, as well as from space telescopes and the airborne observatory SOFIA.
Come join us for a presentation from the fundamentals of amateur astronomy. At the October meeting Dennis McMacken will demonstrate the Collimation of a Dobsonian Telescope.
The “Constellation of the Month” will be Pegasus. Bill Yohey will do the presentation.
Branden Dickerson will provide us with “A Non-Mathematical Introduction to Relativity”. The “Constellation of the Month”, will be Sagittarius. Bill Yohey will do the presentation, delayed from August.
Introductory Presentation: More Eclipse Tales
Presenter: Alex Filippenko
We will show the second Alex Filippenko lecture called “More Eclipse Tales,” from his Understanding the Universe DVD course. Following that, we’ll hear some members share their Total Solar Eclipse 2017 experiences. (Members’ photos of the eclipse will be shown in November. We’ll talk about how to participate.)
Main Presentation: Satellite Galaxies and Dwarfs in the Local Group
Presenter: Ekta Patel
Ekta will begin by reviewing the current classification system used by astronomers to identify different types of galaxies. She will then present an overview of satellite galaxies, including what they are, how they were discovered, and how astronomers use them to understand the evolution and formation of our own Milky Way galaxy and the neighboring Andromeda galaxy. She will explain the current research she is conducting using computer simulations of the Universe to further study satellite galaxies in a context beyond the scope of what observations alone can teach us.
This month Ruth Gomez will give us some fascinating information about “Eclipse Superstitions and Myths”. The “Constellation of the Month” is Sagittarius.
Title: Science at the 2017 Eclipse: The Citizen CATE Experiment
Presenter: Matt Penn, Ph.D., National Solar Observatory
The summer’s total eclipse presents a special opportunity for a group of citizen scientists including scientists, high school students, and educators. The Citizen Continental-America Telescopic Eclipse (CATE) Experiment will monitor the outer atmosphere of the sun, the corona, using a network of 68 identical telescopes located at various places along the path of totality.
There will likely be several Astronomy events throughout Tucson to observe the Partial Solar Eclipse. The Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association does not have a specific location planned, but will likely support UA or other agencies with some solar telescopes.
Join the Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association and the Chiricahua National Monument for an exciting evening of Star Gazing under some incredibly dark skies. Observing will be at the Visitor Center from 6 to 9 PM. We’ll get some amazing views of planets, star clusters, nebulae, galaxies, and lots more.
Details to be determined.
