Traveling on a Holiday – Astronomy Edition

A typical Christmas holiday for my family involves a lot of traveling. Depending on our mode of transportation I would usually just take my camera along and take some unguided long exposures of the night sky whenever possible. However, since this holiday we had a large enough space for transportation I decided to take my EQ4 mount along with my Celestron C90 for a series of free telescope viewings (FTVs).

Our first destination was my hometown and summer capital of the Philippines – Baguio City. Manila had been cloudy due to the t

ropical storm passing through the Visayas, but clear skies dominated most of the nights here. The high altitude and good transparency of Baguio always made it a pleasure to observe during good weather. I setup my telescope in front of the Quezon Hill Community Church. Carollers and passersby got to view the Moon up-close as well as take photos through their phones. A group of kids stopped by after every round of carols they made. Initially I wanted to get in touch with UP Baguio Astronomical Society to join forces for an FTV here but time constraints and consideration for the students being with their families made me decide to setup on my own.

My next FTV destination was at Agoo, La Union. This is where my grandparents' house was located, and where my grandmother built a dedicated astrodeck for my use. From late in the afternoon until the evening I would take out my telescope to the basketball court of the local barangay (native Filipino term for a village; district or ward) to view the waxing gibbous Moon. The court was filled with people playing basketball and kids and adults watching. The kids were first to gather around the telescope, and little by little players would slip from their game to take a peek until eventually everyone came to see.

The following day we traveled to San Juan, La Union to stay overnight in a resort. Several resorts lined the beach as it was a frequented surfing spot. I took my telescope out on the beach for an FTV. Visitors of the resorts who saw the setup came to take a look and have discussions about astronomy. The resort owner, who happens to have an interest in astronomy and how the ancient Polynesians used the stars to navigate the sky also joined me and welcomed the idea of doing an Astronomy Night event for the resort.

 

When we headed back to Agoo, I was surprised to learn that the children waited for me in the past night to look through the telescope. I did a second setup in the basketball court where a larger group of people got the chance to see the Moon and stars.

For the remainder of my nights in Agoo I stayed in the astrodeck – yes, I pitched my tent there – observing throughout the night and taking short naps when some clouds start to roll in.

After New Year we headed back to Baguio. I didn't get to do anymore FTVs after catching a cold – probably from spending a number of chilly nights in the astrodeck, and hot weather during the day. Being from Baguio, we tried to visit spots that we haven't been to or are not crowded by tourists. One of the places we went to is the Maryknoll Ecological Sanctuary. Why am I adding this to this log? Because of the cosmology/history of Earth inspired nature walk. The hiking trail was entitled Cosmic Journey where they trace the formation of the Universe to the evolution of man.

After the long holiday break it's back to Manila where I return to my laptop and cram my astronomy talk.

Stargazing with JAO

My mentee, Sobina Yu, approached me once to talk about setting up an astronomy organization in her school. Part of the projects she had in line for the Judenite's Astronomical Organization was an out of town stargazing trip. On October 7 an agreement was made between the Manila Street Astronomers and JAO to facilitate a stargazing trip at Big Handy's Grounds.

With my mentee,
the president and founder of JAO

Sobina organized and facilitated mostly everything: from talking to teachers and school administrators, securing permits, parents consents, transportation, budgeting and accounting, and coordination with Big Handy's Grounds. This was her first time handling an activity of this sort so she was very much out of her comfort zone. Even when she got all stressed out - messaging me late at night, contacting various people, explaining to parents, etc. - she handled everything pretty well, and I am very proud of her for doing so. Assisting her from JAO to deal with school documents was her VP, Janina Uygongco. I on the other hand organized the manpower who will serve as facilitators, and telescope providers. I had a bit of problems at first with the changing line up of facilitators since most of the MSA core group had sudden unforeseen work concerns (which can't be avoided, I've had my share). Fortunately I had some reliable individuals to catch the ball - Rheanne Odessa Jimeno and Kenneth Bailador. As hiking was a necessary part of the trip the three of us used portable telescope setups. I brought my Celestron TravelScope 70 and my Celestron C90, while Rheanne and Kenneth brought a PowerSeeker 80 EQ. Also with us were Kashogi Astapan and Khristian Dimacali.

The group left Mendiola at around 1:00 PM on November 15. It was my first trip to BHG. It was cloudy when we got there but fast moving wind currents kept the clouds moving through the night. Unfortunately we missed out on several of the southern targets. Even Saturn was hard to resolve with the poor seeing. In the west we could see the sky glow from Manila, and in the east another bright light source was present. Fortunately It was gone some time past midnight. Friends who have been to BHG said it wasn't there before. For a moment when there was full cloud cover the sky was bright as clouds glowed white from the light sources.

We were able to observe several deep-sky objects including star clusters, nebulae, double stars, and the Andromeda galaxy. In the morning we watched the waning crescent Moon while waiting for the sunrise.

Facing south west, Manila sky glow

Facing East

If you want to read more about this activity visit The Cosmic Wonderer.

Manila Street Astronomers at Star City

Last weekend, Gary Andreassen invited Christopher Lu and I to join him in Star City for a stargazing event. The amusement park was closed to an exclusive event for the HSBC GSC employees and their families.

Gary and I were first at the scene, and set up close to the roller coaster towards the employee exit. As we were setting up the 8-inch reflector a crowd gathered around us, excited to see what we have to show. Naturally, the amusement park is light polluted so we chose the planet Jupiter as our target.

Star City's PA system also announced our little setup and eventually the line to look at the telescope became as long as the roller coaster line. Christopher Lu eventually arrived and I was able to switch to Saturn which was now high enough to get away from the glare of a light from the ferris wheel side.

Despite the light pollution, we were able to successfully  share the wonders of the universe to people who looked through the telescope (mostly for their first time).

Every once-in-a-while you may catch Gary at SM South Mall, and Christopher at Kalentong setting up their telescopes for a free public viewing.

Special Observing Session - June 28

During the summer of 2014 I initiated a series of voluntary special astronomical observations at home. I organized it for some students of batch 2018 of the BS Astronomy-Technology course of RTU. Here I taught them how to do star-hopping, locate targets, as well as describe the properties of some of these targets.

Last Saturday I had an opportunity to do another session despite the rainy season. We saw lesser objects than usual but it was still better than nothing. Our targets were mostly in the Scorpius-Sagittarius region and the summer triangle. For most of them it was also their first time to view Mars and Saturn. I had 6 students with me (Kea, Phoebe, Mae, Iela, Jochelle, & Dhann) with only one who has been with me in the other sessions (Kea). Other students wanted to join as well but were not able to secure permission from their guardians due to the last minute planning of the activity. Hopefully, next time I would be able to have another session with them.

The Starburst Initiative

Today,  we are currently traveling to Camarines Sur for another Starburst activity. What began as a program for a star party evolved into a nationwide astronomy outreach program. The Rizal Technological University's Department of Earth and Space Sciences is currently engaged in conducting astronomy lectures and stargazing activities in different high-schools and colleges throughout the Philippines. We create linkages with the different schools in order to promote astronomy education and research, as well as  astronomy in general, to the Filipinos. The program also seeks to increase the experiences and technical skills of the BS Astronomy-Technology students involved by allowing them to deliver lectures and share their views of the night sky through RTU's telescopes. This program has allowed us an avenue for communicating astronomy to the public and inspiring others to take an interest for the wonders of the universe.

Astronomy for all :)

Starburst at Camarines Sur

Starburst at RTU, Mandaluyong

Starburst at Laguna

Starburst at Negros Occidental

Orionids and Telescopes

Last Monday (22 Oct 2012) the RTU Astronomical Society held an overnight observation setting to train the 1st year students in the use of the telescopes as well as to catch a glimpse of the Orionids activity. For me it was an opportunity to observe the sky from RTU using the department's different telescopes.

While the lectures were being conducted upstairs, I stayed in the quadrangle with some students to observe the moon and several deep-sky targets that were visible despite the urban skylight. Among the deep-sky targets we observed were: M57(Ring Nebula); M31(Andromeda Galaxy); M29(Open Cluster) and Albireio(Double Star); NGC 884 & 869(Double Cluster); M45(Pleiades Open Cluster); M41(Open Cluster); the famous M42(Orion Nebula); as well as several other open clusters.

As soon as the lectures were over, the students came down with the rest of the telescopes to practice assembly and alignment. This gave the first year students a chance to operate the telescopes on their own. After they were graded, they were left with some time to observe which also provided me some time to do some imaging with the 12-inch Sky-Watcher SkyLiner Dobsonian telescope, as well as via piggy-back on a refracting telescope.

World Space Week 2012

October 4-10 is the World Space Week. This year's theme is "Space for Human Safety and Security."

The World Space Week is an annual global space celebration coordinated by the Spaceweek International Association.
The World Space Week was declared in 1999 by the United Nations General Assembly. The event celebrates the contribution of space science and technology to improve our lives. It also marks the anniversary of two milestones in space exploration: Sputnik I(1st artificial Satellite) and the entry into force of the Treaty Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, Including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies.






In line with this event here are some of the events:

The RTU Astronomical Society is organizing Star Burst - a star party. This will be held at the Rizal Technological University quadrangle on October 8, 2012 from 6:00-9:00PM. This event is open to all.

The Philippine Astronomical Society will have a Space Navigation Lecture on Oct. 4 at Mahatma Gandhi International School, Manila; and on Oct. 5 a public telescope viewing and lecture at UST Grandstand from 6-9PM.

Likewise, the UPLB Astrosoc will also be holding activities from October 8-10 at the UPLB Campus.

And on the last day, there will be a Grand Star Party at the UP Sunken Garden (Oct. 10) from 8pm onwards. [Pre-registration required].

Partial Lunar Eclipse - Observation Log

This evening, June 4, 2012, was a partial lunar eclipse. This happens whenever the Earth is in between the Sun and the Moon, and they become aligned in a way that the shadow of the Earth will cover part of the moon.

The event happened during moonrise so I had to find a clear view of the East. The best view I could get from my immediate vicinity was from the overpass at Q-mart in Cubao, Quezon City. The sky was also very cloudy due to a recent storm that passed by. I was reluctant to observe but I decided to go with it anyway. I grabbed my Nikon D3100 and a 55-200mm Nikkor lens and waited for the moon to reveal itself.

The moon began peeking through the cloud cover and I started grabbing some images. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get any good shots and the clouds obscured my view of the maximum eclipse (at 38% cover of umbral shadow). Also, I had to leave the site since there were suspicious individuals eyeing my camera (almost lost my wallet to a pick-pocket the previous night; never observe alone in an unsecure location).

Dismayed by my lack of usable images I went home to follow the live TwitCast from the astrocamp observatory. I went out every now and then hoping to catch a glimpse of the eclipsed moon. Fortunately, the skies cleared a bit and I rushed to take out my 6" Newtonian reflector and set it up on the street. I was finally able to get some decent images. Too bad I wasn't able to do an eclipse progression. Maybe next time! :)

Astronomical Sketching

One of the activities we've been doing in astronomy is astronomical sketching. We take time to view different celestial targets through a telescope/binoculars, and sketch the field of view into the eyepiece. This activity helps sharpen an astronomer's visual observing skills, and also helps the observer to be more familiar with the object and how it really looks like through the eyepiece. The process is much more time consuming (some open clusters can take roughly 30 mins to sketch), however the results of a good sketch can be rewarding.

To the left is a lunar sketch of the Copernicus crater.
Lunar sketching helps you practice your ability to do shading and helps you study the structure of the moon's surface.

Here is a sketch of the Lagoon Nebula (Messier 8) in Sagittarius as observed from a 6" Newtonian with a 25mm WA eyepiece. The sketch has been inverted in MS Paint to resemble the actual appearance as seen in the eyepiece. The nebulosity is created by gentle smudges of pencil. One can make use of a paper stump to get better smudges.

Here is a sketch of the Scorpius Jewel Box (NGC 6281).

For open clusters such as this, one will strive for accuracy in their drawings. What I usually do is form triangles between stars, or lines of three stars, taking careful note of the spaces between them.

Observation at Taytay, Rizal

Last Saturday, the astronomy graduate school students of RTU went out to Taytay, Rizal for an overnight observation. We set up in a place called Paradiso and set out to observe several targets as well as spend some time together. We brought along 4 telescopes (2 Astromaster 130s, 1 Meade ETX 125 and my TS 70) with us as well as several binoculars to observe the night sky. I brought my imaging gear with me but had to deal with winds shaking up my tripod.

We were able to observe several clusters, the planets Jupiter, Venus, Mars and Saturn, as well as some DSOs. We also were able to see several sporadic meteors most of which were bollides.


Participants: Von, Peejay, Joey, Ruby, Ryan, Pia, Pamela, Lieza, Vanessa, and myself.

AstroEscapades

During the long weekend I went up to my home town - Baguio City. I checked the weather for Baguio City using weatherspark which was introduced by Dr. Lee in the October meeting of the ALP. The weather was good for that week and my classmate in astronomy, Vanessa, was able to do some observations when she was in Baguio before me. Also, John Nassr from Baguio had wonderful images recently posted to his website.

Since the weather seemed to participate, I brought along my Celestron Travel Scope 70. I seriously put the word "Travel" in the TS 70 to the test for a stargazing tour with my relatives. The telescope is really lightweight and is easy to travel with in its custom backpack.

Aiming the TS 70 at Jupiter with my cousins.

My first stop was in Long-long, La Trinidad. It was a dark site with wonderful star studded skies (see previous post). At first we thought we weren't going to be able to see anything since it was cloudy, but knowing Baguio's skies we knew things change quickly (one minute it looks like it's gonna pour, the next it's crazy sunny). I was able to see the Milky Way after a long time and lots of faint stars that I have missed since moving to the highly urban Manila.

Imaging the stars with an Olympus E-510.

The following day, we went down to Aringay, La Union to visit our grandparents. My cousin knew a remote site by the sea where the skies were extremely dark. However, clouds began to gather as we set up the scope and camera to view Jupiter. I wanted to observe again the following night in the same site, but we had to wake up early to go to Clark. So I set up in the church however there were a lot of obstructions.

Crescent Moon imaged in Aringay.

 Unfortunately, after we came from Clark, the following nights have been cloudy and I wasn't able to do any more observations. I was able to get some images of the moon and the sunset though.

Searching for dark sky sites is a must if you really want to see more during your observations. The problem of urban sites is that light pollution washes out the fainter stars and other celestial objects making them virtually invisible. Having access to dark sky sites is a key tool in observational astronomy. Since these sites are usually in remote places it would also be effective to have a grab-&-go scope or a scope that you can easily set-up and take with you on the go.

Our ride to the observing sites.

Waxing Crescent Moon

Sunset on the road home from Clark

Stargazing session - Oct 29, 2011

I came up to Baguio yesterday after our professor decided to have a break instead of going all the way through the long weekend. I brought my Travel Scope 70 ("Beta") with me to observe with my cousins. We drove off to Long-long, a dark site in La Trinidad. The weather conditions was good enough to reveal a very beautiful star field.

I also was lucky enough to borrow an SLR for imaging, an Olympus E-510, however I wasn't familiar with the settings of the camera so I just imaged what I can. It turns out I need an T-rings for my TS70 to connect it with the cam, so I just went with the point and shoot approach.

Hyades Star Cluster. ISO 1600.

Jupiter and Galilean Moons. The moons appear to make Jupiter look like Saturn.

Orion.

Cassiopeia

Pleiades Star Cluster. ISO 800.