Monday, March 23, 2009

First Phlippine Produced Astronomer

Congratulations to Dr. Armando Lee, the very first Filipino with an MS in Astronomy to finish in the Philippines. Dr. Lee is a graduate of RTU's MS Astronomy program.

Currently, there are 11 students in RTU's MS Astronomy program and less than 20 students in their BS Astronomy Technology degree.

I hope that many more astronomers will be produced in the Philippines!

Monday, March 2, 2009

Comet Lulin

For those who weren't able to view Comet Lulin, here are some images:




Image: NASA/Bill Ingalls

This image of comet Lulin (center-right) is seen through the trees from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, Monday, Feb. 23, 2009. Lulin, also known as the green comet, made its closest approach to the Earth overnight.




Image: SkyandTelescope.com




Image: Joseph Brimacombe

Friday, February 20, 2009

What's on the sky 2nyt?

1. VENUS SHINES - Feb 19, Venus shined with a magnitude of -4.5 in the constellation Virgo

2. COMET LULIN - Feb 24 will be the closest approach of comet Lulin on Earth

3. PLANETS HERE - Mars, Mercury and Jupiter will be prominent in the evening of the remaining days of February. Watch them as they shine closely to the moon.

4. BOOM - A huge gamma-ray explosion was detected. The energy produced in the explosion is greater than 9,000 supernovae. This has been the largest gamma-ray burst in history.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Withering in the Weather

The Ironies of Weather Foul-ups in Stargazing at the Start of the Year


Last Monday, 9 Feb. 2009, there was a penumbral lunar eclipse, which occured from 8:30 - 12 in the morning. Unfortunately, here in Dumaguete City, the weather provided a very minimal view of the moon.

Dumaguete, as you may have heard in the news, experienced flash flood on Saturday (Feb 7). The following night however provided a clear view of the almost full moon. Hoping for good weather, me and my friends waited for the night and then... we were dismayed by the cloudy skies. Ironically, the following night (Feb 10), the moon was clear as a gem in the night.

Another irony was during the annular solar eclipse. I was suppose to have a class at the time of the eclipse, but we just happened to be dismissed early. I was glad since I thought I would not get to see it. Unfortunately all the dark rain clouds covered up the sun.

The weather always plays as a sinister factor when it comes to stargazing. And ironic as it is, in the past weeks, clear skies seem to happen when I don't do any observing. I hope the rest of the astronomical events and viewing schedules for the IYA won't be obscurred by foul weather.

Clear Skies to All! (Please!)

Monday, January 26, 2009

Partial Solar Eclipse

As posted earlier, there would be two partial SOLAR (hehe.. sorry if i wrote lunar last time) eclipses visible in the Philippines. The first occured last Jan 26 with 71%, but unfortunately for some areas, such as Iligan and Dumaguete, the rainy weather blocked the view of this event. For those in Manila, they were able to see the eclipse.

Anyways, there is still one more chance for this year (which may i remind those who don't know, is the IYA2009). The second solar eclipse will occur on July 22, 2009. This time, it would be in the morning, but only at 49% (growing smaller as you move south).

Clear Skies!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

1st Philippine Astronomy Convention

The Astronomical League of the Philippines (ALP) will be having the very first Philippine Astronomy Convention. This will be held in the Rizal Technological University in Mandaluyong, on February 15, 2009. EVERYONE is invited to attend!

You can download the invitation at:
http://www.astroleaguephils.org/pac_2009.pdf