Hi everyone!
Some of you were at our last Monrovia star party, which was filmed by a JPL
film crew. Just in time for the film award season (darn it, we missed the
Golden Globes I'm afraid) here it is!
It shows the joy of conducting a local star party, and I hope you enjoy it -
you might even see yourself in the video!
Its available in HD and Standard Definition, and there is a written
transcript too. http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/index.cfm?id=804
Mojo put it on our Otastro website, too. http://www.otastro.org/
You Tube version: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=JPLnews&view=videos
NASAs International Year of Astronomy "Go Observe" sub-section for January
2009 is all about Venus, with lots of resources and good articles, including
my January What's Up podcast about Venus - a link on the right side bar.
You might enjoy reading the article about Venus or use some of the
educational materials. http://astronomy2009.nasa.gov/observe.htm
Next sidewalk events are Jan 30 Pasadena, January 31 Monrovia. Hope to see
you then! Weather permitting, of course! Happy new year to everyone and
happy birthday to Mojo January 18 (and happy anniversary Jane and Mojo
January 15)
--
Jane Houston Jones
Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program
JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205
Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435
jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov
Cassini SOC http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/Education/saturnobservation/ (new)
What's Up? http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/whatsup_index.html
(new)
Monrovia is clouded over tonight. We'll have to try again on January 30
and 31 when we'll have a crescent moon in the sky. Stay tuned 'til then!
Cheers,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
I just stopped by Burminco (Bugnham Mining Company) on Encinitas in
Monrovia to pay my respects to the staff and family of George Burnham,
who died at 94 last month. The obituary said the store would remain
open through December 31, but the future was uncertain. The store is
open today but it is definitely closing sometime soon.
The store may or may not reopen at a different location. So this note
is for all you rock and mineral lovers, collectors, teachers who may
have purchased classroom materials at Burminco, or made up gifts or rock
collections. You might want to visit today or soon!
For information, call (626) 358-4478 or visit www.burminco.comhttp://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ci_11196943
Jane
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
34.2048N 118.1732W, 637.0 feet
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
What's Up Podcast: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/whatsup_index.html
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jhjones
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/janehoustonjones
Our January 2009 Sidewalk Astronomy night will be Saturday January 3rd in
Monrovia, weather permitting. We'll skip Pasadena on January 2nd due to the
proximity of our observing location to Rose Parade route and cleanup, not to
mention New Years Eve and Day events and recovery from same. We'll be set up
from 6 - 9 p.m. Saturday night. If you wish to join us with your new (or
never used) telescope drop us a line ahead of time so we can arrange to meet
you earlier for setup. It's not easy to do a new scope setup after dark
with a crowd nearby.....
Each month during 2009 we'll be celebrating International Year of
Astronomy in my 2-minute What's Up podcasts. January 2009 is all about
Venus, the featured NASA IYA Celestial object.
Here is where you can find the podcast on the JPL site:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/index.cfm
It is also available on You Tube in 2 formats - which are easy to download
if you have a slower connection (according to my parents)
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=JPLnews&p=r&page=1
Here is the NASA IYA website:
http://astronomy2009.nasa.gov/observe.htm (What's Up isn't there
quite yet)
Don't forget to have a look at Saturn on New Years Eve! That was the
December 2008 What's Up topic, available on both JPL and You Tube, or
simplify and get it directly to your iPod via iTunes. :-)
Thanks for a great year of public astronomy - we do this to share the
wonders of the night sky with you!
Jane, Mojo, Dave, Todd K, Caroline, Gary, Elizabeth, Catherine, Tom, Daphne,
Katherine, Becky, Todd B, Scott, Ed and Roseann - your Old Town Sidewalk
Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org/astronomers/
Jane Houston Jones
Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program
JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205
Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435
jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov
Cassini SOC http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm
What's Up? http://education.jpl.nasa.gov/amateurastronomy/index.html
Clouds are rolling into Monrovia tonight, but we plan to make an effort
to do a little bit of moon viewing. The moon is our only viable target
tonight -- Jupiter and Venus are likely to be below the local buildings.
Even if we get some views of the moon, they'll probably be through a
layer of thin clouds. We'll try to start early, about 5:00, to have our
best chance of getting in a few looks before the clouds get too thick.
Best regards,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mojo_la
Hi everyone, I hope you all enjoyed the beautiful moon and planet
conjunction over the past few nights! We were lucky to have clear skies on
Sunday and Monday nights!
My December's What's Up Podcast is available in several standard and high
definition formats on the JPL HD Video page now.
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/index.cfm Also on You Tube:
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=JPLnews&p=r&page=1
Next Sidewalk Astronomy event reminder:
Friday night Dec 5th instead of telescopes on Colorado Blvd in Pasadena,
I'll be at Farnsworth Park in Altadena from 6-8 p.m. The address is 568 East
Mount Curve Avenue, Altadena, CA 91001 626-798-6335. I'm doing a short JPL
talk, followed by stargazing at the park's outdoor theatre. John Sepikas
from PCC will be joining me with telescopes.
Saturday night Dec 6th our whole Sidewalk Astronomers gang will be in
Monrovia, Myrtle and Lime Streets for our monthly first quarter moon star
party. 5:30 -8:30 p.m. (maybe a little later)
Hope to see you at one or the other of these events, Jane
Jane Houston Jones
Senior Outreach Specialist, Cassini Program
JPL - 4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 230-205
Pasadena, CA 91109 818-393-6435
jane.h.jones(a)jpl.nasa.gov
Cassini SOC http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm
What's Up? http://education.jpl.nasa.gov/amateurastronomy/index.html
The sidewalk dates are December 5th and 6th, just to clarify...
Step outside at dusk on November 29th and try to see the slender
crescent moon below and to the right of the pair of planets. If you
don't see the moon on the 29th, try again on the 30th when the moon will
be larger and easier to see just a little below the two planets. Jupiter
is larger, but Venus is brighter because it is closer to the Sun.
On December 1st, you'll see that the moon is now above Jupiter and Venus.
Throughout December Venus rises higher in the sky while Jupiter sinks
toward the horizon. We won't see the king of the planets again in the
early evening sky until next summer. Star charts courtesy of NASA/JPL.
Next weekend is our sidewalk astronomy weekend. We'll be changing the
venue Friday night Dec 5th- moving from Old Town Pasadena, our usual
location,
to Farnsworth Park in Altadena. We'll be sharing the telescope stage
with John Sepikas from PCC's Astronomy Department on Friday night from
6-8 p.m. Farnsworth Park is located at 568 E. Mount Curve Ave.,
Altadena, 91001, (626) 798-6335. Weather permitting, of course.
Saturday night December 6th we'll be out in full force in Monrovia 6-9
p.m. Myrtle
and Lime Streets. Hope to see you! This will be a great night to see
many types of telescopes, ask questions, find out how much the
different telescopes cost, and drop telescope and accessory hints to
Santa. :-)
Enjoy this weekend's planetary lineup and see you next weekend! Jane
and Mojo
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
34.2048N 118.1732W, 637.0 feet
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
What's Up Podcast: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/whatsup_index.html
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jhjones
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/janehoustonjones
The last weekend of both November and December will be fantastic times
to see the solar system from your own backyard.
Step outside at dusk on November 29th and try to see the slender
crescent moon below and to the right of the pair of planets. If you
don't see the moon on the 29th, try again on the 30th when the moon will
be larger and easier to see just a little below the two planets. Jupiter
is larger, but Venus is brighter because it is closer to the Sun.
On December 1st, you'll see that the moon is now above Jupiter and Venus.
Throughout December Venus rises higher in the sky while Jupiter sinks
toward the horizon. We won't see the king of the planets again in the
early evening sky until next summer. Star charts courtesy of NASA/JPL.
Next weekend is our sidewalk astronomy weekend. We'll be changing the
venue Friday night - moving from Old Town Pasadena, our usual location,
to Farnsworth Park in Altadena. We'll be sharing the telescope stage
with John Sepikas from PCC's Astronomy Department on Friday night from
6-8 p.m. Farnsworth Park is located at 568 E. Mount Curve Ave.,
Altadena, 91001, (626) 798-6335. Weather permitting, of course.
Saturday night we'll be out in full force in Monrovia 6-9 p.m. Myrtle
and Lime Streets. Hope to see you! This will be a great night to see
many types of telescopes, ask questions, find out how much the
different telescopes cost, and drop telescope and accessory hints to
Santa. :-)
Enjoy this weekend's planetary lineup and see you next weekend! Jane
and Mojo
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
34.2048N 118.1732W, 637.0 feet
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
What's Up Podcast: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/whatsup_index.html
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jhjones
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/janehoustonjones
Unfortunately work and family affairs are conspiring to keep Jane and me
off of Colorado Blvd. tonight, but tomorrow we'll be in Library Park in
Monrovia to show the first-quarter moon and Jupiter.
Jupiter and Venus have been inching closer to each other in the sky.
You can have fun telling your friends that the bright one low in the
southwest after sunset is Venus, and the one above it to the left is
Jupiter. :)
Cheers,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mojo_la
