Join us for this month’s RAC Imaging Meeting at its usual venue in the hallway of the Raleigh Brickhouse AT 7pm. We will not be presenting a topic this time, but would like to welcome all the new visitors who came to our Astronomy Days Exhibit.
Members, it’s time to renew your membership! We’ve made it as easy as 1-2-3. Individual memberships are still $25 and family memberships are $35. Please LOG IN to the website Renew Your Membership through Paypal (contact the treasurer to make other arrangements) Ensure your contact information is up to date.
The presentation for ‘Getting Started in Astronomy with Kids’ can be located at the following link; click >> HERE
Astronomy Days RAC partners with the Museum of Natural Sciences and NASA to help you see the big picture — of the Universe! From comet crafts to solar observing, lectures to rocket launches, space enthusiasts of all ages will find something to do at Astronomy Days. You don’t want to miss this year’s theme: Space Telescopes and Missions! Where: NC Museum of Natural Sciences: 11 West Jones Street, Raleigh, NC 27601 When: Saturday January 27 9am-5pm Sunday January 28 12pm-5pm…
Understanding & Measuring Light Pollution Astronomy Days 2018 Citizen Science Links Globe At Night project: https://www.globeatnight.org/ Loss of the Night project: http://lossofthenight.blogspot.com/ Android app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cosalux.welovestars&hl=en iPhone app: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/loss-of-the-night/id928440562?mt=8 Studies/ Governance International Dark Sky Association: http://www.darksky.org/ Raleigh Comprehensive Plan https://www.raleighnc.gov/content/PlanDev/Documents/LongRange/ComprehensivePlan/CompPlanUpdate/Draft/CPUSection05EnvironmentalProtection.pdf Paper on Increasing LED Lighting http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/11/e1701528 Measurements Skyglow file definition http://www.darksky.org/light-pollution/measuring-light-pollution/ Sky Quality Meter http://unihedron.com Light Pollution measurement maps http://www.myskyatnight.com/#map http://www.knightware.biz/community/public/sqmmap/sqm_map.php http://cires.colorado.edu/Artificial-light
We will be discussing the pros and cons of different types of imaging optics that can be found throughout the hobby of Astrophotography. Any member can bring in their favorite imaging OTA and share their experiences and images taken with it.
We will be meeting in the usual place in the outside hallway of the Brickhouse Restaurant, Thursday December 21. For this months topic, we will have a brief discussion on plate solving. Plate solving is a technique in which a computer program can identify exactly where your telescope is pointing in the night sky. This allows you to quickly frame photo in whatever orientation you want instead of manually.
Location: NCSU Crafts Center (directions) Date: December 8, 2017 Time: 7:30-9:30pm Abstract: RAC Co-Chair John Sadler will lead a discussion around field power. Portable batteries are needed to run dew controllers at a minimum, and for many, they also power telescope mounts, imaging gear, computers, and more. While some commercial solutions exist, home made solutions are quite typical. Learn what to consider when building the box including the battery, connectors such as the Anderson Powerpole products, amp meters, voltage regulators,…
Our topic for a rundown of available processing programs for astro-imagers will be tentatively postponed for the December Meeting. Instead there will be an open discussion for new materials/questions members may want to present.
Location: NCSU Crafts Center (directions) Date: November 10, 2017 Time: 7:30-9:30pm Abstract: RAC member Matt Lochansky will show how spectroscopy sheds light on the composition and environment of our universe. While human exploration has barely left our solar system, much of our understanding of elements, temperatures, and velocities in deep space have been made through spectroscopic techniques. Amateurs are placing an increasing role in monitoring transient astronomical events and longer term patterns of stellar interactions. RAC Business: After the presentation,…
Last week, a good number of our imagers turned their cameras to a very dark sky in southern Virginia and took some great images. There will be a lot of deep space photos to see at this meeting and guests are always welcome. We will be meeting in the hallway behind the Raleigh Brickhouse Sports Bar and Grille at 7pm.
Location: NCSU Crafts Center (directions) Date: October 27, 2017 Time: 7:30-9:30pm Abstract: October marks 60 years since the Sputnik was launched from the Soviet Union. Our speaker, Dr. Russell Philbrick, was a senior at Cary High School and convinced the owners of WPTF radio station to use their antenna to track the satellite. Dr. Philbrick with describe the events leading up to sputnik, the tone of the time, and how we all changed as a result of it’s orbit 60…
The Raleigh Astronomy Club, along with CHAOS, Morehead Planetarium, and Raleigh Parks and Rec will be out at Dorothea Dix park for skywatching! Come out for a great night enjoying the night sky. Tickets are FREE!! When: October 28, 2017, 7:30-10:30pm Where: Dorothea Dix Park Big Field, 101 Blair Drive, Raleigh, NC 27603 Over 1000 guests are expected. More Details and Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/explore-dorothea-dix-park-skywatching-tickets-37250223421 Details: This is an informal session, so you can arrive and leave any time during the two hours of the program. However,…
What is “dithering” anyway? Two nuances that determine good quality images are eliminating camera noise and taming bad sky conditions. “Dithering” is a clever way of toning down these problems before analyzing the images, saving the headaches of removing some noise and bad sky conditions while taking your pictures. To find out more, come out to our usual location at the Raleigh Brickhouse Restaurant this Thursday at 7pm. Imagers are also encouraged to bring their final eclipse photos and any…
Location: NCSU Crafts Center (directions) Date: September 8, 2017 Time: 7:30-9:30pm Abstract: Club members Michael Carnes and Michael Keefe will be providing an introductory talk on video astronomy. They will over areas such as what is Video Astronomy, benefits of Video Astronomy, what is needed to start and what you can expect from Video Astronomy. Additionally, our speakers will share some recent examples of their work as well as having examples of their equipment. Please join us this Friday evening…
