Stargazing

Important news! The October meeting of the Sunshine Coast Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society will be held in Gibsons instead of Sechelt. On October 10, UBC’s Dr. Ingrid Stairs presents “A Pulsar Accompanied by Two White Dwarfs” at the Gibsons Public Art Gallery on Marine Drive. at 7:30 pm. Dr. Stair’s will speak about her work observing radio pulsars and their companions. Everyone is welcome and donations at the door are gratefully appreciated.

On October 11 celebrate Fall Astronomy Day in at Sunnycrest Mall in Gibsons. Check out our booth and telescopes from 10 am to 4 pm

Clear skies permitting, insomniacs and Lunar eclipse enthusiasts will have a chance to see a total eclipse of the moon in the wee hours of October 8. The eclipse begins at 2:14 am (the morning of October 8 with totality occurring at 3:25 am. Early risers might be able to observe the last part of the eclipse before it ends at 6:30 am.

This will be the second lunar eclipse of the year and the second in a tetrad of total lunar eclipses.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun, Moon and Earth line up with the Earth between the Sun and Moon. The Earths shadow causes the moon to appear reddish as refracted sunlight is filtered through the earth’s atmosphere.

A solar eclipse occurs when the Sun, Moon and Earth line up with the moon passing between Earth and the Sun. Your chance to see a partial solar eclipse occurs Thursday afternoon, October 23. The public is invited to join the Astronomy Club at the Davis Bay Seawall from 12:30 to 4:30 pm with solar telescopes equipped with special filters. Remember to always view the sun with special solar filters.

The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is the nearest spiral galaxy to the Milky Way and can be seen this fall with the naked eye as a small smudge in the constellation Andromeda near the Great Square of Pegasus. Check out directions on line and see if you can find it in a dark sky location. The Persian astronomer al-Sufi first observed it without optical aid in 964 AD!

Friday October 17 join us for Astro Cafe at Pier 17 for coffee, tea and.all things astronomy around 8:30 pm!

Bette Chadwick for the Royal Astronomical Society – Sunshine Coast Centre www.coastastronomy.ca