Hawai’i Island Events Focus on Galaxy Center and Astro Education
‘The Monster at the Heart of our Galaxy’ astronomy talk by UCLA Galactic Center Group Director Andrea Ghez is set for July 27 at Honoka’a People’s Theatre with support from the Rob and Terry Ryan Foundation and W. M. Keck Observatory. Ghez will discuss latest research and unexpected results from these ‘gigantic cosmic monsters’ including the presence of young stars, a lack of old stars, and G-objects. Recent advanced galaxy center observation is highlighted by South African Radio Astronomy Observatory 64-dish MeerKAT radio telescope imaging 1,000 x 500 light year area of the Milky Way center, and the Event Horizon Telescope project nearing completion of the 1st image of Sagittarius A* by combining data from 30+ ground stations. Also on Hawaii, UH Hilo 4th annual Software System for Astronomy course is being taught by Prof. Albert Conrad (BR) July 23 – Aug 3 focusing on telescope and instrument control systems, observation planning tools and data analysis software. The Robotic Telescopes, Student Research and Education conference (RTSRE) on July 23-25 is being held in conjunction with interNational Astronomy Teach Summit (iNATS) July 25-27 at Hilo Hawaiian Hotel (BL). The conferences will allow for international astronomers, educators, observatory / telescope developers and managers to integrate resources, and enhance education programs and collaborations. The iNATS will provide networking opportunities for educators and professionals to enchance teaching strategies. (Image Credits: Rob & Terry Ryan Foundation, WMKO, UCLA, Univ. of Illinois / NCSA, SARAO, SKA, NASA, UH Hilo, RTSRE & iNATS, et al) |
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MONDAY
Highlights…
 Jul 23 — ISS, 405-km LEO: Expedition 56 six-member crew loading return cargo in Dragon CRS-15; recently released Cygnus OA-9 with 3,000 kg of waste remains in LEO to deploy 6 CubeSats before deorbiting; typical day at ISS consists of 6.5 hours of scheduled tasks / science, 2.5 hours of exercise, 8.5 hours for sleep, time allotted for daily planning conferences, meals & personal hygiene.
 Jul 23 — NewSpace: Cape Canaveral AFS makes way for Moon Express upgrades and repurposing at Launch Complex 17; SpaceX Crew Dragon vehicle may be on track for late Aug Demonstration Mission-1, awaiting arrival of Falcon 9 Block 5 booster; Relativity Space working to develop fully 3D printed Terran rocket, hopes to launch 2020.
Jul 23 — Solar System: Jupiter discovered moon count now at 79 – scientists expect to find more; Juno finds another possible volcano on Io; LRO, Artemis, Chang’e-3 & 5-T1 craft to take advantage of upcoming total lunar eclipse science opportunities; Mars Storm Watch continues as 6 international orbiters send data to Earth.
Jul 23 — Galaxy: MeerKAT high resolution imagery of Milky Way center being studied for particle filaments, galaxy magnetic fields, galaxy evolution; Aix-Marseille University researchers propose measuring MWG speed by observing changes in galaxies positions over time relative to Earth; infrared image North Galactic Pole section highlights vast number of galaxies in observable universe.
Jul 23 — Global: India contracts 27 satellites to be developed locally, qualified high-thrust Vikas engine will boost PSLV & GSLV; vertical spaceport planned at Sutherland UK, horizontal launch sites may be developed at Cornwall, Glasgow & North Wales; UAE 9 candidate astronauts undergoing assessment tests at Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, Russia.
 Jul 23 — USA: NASA and Israel Space Agency partnership agreement outlines cooperation for space science, human deep-space technologies; Vandenberg AFB celebrates Combined Space Operations Center, signifying greater international cooperation; V. P. Mike Pence may soon announce Commercial Crew Program astronaut selection, projected launch date.
Jul 23 — Hawai’i: ATLAS 2-telescope system scans whole sky several times each night, discovering ~100 asteroids >30 meters annually; Hilo residents establish scholarship fund for astronomy students, honoring Native Hawaiian Astronomer Paul Coleman; Gemini Observatory discovery of exoplanet’s near identical sibling becomes target for future origin studies.
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= All times
for terrestrial events in local time unless noted.
= All times for international terrestrial events in local time unless noted.
= All times for space events, and…
= All times for international space / astro events in Hawaii Standard Time unless noted. Add 10 hours to obtain UT (‘Universal Time’).
Weekly Planet Watch – Evening Planets: Mercury (WNW), Venus (W), Mars (S), Jupiter (SW), Saturn (SE); Morning Planets: Uranus (E), Neptune (SE).
ISU Space Studies Program Emphasizes Fundamentals of Space Science, Technology, Cooperation
The Netherlands Space Office and ESA are hosting International Space University (ISU) 31st Annual Space Studies Program June 25-August 24 at Delft University of Technology in Noordwijk, Netherlands. The program has 136 students from 34 countries. The 9-week event will include over 200 lecturers and guest experts, 57 fundamental workshops with hands on activities and experiments, a model rocket launch, a robotics competition, and cultural appreciation events. In addition, an astronaut panel featured (L-R) Nicole Stott, Paolo Nespoli, André Kuipers, and So-Yeon Yi. Over 100 classroom lecture sessions will include subtopics from various space departments in applications, engineering, law and policy, economics, human performance, management, and business. Team projects will focus on climate change, space debris removal, lunar nights survival, and smallsat system weather forecasting with final presentations to be given August 23. ISU faculty member John Logsdon is set to give a public talk focusing on the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 mission and the importance of current plans to resume space exploration. Astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman will discuss the Hubble Telescope and how he repaired the instrument in space. Former NASA Ames Research Center Director Simon “Pete” Worden is scheduled to speak about Breakthrough Starshot. The ISU SSP 2019 program will take place in Strasbourg, France with plans of a 2020 program in Shenzhen, China. (Image Credits: NASA, Nicole Stott, ESA, KARI, Planetary Society, National Geographic, ISU, Breakthrough Starshot Initiative) |
Jul 23 — Chandra X-ray Observatory, HEO: NASA spacecraft in extended mission phase enters 20th year of operations in Space; instruments able to detect X-ray sources 100 times fainter than any previous X-ray telescope; launched 1999.
Jul 23-25 — Las Cumbres Observatory, Skynet Robotic Telescope Network, PlaneWave Instruments, et al, Hilo HI: Robotic Telescopes, Student Research and Education Conference (RTSRE); at Hilo Hawaiian Hotel.
Jul 23-26 — American Astronautical Society, NASA, Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), San Francisco CA: 2018 International Space Station Research & Development Conference: Pioneering New Frontiers; with keynote speakers Astronaut Randy Bresnik, Astronaut Mark Vande Hei, Adam Savage.
Jul 23-26 — Applied Technology Institute, Columbia MD: Rockets & Launch Vehicles: Selection & Design; instructors Edward Keith and Daniel Moser.
Jul 23-27 — NASA Exoplanet Science Institute at California Institute of Technology, Pasadena CA: 2018 Sagan Exoplanet Summer Workshop: Did I Really Just Find an Exoplanet?
Jul 23-27 — University of Texas at Austin, Austin TX: 21st European White Dwarf Workshop.
Jul 23 – Aug 3 — University of Hawai’i at Hilo, Hilo HI: 4th annual Software Systems for Astronomy; two-week intensive class offered by Professor Albert Conrad.
Jul 23 — Lahaina Noon: As the Sun passes through the Zenith, directly overhead tropic locations, vertical objects cast no shadows; Lahaina means ‘cruel sun’; Volcanoes National park 12:27, Kamuela at 12:29, Waikoloa Resort 12:30; on July 24 Hilo 12:27, Mauna Kea Summit 12:28, Kailua-Kona 12:30.
Jul 23 — Apollo Asteroid 2018 ME5: Near-Earth Flyby (0.097 AU)
Continued from…
Jul 8 – Oct 9 — NAOC, National Aquatic Center “Water Cube”, Beijing, China: Lunar Exploration Technology Exhibition featuring 10-meter diameter Moon, lunar imagery, ‘moonlight’ and surround sound composition. |
Jul 15 – Aug 23 — Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, NASA, Dubai, UAE: NASA Space and Rocketry Summer Camp; at Lapita Hotel Ballroom, Dubai Parks and Resorts.
Jun 25 – Aug 17 — Frontier Development Lab (FDL), NASA, Online: FDL 2018 Challenges; an AI R&D accelerator that tackles knowledge gaps useful to NASA space program; 2018 topics are space resources, orbital debris, NEOs, Earth observation, space weather, astrobiology.
Jun 25 – Aug 24 — International Space University, ESA, Netherlands Space Office, Delft University of Technology, Leiden University, Noordwijk, The Netherlands: ISU 31st Space Studies Program (SSP 2018).
Jul 22-26 — Gemini Observatory, NSF, National Research Council Canada, San Francisco CA: Conference: Science & Evolution of Gemini Observatory.
Jul 22-27 — Meteoritical Society, V.I. Vernadsky Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, V. I. Vernadsky Geological State Museum, Ural Federal University, Kazan Federal University, Moscow, Russia: 81st Annual Meeting of The Meteoritical Society.
TUESDAY
Jul 24 — Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, Brewster MA: Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun; join Solar System Ambassador Marie Zahn for a behind the scenes look at NASA Parker Solar Probe, and learn about the science and history of solar astronomy.
Jul 24-31 — University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, Cooperative Programs for the Advancement of Earth System Science, Boulder CO: Heliophysics Summer School 2018: Comparative Heliophysics.
Jul 24 — Moon: 2.0° N of Saturn, 20:00.
Jul 24 — Mercury: Mercury 7.6° W of Regulus, 08:00.
WEDNESDAY
Jul 25 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Iridium Next 56-65, Vandenberg AFB CA: SpaceX Falcon 9 to launch 10 satellites for Iridium next mobile communications constellation and attempt booster landing aboard ‘Just Read The Instructions’ drone ship in Pacific Ocean; 04:39:26 PDT.
Jul 25 — Arianespace, Launch Ariane 5 / Galileo 23-26, Kourou, French Guiana: Arianespace Ariane 5 ES rocket, designated VA244, to launch four Galileo full operational capability satellites for Europe Galileo navigation constellation; 08:25:01 local time.
Jul 25 — National Space Weather Partnership, Washington DC: 2018 Space Weather Enterprise Forum: Implementing the Space Weather Research and Forecast Act.
Jul 25-27 — Las Cumbres Observatory, Skynet Robotic Telescope Network, PlaneWave Instruments, et al, Hilo HI: interNational Astronomy Teach Summit (iNATS); at Hilo Hawaiian Hotel.
Jul 25 — Apollo Asteroid 2014 WO371: Near-Earth Flyby (0.060 AU)
Jul 25 — Aten Asteroid 2018 GR4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.098 AU)
THURSDAY
Jul 26 — Moon: 1.3° N of Pluto, 04:00; at apogee (distance 405,768 km), 19:00.
Jul 26 — Mars: At opposition, 19:00.
FRIDAY
Jul 27 — W. M. Keck Observatory, Rob and Terry Ryan Foundation, Honoka’a HI: Astronomy Talk: The Monster at the Heart of our Galaxy; by Andrea Ghez from UCLA Galactic Center Group, at Honoka’a People’s Theatre, 19:00, free.
Jul 27 — Earth and Mars: Planets at opposition will be ~57.6 million km; Mars will appear extra bright in sky – the brightest since 2003.
Jul 27 — Moon: 6.6° N of Mars, 10:00; Full Buck Moon, 10:21.
Jul 27 — Total Lunar Eclipse: Longest total lunar eclipse of 21st Century at 102 minutes and 57 seconds; Blood Moon and eclipse visible from Antarctica, Australasia, Russia (except northernmost parts), Asia, Africa, Scandanavia, Europe and Central / East South America; total eclipse 19:30:15 – 21:13:11 Universal Time; 09:30:15-11:13:11 Hawai’i Time.
Jul 27 — Aten Asteroid 2018 NR1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.044 AU)
SATURDAY
Jul 28 — British Interplanetary Society, Waltham Abbey, United Kingdom: 73rd Annual General Meeting of the British Interplanetary Society.
Jul 28 — JPL / Caltech, NASA, Pasadena CA: Rockets and Engineering Workshop; educators learn about ‘Next Generation Science Standards’ concepts and practices in engineering, designing rocket prototypes.
SUNDAY
Jul 29 — NASA Centers, USA Nationwide: Celebrations and education events occur for 60th observation of the creation and consolation of NASA.
Jul 29 — Exoplanet Exploration Program Analysis Group, NASA, Cambridge & Boston MA: ExoPAG 18th Meeting; in conjunction with Cool Stars meeting.
Jul 29 – Aug 3 — Boston University, MIT, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge / Boston MA: Cambridge Workshop on Cool Stars, Stellar Systems and the Sun (COOL STARS 20).
Jul 29 – Aug 4 — Vietnam School of Astrophysics, Rencontres du Vietnam, Quy Nhon, Vietnam: 6th Vietnam School of Astrophysics (VSOA6): Cosmology.
Jul 29 — Apollo Asteroid 439313 (2012 VE82): Near-Earth Flyby (0.068 AU)