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BVAC Newsletter
observing the stars

What's Inside






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page 2   Observing Ursa Major
Star hop with Tom Campbell through Ursa Major and stop at its famous asterism. Keep going and make stops at several Messier objects and galaxies.

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page 4   Member Spotlight
Mark Spearman is in the spotlight this spring. Read about his accomplishments in the astronomy field.

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page 6   Telescope Review
Warren Bracewell considered several options before purchasing his new Celestron Edge HD 1100 telescope. He reviews this stunning equatorial scope and mount.

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page 8   M42 Visits Geostationary Satellites
Don Carona captured three GOES satellites with M42 as a backdrop. Check out his astonishing animation.

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page 10   Satellite Tracking App
Don Carona shared changes he made to his satellite tracking app. A NORAD Two Line Orbital Element Set will provide information to calculate the orbit of any artificial satellite.

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page 12   Pecan Trail Outreach
Telescopes, a Big Dipper display, NASA material, and a slideshow were made available at the Pecan Trail Intermediate School Science Night.

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page 14   Did You Know
We may not realize that we are zooming through space at astronomical speeds. Ginger Wentrcek explores the many ways we are moving through the universe in real time.

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page 16   Contact
Find the Brazos Valley Astronomy Club on the web, join the Yahoo discussion group, find the BVAC on Facebook, or contact an officer. We want to hear your thoughts.

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page 3  Astrophotography Lesson
Dr. Randy Light photographed the 2019 lunar eclipse with his Astro-Tech AT10RCT telescope, 70-200mm telephoto lens, and a 20mm wide field lens.

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page 5   Cell Phone Attachment Review
Tom Campbell reviews his new Celestron NexYZ Universal Smart phone Adapter. It is a great tool for astrophotography.

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page 7   Lunar Feature Heights
Measure the height of a lunar mountain or lunar object. Determine the height of lunar features with Don Carona's step-by-step instructions and image samples in his app.

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page 9   Photographing Geostationary Satellites
Ginger Wentrcek photographed several geostationary satellites against a background of star trails.

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page 11   Retrieving APT Signal
Don Carona captured visual and audio signals from NOAA-19 with a homemade quadrifilar helix antenna. See his Automatic Picture Transmission and hear a resampled satellite signal.

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page 13   Lick Creek Park Outreach
A star party was canceled because of light rain but BVAC volunteers provided quality astronomy related activities for attendees.

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page 15   Monthly Meetings
Astronomy lovers are invited to join the BVAC and hear interesting speakers each month. Come and enjoy observing after the meeting. A map to the observatory is provided.

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About the Cover Story

Randall Light, M.D., set up and operated camera equipment and a telescope at three locations to capture the lunar eclipse. Dr. Light offers specific directions for planning, photographing, and processing lunar eclipse images.

About the Cover Image

In addition to monitoring and adjusting his equipment through the evening and night, Dr. Light instructed and mentored Ginger Wentrcek during the eclipse and her images are on the cover.