The PAS November Meeting will be held at the UNO Lakefront Campus Science Building, Room 1001. The meeting begins at 7:30 PM on the night of the 6th. Our main presentation will be:
By: Dr. C. Gregory Seab
UNO Astrophysicist and Physics Department Chair
Abstract: What is time? Sir Isaac Newton made the assumption that time was an independent, immutable quantity that always flowed evenly without regard to anything else. It turns out that he was quite wrong.
J.A. Wheeler defines time as "what prevents everything from happening at once," a much more realistic statement of what we don't understand about the subject. I will talk about the basics of time and its measurement, such as why we have 24 hours in a day (it is entirely arbitrary) and why we have leap years (and leap seconds). I'll discuss the calendar, and the differences between civil time, local time, mean local time, "universal" time, time zones, relativistic time, and what happens if you jump into a black hole. I'll end with the question (but not the answer!) of why time flows forward and not backward.
At the November meeting we will have the election for 2010 PAS officers. The announced candidates are as follows:
President Michael Sandras
1st Vice President?Program Chairman Kirk Aymond
2nd Vice President/Newsletter Editor Kent Birkle
Treasurer John Scholl
Secretar Brian LeCompte
It is not too late to throw your hat in the ring. If you would like to run for any of these positions, you have until the November meeting to make you candidacy known.
From almost everything I've heard, the 2009 Deep South Regional Stargaze was a success. The only problem this year was bad weather on a couple of evenings and the incident that happened to PAS member, Ron Marcella. For those of you who do not know, Ron suffered a mild stroke at the event, but through the quick actions of many attendees, he was rushed to a local hospital and later tranferred to Ochsner. Thankfully it was only mild and Ron is doing very well. He would like to thank everyone for their actions and concerns over the last couple of weeks. We all wish Ron continued good health.
Because of everyone's generaou donations during our raffles, we were recently able to purchase a laptop computer and a pair of speakers for our video projector. We are hoping to have a complete AV package for use by PAS members during meetings and outreach programs as well. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available. On a similar note, keep in mind our great Christmas raffle this year. I know I listed the specs last month, but here they are again:
CPC 1100 GPS (XLT) - General Features
- 11" diffraction limited Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope
- Celestron's premium StarBright XLT coatings
- Fully computerized dual fork arm Altazimuth mount
- 8x50 finderscope to help accurately find objects
- Newly designed heavy-duty tripod makes attaching the telescope so easy you can do it in the dark; also features sturdy 2" steel legs and accessory tray
- Ergonomic design - Comfortably lift and move the telescope from location to location
- Star diagonal provides more comfortable viewing position when observing objects that are high in the sky
- Convenient remote hand control holder - Allows you to view information hands-free while using the scope
CPC 1100 GPS (XLT) - Computerized Mount Features
- Proven NexStar computer control technology
- 40,000 object database with over 100 user-definable objects and expanded information on over 200 objects
- Custom database lists of all the most famous deep-sky objects by name and catalog number; the most beautiful double, triple and quadruple stars; variable star; solar systems; objects and asterisms
- Re-designed drive base and drive mechanics - Quiet operation; large drive gears, quick release clutch
- SkyAlign allows you to align on any three bright celestial objects, making for a fast and easy alignment process
- Flash upgradeable hand control software and motor control units for downloading product updates over the Internet
- Permanent PEC
- Auxiliary port for additional accessories such as Autoguider, GPS accessory
- NexRemote telescope control software and rs-232 cable included for advanced control of your telescope via computer
As you can tell, this is going to be a great telescope for someone! Here are the rules for the raffle:
Tickets are $5 each or 6 for $25.
Anyone can purchase tickets
Winner need not be present to win telescope
No limit to how many tickets you may purchase
Over the last few years, we have had a lot of people who have helped with the Christmas party. If you could help with this year's party, which will be held in Kenner, please let me know. We are looking for people to prepare dishes and possibly transport a few items. My contact information is listed below.
Clear Dark Skies to All,
Michael Sandras
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
504-340-0256
in PAS Message Board by Remy Bosio, 11/20/09 9:45 pm
