Gravitational lensing helps discover planets

This plot shows the projected motion of the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri (green line) over the next decade, as plotted from NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope observations.
Because of parallax caused by Earth’s motion around the Sun, the path appears scalloped. Because Proxima Centauri is the closest star to our Sun (at a distance of 4.2 light-years), its angular motion across the sky is relatively fast compared to far more distant background stars. This means that in 2014 and 2016 Proxima Centauri will pass in front of two background stars that are along its path. This affords astronomers a rare opportunity to study the warping of space by Proxima's gravity, as will be evident in the apparent displacement of the two stars in sky photographs. This effect is called gravitational lensing. The amount of warping will be used to calculate a precise mass for Proxima Centauri, and look for the gravitational footprint and any planets orbiting the star. The background image shows a wider view of the region of sky in the southern constellation of Centaurus (The Centaur) that Proxima is traversing.

Link:

• NASA Press release

Credit:
NASA, ESA, K. Sahu and J. Anderson (STScI), H. Bond (STScI and Pennsylvania State University), M. Dominik (University of St. Andrews), and Digitized Sky Survey (STScI/AURA/UKSTU/AAO)


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Summer Space Exhibition Opens in Kustavi, Finland

At Astronomy Club Toutatis here in Kustavi, Finland we have prepared a summer Space Exhibition right in our own backyard.

The Space Exhibition 2013 Kustavi Finland is from June 1st to October 1st 2013. The Exhibition is part of the club's Fundraising Campaign 2013 and the club's efforts to get the word out on astronomy.

The Space Exhibition 2013 Kustavi, Finland has 11 wall with Infograms, going from Galaxy Infogram to comet and asteroid Infogram. All the Infograms have photos, fun facts about the topic in question (Galaxy, Sun, Moon, etc...). and a Quiz people can take.

A World map of artificial light and a segment on light pollution can be found at the Exhibition. Also we can see a model of the Solar system, the Moon carpet to step on and a Black hole.

Outside you have our Telescope Pier Deck (see picture here) and a Face-in-hole board that people can have there picture taken. (The picture used in this post).
You have an astronaut for the "adults" and the dog Laika for the "children".

Telescope observation all summer of the Sun (with special Sun filters) and Night time observations weather permitting.

The Space Exhibition is open for everybody and is free of charge. Our Astronomy Club Toutatis Summer Space Exhibition 2013 Kustavi, Finland is paired with the  fundraising Campaign 2013. People can leave donations and support our club's activities. We have a framed-picture (21x30) as a gift for everyone who supports our club. Wish you can attend, if not follow the Exhibition on the internet right here on Links Through Space starting June 1st.

Have a great Summer and most of all clear skies!

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Next Astronomy club Toutatis member meeting @ Kustavi 03 MAY 2013

MAY 2013 Member meeting

MAY 2013 meeting for Members

Next Astronomy club Toutatis meeting time and place is Friday 03.05.2013 @ Kustavin Savipaja, Kustavi (See Map here). We will be building Observatory wood deck. Summer exhibition set up.

Interested members wanting to help in building and Summer exhibition, Please call Stefan.   

...Want to participate in events or become a member of the Astronomy Club Toutatis?
Please contact us via e-mail (intrusdental@gmail.com)





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Astronomy Trip to the Canary Islands IN PHOTOS!

Follow our Astronomy Club Toutatis through our visit to the Canarian astronomy in Tenerife, Canary Islands.
Have a look at the pictures I manage to shot into this fabulous Astronomy trip through the Canary Islands.

You can have a look at the photos HERE


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Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands (IAC)

Radio Telescope (not in use)
San Cristóbal de La Laguna
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis

Follow our Astronomy Club Toutatis through our visit to the Canarian astronomy in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

Today we introduce the reason for all the astronomical activities in the Canary Islands: The Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC) or Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands.

There are very few places in the world that can boast all of the conditions needed for modern astronomy. The mountain summits of Tenerife and La Palma in the Canary Islands enjoy these exceptional conditions and this has converted them into a “magnet” for some of today’s most advanced telescopes. Spain set up the IAC to make the most of the scientific and technological opportunities offered by this outstanding access to the sky over the islands, which constitutes in its self a valuable natural resource.

The Spanish authorities have also protected the astronomical qualities of the sky by imposing restrictions by means of the “sky law” that regulates, among other things, the use of outdoor lighting. As a result the IAC observatories are considered to be an astronomy reserve.

UNESCO, as part of its Starlight initiative is currently working to recognize and catalog exceptional sights, like the Teide and Roques de los Muchachos Observatories, as “world class astronomy reserve”. 

Daniel López, Astrophotographer extraordinaire. In search of Comet Pan-Starrs

Alfred Rosenberg, Daniel López, David and Stefan Lamoureux
@ Teide Observatory chasing Comet Pan-Starrs.
Credit: Daniel López IAC
(Click on picture to enlarge)

Follow our Astronomy Club Toutatis through our visit to the Canarian astronomy in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

As I visited the Teide Observatory with Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González we met with Astrophotographer extraordinaire Daniel López. I had seen his work on the Internet and somewhat visited his website, but as I met with him, he struck me to be a down to Earth guy with modest ways of photographing. One thing was for sure, he knew exactly where to go to catch the elusive Comet Pan-Starrs (C/2011 L4) and get at the same time a great shot of the Teide Observatory, Mount Teide and the island of La Palma. El cielo de Canarias.com is an impressive website with all of Daniel's work in it. His work has been all over the place and in all sort of astronomy magazines and astronomy papers. He works now full time as a photographer, but he is an engineer by trade. He work closely with the Institute of Astrophysics of Canary Islands to provide them with pictures of the night sky and/or astrophotos related to the Canary Islands. Please have a look at his website. And yes we finally catch the Comet Pan-Starrs and it was barely a naked eye object. See picture above and click on it to enlarge.

Comet Pan-Starrs in the Sunset sky
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis
(Click to enlarge picture)

READ NEXT POST HERE on our trip through Canarian Astronomy on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands. 
Have a look at this awesome Timelapse of the Comet Pan-Starrs made by Daniel López with in foreground the incredible Teide Observatory, Mount Teide and the island of La Palma.
Please visit Daniel Lopéz website El cielo de Canarias.com HERE
WIKI: Comet Pan-Starrs (C/2011 L4)

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Teide Observatory with Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González, Tenerife, Canary Islands

Teide Observatory, Tenerife, Canary Islands
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis
(Click  the picture to enlarge)

Follow our Astronomy Club Toutatis through our visit to the Canarian astronomy in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

Astrophysics in the Canary Islands began at this observatory, which is situated 2400 metres above sea level in Izaña, an area near the National Park of Teide, Tenerife.

Its geographical location together with the clarity and excellent quality of the sky, mean that the Teide Observatory is ideally suited for studying the Sun. For this reason it is home to some of Europe’s finest solar telescopes, foremost among them are Themis and the German Gregor and VTT telescopes, as well as instruments for studying Solar Seismology.

In addition to these instruments for solar observation, the OT has a number of other telescopes, such as the “Carlos Sanchez” telescope, a very productive instrument that introduced many Spanish astronomers to the specialty of infrared astronomy. The latest generation of robotic telescopes is represented by STELLA, which consists of twin telescopes with complementary instrumentation. The European Space Agency’s optical ground station (OGS), which was built for laser communication with orbiting satellites, is also used for identifying and tracking space debris. The IAC - 80 telescope is used for observing objects with long-term variability and as a test-bed for new astrophysical instruments as well as for teaching astronomy to graduate students. There are also other highly specialized telescopes, like the Quijote, which is used to study background radiation from the “Big Bang” at the origin of the Universe.

Teide Observatory with crescent Moon
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis
(Click the picture to enlarge)

I had the chance to visit this incredible complex of telescopes and instruments with the help of public spokes person (public relations) Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González. Dr. Rosenberg González dedicated his astronomy career to Globular Clusters and publish quite a few papers on the subject (see Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González personnel pages (IAC). After his studies, he started as a support astronomer at the Teide Observatory before his Post-Doc and continued his career with the Institute of Astrophysics of Canary Islands as a Post-Doc student at the IAC. Later on he went to be the public spokes person (public relations) for the Institute of Astrophysics as well as for the Teide Observatory. As he showed me around the complex at the Observatory, I noticed how smooth he was at his job. He knew everyone in the complex, it was second nature for him to explain "hard" facts about the Observatory and astronomy in general. I raise my hat to his enthusiasm and knowledge of astronomy and the Teide Observatory. I had a wonderful time and I couldn't have a better "guide" for the job. Big Thanks to Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González and good luck with your future projects.


READ NEXT POST HERE on our trip through Canarian Astronomy on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands.

Teide Observatory website (IAC)
WIKI: Teide Observatory
Photos of Teide Observatory
Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González personnel website (IAC)

Panorama of Teide Observatory and Mount Teide, Tenerife, Canary Islands
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis
(Click on picture to enlarge)

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What is the Starlight foundation? Interview with Director Luis Martínez Sáez

President of the Starlight Foundation
Mr. Luis Martínez Sáez
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis

Follow our Astronomy Club Toutatis through our visit to the Canarian astronomy in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

I visited Mr. Luis Martínez Sáez Director of the Starlight Foundation at his office at the Institute of Astrophysics of Canary Islands (Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias, IAC) in San Cristóbal de La Laguna. As he invited me in his office, we started the interview and I asked him what is this Starlight foundation all about?
Laughing, he asked me what is this Astronomy Club Toutatis all about? I replied with an honest and simple answer that it is our astronomy club in Finland and we are curious about all that is related to space and astronomy. He liked my answer and we continued the interview.

Follow us in our Astronomy Trip to the Canary Islands

Teide Observatory, Tenerife, Canary Islands
Credit: Astronomy CLub Toutatis
(Click to enlarge picture)

Here we go again!
A dream come true, Top of the notch Astronomy wise!

This time we visit the Canary islands and the island of TENERIFE!
Before we left from Finland we contacted the Institute of Astrophysics of Canary Islands (Instituto Astrofisica de Canarias) and asked for an interview with the President of Starlight Foundation Luis Martínez Sáez and a guided visit to the Teide Observatory which we visited in company of public spokes person Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González
First we visited the headquarters of the Institute of Astrophysics in San Cristobal de la Laguna in the northern part of the island and sat down with Mr. Luis Martínez Sáez. Then we drove by car an hour to the National Parc of Teide to the Teide Observatory where we visited the many telescopes and installations of the Observatory companied by Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González. As we visited the installations of the Observatory we were introduced to Daniel López, Astrophotographer extraordinaire who tagged along before asking us if we would like to join him in a session of photography of the Comet Pan-Starrs near the grounds of the Observatory. It was simply magical!
The Sun set and the view was just amazing, we installed our cameras and look out for the Comet.

Teide Observatory and Mount Teide, Tenerife, Canary Islands
Credit: Astronomy Club Toutatis
(Click on picture to enlarge)

I have to say, this was a dream come true to visit the Observatory and the many telescopes on sight. The astrophotography session with Daniel López was simply incredible. Mr. Luis Martinez Saez back in San Cristobal de la Laguna gave us a royal welcome. Last but not least this could not have been possible without the best public spokes person Mr. Alfred Rosenberg González who attended to our every needs and gave us the GRAN tour.
Thank you very much Alfred, Luis, Daniel and David for your warm welcome and your great company.

Follow our astronomy trip through out Tenerife in our series of posts dedicated to this adventure. Follow us every day for a different article on Astronomy in the Canary Islands.

• An interview with Mr. Luis Martínez Sáez, President of the Starlight Foundation.
• An introduction to Institute of Astrophysics of Canary Islands IAC (Instituto Astrofisica de Canarias).
• Visit of Teide Observatory with Dr. Alfred Rosenberg González
• Astrophotography session with Daniel López. In search of Comet Pan-Starrs.
• Astronomy trip in Photos and much more...

READ NEXT POST HERE on our trip through Canarian Astronomy on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands.

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Where & When to look for Comet Panstarrs this March 2013

Look at the West 30 minutes after Sunset in March 2013. For the whole month of March, Comet Panstarrs (C/2011 L4) will be visible for Northern hemisphere observers. On March 12 2013, the crescent Moon and the Comet are close to each other. It could be a great photo opportunity. Gather friends and family and get out to see this great event in the "twilight" sky.

Read a great article on Comet Panstarrs from David Dickinson on Universe Today
Wikipedia: C/2011 L4  a.k.a. Comet PANSTARRS
Photo credit: TheWeatherSpace.com Network

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