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Sunday 16 November 2008

First Sunspot from SOHO

Having recently installed the SOHO feature in the Astro-Park, I was having a browse at the image yesterday when I saw the first sunspot, only a smallish one in the upper right of the image here, but there it is and given the obvious hazards associated with observing the sun, having a picture sent down from SOHO to the net each day is certainly more than good enough for me; a truly amazing project. If you would like to know more about SOHO, you can find out by looking the web site http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/. Basically SOHO Solar & Heliospheric Observatory is a joint NASA / ESA space probe that was launched in 1995 to conduct studies of the Sun. The spacecraft actually resides in an orbit some 1.5 million miles from Earth. Why place the SOHO at such a distance? Well in this position it will have an uninterrupted view of the sun while retaining constant a communication with earth, in other words we are all three of us, Sun, SOHO and Earth aligned, clever stuff.

I must admit to having some difficulty with this web page on a prim in SL of recent, as it seems links seem to drop at almost random times loosing the page, if you are suffering similar, or know of a solution please feel free to comment, it would be appreciated.


Anyway here's wishing you good SL observing while socialising everyone back soon Skipper

Sunday 9 November 2008

LunarPod at Shimmer Island

I have decided to make more of a feature for our closest solar neighbour the Moon. If you have been regular visitor to the Astro-Park, then you will have now doubt seen the regular Lunar phase chart and my large rotating Moon with labels. The new feature, which I have termed the LunarPod, is a three sided panel and on one side you will find the Lunar Phases, but the other two sides feature Lunar Photo Of the Day, basically a web page on a prim and on the third face an innovative facility from Peter Grego in Cornwall UK, where at times of particular interest such as transits and eclipses and the like he streams live images. The next event is due to come on December 01 2008, with the transit of Venus, I am looking forward this and will try and organise some kind of Moon party maybe for SL residents.