Calling all ATS Star Gazers

reply to post by Hal9000


Hal, thanks for mentioning the software. ive been looking for something like this for a while.

for many years ive been a back yard star gazer using the naked eye.

it started with me tracking nasa shuttle / iss via their website data and looking for it outside many, many years ago.

do satellites have lights on them? on almost any night i can see lights moving quite quickly across the sky and ive always assumed by the trajectory, speed + altitude that they are satellites. ive seen them heading in various directions but always a straight path.

(satellites) is the only logical answer i can come up with.

i like looking at a group of stars that are nicknamed "the big saucepan" (prob not its real name)
ive also heard it referred to as "three sisters", so it'd be fantastic to use that software and learn what im looking at.

reply to post by musselwhite


Hi there musselwhite,

It might be worth a u2u to 'internos' that guy seems to be a magician with camera/computer tech. I'm sure he won't mind ... very approachable and very helpful. Just ask him to read your post with the details so he knows what the problem is ... if it can be solved then he's your man.

My favourite star/constelation ... Orion (especially the nebula below the belt stars) and Sirius.

Woody

Originally posted by Obliv_au
Hal, thanks for mentioning the software. ive been looking for something like this for a while.

I like Starry Night, which comes in various levels. The version I have came free with a telescope. There could be other freeware software available to download.

for many years ive been a back yard star gazer using the naked eye.

it started with me tracking nasa shuttle / iss via their website data and looking for it outside many, many years ago.

The best site I refer to is Heavens-Above.com. You login and enter your location and it tells you when the ISS and other satellites will be going overhead.

do satellites have lights on them? on almost any night i can see lights moving quite quickly across the sky and ive always assumed by the trajectory, speed + altitude that they are satellites. ive seen them heading in various directions but always a straight path.

No satellites do not have lights, and you can see them as they appear to be moving stars just after the sun goes down and right before dawn. That is because they are higher are still in the sunlight and reflect the light down.

i like looking at a group of stars that are nicknamed "the big saucepan" (prob not its real name)
ive also heard it referred to as "three sisters", so it'd be fantastic to use that software and learn what im looking at.

I think maybe you mean the "big dipper"?? and "seven sisters" also known as the Pleiades cluster??

A program is a good learning tool, but I would recommend going to your local bookstore and you will find plenty of astronomy books that you will learn more from. I use the program for looking to see what will be in the sky before doing some stargazing or if I see something I am not sure about. In this case it is good to see if a star matches the description of something strange.

reply to post by musselwhite


Makes perfect sense. I didn't realize that you had additional threads out there. I'm going to read them today.

If anyone is interested, here a calendar of 2008 sky events...

www.space.com...

thanks woodwytch. pavlovsdog gave me a tip that i could transfer the video onto the memory chip w/a minor yet inexpensive adapter. i'm going to read the manual linked w/paavlovsdog's post and get all stressed out but i'm going to get all stressed out because everyone stays away from me and i'll have mucho time to apply the written word to positive action.

it is through my numerous attempts i learn the most and not easily forgotten......until old age set in! ha!

and thanks a whole bunch hsur2112, i have put those dates down and i'm going to gaze with the rest of you.

one mind in one accord!

reply to post by Hal9000


thanks for the informative reply. i didnt think a satellite would have a light but i couldnt think of anything else logical that it would be, so i wonder what it is that i see late at night. definately not planes since our airports have a curfew due to residential homes nearby.


[edit on 15/1/08 by Obliv_au]

reply to post by musselwhite


Based on the location and date information you provided, what you saw was most likely Antares. Its a Red Giant and when low on the horizon it will shimmer significantly.

Antares spectral class is M (Red) and its apparent magnitude is 1.09 making it the 16th brightest object in the night sky.

If you were looking to the SW, you definitely did not see the North Star. Get it?

reply to post by musselwhite


No probs ... trying to work it out yourself and getting to the state where you want to throw it through the window, does bring great satisfaction when you finally get it right ... and it's true ... you'll never forget what you've learned.

Woody

reply to post by Hal9000


i got starry night pro 6, and it seems the cluster i like to look at is actually Orion - his crotch, to be more specific

alnilam, mintaka, ngc 2024. are the stars in orion which i was told are called "3 sisters" but it seems like it might have been someones crude nickname.

reply to post by Obliv_au

The three stars in a row are usually referred to Orion's belt. I've never heard them called 3 sisters. Here is an incredible widefield image of the Flame Nebula (IC434) and the Horsehead Nebula (NGC2024) which are on the first star on Orion's belt.



This image taken by Matthew T. Russel is on his website, and I use the larger image for my desktop on my pc.

The cluster you are refering to as Orion's crotch is usually called The dagger of Orion, with the famous Orion Nebula (M42) in the middle.



This image was also from the same website.

The Orion constellation has so many things to look at with a telescope, you could spend a whole night on it. I wish I could take images like that. Enjoy.

starting in January 2009, I began to notice that the stars looked brighter and there was more of them than there usually is. I then started noticing that the brighter stars were moving in a way that I had never seen. It was like they were swimming through the night sky like a jellyfish. Once I saw them moving,I became almost obsessed with watching them. I would lay out and watch them for hours every night. Then I realized that EVERY star is moving! It's just easier to track the brighter ones,but they are all moving the same weird way. I watched continously, trying to find a pattern in the directions they were moving in, but couldn't. I am a big believer in God and try to read some of the bible every day, so when I saw this, it immediately reminded me af Acts 2:19 when God is speaking of the time of judgement and He says"AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW, BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE"(New American Standard Bible). Also,the book of Enoch (which isn't in the bible,but should be) could explain what's going on as well. Enoch was Noah's great-grandfather. In Genseis 5:21-24 it says this about Enoch:'21Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. 22Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. 23So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.' In his book Enoch says that while he walked with God, he was shown and explained by the angels all the secrets of heaven and sheol (the abyss,hell). I can't go into the whole book of Enoch here, but if you are interested in reading it for yourself you can read it free at www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe. I personally believe that a person needs to read AND UNDERSTAND the book of Enoch before he/she can even begin to grasp how things work and God's plan for us.
We are going to focus on the stars here though. Now according to Enoch, stars come forth to earth through portals in heaven. Each individual star by itself, according to their number and their names, their courses and their positions, and their times and their months. Through each of these small portals pass the stars of heaven and run their course to the west on the path which is shown to them and God has appointed. And he calls on them by their name and they hearken unto Him. Each is weighed in a righteous balance according to their proportions of light. And Enoch asked the angel what this mystery was and the angel told him that the stars are the holy who dwelt upon the earth and believe in the name of the Lord of Spirits for ever and ever. It also says that He appoints a judge for each of them so none will hinder. So, basically they have a little bubble that they have to stay in and follow their appointed paths, but they can move all around in that bubble. Now, knowing that stars are the righteous that have been here on earth and worship the Lord day and night, another verse comes to mind that might make sense of things: Revelation 6:9-11 says: 9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow bondsmen and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. Could it be that the stars moving in the sky is a sign that the souls have awakened and are asking when it will be time? Just a few thoughts to ponder on. Sorry it was so long, but it's hard to speak of a complex subject as this one in only 4000 words. I hope at least someone gains some knowlege from this. Thank you for your time.