lumpy darkness

Observation notes (with equipment details), photos, sketches, reviews, software tips, random thoughts, by an amateur astronomer.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2022

articles index

Following is a collection of astronomy-related articles and papers. The bulk of these articles were written for the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, for both the national Journal magazine and the Toronto Centre's newsletter SCOPE. Enjoy.

 

Journal of Double Star Observations papers

I submitted a scientific paper to the Journal of Double Star Observations (JDSO).

  • Measurement of Rasalgethi with a DSLR Camera - published in Vol 6, No 1, Jan 1, 2020, pg 68 - blog link

 

 

SkyNews magazine

As of the fall of 2020, I started contributing to SkyNews, Canada's only astronomy magazine.

  • weather tools articles for web site, 6 parts - rolling out Q1 '22...
  • getting started in 3D printing - Jan/Feb '22
  • astrophotography on a budget - Sep/Oct '21
  • Modern Makers - part 2 - new technology, 3D printing - Jul/Aug '21
  • Modern Makers - part 1 - classic methods, mirror grinding - Mar/Apr '21
  • Electronically Assisted Astronomy, a sidebar - Nov/Dec '20

FYI. If you're looking for old issues of SkyNews, see the back issues page.

 

 

Journal Binary Universe articles

The RASC national organisation produces a bi-monthly called Journal. It is provided to members coast-to-coast in electronic and paper format. I write a column called Binary Universe wherein I review software applications.

  • 43 - making an almanac with COELIX - Apr '22
  • 42 - sky hopping with Star-Hop Maker - Feb '22
  • 41 - monitor aurora with Solar Monitor - Oct '21
  • 40 - the mesmerising Skywheel - Aug '21
  • 39 - Stellarium in your pocket, Mobile and Plus - Jun '21
  • 38 - announcement of RASC Double Stars program - Apr '21
  • 37 - SPICE-enabled Cosmographia - Feb '21
  • 36 - the amazing DaffMoon app - Dec '20
  • 35 - measure light pollution with Loss of the Night - Oct '20
  • 34 - flying with Solar System Scope - Aug '20
  • 33 - I wonder if it is Good to Stargaze - Jun '20
  • 32 - robotic mount control with EQMOD - Apr '20
  • 31 - charts of the sky with Cartes du Ciel - Feb '20
  • 30 - should I set up? Scope Nights for iOS will tell you - Dec '19
  • 29 - digital astrolabe for iOS - Oct '19
  • 28 - NASA app for iOS and Android - Aug '19
  • 27 - measuring with iOS Dark Sky Meter - Jun '19
  • 26 - not just a clock, Astro Clock Widget, for Android - Apr '19
  • 25 - exploring with Exoplanet for iOS - Feb '19
  • 24 - various apps showing sidereal time - Dec '18
  • 23 - Constellation Mind, test yourself - Oct '18
  • 22 - Astrospheric, sky prediction tool - Aug '18
  • 21 - Mars viewers, for Android and iOS - Jun '18
  • 20 - Sky Events, upcoming astronomical events - Apr '18
  • 19 - Occult Watcher, asteroid occultations - Feb '18
  • 18 - Polar Finder, easy, fast Android app - Dec '17
  • 17 - CHDK, hacking a Canon point-and-shoot - Oct '17
  • 16 - Solar Eclipse Timer, timings with audible prompts - Aug '17
  • 15 - Meteor Shower Calendar, list with notifications - Jun '17
  • 14 - BOINC, volunteer grid computing - Apr '17
  • 13 - Eyes on the Solar System, NASA 3D visual tool - Feb '17
  • 12 - StarStaX, make star trail still shots or movies - Nov '16
  • 11 - AstroPlanner, a planning tool that runs on Mac - Oct '16
  • 10 - Aladin, interactive sky atlas - Aug '16
  • 9 - GoISSWatch, an iOS app for predicting flyovers - Jun '16
  • 8 - ISS Detector, an Android app for flyovers - Apr '16
  • 7 - Where Is M13?, tool for locating globulars - Feb '16
  • 6 - Virtual Moon Atlas, a very powerful tool - Dec '15
  • 5 - Backyard, camera control for Nikon and Canon - Oct '15
  • 4 - SkySafari, planetarium app for mobile devices - Aug '15
  • 3 - Clear Outside, weather app with many indicators - Jun '15
  • 2 - SkyTools, powerful Windows-only planning tool - Apr '15
  • 1 - Stellarium, free and fun planetarium app - Feb '15

See my software list on my library page for apps I regularly use.

 

 

SCOPE webspotting articles

The RASC Toronto Centre produces a bi-monthly newsletter called SCOPE. It is provided to members of the centre in electronic and paper format. I frequently write to a column called webspotting. It showcases helpful or recently discovered web sites.

  • 36 - the panoramic Milky Way - Oct/Nov '14
  • 35 - calculating the speed of the sky, for photos - Aug/Sep '14
  • 34 - graphical forecasts, weather prediction tool - Jun '14
  • 33 - dark sky planner, based on twilight, Moon light - Mar '14
  • 32 - aurora ovation, a new prediction tool from NASA - Jan '14
  • 31 - comets galore, using Aerith and Skyhound - Jun/Jul '13
  • 30 - AstroBin, a free astro photo gallery site - Apr/May '13
  • 29 - NEO program, Near Earth Objects - Feb/Mar '13
  • 28 - atlas of Andromeda, objects within M31 - Dec '12/Jan '13
  • 27 - Spaceweather - Oct/Nov '12
  • 26 - the crisis, with the cosmological hypothesis - Apr/May '12
  • 25 - outdoor action, understanding hypothermia - Feb/Mar '12
  • 24 - constellations, free charts from the IAU - Dec '11/Jan '12
  • 23 - scary!, 3D monster horror chiller anaglyphs - Oct/Nov '11
  • 22 - International Meteor Organization - Aug/Sep '11
  • 21 - Mars!, buy land now! - Jun/Jul '11
  • 20 - Weather Network, with Night mode - Apr/May '11
  • 19 - CalSky, for event planning and alerts - Feb/Mar '11
  • 18 - Journal of Double Star Observations - Dec '10/Jan '11
  • 17 - Astronautica, everything spaceflight - Dec/Jan '10
  • 16 - RASC logins (not an official webspotting)
  • 15 - exposure advice, afocal astrophotography tips - Apr/May '10
  • 14 - Lunar Republic, with detailed Moon maps - Feb/Mar '10
  • 13 - PlanetQuest, exoplanet listings - Dec 2009/Jan '10
  • 12 - Astronomy Sketch of the Day - Oct/Nov '09
  • 11 - The Royal Astronomical Society of Daves - Aug/Sep '09
  • 10 - twilight, definitions, calculating - Jun/Jul '09
  • 9 - mag dec, finding magnetic north - Apr/May 2009
  • 8 - comet data, adding ephemeris data to software - Feb/Mar '09
  • 7 - Clear Sky Alarm Clock - Dec 2008/Jan '09
  • 6 - alpha beta, learning the Greek characters - Oct/Nov '08
  • 5 - Fourmilab, solar system plots, the sky overhead - Aug/Sep '08
  • 4 - SkyMaps, free monthly sky chart with targets - Jun/Jul '08
  • 3 - Aviation Digital Data Service, from NOAA - Apr/May '08
  • 2 - Astronomy Picture of the Day - Feb/Mar '08
  • start - webspotting column kick off - Jan '08

 

 

articles in county newspapers

I write astronomy-related articles for the Village Media web sites. I submit to my editor at Orillia Matters and in turn these are relayed to Bradford, Collingwood, Newmarket, Barrie, Guelph, etc. The links below are for the BradfordToday postings only.

  • what's up in April - 4 Apr '20
  • what's up in January - 2 Jan '20
  • what's up in December - 1 Dec '19
  • upcoming Mercury transit - 10 Nov '19

 

 

other articles

The follow is a list of articles that I have written or assisted in.

  • noctilucent clouds, photo used, Global News - 13 Jun '16
  • infographic, finding the nova in Delphinus, Global News - 19 Aug '13

 

 

 

 

links

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