A reason to get up early

[flash_uk]

Please try really hard not to be Julian. Do you remember the garden? You were rewarded for that effort. Be nice, and don't scare them away from astronomy.

Easy peasy lemon squeasy. Tell children that their school has got something utterly wrong, and they love it.

[tears] "Mummy, the teacher brought a strange man into the class today and he said the space picture I helped to paint is all wrong!" [more tears]

[djewesbury]

Please, Julian, be really, really Julian. I want to hear about this on the BBC.

[jdaw1]

The teacher in attendance said that it was excellent. The children seemed to enjoy it and comprehend it — ‘it’ being such minor ephemera as Jupiter being more than 4 Jupiter diameters from the sun. They seemed to get it. A win for everybody.

And one pupil asked several really excellent questions. Such as “How did the rings of Saturn form?”.

Though the Deputy Headmistress did ask me not to describe the mural as “rubbish”.

Yes, I realise that there are constraints about what can be painted on a wall. But there’s also ignorant rubbish. Neptune is not smaller than the Earth. Saturn has one large moon, not four. The planets can hint at being smaller than the distances between them. Asteroids are much smaller than the Earth’s moon. Etc. There are even dynamical errors that can be avoided: must all of the Galilean moons be shown on the same side of Jupiter?

[djewesbury]

must all of the Galilean moons be shown on the same side of Jupiter?

And you refrained from calling it rubbish?

[jdaw1]

And you refrained from calling it rubbish?

No.

[djewesbury]

And you refrained from calling it rubbish?

No.

I see. The Deputy Head's imprecation arrived too late to stop you doing what you had already done. Good work.

[DRT]

There are even dynamical errors that can be avoided: must all of the Galilean moons be shown on the same side of Jupiter?

That isn't an error. They often are all on the same side.

[djewesbury]

There will be 150 10 to 12 year old school children there and we have all agreed to let them look through our telescopes as part of a science project they are doing. Perhaps I should have brought as few bottles of Port and a spit bucket along and I could have started their education in the finer things in life? Perhaps not.

"Middle-aged man in caravan offers 11 year olds alcohol and a spit bucket."
I think not.

[jdaw1]

They often are all on the same side.

Observe that when Ganymede and Europa are together (in conjunction as seen from Jupiter), Io is the opposite side of Jupiter.

Compare and contrast with


But good job about having four moons of Jupiter.

[djewesbury]

Probably best not to start talking about Ganymede in a thread where Derek has announced his intention to welcome 11-year-olds into his caravan and give them port.
Move along please.

[DRT]

Observe that when Ganymede and Europa are together (in conjunction as seen from Jupiter), Io is the opposite side of Jupiter.

But if Jupiter was being observed from a point at either four or ten o'clock in this image the three moons would be on the same side of a two dimensional image. It happens frequently, and also with the fourth moon.

[DRT]

Probably best not to start talking about Ganymede in a thread where Derek has announced his intention to welcome 11-year-olds into his caravan and give them port.
Move along please.

Behave yourself. I am inclined to seek a Jeremy Clarkson style retraction of that outrageous slur on my good name.

[djewesbury]

Probably best not to start talking about Ganymede in a thread where Derek has announced his intention to welcome 11-year-olds into his caravan and give them port.
Move along please.

Behave yourself. I am inclined to seek a Jeremy Clarkson style retraction of that outrageous slur on my good name.

Sorry. I forgot the spit bucket.

[jdaw1]

But if Jupiter was being observed from a point at either four or ten o'clock in this image the three moons would be on the same side of a two dimensional image. It happens frequently, and also with the fourth moon.

I fold.

The following single frame, as seen by an observer on our left, would see all three moons on the same side.

[jdaw1]

Eclipse forecast, south London:

[djewesbury]

Same here.

[DRT]

Observe that when Ganymede and Europa are together (in conjunction as seen from Jupiter), Io is the opposite side of Jupiter.

But if Jupiter was being observed from a point at either four or ten o'clock in this image the three moons would be on the same side of a two dimensional image. It happens frequently, and also with the fourth moon.

I just realised I forgot to post the image. Here it is...

Screen Shot 2015-03-19 at 14.11.34.png (26.43 KiB) Viewed 3913 times

And this will happen in just a few hours from now...

2015-03-19 14.23.32.png (69.59 KiB) Viewed 3913 times

[DRT]

I took this out of focus picture with my iPhone through my new H-alpha telescope this afternoon...

2015-03-19 13.47.57.jpg (34.99 KiB) Viewed 3912 times

The prominences on the top right are each around 30,000 miles high. The detached prominence seems to be quite a rare sight and lots of people were talking about it here today.

If I can get a picture similar to this during the eclipse I will be very pleased

[Alex Bridgeman]

I took this out of focus picture with my iPhone through my new H-alpha telescope this afternoon...

2015-03-19 13.47.57.jpg

The prominences on the top right are each around 30,000 miles high. The detached prominence seems to be quite a rare sight and lots of people were talking about it here today.

If I can get a picture similar to this during the eclipse I will be very pleased

But I don't see where the Galilean moons are in this lovely picture of Jupiter that Julian painted on a school wall

[DRT]

But I don't see where the Galilean moons are in this lovely picture of Jupiter that Julian painted on a school wall

That's because they are behind the Sun. It's a Galilean eclipse. Have you not been paying attention in class, or is your teacher an idiot?

[Alex Bridgeman]

Cloudy this morning.

[djewesbury]

Cloud is broken in the South, more blanket-like in the North; I could see the sun 10 minutes ago. We are getting the 95% here, it would be good to think we'd get to see the whole wonder of the spectacle and not just get a bit dark..

[jdaw1]

South London has 100% cloud. Currently light-grey cloud. It might darken.

[djewesbury]

Cloud has filled in here as well. Rats.

[djewesbury]

Oh, this is clearly set to be a rollercoaster ride of an eclipse. Sun out again.