‘We Don’t Know What’s Driving 96% Of The Universe’

I just watched an online video featuring astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson. I kind of equate Neil as sort of the “Carl Sagan” in this new era of future generations. He is incredibly intelligent and also has the ability to show and explain the intricacies of the Universe in ways that are palatable to the average person – like me…

In this recent online video, he claimed we as humans only see and understand a staggering 4% of the working energy and matter of the Universe. That means we do not know what is driving the other 96% of the Universe. WOW…

4% of the Universe? And yet he muses, we consider ourselves an intelligent species. What defines intelligence? Neil makes it clear humans define this term “Intelligence”. He asks, would an advanced alien species think of the human race as intelligent?

He notes that Chimpanzees have very similar DNA to humans. In fact, it may surprise some right-wing Christians that chimp DNA differs by 1% to that of humans. That one 1% difference is a lot though. Humans can create poetry, build telescopes and space stations. A chimp can poke a stick into a termite hole to flesh out a tasty treat. Still, there is only a 1 % difference in DNA evolution between chimps and humans – amazing…

But imagine an alien species whose DNA is say 1% more advanced than that of humans. One could surmise that there would be huge differences based on our similarity with chimps? Would an alien race consider us as primal and unintelligent as chimps? It makes you wonder.

It also makes you wonder about our place in this vast Cosmos. It makes you wonder about religion, war and our place on Earth in relation to something so vast and undiscovered as the Universe. It makes me want to take a deep breath and simply revel in the immensity of it all; making no claims about genesis or dogma – just reverence; that I am apart of this amazing system of order that is the Cosmos.

John C. Bader
www.responsiveuniverse.com
New Responsive Universe Promo Video

Meteor Crater, AZ

I recently visited the Meteor Crater in Arizona. It was interesting to peer inside the massive crater and fathom that magnitude of the explosion that must have rocked this region. Located about 45 miles east of Flagstaff, it has a blast diameter of approximately 4000 feet. The crater was created about 50,000 years ago. Please keep in mind you will have to pay a moderate fee to access the museum and viewpoints - well worth the visit!

Plato

Astronomy compels the soul to look upwards and leads us from this world to another

- Plato

Edge of the Universe?

A recent image taken by the Hubble Telescope offers a glimpse at what scientists are calling the oldest object so far discovered in the Universe – a young Galaxy. Well, it was a young Galaxy: Estimated at 13.1 billion years old, it may be just 600 million years of age. Remember, when looking at star light, one is really looking back in time as it takes millions if not billions of years for light to cross the galaxy and find Earth (depending on the lights origin). Our solar system did not even exist when this Galaxy was formed. Looking at light signatures of cooling hydrogen gas, Astronomers can determine the age of stars based on the heavy metals that accompany stars – especially as they age. Coupled with Red Shift, one can estimate not only the age of a specific group of stars but also where they reside in the universe. The farther away, the younger they are (or were). This specific galaxy yet to be named, sits nears what scientists coin the edge of the Universe. According to current Big Bang calculations, the Universe may only be 100 million years old from the onset of this galaxies formation – truly the infant stage of our universe.


This means we could be close to taking our first glimpse of the edge of the universe. What then? Is that God? What exists beyond the edge? Is there an edge? According to Stephen Hawking, a renowned astrophysicist, “It obviously matters because if there is an edge, somebody has to decide what should happen at the edge. You would really have to invoke God.” He also has remarked, “if you want a complete theory, then we would have to know what happens at the edge. Otherwise, we cannot solve the equations”.

I have read several theories that speak about a gravitational boundary at the edge of the universe. This gravitational boundary actually causes light to bend, arc or even reflect in a circular path around that invisible border. In theory this idea would be similar to the way that light hypothetically tries to escape the event horizon of a black hole? It certainly could explain an edge.

Are we living in the confines of a black hole? A Universe within a Universe? Is the center of the Big Bang a point in space or a point in time? According to a Sten Odenwald's article, "the center of the Big Bang was not a point in space, but a point in time! It is a center, not in the fabric of the balloon, but outside it along the 4th dimension...time. We cannot see this point anywhere we look inside the space of our universe out towards the distant galaxies. You can't see time after all. We can only see it as we look back in time at the ancient images we get from the most distant objects we can observe. We see a greatly changed, early history of the universe in these images but no unique center to them in space."

Hawking has also been on record stating, “At the moment there's not much evidence either way. It seems that we can explain the present state of the universe on the assumption that there wasn't any edge”. Another statement expresses this,” It's very difficult to prove that there isn't any edge, but if we could show that we can explain everything in the universe on the hypothesis that there is no edge. I think that would be a much more natural and economical theory”. The Universe is infinite right? Therefore in theory, there would be no edge? Yet, recent observations show that very little exists before 13 billion years ago; And what about before the Big Bang? Is that space before what would constitute an edge? What defines space that is made up of nothing?

I am confident that in my life time, we will be able to see to the edge of the Universe. What will we learn? What conclusions might we find? I am sure there will be many theories abound – many unexplainable ideas and concepts. Make no mistake, not only is this the final frontier, it is the key to understanding everything – it may even prove or disapprove the concept of God. Though, maybe such concepts are not meant to be understood. How is one to exist in a world with no unknown? What would be left to live for?

Double Stars do not suck!

9/13/2010
8:30pm CST
Partly Cloudy - Calm
65 degrees
10" Dobsonian
Wauconda, IL


Last night at dusk it was clear and calm - well, at least until I got my GPS dialed in and I was ready to computer navigate the summer heavens for the first time in a couple months - then, enter the clouds... Before, I was able to dive deep into the Messier catalog, a cloudy haze revealed itself first coming from the west and slowly carpeting the heavens to the east. After a quick accidental bump of the telescope mount, knocking it out of alignment, I had about 5 minutes before the clouds overtook the sky. Still, the Big Dipper remained unscathed, and I instinctly scanned the telescope to the second star from the handle tip - Mizar. Mizar is a double star: Its smaller pair is called Alcor. I have read that on a dark night and with keen eyes, one can make out the seperation between the two stars which are thought to be seperated by as many as 3 light years (the pair sits about 78 light years from Earth) - I had no such luck with the naked eye. With a 25mm lense using my 10" Dob, I could easily make out the seperation. Then using a Barlow I rolled on the the pair with 5mm power and really got a nice view of the two. Mizar is clearly larger and both exhibit similar color. Mizar and Alcor are not binaries - though, Alcor actually is itself a binary, consisting of Alcor A and Alcor B, and that this binary system is most likely gravitationally bound to Mizar, bringing the full count of stars in this complex system to six. Always a nice view!

I also struck luck and caught the International Space Station zooming west to east as the sun just set. It was difficult, but I was able to track it with my 25mm lense panning the telescope as it raced across the sky. I could easily make out a rectangle shape which was clearly the solar panels.

A glass of red wine, the space station and a double star... I guess life could be worse...

Waxing Crescent

3/23/2010

8:35pm cst

Clear - Calm

51 degrees F

10"

10mm
moon filter 13% T

Mars revisited

3/23/2010

7:35pm CST

Clear - Calm

52 degrees F

10"

10mm

3/23/2010

7:35pm CST
Clear - Calm
52 degrees F

10"

10mm

with #25 Red Filter

Images by Ethan Bader (8 years old)

Spring is in the air...

Last night (3/17/2010) was absolutely beautiful. At dusk, it was clear, crisp and calm. Temperatures ranged in the mid to lower 50s. The winter constellations of Orion and Taurus are slowing slewing to the west as spring constellations begin to rise from the east like Virgo and Coma.

Mars is still sitting high in the sky and unmistakable at sunset. I took extra time in viewing the 4th planet from the sun. After close inspection for about five minutes (letting my eyes further adjust to the darkness) I began to see what appeared to be slight dark patterns. They would come and go as the planet moved in and out of focus due to atmospheric conditions. I felt a little like Percival Lowel, a famous Astronomer about 110 years ago who thought he saw canals on the red planet and thus was convinced there as life on Mars. Still, I was disappointed that even with a 10” aperture there is not much detail to observe. I also experimented with a #25 red planetary filter and though it isolated Mars nicely, it was inconclusive that more detail was discernable.

Venus is now visible in the western sky at sunset. Our 2nd planet from the sun should begin to rise in March. On previous observations, Venus was in varying degrees of phase much like our moon. I have noted in the past that both Mercury and Venus have phases due to its relation to the sun and earth. This time Venus was at full exposure but there was something very interesting to observe: Whether it was because of its low position near the horizon and atmospheric conditions were involved; a very discernable orange shadow was visible – much like a crescent, it was quite a contrast as compared to the usual bright yellow color that is Venus. So in essence, the planet exhibited it normal yellow, featureless color but on one edge there was almost a burnt orange crescent color that blended into the majority of yellow – possibly a shadow? The start of a phase?

I also viewed M78 in Orion, a diffused nebula at 8.0 mag. This object has proved elusive in the past. I was able to make out two bright points within the object and some evidence of gas which appeared to be surrounding proto stars? I also enjoyed M93 in Puppis. M93 is a dazzling open cluster at magnitude 6.5.

Copernicus

"So far as hypotheses are concerned, let no one expect anything certain from astronomy, which cannot furnish it, lest he accept as the truth ideas conceived for another purpose, and depart from this study a greater fool than when he entered it." - Copernicus

Rough winter for viewing

It has been a difficult winter in the midwest. This explains why I have posted so few blogs through the winter months of January and February. We have had snow on the ground since Christmas and when it was clear, viewing was marred by a bright moon or severe cold.

Astro-Imaging has also proven to be a challenging task, especially in the cold of the winter. I am new to the prospect of taking deep space images and I have not been granted the luxury of sitting outside for long periods of time to figure out my image train and the incredible complexities of polar alignment, focal length and imaging with my new SCT 8" scope. Infact, it has been a frustrating venture especially when you begin to add up the amount of money spent to take my love for astronomy to the next level. It takes time and patience, both I will have more of when the air warms and Spring brings promise of longer session outside under the stars. Eventually, everything will click and progress should come with more ease and success.

Still to come, my first images using my new image train, new reviews and hopefully the conclusion of my Messier object catalog project.

Mars sits high in the evening sky

Spring has greeted the midwest with warmer weather and the planet Mars in the eastern sky near zenith. After sunset the orange/red planet is easily spotted as it tracks to the south west before midnight. Mars is in retrograde motion and resumes an eastward motion through April as it nears conjuction with M44 next month.
Using a 10" Dob with a 5mm eyepiece, the red planet is impressive in size but unimpressive in its detail. Though viewing conditions have been terrible, I was unable to make out any dark or light patterns or the pre-noted polar ice caps. Nevertheless, Mars is unmistakable and beautiful even without detail. Darker skies will no doubt reveal more secrets.

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after Mars, the Roman god of war. It is also referred to as the "Red Planet" because of its reddish appearance, due to iron oxide prevalent on its surface. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere, having surface features reminiscent both of the impact craters of the Moon and the volcanoes, valleys, deserts and polar ice caps of Earth. Unlike the Earth, Mars is now a geologically inactive planet with no known tectonic activity. It is the site of Olympus Mons, the highest known mountain in the Solar System, and of Valles Marineris, the largest canyon - wikipedia

The Andromeda Galaxy Re-Visited

Viewing Session: December 9th, 2009
Location: Kekaha, HI
Time: 7:36PM HWT
Weather: Clear - Calm
76 temp
12" Dob
25mm eyepiece

This was a night to remember: A dark moonless night on a rural beach in Kauai. My focus was the Andromeda Galaxy in all her glory. I have already cataloged M31 in October, 2008. For an amateur observer, M31 is an easy object to target and enjoy. More evasive is its neighbors M32 and M110. Using a 12” Dob with a 25mm eyepiece, M32 was small but noticeable within the haze of M31. Almost a pinpoint of light, M32 a dwarf elliptical galaxy and seen at 9.2 magnitude. Normally difficult to find in light polluted skies, M32 was easily targeted in Kauai. Also found was M110 another dwarf elliptical galaxy and also a satellite of Andromeda. M110 has a similar magnitude like M32 but sits off on the periphery of M31 and has been elusive up until this dark night.  M110 is visually much larger than M32 but not as brilliant – thus why the two objects have similar magnitudes. Aloha Kauai and Mahalo until next time.

Kauai

The Island of Kauai boasts some of the darkest nights in America. Couple that with warm weather, few bugs and many clear views and this is the place for observational astronomy. My viewing area was in Kekaha on the west side of the Garden Island. There at Kekaha Beach Park most of the horizon is all ocean and unobstructed for thousands of miles, thus; some of the most amazing stellar vistas. With the moon waning the night sky was spectacular! It was almost as if the constellations of Orion, Taurus and Cassiopeia were in 3-D; jumping off the fabric of the sable heavens above.

I was fortunate enough to get in contact Roz Reiner, a Kauai resident and astronomy educator. Also known as "Rocket Roz", she is the webmaster for Astro Events -Stargazing Kauai http://rozhome.com/astroevents/?view. Roz hosts guided sky tours and offers an impressive variety of observational astronomy and Hawaiian celestial knowledge. If you are in Kauai and want to do some star gazing, contact Roz for a great viewing session. Thanks Roz!

Jupiter was impressive and we stole a look at Mercury as the sun set over the ocean. The Milky Way was like a swath of glowing light that looked like a painted stripe across the sky. Unlike my suburb viewing location here in Port Barrington the sky in Kauai is so dark that that open clusters in Cassiopeia could be seen with the naked eye. This included the Andromeda Galaxy and M42 in Orion which were even more impressive with binoculars. Orbiting satellites could be seen whizzing across the heavens and errant meteors were commonplace.

Barrington Moon

My wife Annamarie took this picture with our new Canon PowerShot SX10IS. The image was photographed at dusk in South Barrington on November 30th, 2009. It is always a bonus when the better half takes an interest in Astronomy.

A year later....

For no ones' interest but my own... November, 2009 marks the one year anniversary for the Celestial Chronicle. It was a year ago that I purchased my Orion 10” Dobsonian. Now, 12 months later, I have added the new 8” Celestron Advanced Series C8-SGT Schmidt-Cassegrain. Recent additions also include the new Orion StarShoot Pro V2.0 Deep Space Color CCD camera for advanced astro-imaging.

My first major amateur observational astronomy project was to index the entire Messier catalog (at a relaxed and enjoyable pace). Much like Charles Messier himself, I am sketching and manually indexing every DSO object found which includes a scaled pencil drawing and notation of basic location, weather and tools used during observation. I have found the process to be a very enjoyable and rewarding hobby. 68 Messier objects later, I am planning on completing this project by next Fall, 2010. Most remaining objects are too dim for Port Barrington, IL ( 10.0 magnitude or dimmer) and/or are near the horizon and difficult to locate from my observation deck. Several off site trips will be required to complete the 110 object catalog.

As I navigate the learning curve of astro-imaging, I will begin my next project which will include photographing the entire Messier catalog – a project that will take five years and plenty of toil and effort. All future images will be indexed at my new web domain: DSOcatalog.com (Deep Space Object Catalog). I look forward to also imaging the solar system including all planets and any wayward asteroids and comets that become visible.

Next year will bring observation opportunities in Kauai and Costa Rica which will allow me to view the Southern Hemisphere sky in more detail. West Kauai will provide "extreme" darkness and Costa Rica will provide never before seen constellations. In response to the perils of airline travel, I have also recently purchased new Orion 9x63 “Mini Giant” Binoculars.

I look forward to the future – future blogs and future discoveries. In the coming years, I will strive to build my own permanent observatory to help assist in this fledgling hobby that has in many ways turned into an obsession.

Still to come, more equipment reviews and observations as winter arrives here in the Midwest.

JCB

M30

Due to inclement weather, this is the first night out to observe in over a month. Having scoured the skies last Fall, I did find M30 last night: A faint but pronounced globular cluster. Used my 10" Dob and a 10mm eyepiece to easily make out the core. Found in Capricornus, I used 41 Cap as a reference star to help find this 8.5 mag. object.

11/8/09
5:45pm CST
Clear - Calm
68 degrees
10"
10mm
Port Barrington

Neptune

9/16/09
8:15pm CST
Clear - 5-10 mph winds
62 degree temp
C8
10mm

I had some difficulty finding Neptune with my 10" Dob. Star jumping only worked so well as Neptune itself looks just like a star in low magnification. On a trial run with my new C8 advanced series GOTO Telescope (review to come later), I was able to target the mysterious blue planet with ease. Located to the southeast of Jupiter - less than a couple degrees infact - in the south eastern sky right after dusk one will find Neptune, the 8th planet from the Sun.  In a 25mm eyepiece, one could make out the blue color which already sets it off from typical star spectrum colors. When using a 10mm eyepiece, the disc is attainable and thus Neptune was confirmed. A bluish green disc - probably more blue than green when you really focus on it. Confirmation can also be made by slewing out and comparing it to nearby stars within the field of view. It is then you can make out the disc like feature that seperates it from the stars in the background.

Neptune, named for the Roman God of the sea, is the forth largest planet by diameter and third largest by overall mass. Neptune has 17 times more mass than Earth and sits about 30.1 AU from the sun or about 30 times the Earth-Sun distance.

As I get beyond the learning curve of my new C8 and the new CCD camera recently purchased, I will begin posting more astro images of both the planets and DSO objects. Please visit DSOcatalog.com for more information.

Plenty of views in Sagittarius

My first visit was with M21, an open cluster in Sagittarius. I also viewed M22, a Globular Cluster at magnitude 6.5. M22 is supposedly the 3rd brightest Globular in the northern hemisphere; Hard to agree due to the interstellar dust that resides in this region. I also viewed M24, an open cluster in the same region. M24 appeared as a dense bundle of stars within the Milkyway. Finally, I viewed M28, a dim, dusty Globular also residing in Sagittarius. I was unable to see M20 (Trifid Nebula) or M8 (Lagoon Nebula) - mostly due to interstellar dust in this region and poor seeing conditions due to light pollution.

I also attempted to view Neptune tonight but failed to locate its small bluish disc. Jupiter was spectacular as usual in the Southern sky.

The Wild Duck Open Cluster

8/22/09
9:05pm to 10:24pm cst
partly cloudy to clear
mid 50s
Whitewater, WI

I viewed M26, an open cluster in Delphinus. At magnitude 9.5, it was not very exciting from my dark vantage point. M11 was the center piece of the night: at 250 million years old, M11 (also known as the Wild Duck Cluster) has about 3000 stars and is considered a open cluster. With a 25mm eyepiece, this deep sky object was impressive. M25 was another nice looking open cluster. Tough to miss at 4.90 magnitude, M25 has approx. 600 stars. M14 is a dim Globular in Ophiuchus, resolved in a 10mm eyepiece. M9 was another dim Globular resolved best in a 25mm eyepiece, located in Ophiuchus. M107 was difficult to view at 10 magnitude. Another Globular in Ophiuchus, it was dim though discernable using a 10mm eyepiece. M10 was a nice, though modest Globular in Ophiuchus. At magnitude 7.50, it was easy to view the dense core using a 10mm eyepiece. M16 is known as the Eagle Nebula. At 6.0 magnitude, it was easy to find, but difficult to draw: dusty, dim and hard to discern the actual shape. Best seen using a 10mm eyepiece. M17 was another dim, dusty looking Nebula that was easily found at 7.0 magnitude but difficult to draw. Finally, I viewed M18, a open cluster in Sagittarius. Worth noting you could see the dim "Milkyway" tonight.

M27, Planetary Nebula in July

M12 is a distant, faint globular cluster in Ophiuchus. At magnitude 8.00 this was viewed with a 10mm eyepiece. Also viewed was M23, in Sagittarius, a nicely detailed open cluster at magnitude 6.0 - best viewed with a 10mm eyepiece (object filled the entire field of view). M23 is approx. 4,500 light years from Earth. M27 is a planetary nebula found in Vulpecula. Using a 10mm eyepiece, I was able to just make out the dumbbell shape at magnitude 7.50. This nebula is about 1,250 light years away. M56 is a distant looking globular cluster in Lyra which is 40,000 light years away. I also found M71 in Sagitta, about 8,500 light years away. Difficult to view, this globular is about magnitude 8.5. Finally, I viewed M92, a globular in Hercules. Not as impressive as M13, this magnitude 7.50 object is still a worthwhile sight at 28,000 light years away.

South Barrington, IL
7/24/09
9:45-10:30pm CST
Clear - Calm
70 degrees
10"
10mm