10/11/2022 – Ephemeris – Ada Lovelace Day

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Ada Lovelace Day, Tuesday, October 11th. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 11 minutes, setting at 7:05, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:54. The Moon, 2 days past full, will rise at 8:02 this evening.

Ada Lovelace (1815-1852), or more properly Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace, was the daughter of Lord Byron and worked for Charles Babbage, a brilliant mechanical engineer and mathematician in the early 19th century. She is considered the first computer programmer. She devised a way to use the same punch cards that were used on the Jacquard loom to store and run her programs, even though Babbage was unable to complete his mechanical computer the Analytical Engine in the mid 1800s. This day is set aside to celebrate the accomplishments of all the women of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, (STEM). The computer language, Ada, was named after her, and was created for the US Department of Defense.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Portrait of Ada Lovelace by Margaret Sarah Carpenter, 1836

Part of Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine on display, in 1843, left of centre in this engraving of the King George III Museum in King’s College, London. Unknown engraver.

Trial model of a part of the Analytical Engine, built by Charles Babbage, as displayed at the Science Museum (London). By Bruno Barral (ByB), CC BY-SA 2.5.

10/10/2022 – Ephemeris – Indigenous Peoples Day

This is Ephemeris for Indigenous Peoples Day, Monday, October 10th. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 14 minutes, setting at 7:06, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:53. The Moon, 1 day past full, will rise at 7:39 this evening.

Today the United States celebrates Columbus Day, a Monday near the date Christopher Columbus landed on a Caribbean island, and found people who got there at least 15 thousand years earlier. Due to superior technology, and nothing else really, the Europeans conquered the peoples of the continents they called the Americas, deeming the indigenous peoples, incorrectly, as savages. My astronomical journey started with learning the constellations and stories from the ancient Greeks. About twelve years ago I began to investigate the constellations and stories of the Anishinaabe peoples, whose ancestral lands we live on, which turn out to be as rich and meaningful as those I learned in my youth from the Old World.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Proclamation by Governor Whitmer:

October 10, 2022: Indigenous Peoples’ Day

October 10, 2022

WHEREAS, the idea of Indigenous Peoples’ Day was first proposed in 1977 by a delegation of Native Nations to the United Nations-sponsored International Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Populations in the Americas; and,

WHEREAS, in 1990, representatives from 120 Indigenous Nations at the First Continental Conference on 500 Years of Indian Resistance unanimously passed a resolution to transform Columbus Day into an opportunity to reveal historic truths about pre-existing Indigenous cultures and Peoples that have survived a colonization process, most often violent, and continue to exist and thrive in present day America; and,

WHEREAS, the United States endorsed the United Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples on December 16, 2010, and Article 15 of that declaration states:

• Indigenous Peoples have the right to the dignity and diversity of their cultures, traditions, histories, and aspirations, which shall be appropriately reflected in education and public information.
• States should take effective measures, in consultation and cooperation with the Indigenous Peoples concerned, to combat prejudice and eliminate discrimination and to promote tolerance, understanding, and good relations among Indigenous Peoples and all other segments of society; and,

WHEREAS, the state of Michigan recognizes the presence of the three major tribal groups in our state today, the Chippewa (Ojibwe), Ottawa (Odawa), and Potawatomi (Bodéwadmik), who have lived upon this land since time immemorial, and values the progress our society has accomplished through Native American thought, culture, and contributions; and,

WHEREAS, many communities and municipalities in the land we now call Michigan have passed resolutions to officially recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day on the second Monday in October; and,

WHEREAS, the resolution states that Indigenous Peoples’ Day shall be used to reflect upon the ongoing struggles of Indigenous Peoples on this land and to celebrate the thriving cultures and values that the Odawa, Ojibwe, Bodéwadmik, and other Indigenous Peoples contribute to society; and,

WHEREAS, on this second Monday of October, we should honor the historic, cultural, and contemporary significance of Indigenous Peoples and their ancestral lands that also became known as the Americas and celebrate their contributions to communities throughout the land we now call Michigan, the United States, and all over the world;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan, do hereby proclaim October 10, 2022, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day in Michigan to uplift our country’s Indigenous roots, history, and contributions.

Turtle Island = North America

The Anishinaabe, of which the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi are a part, see North America as Turtle Island

07/04/2022 – Ephemeris – Space firsts, or attempts, on our nation’s birthday

This is Ephemeris for Independence Day, Monday, July 4th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 28 minutes, setting at 9:31, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:03. The Moon, 2 days before first quarter, will set at 12:53 tomorrow morning.

To celebrate our nation’s 200th birthday, NASA attempted to land the Viking 1 lander on the planet Mars on July 4th, 1976. The Viking was a combination orbiter and lander and had a twin spacecraft arriving almost two months later. Viking 1 entered orbit on June 19th and began to survey the prime landing area, that radar from the Earth suggested would be smooth, to land on the day of the Bicentennial. However, images from orbit showed too many obstructions, so another area was surveyed. The mission planners from JPL found a spot and sent the Viking lander down to land on Mars on another historic date, July 20, 1976, the 7th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Model of the Viking lander. Credit NASA/JPL.

The first Mars image from the Viking 1 lander, taken moments after touchdown. The Viking landers used rockets to land, after a parachute descent, because the parachutes would not slow the lander enough in the thin Martian atmosphere. The reason to photograph the landing pad was to see how far it would sink into the surface. Credit NASA/JPL.

NASA did finally make a historic landing on July 4th,

the Mars Pathfinder mission, with the first rover to operate on Mars, the Sojourner rover, landed on July 4, 1997. It was a microwave sized rover. The mission on the surface lasted 85 days.

Pathfinder collage, Left to right, the collapsed Sojourner rover attached to one of the lander’s tetrahedron petals; 24 inflated airbags, attached 6 to a side of the Pathfinder tetrahedron; launch of the Delta II rocket carrying Pathfinder to Mars. Credit NASA/JPL.

Sojourner rover investigates a rock named Yogi with its Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer to determine its composition. Credit NASA/JPL.

The Pathfinder Lander/Base Station and its deflated airbags from Sojourner. All communications from Sojourner to Earth is relayed through the Base Station. Credit NASA/JPL.

11/26/2021 – Ephemeris – Native American Heritage Day

This is Ephemeris for Native American Heritage Day, Friday, November 26th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 11 minutes, setting at 5:05, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:55. The Moon, 1 day before last quarter, will rise at 11:33 this evening.

It’s also Black Friday, the day retail stores theoretically make it into the black, profit-wise. When looking at the sky and the few constellations of the native Anishinaabe people of our area, I am saddened there aren’t more of them. There were heroes, warriors, animals, fantastic and real, just like the Greek ones we learned of the European world. But they were lost in the attempted assimilation of these people into white society. It’s like the Borg of Star Trek: “You will be assimilated”. The atrocities of the Indian boarding schools are slowly coming to light, while certain powerful people want all the racial unpleasantness swept under the rug.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

The Anishinaabe November Sky. Clockwise (sort of) from the top or North. The Fisher (Big Dipper); Loon (Little Dipper); Exhausted Bather (Hercules), in the northwest; high in the west, the Crane (Cygnus); nearly overhead, the Moose (Pegasus); and in the east the Wintermaker (Orion). Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium. The Anishinaabe constellation drawings are from Ojibwe Sky Star Map Constellation Guide by Annette S. Lee, William Wilson, Jeffrey Tibbets and Carl Gawboy available locally and online. They are part of the latest editions of Stellarium, a free planetarium program. Links to it are on the right. Other information and links are available within Stellarium.

11/25/2021 – Ephemeris – Happy Thanksgiving

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 25th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 13 minutes, setting at 5:06, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:54. The Moon, 2 days before last quarter, will rise at 10:24 this evening.

We are regaled with stories of the first Thanksgiving dinner between the Native Americans and the Pilgrims. The Mayflower was headed for the Virginia Colony but were diverted by a storm. Their first landfall in the New World was Newfoundland, where they picked up supplies. Intending to head south to Virginia, the passage became too hazardous, so they put into Cape Cod, where they stayed. Back in those days, the ship’s position was determined rather crudely. Latitude was measured by the height of the north star at night and the sun at noon. Distance and speed were measured with a log thrown overboard with a rope with knots on it. The knots counted over a period of time gave the ship’s speed and distance, which was recorded in a “log” book.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). Times may be different for your location.

Addendum

Credit: Scholastic

01/18/2021 – Ephemeris – The Drinking Gourd

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, January 18th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 18 minutes, setting at 5:32, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:13. The Moon, 2 days before first quarter, will set at 11:34 this evening.

This day is set aside to honor the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who gave his life for the struggle for equality for blacks and other minorities and to end segregation. A struggle that continues to this day. In the decades before the Civil War runaway slaves would travel, often at night, northward from the slave states of the south to the northern free states and Canada over the metaphorical Underground Railroad following the Drinking Gourd, the Big Dipper as their compass. Over the last several millennia the Great Bear, Ursa Major has been that northward pointer. For much of that time the North Pole of the sky had been passing near the handle of the Big Dipper or bear’s tail.

The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.

Addendum

An animation showing the Big Dipper, also known as the Drinking Gourd pointing to Polaris, the North Star which is just about due north. This is for 9 pm January 18th, about 3 1/2 hours after sunset. Created using Stellarium with additional annotations.

12/24/2019 – Ephemeris – Was this the star of Bethlehem?

Ephemeris for Christmas Eve, Tuesday, December 24th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 48 minutes, setting at 5:06, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:18. The Moon, 2 days before new, will rise at 7:41 tomorrow morning.

Many writers of the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD place Jesus’ birth around 2 BC, which had to be before Herod the Great’s death, which I suggest was in 1 BC marked by to a total lunar eclipse. So the Star of Bethlehem could appear several years later than the triple conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in 7 BC that’s been popular. In 3 and again in 2 BC there were star-like conjunctions or apparent joinings of the planets Jupiter and Venus against the backdrop of constellation of Leo the Lion. A lion is related to Judah, son of Jacob by a blessing the latter gave his 12 sons in Genesis. The first conjunction occurred in August of 3 BC in the morning sky. In June the next year the two planets got together again, this time in the evening sky, a month or more after Jesus would have been born in the lambing season of spring.

The times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Here is an animation created using Stellarium of Jupiter and Venus, the brighter of the two seeming to coalesce on August 12, 3 BC in the early morning twilight. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.

On June 16th 2 BC, this time in the evening, Venus and Jupiter seem to coalesce as one, at least to the naked eye.  The first few frames contain the Sickle asterism of Leo the lion’s head and mane. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.

I have much more information on this topic in my December 2, 2016 posting: https://bobmoler.wordpress.com/2016/12/02/12022016-ephemeris-my-talk-about-the-star-of-bethlehem-is-tonight/

06/17/2019 – Ephemeris – President Kennedy wanted to get us to the Moon… But how?

Ephemeris for Monday, June 17th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:30, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, at full today, will rise at 9:56 this evening.

President Kennedy’s Challenge to land “a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth” came only 20 days after Alan Shepard’s sub-orbital flight and 45 days after Yuri Gagarin’s orbital flight. To the NASA designers the question was how! Three scenarios were studied. The Moon direct approach where the spacecraft would be sent intact to the Moon and back which would take a really gigantic rocket. The Earth rendezvous where the spacecraft would be assembled in Earth orbit and then sent to the Moon. And the lunar orbit rendezvous where only part of the craft would be sent down to the lunar surface, while the main craft stayed in orbit of the Moon. After a lot of study the third option was accepted. It was up to project Gemini to develop the skills necessary to rendezvous and dock two spacecraft in orbit.

The times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Three flight techniques to land on the Moon. John Houbolt, who came up with the Lunar Orbit Rendezvous went through a lot of grief before his method was accepted in 1962. Credit: NASA.

06/13/2019 – Ephemeris – Project Mercury

Ephemeris for Thursday, June 13th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 32 minutes, setting at 9:29, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 3 days past first quarter, will set at 4:23 tomorrow morning.

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon we’ll look at the first human space mission program, Mercury. It was taken over from the Air Force by the newly organized NASA space agency in 1958. It’s mission to launch a man in orbit, having him survive for at least a day and return him to the Earth. Alan Shepard crewed the first Mercury launch on a suborbital hop on May 5th, 1961, 25 days after the Soviet Union launched Yuri Gagarin on a single orbit of the Earth. On the third Mercury Launch John Glenn was the first American to orbit the Earth in his Friendship 7 capsule. In all there were 6 flights in the Mercury program. Of the seven Mercury astronauts, only Deke Slayton never flew on Mercury for medical reasons buy flew in the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975.

The times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.

Addendum

The seven Mercury astronauts were (from left) Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, Deke Slayton, Gus Grissom, John Glenn, Gordon Cooper and Scott Carpenter. Credits: NASA

The Mercury Capsule diagram. Not shown is the Retropack on the back of the heat shield held on by straps.  The Retropack contained solid rockets to slow the capsule so it can descend from orbit. Credit: NASA.

10/09/2018 – Ephemeris – Ada Lovelace Day

Ephemeris for Ada Lovelace Day, Tuesday, October 9th. The Sun will rise at 7:50. It’ll be up for 11 hours and 17 minutes, setting at 7:08. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 7:53 this evening.

Ada Lovelace Day is dedicated to Lord Byron’s daughter as the first computer programmer more than a century before the computer as we know it was invented. She worked with Charles Babbage as he designed his Analytical Engine, which would have been the world’s first truly general purpose computer, mechanical though it was.  The day is also dedicated to women in the STEM fields: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Two days from now, the 11th will be the International Day of the Girl, promoting the education and possibilities of 52% of the population that aren’t male. Some of the female astronomers I follow on Twitter are astrophysicist Dr. Katherine Mack as @AstroKatie, planetary radar astronomer Alessondra Springmann as @sondy, planetary scientist Carolyn Porco, @carolynporco. These are a few, and in my field of computer programming, I celebrate the late Admiral Grace Hopper.

The times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Ada, Countess of Lovelace (1815-1852) considered the first computer programmer, even though the machine she wrote code for was never completed. Credit: Science & Society Picture Library

Trial model of a part of the Analytical Engine, built by Charles Babbage, as displayed at the Science Museum (London). By Bruno Barral (ByB), CC BY-SA 2.5.

The analytic Engine was designed to be programed with punch cards.