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News and Announcements
Co-orbiting Asteroids named after John and Maire Percy On June 16, 2006, the International Astronomical Union confirmed that a pair of asteroids has been named in honor of long-time AAVSO colleague Dr. John Percy and his wife Maire. John, a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Toronto, has spent much of his career interested in variable stars and has always been keenly involved in promoting science education. Maire Percy is internationally known for her work on risk factors in human disease and is an emeritus professor of physiology, obstetrics, and gynecology. John has been a member of the AAVSO since the late 1970s, serving as President from October 1989 to September 1991. He has also served several terms on the AAVSO council and is currently chairing the education committee. The asteroids, now called Johnpercy and Mairepercy, move in related paths as they orbit the sun. Congratulations to John and Maire! Elizabeth Waagen receives AL's Peltier Award We are very proud to announce that AAVSO Senior Technical Assistant, Elizabeth Waagen, has been awarded the Astronomical League's prestigious Leslie C. Peltier Award for 2006. The Astronomical League presented the award to Elizabeth for her contributions to variable star research and for her work as Interim Director, guiding the AAVSO through the difficult time during the 18 months that encompassed Janet Mattei's illness and death and the subsequent search to find a new Director. Our congratulations to Elizabeth for receiving this well deserved honor. For more information on the Leslie C. Peltier Award visit: http://www.astroleague.org/al/awards/peltier/peltiers.html A Total Eclipse On March 29, 2006, AAVSO staff members Gamze Menali and Sara Beck, Haldun Menali (Gamze's husband and an active AAVSO member/observer), and AAVSO member/observer Gerry Samolyk, were in Side, Turkey, to view the latest total solar eclipse. A picturesque resort town on the Mediterranean coast, Side (pronounced 'see day') made for an excellent viewing point, just a few hundred meters from the center line of the eclipse path. From this vantage point the duration of the eclipse's totality was at its maximum -- about 3 minutes and 46 seconds.
A short written essay about their trip, complete with pictures and an audio segment, is currently available on the AAVSO website. You can view it at the URL: http://www.aavso.org/news/eclipse2006.shtml. Upcoming AAVSO Meetings Autumn is a beautiful time to visit New England. Bring your families and stay a few extra days to enjoy the sights! Whether you have attended dozens of AAVSO meetings or are a first-time attendee, we hope to see you in Newton for the 95th Annual Meeting of the AAVSO. It is sure to be an interesting and exciting weekend. More information is available on the website at: http://www.aavso.org/aavso/meetings/fall06.shtml Future Meetings: New Solar Team AAVSO Solar Committee Chairman and Sunspot Group Leader Carl Feehrer stepped down this spring after six years of service. Since taking over in 2000, Carl skillfully evaluated and reduced sunspot observations, calculated the American Relative Sunspot Numbers, and served as editor of the monthly AAVSO Solar Bulletin. He also worked closely with the SID group and maintained a strong relationship with all the contributing solar observers. We are most grateful to Carl for his hard work and dedication. We look forward to his continued contributions of sunspot observations as well as his assistance in other areas and as a volunteer at Headquarters. The new Solar Committee Chair and Solar Bulletin editor is Paul Mortfield. Paul is an AAVSO member and a very enthusiastic and active solar observer. Paul began observing the sun in his early teens, making sunspot counts, measuring sunspot coordinates, and was even interested in solar radio observations. He's also built several SID receivers. Newcomer Daniel Williams will take over as Sunspot Group Leader. Mike Hill will continue to serve as the solar flare/SID group leader, a position he's held since 2000. Extrasolar Planet Discovery We're pleased to announce that AAVSO observers Tonny Vanmunster and Bruce Gary were part of an international team that has discovered an extrasolar planet. The team of astronomers, led by Peter McCullough of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, discovered a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting a Sun-like star some 600 light-years from Earth in the constellation Corona Borealis. Vanmunster and Gary are among a group of four amateurs assisting McCullough. They used their telescopes to detect slight dips in the star's light output when the planet passed in front of the star, called a transit. The light from the star, called XO-1, dips by approximately 2 percent when the planet, XO-1b, passes in front of it. While over 180 extrasolar planets have been detected, XO-1b is only the tenth planet discovered using the transit method. Congratulations to Tonny and Bruce and the entire team on this impressive achievement! |
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