A website has been launched that will give amateur and professional astronomers a formal mechanism for reporting any unexplained phenomena they observe when studying the night sky. Within the framework of International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009), the Unidentified Aerospace Phenomena (UAP) Observations Reporting Scheme aims to provide a global focus for sightings by astronomers and contribute towards a better understanding of transient phenomena occurring in the atmosphere.

The reporting scheme has been set up by amateur astronomer, Philippe Ailleris, who proposes to use the unique opportunity of IYA2009 to collect additional and more rigorous information on UAPs, more popularly referred to as UFOs.

“These phenomena are mainly seen in the night sky, a domain that astronomers have long considered their own, and it is important to collect testimonies from members of the population that are trained observers. We aim to approach this controversial field of UAP sightings from a professional, rational point of view and without any preconceived ideas. Certainly whenever there are unexplained observations, there is the possibility that scientists could learn something new by further study,” said Ailleris.

Ailleris has developed a questionnaire that requests precise details of the sightings, including the location, time, elevation, velocity, apparent size and distance of the UAP, as well as a description of the terrain and weather conditions at the observation point and any sketches, photos, audio or video footage. A short and long version of the questionnaire in English and French can be downloaded from a dedicated website, www.uapreporting.org.

The website will also give information on common nocturnal and daytime misidentifications, such as sightings of satellites, weather balloons, rockets and natural phenomena such as meteors, planets, ball lightning, sprites and mirages. There will also be links to relevant websites where people can further check charts and details.

“As well as allowing people to double check their sighting against explainable causes, we hope that the website will be a useful tool for the astronomy community to redirect enquiries from the general public and to help engage with the public in discussions about the science behind what is seen in the sky,” said Ailleris.

The scheme is being launched in the run up to the IYA2009 Cornerstone Project, Galilean Nights, which will see amateur and professional astronomers around the globe taking to the streets on 22-24 October, pointing their telescopes to the wonders that Galileo observed 400 years ago.

“Many IYA2009 observers will be scanning the skies with all kinds of technical equipment -telescopes, binoculars, video-cameras, cameras with spectrographs – which creates an excellent opportunity to obtain supplementary data,” said Ailleris. “This is also a great opportunity to engage with the general public and discuss some of the challenges astronomers face in determining various parameters such as coordinates, altitude, distance, speed and size. I hope we can use this opportunity to enthuse young (and not so young) people and prompt them to start looking upwards and outwards to make sense of their place in the Universe.”

Further Information: UAP Observations Reporting Scheme website: http://www.uapreporting.org. or Philippe Ailleris (E-mail: contact@uapreporting.org)

Unidentified Aerospace Phenomena (UAP) Observations 2009 Reporting Scheme (PDF)

via www.iya2009.org

This year StarPeace following its main goals toward promoting peace and astronomy, has decided to celebrate International Day of Peace with the help of all astronomy clubs around the world who are joined StarPeace project.

StarPeace colleague are going to draw a Peace Line on Earth. On September 21, amateur astronomers will bring their telescopes between people near one of their historical sites, such as World Heritages and will show our solar system’s biggest planet, Jupiter and its Galilean moons.

MSS will be organizing barbecue with telescopes for everyone to view the Jupiter and its moons. Feel free to bring your own telescopes.

Start Time: Monday, September 21, 2009 at 9:30pm
End Time: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 at 2:00am
Location: Watanaiyaa antenna ground area
City/Town: Villingili, Maldives
Phone: 7926005
Email: info@sciencemaldives.org

Map:

Click to enlarge

Start Time: Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at 4:00pm
End Time: Thursday, August 13, 2009 at 12:00pm
Location: Lonuziyaarai kolhu
City/Town: Male, Maldives
Contact number: 7926005
Email: info@sciencemaldives.org
Facebook event link : http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=137740630258

Galileoscope

Firstscope telescope

FirstScope is an ideal entry level astronomical telescope. It is very easy to observe with, the user simply navigates the night sky by moving the tube in the direction of their desired object, making the viewing experience a snap! The compact design makes it easy enough to take with you on your next outdoor adventure.

FirstScope will be available at a special price of 25.00 USD plus shipping costs and duty per telescope. Please let us know if you want to place any orders for the FirstScope by sending an email to info@sciencemaldives.org. The deadline for placing orders is 10th June 2009.

Reference: http://www.astronomy2009.org/resources/products/firstscope/

Download firstscope_infosheet

Founded in 1919, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) is an international union with the mission of promoting and safeguarding the science of astronomy in all its aspects through international cooperation.

IYA2009 celebrates the momentous event of the first astronomical use of a telescope by Galileo Galilei between AD 1564 and AD 1642. A Tuscan physicist and mathematician, Galileo played a key role in the scientific revolution and has often been referred to as the father of modern observational astronomy.

IYA2009 is also the anniversary of many other historic events such as the Johannes Kepler’s AD 1609 publication of Astronoma Nova and Christiaan Huygen’s AD 1659 publication of Systema Saturnium. Kepler and Huygen are both physicists and mathematicians whose contributions to physics have had an enormous impact on the course of modern science.

Modern astronomy’s quadricentennial, the IYA2009 is an international celebration of various other astronomical and scientific milestones and is indeed a global collaboration as well for one of the holy grails of many an inquisitive human being _ the search for our cosmic origin.

The science of astronomy embodies millennia of collaboration across a broad spectrum of human backgrounds such as geography, race, religion and gender, and is a classic instance of science’s contribution towards the promotion of cross-boundary cooperation and collaboration.

The IYA2009 invites astronomers and people around the world to look up in wonder into the staggering vastness we call space and attempt at seeking answers to some of life’s biggest questions.

Who knows what awaits us!

An event to celebrate the International Year of Astronomy (IYA2009)
Hosted by the Maldives Science Society

Date: Wednesday, 11th February 2009
Time: 8:30 PM
Venue: MCSE Seminar Room

Launched in April of 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has been providing scientists and the public with spectacular images of deep space. One of the most technologically advanced pieces of equipment that humans have put into orbit, Hubble has helped researchers make important discoveries about our universe, ranging from planets and stars to galaxies and cosmology. Thanks to incredible efforts of scientists and engineers, the telescope has also given astronomers insight into the history and fate of our universe.

Hubble Facts
• The Hubble Space Telescope was named after Edwin Hubble (1889-1953) who discovered the expansion of the universe and formulated what is now known as Hubble’s Law.

• Hubble is 13.2 meters (43.5 ft.) long and its maximum diameter is 4.2 meters (14 ft.) It is about the size of a large tractor-trailer truck.

• Provided that Hubble passes closely enough overhead, it is relatively dark, and the skies are clear enough, Hubble can be seen with the naked eye.

• Hubble completes one orbit around the Earth (crossing over the same longitude line) every 96 minutes. Its speed is approximately 8 km per second (5 miles per second).

• On August 11, 2008 the Hubble Space Telescope completed its 100,000th orbit.

Dr. Kavan Ratnatunga
Dr Kavan Ratnatunga’s 25 year career included research at Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton (1984/86), Dominion Astrophysical Observatory in Victoria Canada (1986/88), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt (1989/91), Space Telescope Science Institute and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore (1992/96), and Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh (1996/2004). Highlights of over 50 publications in refereed Journals included the First in-situ sample of Field Halo K-giants in Galactic Halo (1983), and the First Quad Gravitational Lens discovered with NASA Hubble Space Telescope (1995).

On behalf of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), he is the chairman of the International Year of Astronomy IYA2009 committee for Sri Lanka.