h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Planet watchers are spoiled at the moment:

Immediately after sunset, and I mean as soon as the sun goes below the horizon, Venus is visible in the South West (in NW Europe, at least, sorry Aussies!), and stays visible for several hours.

Not so far behind, also in Aries, red Mars is clearly visible.

Next up is Saturn, which as Gnomon says is in Gemini, but some distance from the twins head stars, Castor and Pollux (Oooh, missus!), Saturn is almost into Taurus.

Then there is Jupiter, in the distinctive constellation of Leo, although the constellation is swamped by the moonlight tonight.

If you look around eight o'clock in the UK, you can see all four in the sky at the same time. I've only seen a better show of planets once, when Mercury was visible at the same time as these four.

People with zero interest in astronomy who have nonetheless read this far may be surprised to notice that they know the names of all those constellations. I have an explanation for this which this posting is too small to contain.

Hed

>> I've only seen a better show of planets once, when Mercury was visible at the same time as these four. <<

Unusual sight like this are rare. I was once able to observe the Sun, the Moon, Jupiter and Venus all at the same time.

It was on a clear summers evening just before sunset. Venus was at its brightest as was Jupiter. They were both visible about 10-15 minutes before sunset with the Moon just rising in the East.

Donald

Jupiter's moons are pretty clear at the mo too, like a little l;ight torpedo to the naked eye.

It was Saturn ... rings clearly visible with seven mag binocs. Leave me alone Fish. Why provoke me?

I am very old. I remember my father taking us outside in what may have been 1961, or 2 to see one of the first human-made objects in space. He was completely made up!
BTW, I don't think it was Sputnik, it wasn't *that* long back .. I was about 6-9, which means 1959-61...

That was probably Telstar Della, the worlds first commnication stallite. Launched 10 Jul 1962. Or it could have been Pioneer 5 launched 11 March 1960. That orbited the sun beteen Earth and Venus so could have been visible form Earth in the right conditions.

Your not as old as me!! I can remember the first trans-Atlantic TV broadcast in 1962. Lasted all of ten minutes with Richard Dimbleby getting a bit over exited.

Donald

Wow they had stars back in the 'olden days'?











*prepares to be 'slippered' have my 'wireless' privlidge revoked, no 'Holicks'*

Tried looking at the damn thing with 10x50 - just a blur, but panned accross to the moon, spotted a little shiney thing with "Mad in England on" Sooo *thats* wher Beadle 2 ended up.

We have a CD of Science Fiction themes - it includes an instrumental piece called 'Telstar' - so familiar! It must have come out when I was a child. (Telstar=Starlet - my ex pointed that out to me.)
Oh, jab, my father used to promise us a 'taste of the slipper' if we were naughty!

"an instrumental piece called 'Telstar' "

Laa la laa, la la la la la laaaaa
la la la la la laaaa la laaaaaaaa!

Laaa la la laa la!
Laaa la la laa la
Laaa la la la la la laaa, la laa la la la...

[repeat]

Hed

'We have a CD of Science Fiction themes'

Does it include "At the Gate" from "Pelleas et Melisande"
by Sibelius?

Hed

It's a really good piece of ... This CD also has the Captain Scarlet theme preceded by a piercing scream. What's that about?
BTW, Donald, I didn't see the first transatlantic broadcast.. we're in New Zealand. I remember getting astronomy books when I were a lass, and being confused, until I found some specifically Southern Hemisphere ones. We don't even seem to get any good phenomena here! No good total solar eclipses are expected til the late 21st century, I forget the date, but unless I equal Jeanne Calment, I'll be defunct.

>> it includes an instrumental piece called 'Telstar' <<

So it was, by The Tornadoes. Released in 1962 to commemorate the launching of the Satellite. Quite a big hit in its time. It was also the first British record to be a hit in the USA.

Donald

>> I didn't see the first transatlantic broadcast.. <<

Don't worry Della. You didn't miss much. No better the the shots of Neil Armstrong stepping on the Moon. I missed that live, I was in Bahrain serving Queen and Country.

Donald

Della, I arrived on this planet a few years after you, but remember a time when naughty kids could be delt without them being sent to some 'bootcamp' or the like.

Can just about remember trips to the moon, but Skylab onward dates me. Voyger, and Viking. Yet the ISS just does not inspire as they did.

Oh, getting serious, can't have that; a semi-daft question, but a real question:

Which way is up? The firstplace that had 'man' may well be Australia. When looking at a map, why assume an alien would know to go park over America, apart from monitoring of radio/TV signals over the past. Just say it was to fly 'radio blind' to Earth, the universe may be the other way up?

Also, down (or indeed up) south, can you get "upside down maps" in the same way Americans have maps with them at the center, not to traditional GMT line in the center?

The star just to the side of the moon?

Uhhh guys? That's no moon...

I have a bad feeling about this.

It was Echo I, and it would have been in April or so of 1962. A 100 foot diameter mylar "balloon" -- I saw it too, for the same reason! My dad got all excited and dragged all of us out to see it. " See that moving dot there? That's in space, men made that and put it there!!

What I saw was a very bright dot, moving pretty fast, like a jet, but with no noise and no running lights -- too !

A little sexist, that comment, but it started my love affair with space and spaceflight!

SC

Just looked it up -- Echo 1 was Aug 12 1960 to May 24 1968.

SC

Jab, I just came across this answer of yours. Yes, we can get upside down maps (just as a joke). I used to have one.

The moons gone!

oh no, It's just gone round t'other side of house

I've heard it said of people in Australia being "upside down" some kind of joke? I never found it funny... Ignore two opposite points on a globe then ask: In space can you even be upside down? If you could, which way is up?

Wish we could up-load pictures as what I did after that last post was... Using a Psion I took the image from its "World" app, fipped it. Then moved the image about so NZ was in the centre, just like the UK is on 'standard' maps. - It looks right enough, to me anyway. Maybe something to do with having an island with the land mass either side, dunno.

Anybody know where I can get a good printed 'upside down' map, with place names that are 'right way' up? - Would look good in a Willy Wonka chocolate factory - erm hall. Well, not as mad as clocks that go backwards. Like Footbacon - sure your house is not moving and the moon is static?