African Astronomical Society’s Post

Unlocking the Power of the Stars: How to Navigate the Night Sky Embark on a cosmic adventure as we explore the wonders of the night sky. Learn how to locate constellations and identify stars like a pro, while uncovering fascinating astronomical facts along the way. Join us on this celestial journey now! Secure Your Profile Today! @MoJoeLegacy @Everyone MoJoeLegacy.com #NightSkyExploration #StellarWonders #Astronomy101 #StarGazingAdventures #ConstellationGuide #CosmicKnowledge #AstronomyEnthusiast #CelestialJourney #NightSkyWonders #StargazingTips

Just finished this interesting course on Astrotechnology and how various instruments such as IR telescopes and spectroscopy can measure the doppler effect and detect celestial bodies in our universe

In a remarkable astronomical discovery, a team of astronomers has identified a new pulsar wind nebula, 'Potoroo'. This finding, with its distinct cometary shape, sheds light on the dynamics of pulsar winds and the characteristics of nebulae. #AstronomyResearch #PulsarDiscovery https://lnkd.in/eXfRqRy4

A rare astronomical phenomenon. Plan ahead and witness the celestial spectacle, a total solar eclipse. A once in a lifetime event. #TotalSolarEclipse #totalsolareclipse2024 #incareglobal

Stargazing is always fun, especially when there is an astronomical event to look out for! The comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, also known as the 'Devil Comet', is only visible every 71.2 years, and its time will come at the end of March! As long as there are clear conditions, you will be able to see it with a naked eye in the northern hemisphere. This cyrovolcanic comet is an ice volcano that can erupt, making it appear even brighter in the night sky. With a strong telescope, you may even be able to see it now! https://lnkd.in/eDQuiVw2

🌌 Understanding the Bortle Scale: Shedding Light on Dark Sky Quality 🌠 Ever gazed at the night sky and wondered about its clarity? Enter the Bortle Scale, a guide to understanding light pollution and the quality of our celestial views. 🌟 The Bortle Scale ranges from Class 1 (pristine dark sky) to Class 9 (inner-city sky), helping astronomers and stargazers assess the darkness of their observing locations. 🌃 But what do these classes mean? Class 1 sites offer unparalleled views of the cosmos, with faint celestial objects visible to the naked eye. In contrast, Class 9 areas are flooded with artificial light, obscuring all but the brightest stars. Why does it matter? Well, a darker sky means better visibility of celestial wonders, from constellations to distant galaxies. The darker the sky, the more stars are visible in the night sky! 🌌 Attached is an image illustrating the Bortle Scale for reference. You can find the Bortle Scale of your location by using websites like https://lnkd.in/g8uf8jeH I encourage everyone to look up and explore the night sky, wherever you are! Don't forget to check out lightpollutionmap.info to find the Bortle Scale of your area! ✨ #BortleScale #Stargazing #DarkSkyAwareness #astronomy #astrophotogrophy 🚀 Image source: Wikipedia

Now that the recent eclipse has made amateur astronomers out of some of us (especially those of us who were lucky enough to see the totality), this gives me the opportunity to talk about one of the contributions that MPS has made to the celestial sciences with our robotic fiber positioners! When a telescope is pointed at the sky, it captures an image that may consist of multiple objects such as stars or galaxies. Now if you wanted to learn more about any one of those objects, you can place an individual fiber optic at that point and collect spectrographic data which can reveal useful information like what elements it is made of, the speed and direction it is travelling, and more. Since there could be hundreds or thousands of objects of interest in a focal plane, you would need hundreds or thousands of fibers to make the most of the telescope’s precious working time.  The old way of doing this would be to drill holes into a “plug plate” and mount a fiber in each hole. A different plug plate would need to be used depending on where the telescope is pointed and when. This can be very time consuming to produce, and to change plates for different surveys. That is where MPS fiber positioners come in! Each positioner is like a little SCARA robot that can move each individual fiber to where it needs to be within microns, and within minutes. Combine our precise mechanics with sophisticated anti-collision software, and you see a complex dance take place with the sole purpose of learning more about the nature of our universe! Once again, I am just an amateur...so if you would like to know more, check out this page: https://lnkd.in/ej7MZHBi or this page: https://lnkd.in/ezstSceA or message me directly and we can explore further. In the meantime, Keep Looking Up! #astronomy #fiberpositioner #telescope #starhustler 🤣

A simple video explaining the relative sizes of astronomical bodies !!

How does gravity change the color of light? The phenomenon in which the light or other electromagnetic radiation emitted from an object in a strong gravitational field loses energy, causing its wavelength to increase and its color to shift towards the red end of the spectrum. One of the fascinating predictions of Einstein's theory of General Relativity is gravitational redshift. Why does it matter? ✅ Astronomical Observations: Gravitational redshift helps astronomers measure the mass and gravity of celestial bodies. Observing the redshift of light from stars near massive objects, like black holes, allows us to understand these mysterious regions better. ✅ Cosmic Clues: It's a crucial tool in studying the universe's expansion. The redshift of distant galaxies gives us insight into the rate at which the universe is expanding. ✅ GPS Accuracy: Even our daily technology benefits from this concept. GPS satellites account for gravitational redshift to provide accurate positioning data. P.S. If you like the content, then follow Indu Sharma #Physics #Astronomy #GeneralRelativity #Einstein #SpaceScience #GravitationalRedshift #Cosmology #STEM #ScienceExploration

What is the Lowest Astronomical Tide? Check out this article 👉 #AstronomicalTide #Shipping #Maritime #MarineInsight #Merchantnavy #Merchantmarine #MerchantnavyShips