http://astrotalkuk.org Hosted by an amateur astronomer, AstrotalkUK is podcast looking at the role, activities and achievements of amateur astronomers in the UK. Mon, 26 Jul 2010 22:04:57 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Copyright © 2010 AstrotalkUK - Amateur astronomy in the UK gurbir@gurbir.co.uk (info@astrotalkuk.org) gurbir@gurbir.co.uk (info@astrotalkuk.org) astronomy 1440 http://astrotalkuk.org/wp-content/uploads/atuk144144.jpg http://astrotalkuk.org 144 144 Amateur Astronomy in the UK Hosted by an amateur astronomer, AstrotalkUK is podcast looking at the role, activities and achievements of amateur astronomers in the UK. Mostly a prerecorded mp3 audio file but occasionally accompanied by a video too. The internet being what it is, content will not be limited to the UK nor will the contributors always be amateur astronomers. Astronomy, Space, Solar System, Cosmos, Universe, Moon, Earth, Moon info@astrotalkuk.org info@astrotalkuk.org gurbir@gurbir.co.uk no no http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/07/11/wordcampuk-manchester-17-18-july-2010/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/07/11/wordcampuk-manchester-17-18-july-2010/#comments Sun, 11 Jul 2010 08:32:46 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=416 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/07/11/wordcampuk-manchester-17-18-july-2010/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/07/01/ed-mitchell-apollo-14-astronaut-in-pontefract/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/07/01/ed-mitchell-apollo-14-astronaut-in-pontefract/#comments Thu, 01 Jul 2010 06:52:30 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=413 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/07/01/ed-mitchell-apollo-14-astronaut-in-pontefract/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/06/05/episode-34-may-31st-2010-effelsberg-radio-telescope/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/06/05/episode-34-may-31st-2010-effelsberg-radio-telescope/#comments Sat, 05 Jun 2010 23:12:26 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=357 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/06/05/episode-34-may-31st-2010-effelsberg-radio-telescope/feed/ 0 00:01:01 Nestling in a valley amongst the rolling green hills of the Eifel region of western Germany is the 100m Effelsberg steerable radio telescope. Similar to ... Nestling in a valley amongst the rolling green hills of the Eifel region of western Germany is the 100m Effelsberg steerable radio telescope. Similar to the Lovell telescope at Jodrell Bank which is on the plains of Cheshire in northwest England which can be seen from miles away. The  Effelsberg telescope  is situated in a valley so it easy to pass close by and not see it. It is an international facility. Participating in Very Long Base Interferometry (VLBI) where physical links are necessary with other countries it also hosts astronomers from many other countries  and participates in global research projects. Although its website may appear a littel dated, Effelsberg has a surprisingly rich online presence including the current schedule and of course the now mandatory webcam. Effelsberg is a leading player in a new international project called LOw Frequency ARray or LOFAR.  Lofar targets the low frequency range between 10MHZ and 250MHZ. However, for many years commercial FM radio stations, the local emergency services and the aviation industry have been using frequencies between 90MHZ and 108MHZ so Lofar range is split in to two bands. Low (10-90MHZ) and high (108 - 250MHZ). Thus there are in fact three telescopes at Effelsberg. On a recent visit, Dr Norbert Junkes talked about the previous, current and new activities taking place at Effelsberg. Uncategorized info@astrotalkuk.org no no http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/05/03/ideas-worth-spreading-ted-com/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/05/03/ideas-worth-spreading-ted-com/#comments Mon, 03 May 2010 15:59:51 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=346 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/05/03/ideas-worth-spreading-ted-com/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/16/apollo-astronaut-visiting-uk-%e2%80%93-update-3/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/16/apollo-astronaut-visiting-uk-%e2%80%93-update-3/#comments Fri, 16 Apr 2010 07:35:34 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=341 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/16/apollo-astronaut-visiting-uk-%e2%80%93-update-3/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/15/apollo-astronaut-visiting-uk-%e2%80%93-update-2/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/15/apollo-astronaut-visiting-uk-%e2%80%93-update-2/#comments Thu, 15 Apr 2010 14:29:41 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=339 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/15/apollo-astronaut-visiting-uk-%e2%80%93-update-2/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/15/apollo-astronaut-visitingh-uk-update/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/15/apollo-astronaut-visitingh-uk-update/#comments Thu, 15 Apr 2010 10:23:52 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=334 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/04/15/apollo-astronaut-visitingh-uk-update/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/01/29/one-of-my-episodes-is-missing/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/01/29/one-of-my-episodes-is-missing/#comments Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:00:29 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=292 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/01/29/one-of-my-episodes-is-missing/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/01/07/astronomy-on-local-radio/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/01/07/astronomy-on-local-radio/#comments Thu, 07 Jan 2010 15:59:46 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=250 http://astrotalkuk.org/2010/01/07/astronomy-on-local-radio/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2009/08/16/episode-29-venus/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2009/08/16/episode-29-venus/#comments Sun, 16 Aug 2009 09:46:44 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=182 http://astrotalkuk.org/2009/08/16/episode-29-venus/feed/ 0 13:31 In size, mass and orbit Venus is the nearest Earth has to a twin in the Solar System. It is the brightest object in ... In size, mass and orbit Venus is the nearest Earth has to a twin in the Solar System. It is the brightest object in the sky after the sun and moon, hottest planet in the solar system, has a day longer than its year, is named after the Roman goddess of love and yet it has a deadly atmosphere and its the one planet that gets closer to the Earth than any other. In this episode, recorded in late 2008, Professor Fred Taylor, Jesus College Oxford, talks about the Venus Express mission. ==================================== This week’s quote is my rather obtuse reference to the runaway greenhouse effect on the planet Venus. Its from Will Rogers and its what he says to his niece on  seeing Venus de Milo in the Louvre in Paris. “See what will happen if you don't stop biting your fingernails?” Uncategorized info@astrotalkuk.org no no http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/08/11/new-arrival/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/08/11/new-arrival/#comments Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:31:09 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=89 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/08/11/new-arrival/feed/ 1 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/07/25/temporary-upload-problem/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/07/25/temporary-upload-problem/#comments Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:24:27 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=62 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/07/25/temporary-upload-problem/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/07/13/wordcampuk/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/07/13/wordcampuk/#comments Sun, 13 Jul 2008 23:18:58 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=36 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/07/13/wordcampuk/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/04/14/astrotalkuk-downtime/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/04/14/astrotalkuk-downtime/#comments Mon, 14 Apr 2008 22:47:26 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=20 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/04/14/astrotalkuk-downtime/feed/ 0 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/04/02/episode9early-astronomers/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/04/02/episode9early-astronomers/#comments Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:11:30 +0000 Gurbir http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=117 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/04/02/episode9early-astronomers/feed/ 0 34:56 About 20 years after Galileo used the telescope for astronomy, William Crabtree and Jeremiah Horrocks used it to observe a transit of Venus in 1639. ... About 20 years after Galileo used the telescope for astronomy, William Crabtree and Jeremiah Horrocks used it to observe a transit of Venus in 1639. Carl Barry and Lilian Fletcher researched documented this unique event. If you missed it a 19mb video here. Former executive Paul Allen (Allen Telescope Array) from Microsoft and Wayne Rosing (LSST Observatory) from Google are modern examples of private investors in space research. Emerging from the the industrial revolution in the 19th century Lancashire were two similar individuals who contributed to making large mirrors and large telescopes. James Naysmith and William Lassell. Uncategorized info@astrotalkuk.org no no http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/31/a-quick-u/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/31/a-quick-u/#comments Mon, 31 Mar 2008 11:01:38 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=36 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/31/a-quick-u/feed/ 1 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/23/episode8the-astronomy-centre/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/23/episode8the-astronomy-centre/#comments Sun, 23 Mar 2008 14:08:23 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=115 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/23/episode8the-astronomy-centre/feed/ 0 28:01 The Astronomy Centre: If you head east out of the Lancashire town of Bacup along the A681 towards the Yorkshire town of Todmorden, a couple ... The Astronomy Centre: If you head east out of the Lancashire town of Bacup along the A681 towards the Yorkshire town of Todmorden, a couple of miles up a snaking undulating road, nestled amongst the green hills, wild flowers and the sheep you see on your left two large astronomical domes. This is the home of the Astronomy Centre. Founded by Peter Drew, it is the largest dedicated resource for the amatuer astronomers in the country. A not for profit venture, the astronomy centre has been developed and maintained by a diverse team of skilled, dedicated and industrious volunteers. Uncategorized info@astrotalkuk.org no no http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/09/episode6amateur-astronomy-the-next-generation/ http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/09/episode6amateur-astronomy-the-next-generation/#comments Sun, 09 Mar 2008 14:00:32 +0000 admin http://astrotalkuk.org/?p=114 http://astrotalkuk.org/2008/03/09/episode6amateur-astronomy-the-next-generation/feed/ 0 18:35 Amateur Astronomy - the next generation? In the 1960s and 70s astronomy did not have the competition from computer games, internet and TV. That apparently ... Amateur Astronomy - the next generation? In the 1960s and 70s astronomy did not have the competition from computer games, internet and TV. That apparently is what is keeping the young people away from participating in astronomy. Guy Fennimore, secretary of the Society for Popular Astronomy (SPA), suggests that astronomy is not the only victim and describes the SPA’s “young stargazers initiative”. Roger Pickard, the president of the British Astronomical Association, recounts the days of committed amateurs who made the telescopes they used and asserts the ongoing strong relationship between amateur and professional astronomers. This recording took place at Astrofest 2008, apologies for the occasional noisy background. Uncategorized info@astrotalkuk.org no no