Re: [APML] Star trails ID challenge

["Paul M. Rybski" <rybskip@idcnet.com>]

>Hello and Happy New Year list members!
>
>This was sent to me by a friend in AZ as a challenge, wondering if 
>any of you can identify the bright stars above and to the right of 
>the cactus and what constellations they are in.  I still haven't 
>figured it out.  Details given:  taken on Nov.26, 2004 at 7:25pm 
>MST.  Good Luck!
>
>http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/joetemp/041126_29.jpg
>
>
>Stan Richard
>Events in the Night Sky
>www.nightskyevents.com

Dear Stan,

      OK, I think I have got it.  It helps that on Nov. 26th, 2004, at 
7:26 pm MST, the Full Moon has risen and so is casting shadows from 
ENE to WSW.  Given the shadow orientation, the direction of the photo 
is basically SSE.  The bright star at the top of the photo is Diphda, 
beta Ceti.  The moderately bright trailed star in the middle upper 
left corner are tau Ceti, while the slightly fainter trailed star 
below tau Ceti is upsilon Ceti.  The brighter trailed star just below 
middle right edge is Ankaa, alpha Phoenicis, and the fainter star 
immediately below that is kappa Phoenicis.  Hiding behind the tip of 
the Sajaro cactus is alpha Sculptoris, which I deduced because 
immediately above the tip is the very faint trail of HR 268, a 6th 
magniture M0 giant.  All identifications courtesy of Voyager 1.01 
running on a Power Mac G3.

Paul

________________________________________
Paul M. Rybski, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Chair, Dept. of Physics, and
Director, Whitewater Observatory
Goodhue 320
University of WI-Whitewater
Whitewater, WI  53190-1790

Office FAX:     (262) 472-5633
Email address:  rybskip@uww.edu

"The mind is not a vessel to be filled,
but a fire to be ignited."  Plutarch
_______________________________________________
Astro-Photo mailing list
Astro-Photo@seds.org
http://seds.org/mailman/listinfo/astro-photo