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Astronomy Cruise – Day 0
Late last year I was privileged enough to be asked by Captain Dave owner of the tall ship Manitou and the Traverse Tall Ship Company, based in Traverse City, to be the astronomer on their annual astronomy cruise. After the three times a day two hour cruises of the summer months they have three or four day “Windjammer” cruises after Labor Day. The astronomy cruise was scheduled for October 1-4 this year, and happened to be the last cruise of the season.
The Manitou is a 114 foot replica of a 19th century cargo schooner like those that sailed the lakes back then. It can accommodate 24 passengers on multi-day cruises, 62 on short day cruises.
The schooner Manitou at its dock in Traverse City
Boarding was on the afternoon before to get things stowed, and I had a lot to stow: 8″ Celestron SCT telescope, tripod, other telescope parts, christened “bag of bricks” by the crew, 2 battery packs, a Questar telescope on loan from the Leelanau School, and my traveling bag. I had a cabin to myself, so the tripod slept in the upper bunk.
After heading ashore with another passenger to get some takeout burgers and having a quick supper I set up my telescope, because the sky was clear.
My telescope aimed at the rising Jupiter, just visible.
Only tonight and Sunday night were forecast to be clear, so I wasn’t going to waste even this first night in port to observe the sky. Among other things I did spot comet Hartley 2. The south was affected by an unshielded sodium light on a dock south of us. Overhead and to the north were good and dark.
The bunk in my quarters (Not the first night)
After tearing down the telescope, I settled in to my cabin and a very comfortable, but narrow bed for a fitful sleep. I always have trouble sleeping the first night in a new place. The rest of the nights I went to sleep right away and slept soundly. My MP3 player and ear buds silenced the fellow snoring on the other side of the wall. The bed being unmade in the photo is my fault. I didn’t keep my cabin exactly ship shape.
Tomorrow is going to be a big day as we head out into the Grand Traverse Bay.
10/07/10 – Ephemeris – The star Fomalhaut
Thursday, October 7th. The sun will rise at 7:47. It’ll be up for 11 hours and 24 minutes, setting at 7:12. The moon is new today, and won’t be visible.
There’s a bright star that appears for only seven and a half hours a night on autumn evenings. It’s appearance, low in the south, is a clear indication of the autumn season. At 9 p.m. tonight it’s low in the southeast. The star’s name is Fomalhaut, which means fish’s mouth. That fits because it’s in the constellation of Piscis Austrinus, the southern fish. At our latitude it’s the fish that got away, because Fomalhaut appears to be quite alone. The dimness of the constellation’s other stars and location close to the horizon make the fainter stars hard to spot. They would be overhead in Australia. The earth’s thick atmosphere near the horizon reduces the stars brightness by a factor of two or more, so Fomalhaut appears to keep a lonely vigil in the south.
Times are for the Grand Traverse Area of Northern Michigan, USA.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 