IN THIS UPDATE:
Announcements
New! 2014 Old Farmers' Almanac
Classical Astronomy - Why Bother?
Astronomy Topics
The Dance of Saturn and Venus
Dear Friends,
Summer is wrapping up quickly, and here in Ohio, we are already enjoying cool autumnal nights, what I always call "good sleeping weather." Keep your eye on the Full Moon on Thursday, September 19. This is the "Harvest Moon" for 2013. So what does that mean? What is the significance of that? Read this article from our archives to understand this annual phenomenon, and how you can observe it.
New! 2014 Old Farmers' Almanac
The NEW edition of the Old Farmer's Almanac for 2014 is now out! You can find it in drugstores and supermarkets around the USA. I always recommend this worthy publication to everyone, as an important piece of Americana and as an easily-available source of astronomy information.
The OFA is the oldest publication in America, published annually each year since 1792. It includes articles on many subjects of interest to homeschool families, including cooking and canning, craft projects, and a miscellany of interesting nuggets. I was especially pleased to see an article on the history of fitness, featuring my personal hero, Jack LaLanne, who would have been 100 in 2014.
The OFA always includes a great deal of astronomy information, including a calendar of upcoming sky events for 2014, and several astronomy articles. Be warned -- OFA also includes some traditional folklore elements that fall under the category of astrology. I consider this a very minor and easily-ignored portion of the Almanac, and should not put anyone off on reading this otherwise-worthwhile publication.
All in all, the OFA is a bargain for only $6.99. If you see the familiar yellow cover on newsstand near you, pick up a copy! Drop me a line to let me know what you think!
Classical Astronomy - Why Bother?
PLEASE READ
I gotta tell you folks, I'm TIRED. I've been trying to promote Classical Astronomy for 23 years, and it has been a wearisome road to trod. For all these years, I have been trying to get people to go outside and learn about the sky, to restore the lost legacy of Classical Astronomy. As mentioned in the last edition of this newsletter, it's been eleven years that these efforts have been devoted exclusively to homeschoolers, and in all this time, I have not gotten a strong sense that many students or parents have learned how to directly observe the sky on their own, without relying on this newsletter or other external sources.
I do get an email here and there, with readers assuring me that my work has made some sort of difference. It's nice to hear that, and I'm grateful for the feedback. But I'd like to know WHAT EXACTLY people have learned. Has anyone learned any constellations? Does anyone follow the signs in the sky that mark the passing seasons? Has anyone even come to understand the monthly cycle of the Moon's phases? I'd like to hear some specifics, and find a yardstick for measuring success.
The last year and a half has been very difficult, between the implosion of our family homeschool business, our son's cancer, and the general, pervading sense that there is not much interest in Classical Astronomy, in homeschool circles or elsewhere. I was 29 when I started this effort, and am now 52, and don't feel as if this mission has been very successful. At this age, it feels as though my years are growing short, and wonder if anything will be accomplished in my remaining lifetime toward restoring the lost legacy of astronomy.
I am pleased to report that we recently had about 40 or 50 homeschoolers in Northeast Ohio gather for a dark sky program at Observatory Park in Chardon, Ohio. Under the glittering Milky Way, I hosted a laser-guided tour of the summer constellations. Here's what one mom had to say afterwards in an email:
I just wanted to also let you know that I have been homeschooling for 21 years. My oldest is 26. That is the best "field trip" by far that we have ever been on! I have been telling everyone!! Thanks for all you and your family do!!!!
This sort of response is very encouraging. I'm looking forward to doing more events at this location, and hopefully other places around Ohio and beyond. In this way, I hope to pass on a passion for learning about God's creation to another generation. (If you live in Northeast Ohio, please subscribe to our NEOastro newsletter to learn about upcoming events.)
Here's some other things I'd like to see happen:
* As mentioned in the last newsletter, I'd like to travel around the eastern USA and do FREE outdoor astronomy programs for homeschool communities. Such events need to be in suitable dark sky locations in each state (such as the green, blue and black areas shown on this map). If any local homeschoolers would be willing to plan and organize such events, I'd be happy to show up and provide a program.
* I would especially like to see homeschool dads get involved with organizing such outdoor events for their families and friends. Classical Astronomy is a very "guy-friendly" subject where the fathers can take the lead. Such activities can happen on evenings and weekends, when dads are available. Men can use this subject as an opportunity to operate as the heads of their households in this aspect of homeschooling.
* I'd like to organize groups of hardy, adventurous men who would like to camp in remote locations of the USA for "Dark Sky Devotionals." These events would be an intensive crash courses in Classical Astronomy. The men would study God's word to learn and directly observe how exactly "the heavens declare the glory of God." They would learn of the importance of the sky as a part of God's creation, the prominent role of the sky in world history and American tradition, and how it relates to Biblical headship. Men, if this idea resonates with you, send me at email at jay@classicalastronomy.com.
* I'd eventually like to see homeschool families gather on their own under dark skies for outdoor astronomy programs, to learn about the sky and to teach it their friends and family members. I'd like to hear about such groups networking online, sharing ideas, and reclaiming this abandoned subject for the glory of God, working toward restoring the lost legacy of astronomy in their generation.
Hope some of you can catch the vision outlined above. If so, please send me an email with your thoughts. The time is short, folks. I have learned from our family's cancer ordeal that I personally cannot allow "too busy" to become the all-purpose excuse for blowing off important things in life, and allowing rare opportunities to pass by, as the brief decades of life slip away. Hope to hear from some of you. Thanks, jay
Astronomy Topics
The Dance of Saturn and Venus
In this newsletter, we spent a lot of time promoting the rare dance of Jupiter and Venus that occurred in the spring of 2012. This event was especially wonderful, since these two planets are the brightest "stars" in the night sky, and this event was very conspicuously visible high up in the evening sky. We have a similar event coming up this week (though not quite as spectacular).
Look to the western sky this week, in the dusk twilight after sunset. You just can't miss the bright evening star, Venus. In the current season, this glittering celestial jewel is hanging low above the treetops as night begins to fall, to the south of the place where the Sun has set. Venus is the third brightest object in the sky, after the Sun and Moon, so it's an easy object to spot.
Once you spot Venus, try to notice the little "star" approaching from the upper left. This is the planet Saturn. From night to night over the evenings this week, Saturn will draw closer and closer to Venus, finally making its closest approach on the evening of Thursday, September 19, the night of the Harvest Moon. After spotting this conjunction of Venus and Saturn, turn around to see the Full Moon rising in the opposite end of the sky, above the eastern horizon.
Some readers might have learned that Saturn is many times larger than Venus, and might wonder why the enormous ringed planet is so much fainter. This is because Venus is much closer to the Sun, and thus more brightly illuminated. Venus is also much closer to the Earth. However, Saturn is very far away from our world at this time, about 10 times the distance from the Earth to the Sun.
Saturn is about to pass behind the Sun, as seen from the Earth, and it is on the opposite side of the solar system from us. So take your last look at Saturn for a few months, as it will soon be lost in the Sun's glare. But if you're an early bird, you'll be able to see Saturn in the morning sky before sunrise sometime in early December.
Til next time, God bless and clear skies,
