I am on the trail of the 7500 year old supernova explosion near Cygnus.

Caution : Deneb in Cygnus is not Denebola in Simha. They are not even physically close. There are many Denebs. (They are qualified as Deneb Al This or That.)

• While Cygnus is translated as Swan — Cygnus pronounced as Signus is a variant of Signah or Singah (Simha).
• Interestingly again, the nakshatram identified below as Denebola, UttaraPhalguni, is in Simha and Kanya Rasis.
• It has been associated with bad luck in some astrological systems as indicated by source A below.
• Source B connects Deneb with Cygnus.

• Source A: “Denebola — sometimes Deneb (meaning “tail”) — is the modern name for this star, abbreviated from Al Dhanab al Asad, the Lion’s Tail,
• the Greek Alkaia (meaning ‘Mallow’);
• the 17th century German astronomer Bayer gave it as Denebalecid and Denebaleced;
• English writer on globes John Chilmead (circa 1639), as Deneb Alased; and the 17th century German astronomer and ephemeris creator Schickard, as Dhanbol-asadi. The Italian astronomer Riccioli (1598-1671) omitted the first syllable of the original, and called the star Nebolellesed, Nebollassid “of the Nubian astrologers,” and Alazet apud Azophi, his title from the 10th century Persian astronomical writer Al Sufi. Elsewhere it is Nebu-lasit and Alesit; the Alfonsine Tables have Denebalezeth and the very appropriate Dafira, from the similar Arabic term for the tuft of coarse hair at the end of the tail in which the star lies. The English astronomer Proctor (1834-1888) called it Deneb Aleet, and there may be other degenerated forms of the original. The 13th century Persian astronomical writer Al Kazwini cited Al Aktab al Asad, the Viscera of the Lion, or Al Katab, a Small Saddle: inappropriate names, the German astronomer Ideler (1766-1846) said, and inferred that they should be Al Kalb, which in the course of time might have wandered here from Regulus, the genuine Kalb, or Heart, of the Lion.
• It marked the 10th manzil (Arabic Moon Mansion), Al Sarfah, the Changer, i.e. of the weather, given by the 15th century Tartar astronomer Ulug Beg as the star’s individual title; and the Persian astronomer Al Biruni (973-1048 A.D.) wrote of it: “The heat turns away when it rises, and the cold turns away when it disappears.” English writer on globes John Chilmead (circa 1639) cited Asumpha, which he attributed to Alfraganus; Baily called this Serpha; and the 17th century English orientalist Thomas Hyde changed it to Mutatrix.
• With the 4th-magnitude Fl. 93, it constituted the 10th nakshatra (Hindu Moon Mansion), Uttara Phalguni, and was the junction star with the adjacent Hasta; the regents of this and the next asterism, the Purva Phalguni, being the Adityas, Aryaman and Bagha. The Persian astronomer Al Biruni (973-1048 A.D.), however, said that Hindu astronomers pointed out to him a star in Coma Berenices as forming the lunar station with Denebola; and they claimed that the great scientific attainments of Varaha Mihira were due to his birthday having coincided with the entrance of the moon into Uttara Phalguni.
• The Chinese knew it, with four small neighboring stars, as Woo Ti Tso, the Seat of the Five Emperors, surrounded by twelve other groups, variously named after officers and nobles of the empire. In Babylonian astronomy it marked the 17th ecliptic constellation, Zibbat A., the Tail of the Lion, although the German orientalist Epping gives this with considerable doubt as to its correctness. Other Euphratean titles are said to have been Lamash, the Colossus; Sa. Blue, the Assyrian Samu; and Mikid-isati, the {p. 259} Burning of Fire, which may be a reference to the hot season of the year when the sun is near it.
• The Sogdians (an Iranian people) and Khorasmians (east of Persia) had a similar conception of it, as shown in their titles Widhu and Widhayu, the Burning One; but the Persians called it Avdem, the One in the Tail. Hewitt writes of it as, in India, the Star of the Goddess Bahu, the Creating Mother. With theta (θ Coxa), it was the Coptic people of Egypt Asphulia, perhaps the Tail; but Kircher had a similar (Greek) Aspolia, in Virgo, as from Coptic people of Egypt.
• Denebola was of unlucky influence in astrology, portending misfortune and disgrace, and thus opposed to Regulus in character as in position in the figure.
• It comes to the meridian on the 3rd of May, and, with Arcturus and Spica, forms a large equilateral triangle, as also another similar with Arcturus and Cor Caroli, these, united at their bases, constituting the celebrated Diamond of Virgo.Several small stars, some telescopic, in its immediate vicinity, are the Companions of Denebola. [Star Names, Their Lore and Meaning, Richard Hinckley Allen, 1889].”

Source B  : “September night sky for mid northern latitudes

On a weekend or on a holiday if you have a good sunshine you might as well take out your binoculars and telescopes and give them a bit of a sunshine so that if some moisture is trapped then it would evaporate. Long spell of rains have washed out the dust in the atmosphere and if the sky clears up one has a crystal clear sky.

You can start with southeast where Scorpius, the Scorpion [Vruschik] is still well above the horizon. This is one of the constellations that quite resembles its name. The brightest star in this constellation is Antares (Jyestha).

Sagittarius [Dhanur] is following Scorpius. Center of milky way lies in this constellation. This region between Scorpius and Sagittarius contains number of clusters and nebulae and it is worth sweeping this with a good pair of binoculars. Look for M6 and M7, the best one is M22 a globular cluster. This cluster resembles a comet that is just discovered. It appears a fuzzy patch of light through a pair of binoculars.

Turn to west Arcturus, (Swati) is still above the horizon. Turn further right to northwest. Only the tail of Ursa Major, Great Bear is now above the horizon. Look for the second last star in the tail Mizar. This star is visual binary. It has a companion Alcor. Both the stars can be be seen if you have good eyesight. In Indian astronomy Mizar is Vashishtha and Alcor is Arundhati.

Well above the western horizon, above Bootes, you can trace out Hercules [Shauri]. The object to be looked for is M13 a globular cluster. This is a compact cluster of stars.

To its north is Draco, the Sea Dragon (Kaliya). It winds quite a bit through different right ascensions.

Right overhead is (almost) a right angled triangle of three bright stars. The stars belong to three different constellations. Altair [Shravan] in Aquila, the Eagle [Garuda] and Deneb in Cygnus, the Swan [Hans] are almost aligned on the north south line. To there is Vega [Abhijit], in Lyra, the Lyre [Swaramandal].

This group of stars was named summer triangle by Patrick Moor. All the stars are the brightest stars in their respective constellations. Vega which is the brightest star in the northern hemisphere. The second brightest of the summer triangle is Altair. Shravan is 22nd Nakshatra.

Look for Albeireo and M39 in Cygnus. Alberieo is a beautiful binary star whose one component is red and the other is blue. 5 inch mirror will split them. M39 open cluster or galactic cluster. Easy object for binoculars.

Well above the eastern horizon is one of the ‘land marks’ of the night sky is Great Square of Pegasus, the Winged Horse [Maha-ashwa]. You just cannot miss it. The sides of the square are almost aligned north-south and east-west. The stars on the western arm of the square make our 25th nakshatra Purva Bhadrapada and those on the eastern arm are of 26th nakshatra Uttra Bhadrapada. Purva and Uttara are in the sense of earlier and later respectively, in their movement in the sky and not in the sense of direction.
Halfway between Pegasus and the horizon is Cassiopeia [Sharmishata]. This is a constellation in ‘M’ shape with its right leg pulled too much to right. You might recall that Saptarishis are used for finding north direction in the night. This constellation can be used for finding north when Saptarishis are below the horizon. Take the first three stars of ‘M’ which make an equilateral triangle. Now take perpendicular bisector of the first and star. This line, when extended towards horizon will go through the Polaris [Dhruva], Pole Star. Using a pair of binoculars if you scan on the line joining third and fourth stars of Cassiopeia and extending to east you will reach a binary open cluster of stars h & c. These are lovely pair of star clusters.

The material here can be used freely.
It is, however, expected that the source may be acknowledged.
Credit : Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune.)

The site is created for the Public Outreach Programme, IUCAA
by
Arvind Paranjpye – arp@iucaa.ernet.in +91 20 2560 4601
Samir Dhurde – samir@iucaa.ernet.in +91 20 2560 4603

Page created June, 2007 and Updated Sep, 2007″

“The star map above is drawn for September 15, at 21:00 hours Indian Standard Time (IST) for the central station of India. The map shows slightly more sky than that will be visible from this station such a way that the map can be used elsewhere in India at 21:00 hers.  The map can be used at 22:00 hrs. in early at 20:00 hrs. later this month.  Use a flash light covered with red gelatine paper to read in the night.”

Credit : Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune.

Note on Uttara Phalguni : Two stars are at same time distance from Poorva Phalguni. If a single star has to be identified as Uttara Phalguni, then, as per Dr. Balakrishna, 94 bLeo/SAO 119076 / HD 102870 is the best candidate, despite Denebola being brighter. Reason is that Denebola is about 5 diameters out of Moon traverse band while Zavijava is in the moon traverse band. Uttara Phalguni, is also called Zavijava by Arabs.

Authorship and Copyright Notice : All Rights Reserved : Satya Sarada Kandula

All Rights for Sourced Material Vest with the Source.

şi tu crezi că trebuie să păstrezi

toate zilele astea stupid botezate, luni, marţi, miercuri…

De ce nu le numerotăm sau de ce nu le dăm nume de

păsări de flori sau

de oameni.                                                          Omul-luni, de Iulia Pană

Aceasta este propunerea mea pentru zilele săptămânii denumite după numele păsărilor. Dincolo de simpla denumire există, bineînţeles, şi o simbolistică a acestora.

Lebăda neagră

Mierla albastră

Minuniţa

Gaia roşie

Vulturul negru

Sticletele

Dropia

Photos: Black swan by gnuckx cc0, Monticola solitarius by Jojo2000, Aegolius funereus by Rex, Red kite by Alan Saunders, Aegypius monachus by JuliusR, Gold finch by Dave-F, Great bustard by Descoperă.ro (unspecified license).

I made a Cygnus Knight! Hes level 25 so far, and hes a Night Walker…Im on the quests for cygnus in Perion. I have 80% EXP, so by the end of this quest, i should be level 26. The current quest is to kill 20 wooden Masks…not TOO hard for me. The spirit summon SUCKS. Im maxing everything except that. And at the job advancement, im maxing everything except Vampire. It only looks cool- oter than that, it SUCKS. [Haha litterally ;P] I advise you to do the same with your cygnus knights..i mean REALLY. So, yep(: If im on tomorrow, then ill update my level (hopefully ill be 26 then.) Bye! Happy Mapling!

Here’s a small ensemble piece I composed for the Cygnus Ensemble performed in 2008 in New York. Enjoy!

I came across this yesterday while I was writing my 5K blog- Its kinda funny how the description of the weather makes Iraq sound like its the place to be! (Except on Sunday… that thermometer looks like its gonna burst!- Good thing I’ll be able to enjoy the “Sunny and very hot” weather for once!)

I really wish the comments would just say, “Hot as hell- hope the AC works”

In contrast to the days- I looked at what star constellations are here->

As soon as I am able to locate my compass- hopefully Ill be able to locate a whole lot more!

I’d say this is a start of something new for me, I can finally do something about MapleStory out of game ^^

I started playing Maplestory, again, a few weeks ago. They made this thing called Knights of Cygnus. It’s pretty cool. I made myself a Blaze Wizard. Here are some pictures.

I’ve been deliberating over whether or not to  modify the Canon EOS40D for h-alpha, I had also entertained the thought of purchasing the Canon EOS 1000D then modifying that instead of the 40D – well I’ve gone ahead and purchased the replacement Baader filter for the EOS 40D, not contempt with just the filter I have also purchased the Astronomik EOS CLS LPF as well as the QHY5 guider for the Eq6 pro.

I’m still trying to source some items for the 40D IR-filter removal, but I did have a chance to test out the Astronomik EOS LPF, I must admit a few years ago I looked at these filters after purchasing the Meade LX90 (my first scope) and could not justify the cost, at over £100 for a piece of glass the size of a 50 pence piece it seemed like madness, I naively thought it was just a gimmick. – How wrong I was.

If you own a Canon EOS camera and want to use it for astrophotography in light polluted areas, you have to buy one of these filters – I would say it’s mandatory, I can’t believe the results. I will definitely be looking at the other Astronomik CLS type filters for other imaging tasks. I am especially interested in the H-alpha filter they are marketing.

The filter arrived just in time before the weekend, thanks to Bernard at Modern Astronomy.

Despite  it being rather windy outside, I was conscious of the fact manfrotto- carbon fibre tripod doesn’t cope well in windy conditions, you really need as much weight as possible. I setup the AstroTrac in a reasonably sheltered area, with the Astronomik filter attached to the 40D and using my cheap 50mm vivitar f1.7 managed to get a decent single exposure.

Cygnus,

Canon EOS 40D with Astronomik CLS LPF, Vivitar 50mm f1.7 @ f2.8, AstroTrac TT320X

1x 120Second Exposure at ISO 800

The only problem I have with the 50mm is the coma, its almost unusable near the edge of the image, as soon as the weather is farer I will try using my old ASAHI -Super Takumar  28mm f3.5

Still trying to get into EMS, looks like they extended the patch by an hour.

“Dear Maplers,

We will go through a patch on Wednesday, 5 August, 2009,

at 4:00 a.m CET (GMT+2).

The patch will last for approximately 4 hours, and users will not be able to

access the game and the website during that time.

We apologise for the inconvenience.

[MapleStory Europe Patch]

1. Knights of Cygnus Launch Events:

- 20 & 40 Level-Up Event

- Remnants Of Black Wizard Event

- Spirit Pendant Event

2. New World “Demethos” Events:

- 2 X EXP & Drop Rate Event

- EXP Cards Drop Event

- Teo’s Reminiscence Event

3. Adding more Cash items in Cash Shop:

- New Pet: Kino

- New Hairstyle Coupons

4. Pigmy Egg items will be updated

5. Game related bugs are to be fixed

Time : – [Game] : Wednesday, 5 August, 2009, 4:00 a.m. ~ 8:00 a.m. CET (GMT+2)

- [Website] : Wednesday, 5 August, 2009, 4:00 a.m. ~ 6:00 a.m. CET (GMT+2)

Thank you and Happy Mapling!

- MapleStory Europe Staff -”

Looks like we’re getting a new world along with Knights of Cygnus which seems a little pointless at the beginning considering everyone who wants a Cygnus on that world is gonna need a level 20 adventurer, unless they also release the world transferal CS item.

I suppose after all my ranting, you’re wondering about these “KoC” and what makes them so cool. First off, they’re a new job class. And since before them we had the 5 basic classes that everyone is entitled to, we didn’t feel so special.

Knights of Cygnus give us all a chance to make one of 5 new classes; a total of 11 different jobs (including the infamous Beginner job). And doubling your choices is just spectacular. But all I’m really going to say in this post is how you go about making a KoC.

—

To make a KoC you must have an “Explorer” character that is level 20 or higher already made in the world of your choice. After that you must login as that charcter. This character will become tied to your new Cygnus player.

Once you login, after a minute or so, a video will start to play. It is the same video on the official Cygnus page, only this time, it shows your Explorer as a KoC. This video may be misleading, because your Explorer does not turn into a Cygnus. After the video, an NPC chat bubble should appear in the middle of the screen with Neinheart talking to you. He will ask if you wish to create a Knight and teleport you straight to Ereve.  There yet another chat should pop up or a character maker very similar to that of the one used to make Explorers.

Simply type in the IGN of your choice, gender, looks, etc. If the name is available and you are successful it will congratulate you and send you on your way.

For those of you who want to start playing your new KoC immediately, just log off and log back on. Get back to the character menu of the login page and click your new player. What if you can’t find your KoC? Do you only see your Explorer? Confused? If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions then listen closely. If you can’t seem to find your KoC but you can see your Explorer look to the bottom right of the page. See that arrow sign? Click it and it should lead you straight to your KoC. Congrats! Now all you have to do is follow what Neinheart tells you to do and get to level 10. Once there you can choose a class and start kicking tail.

Good luck fellow maplers! <3

Well, got back at 03:30 yesterday morning to a 20 degree difference in temperature!. The trip went well but not without some hassles (more on that later). We arrived in Alicante, Spain on 20th July, I was confident that all my equipment had been packed safely & securely to withstand the riggers of travelling abroad.

Got threw customs and collected our bags and picked up the rent-a-car…onward to Sanet y Negrals a small village West of Denia. We arrived at the house with a spectacular view of the valley with complete visibility of N<E>S.  I was already looking forward to setting up the Astrotrac, but first we had to nip down to the local market for supplies – after all this is supposed to be a family holiday, astro-imaging was low on priority list (wife’s).

20:00 time to setup - at last! As I unpacked my imaging kit something in the back of my mind told me that I was missing something. “Oh No!” (“expletive”). I had left the manfrotto Rc8 Ball-head! Great! I’ve completely mucked this up!. Sitting for a couple of minutes I stared at the Astrotrac and bits that I had with me, I had the geared-head which would attach to the tripod, and the Astrotrac would attach to the geared-head. The ball-head would then attach to the Astrotrac 3/8 threaded screw, the ball-head allows near 360 degree movement but without this there would be no way to orientate the camera for imaging.

I decided to leave it at that, pretty despondent about my gargantuan mistake I went off to bed.

After spending much of the next day involved in other holiday activities I tried to put my problems behind me… back at the house I had an idea, could I bodge something together. I put some ideas on paper to see if I could come up with a solution.

If I placed a hinge between two blocks of timber then use a long threaded bolt to adjust the altitude, then if I could make it swivel on the Astrotrac, I might just be able to make something work. This would give me up/down left & right movements to position the camera on the Astrotrac. I drove down to the local hardware store and picked up what I needed to build this make shift altz/az head.

The results were pretty good, it was surprisingly stable but I just couldn’t trust placing a 400mm lens on this “Heath-Robinson” work around so I stuck with the 17-40mm F4 lens.

With everything setup I was looking forward to getting some imaging done, despite the forest fires and light pollution from near by Denia.

With all the atmospheric issues I could still see more stars than when stargazing in Milton Keynes. I had a go at imaging Cygnus at 17mm, aperture set to f4. The image below is a 60% crop of the original, I had 10Subs @2min ea. all events considered I’m quite happy with the results.

“No, it’s Knights of Cygnus!“

GMS now has Knights of Cygnus or how they call it “Cygnus Knights”, the new patch will include the classes: Dawn Warrior, Wind Archer, Blaze Wizard, Night Walker and Thunder Breaker.