LSST simulation

I like this video showing what the LSST would look like, with a beautiful night sky:

Astronomy News: Joint Statement by President Barack Obama and President Sebastian Piñera

Today's statement by the Presidents of Chile and the USA mentioned astronomy:

Both Heads of State highlighted the effective collaboration in the fields of astronomy and astro-engineering which will allow the operation of the LSST and ALMA telescopes in the northern Chile, involving an investment of 1.5 billion dollars, with a close collaboration between public and private academic and research institutions in both countries.

I am very excited about LSST right now.

In memory of astronomer James Elliott

When asked, I often say Carl Sagan (COSMOS) and Gene Roddenberry (Star Trek) influenced me most to become an astronomer. However, my first astronomy memory is cutting out the New York Times article describing the discovery of the rings of Uranus to bring to school. (I think I was in 1st or 2nd grade.) Today I see that astronomer James Elliott, who made that discovery, has died:

In 1977, using a telescope in an airplane, Dr. Elliot led a team of Cornell University scientists to observe the planet Uranus when it passed between Earth and a star. Flying at night over a patch of the Indian Ocean where Uranus’s shadow was to be cast, he had the foresight to turn on his equipment more than a half-hour early. This allowed him to record a series of slight dimmings that provided the first evidence of Uranus’s rings.

I never met him nor could I have told you his name before tonight, but his work was inspirational to me.

"First Blast" at LSST

An exciting time for a new telescope is "first light," when the first images are taken. This picture is "first blast" for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope LSST at Cerro Pachon. They've begun leveling the ground for the telescope's base. I joined the "LSST Science Collaboration" and have been working on astrometry issues.

There's even an LSST webcam so you can watch the leveling.

My favorite jazz of 2010

This is my annual list of the new jazz albums I picked up and really liked. It's not representative, but if I didn't happen to buy it, it can't make my list!

Jacky Terrason, Push. I based on Nate Chinen's review and loved it. This was my favorite of the year. I need to go see him when he comes to Wilmington, Delaware's Piano Jazz Summit.

Gregory Porter, Water: This is a great vocal album. My wife would put it first without a doubt.

Keith Jarrett and Charlie Hayden, Jasmine. I love Keith Jarrett and he didn't let me done. Incidentally, I finally saw his trio live last June. Wow.

Those top three are way ahead.

Bobby Watson and the UMKC Concert Jazz Orchestra, The Gate's BBQ Suite. One reviewer said it's "smokin'." That's exactly right.

Esperanza Spalding, Chamber Music Society. Not exactly my thing, but it was just $5 at amazon.com and I enjoyed it enough to play it repeatedly. Nice to see her win at the Grammys too.

Jason Moran, Ten. I never know why I don't listen to Moran's albums more because they really are good as the critics say, yet I don't.

The Bad Plus, Never Stop. It's good, but I still like Give better.

The only other new album I bought was Joey DeFrancesco's Michael Jackson tribute album. I hate the tracks with singing, but picking up just Billie Jean would have been worthwhile.

Speaking at Chester County Astronomical Society

I'm looking forward to giving a talk at the Chester County Astronomical Society on "Brown Dwarf Stars."

• Tuesday, March 8, 2011 - CCAS Monthly Meeting, Room 113, Merion Science Center (former Boucher Building), West Chester University. The meeting starts at 7:30 p.m. Guest Speaker: Dr. John Gizis: “Brown Dwarf Stars.”

The mission of the CCAS of Pennsylvania:

The Chester County Astronomical Society was formed as a non-profit organization dedicated to the education and enjoyment of astronomy for the general public. The Society holds meetings (with member or guest speakers) and observing sessions once a month. Anyone who is interested in astronomy is welcome to attend meetings and become a member of the Society. In addition to the monthly meetings and observing sessions, the Society also provides a variety of services to the public, including astronomy classes as well as telescopes and expertise for "star parties" for school, scout, and other civic groups.

Time to move on Python

I've been starting some new projects and the unholy mix of IDL, Perl and Fortran I use to look at data and solve problems can't be efficient. So I've resolved to follow the smart people and move over to Python. It's free and there are lots of astronomy routines available, plus our undergrads at University of Delaware will all learn it in CISC 106, so I'll be able to use it for teaching too. Last year I said the same thing but only got as far as installing everything. Starting today, I'm going to get through the Astronomy Python Tutorial.