Bright comets and meteor storms are part of the great romance of the sky. In both cases, dust ejected from comets are responsible for the spectacle. In this talk, Rob McNaught will discuss what makes great comets and meteor storms concentrating on examples from the past 10 years.
Uppsala Telescope/Siding Spring Survey
Australian National University
Siding Spring Observatory
Coonabarabran, NSW
Rob McNaught has been fascinated with astronomy since the age of 7 on receiving a book for good attendance at Sunday school. He swapped it for "Timothy's Book of Space" and has never looked back! A life long amateur astronomer, Rob's first job at the age of 18 was as an astronomical site tester in Hawaii and later as a telescope operator in a geophysical research project. For most of the past sixteen years he has been at Siding Spring Observatory working on projects to discover possible Earth impacting asteroids and comets. It was during such work that C/2006 P1 (McNaught) was discovered.
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| Caption: Comet 2006/P1 (McNaught) imaged from Lesmurdie by Perth Observatory volunteers and astrophotographers Vic and Ben Levis, Wednesday 2007/01/17. |
| DATE: | Sunday 1st April |
| TIME: | 7:30pm |
| LOCATION: | Observatory back lawn (alternate venue if raining) 337 Walnut Rd, Bickley |
| ALTERNATE VENUE: | (in case of rain or high wind) tentatively - Lesmurdie Senior High School - call Perth Observatory to confirm |
| COST: | $5/person (Admission fees are used to assist us with production costs) |
| BOOKING ESSENTIAL: | Ticket numbers are limited Please call the Observatory on 9293 8255 with your credit card handy, or send a check or postal note with covering letter to: Summer Lecture, Perth Observatory, 337 Walnut Rd, Bickley 6076 by Wednesday 28th March, 2007. |
Here are some more details to assist you enjoy the summer lecture.
• Please note the lecture is conducted in the open air
• Bring a chair and insect repellent
• Feel free to bring a picnic dinner, no drinks or food will be
provided
• Please use the rubbish bins provided
• No refunds will be given
• Parents must exert strict control over the children under their
supervision for the obvious safety reasons and in order not to distract
the speaker and/or spoil the occasion for other attendees
• Parking at the Observatory is limited so try to minimise the number
of cars in your party
• For your own safety and convenience please follow the directions of
the Observatory staff, parking marshals and security officers
• In the interests of safety and because of the limited number of staff
NO tour of the Observatory facilities will be possible before, during
or after the lecture.
• Smoking is prohibited at the Observatory.