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Astronomy/Questions
| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
| black hole | 2/6/2012 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: I was just asking for some details on black holes. I saw the other day that basically the giant star ... A: ..and thanks for using AllExperts I'd like to say I had an answer for your question, but ... | ||
| Seasons | 2/6/2012 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: Howdy there I have been reading how seasons are formed due to the 23.5 degrees tilt the earth has. ... A: ..and thanks for using AllExperts Autumn is a kind of halfway point between summer and winter, ... | ||
| Angular Momentum | 2/4/2012 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: Howdy there Today I read that the Moon is slipping away from Earth and as it does its angular ... A: ..and thank you for using AllExperts You have asked a very good question! The answer lies with the ... | ||
| Luminosities | 1/31/2012 | Ed |
| Q: Star A and star B appear equally bright in the sky. Star A is twice as far away from Earth as star ... A: Patrick, the thing to remember is that the apparent brightness of objects with the same inherent ... | ||
| Expansion of the universe. | 1/26/2012 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: How accurate is the rate of calculated expansion of the universe? Has the concept been explored ... A: .. Perhaps if we talked about the so-called Hubble Constant, which in reality isn't all that ... | ||
| Expansion of the universe. | 1/26/2012 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: How accurate is the rate of calculated expansion of the universe? Has the concept been explored ... A: In your question you're actually asking about "gravitational redshift" which describes how gravity's ... | ||
| Mysterious Moon | 1/19/2012 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: Good day Mr. Patrick, i'd appreciate if you would take the time with an open mind and read this: ... A: .. I'm glad that you're intelligent enough not to fall for the nonsense cited in that book. I could ... | ||
| Milky way nebula location | 1/17/2012 | Ed |
| Q: I am writing a series of science fiction novels. I want pretty accurate locations of certain star ... A: This book is a little old now, but I still like it: ... | ||
| NGC pics | 1/12/2012 | Courtney Seligman |
| Q: Following up on my last question. The software I'm writing is for use on my personal laptop. The ... A: Here is the page with information about accessing the Sloan Digital Sky Survey database: ... | ||
| Telescope focus problem | 1/6/2012 | Paul Wagner |
| Q: I received a used Celestron 114 mm Newtonian 910 mm telescope for christmas. It came with a Bartow ... A: I think I know the answer. Most telescopes are really made only to focus on the stars---and they ... | ||
| Unable to see through telescope | 1/6/2012 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: I received a used Celestron 114 mm Newtonian 910 mm telescope for christmas. It came with a Bartow ... A: That's why we always recommend for novices to wait a while before a telescope purchase, and never ... | ||
| buying my first telescope | 1/2/2012 | Paul Wagner |
| Q: I am on a budget and I want to buy a reasonably good telescope and after some online reading ... A: I know what you mean about the binoculars. It is very hard for anyone to hold something like that ... | ||
| buying my first telescope | 1/2/2012 | Ed |
| Q: I am on a budget and I want to buy a reasonably good telescope and after some online reading ... A: Dipankar, good for you, for pursuing your interest in astronomy. There are two guys on AllExperts ... | ||
| buying my first telescope | 1/2/2012 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: I read your answer to a question about "celetron powerseeker 76 reflector".I was lucky,I read it ... A: I would make my next purchase a solid tripod for your fine 20 x 50 binoculars and use those on the ... | ||
| RA DE | 1/2/2012 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: Hi i have a EQ mount for my Celestron 114 Astromaster telescope and i have heard about the RA an DE ... A: Sorry, but I (and most other amateurs) star hop to objects rather than using celestial coordinates. ... | ||
| relative movement | 1/1/2012 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: I have a general question Sir, I've read that our Solar system is headed towards the Leo ... A: You jumped one phase too many, of our true motion... by too much "skip" reading. First, the Solar ... | ||
| Cosmic rays and climate change | 1/1/2012 | Philip Stahl |
| Q: A few months ago there were some reports in the media that a group at CERN doing cloud chamber ... A: I believe you are referring to the 'CLOUD' experiments conducted by a team at CERN headed by Jasper ... | ||
| Using coordinates | 12/31/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: Ok, i just got a telescope for Christmas and im really into it but i am clueless on how to find ... A: That's exactly why, in our great hobby, equipment (scope) comes LAST, not first. Knowledge comes ... | ||
| Celestial coordinates | 12/30/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: Whiting: Regarding the celestial coordinate system is it correct to say that the declination always ... A: Yes, the (North-South) declination value will remain nearly constant (see below) AS LONG AS you only ... | ||
| celestial coordinates | 12/30/2011 | Philip Stahl |
| Q: I know about the celestial coordinate system, i.e., that declination means degrees above the ... A: The most straightforward way to make conversions between any two coordinate systems is to use a ... | ||
| 10 Interesting Things in Our Galaxy | 12/28/2011 | Ed |
| Q: I need some help making a list of 10 interesting things that can be found in the Milky Way Galaxy. ... A: Mary, hello! i hope I am in time to help. OK, ten interesting things. I have to go out for New ... | ||
| 10 Interesting Things in Our Galaxy | 12/28/2011 | Paul Wagner |
| Q: I need some help making a list of 10 interesting things that can be found in the Milky Way Galaxy. ... A: For any amateur astronomer, this kind of thing is lots of fun! How about these for starters: 1. ... | ||
| 10 things found in our galaxy | 12/25/2011 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: I need some help making a list of 10 interesting things that can be found in the Milky Way Galaxy. ... A: ..and thanks for using AllExperts 1. super-massive black hole at center of Milky Way ... | ||
| Goldilocks | 12/23/2011 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: Patrick, I can appreciate the "Goldilocks" zones we exist in on many levels, from the planetary to ... A: ..and thanks for using AllExperts I saw that same fascinating program too. I can't personally verify ... | ||
| stars in the sky | 12/22/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: My daughter and I were outside looking at stars, and we noticed a very sparkly star. Red and bluish, ... A: First, Orion is NEVER in our Northwestern sky. The constellation of Orion currently rises around 6 ... | ||
| star | 12/20/2011 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: A while ago, my dad noticed a really bright star to the west. Staying still, no atmospheric trail so ... A: You're right...not Jupiter or Mars simply because of how the planets orbit the sun. The main thing ... | ||
| star | 12/19/2011 | Patrick Weiler |
| Q: A while ago, my dad noticed a really bright star to the west. Staying still, no atmospheric trail so ... A: .. I'd be happy to try and help with your question, but I'd first need to know your <b>location</b>, ... | ||
| Earth's North Pole in Relation To Milky Way Center | 12/16/2011 | Philip Stahl |
| Q: What is relation of the earth's north orientation (i.e. Polaris) to the center of the Milky Way? For ... A: From Norton's Star Atlas, there is a "Galactic Chart" which shows the celestial coordinates of the ... | ||
| entanglement | 12/15/2011 | James Gort |
| Q: I have just read the following 2 books: 'Imagining the Tenth Dimension' by Rob Bryanton, 2006 and ... A: Sorry - I forgot to include the link to Prof. Susskind's videos - ... | ||
| entanglement | 12/14/2011 | James Gort |
| Q: I have just read the following 2 books: 'Imagining the Tenth Dimension' by Rob Bryanton, 2006 and ... A: Let me preface my remarks with the comment that my research has not included the "early universe" ... | ||
| Star clusters | 12/13/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: I was wondering specifically about the coma cluster if you had any knowledge on that in particular ... A: just from what I read on the internet, like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coma_Cluster (The galaxy ... | ||
| science fair project | 12/12/2011 | Philip Stahl |
| Q: My science fair project is calculating the average angle of the sun year round in Utah. Last year my ... A: You do not give your specific location (longitude, latitude) but I used the latitude for Salt Lake ... | ||
| bright star in same place | 12/9/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: every clear night in the same place all year around there is a very bright star. it is in the ... A: Oh Cheryl, Just a word on astrology versus astronomy... ask the kid to get you an ASTRONOMY book ... | ||
| bright star in same place | 12/8/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: every clear night in the same place all year around there is a very bright star. it is in the ... A: NOT TRUE that planets can only be seen AT dusk or dawn... planets (and stars too) can be seen FROM ... | ||
| earth and planitary science | 12/8/2011 | Philip Stahl |
| Q: How does the tilt of earth's axis affect the seasons? A: Interestingly, I was certain I'd answered this question already several years ago, but on going ... | ||
| Building Reflector Telescope | 12/8/2011 | Paul Wagner |
| Q: I'm in a bind here. My son and I started a project based on internet and books from the library for ... A: You've come to the right place. The challenge here is to determine the focal length of that shaving ... | ||
| bright star in same place | 12/7/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: every clear night in the same place all year around there is a very bright star. it is in the ... A: Since the Earth revolves around the sun, it is impossible for the same object to remain in the same ... | ||
| New planet discovered | 12/7/2011 | Tom Whiting |
| Q: A new Earth-like planet has been discovered, c.600 light years away. Based on the information in ... A: Yes, I've seen basically the same information you have, but off the Kepler spacecraft website. Other ... | ||
| New Earth-like plant discovered | 12/7/2011 | Philip Stahl |
| Q: A new Earth-like planet has been discovered, c.600 light years away. Based on the information in ... A: The mean temp. of this new planet has been given as about 72F, but so far none of the sources I've ... | ||
| black holes | 12/5/2011 | Courtney Seligman |
| Q: What happens to the objects that are swallowed by black holes A: They fall into the singularity (the point of infinite density, temperature, and gravity) at the ... | ||
Astronomy
Answers by Expert:
Tom Whiting
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
Astronomy has been my hobby/pasttime for over 50 years. Currently own 3 telescopes, the largest of which is a 30 inch Newtonian truss Dob that is portable.I taught Astronomy/Meteorology at the University Level for 13 years before retiring in 1995. Being retired and home most of the time, I am able to answer all questions relatively quickly, unless it's a new moon weekend with good observing conditions. No astrology questions please, or questions about alleged UFO picture identifications.
Experience
Experience: Astronomy has been my hobby and study for over 50 years. We currently now own a 30 inch portable telescope (Updated - Pennsylvania`s largest portable telescope). It can be seen on our website at:http://www.velocity.net/~bwhiting and also attend several regional starparties during the year, and have been on 5 total solar eclipse expeditions.
Organizations: President, Erie County Mobile Observers Group for over 15 years.
Publications: Wrote the "Over Erie Skies" newspaper article in our local newspaper for 11 years (1975-86).
Education: Masters Degree- Taught at the University level for 13 years. Retired 20 years -USAF Pilot - KC-135 with 180 combat missions; Also Eagle Scout, Philmont staff 2 Yrs, Order of Arrow Lodge Chief, Ham Radio (inactive).
Awards: two discoveries: The mini-coathanger asterism in Ursa Minor (the little dipper) And the mini-ladle- another asterism in the bowl of Ursa Minor. Clients: Currently President of the ECMOG as mentioned above.
Education/Credentials
BS Metallurgical Engineering Grove City College, PAMaster's Degree, Gannon University, Erie, PA
Also retired USAF pilot, 20 years.
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