That $5,000 'goto' telescope

Ask any die hard astronomy nut (or in my instance space case) what they would like for Christmas and you are likely to get a description of the latest motor-driven goto telescope with all the bells and whistles designed to do the star finding for you. If you are not in mind to spend $4,000 to $5,000 in one lump, what else could be a possible gift for the astro minded?

On the low end, you could start with a subscription to one of the two most popular astronomy magazines: Astronomy or Sky and Telescope.

The first is perhaps more beginner-friendly, the second more science oriented. Point your favorite web browser to www.astronomy.com or www.skyandtelescope.com where you can subscribe directly on-line to either or both.

For these cold and cloudy winter nights a good book to curl up with might be a nice gift. I have several that are among my favorites. The first is 365 Starry Nights by Chet Raymo. The book takes the reader through one astronomical event for each night of the year.

Another excellent book for the beginner is Nightwatch by Terrance Dickinson. This book is a marvelous march through astronomy with seasonal star maps in the middle.

Turn Left at Orion by Guy Consolmagno and Dan Davis is a wonderful guide to the night sky; for me the real draw of the book are the reproductions of objects accurately depicting the way on observer will see them. For example, the drawing of the Orion Nebula shows it as a gray monochrome with none of the flashy colors seen in the photographs of most astronomy publications. Look for these books and others at your favorite local book store or online retailer.

Other gift ideas can be found at www.telescopes.com which provides many types of equipment from binoculars to telescopes, plus all kinds of accessories from planispheres to eyepieces and tripods. One nice feature of the catalog; it explains the differences between telescopes, allowing the shopper to make the best choice possible. You can also find astronomy planetarium software for the computer.

These are only a few of the numerous gift ideas for the astro-minded on your shopping list. As for me, I want to go back and talk about that $5,000 goto telescope.

SKY WATCH: First quarter moon Dec. 17. Dec. 13/14 will be the peak of the Geminid meteor shower, the winter counterpart of the Perseids of August. The shower radiant, in the constellation Gemini, will be above the eastern horizon by 7 p.m. local time and provide a full evening of observing potential. Remember to dress warm, take a blanket or sleeping bag, a reclining lawn chair and a big jug of hot chocolate to your favorite dark sky place. Typical Geminid rates are at least a meteor per minute beginning late in the evening on the 13th, but occasionally reach 100 per hour or more after midnight on the 14th.

The Geminids have a curious history. While most meteor shower streams have comets as their progenitor, the Geminids have what appears to be an asteroid. It is called 3200 Phaethon and was discovered in 1983. Some astronomers believe 3200 Phaethon is a burned out comet.

It orbits the sun every 1.4 years, getting twice as close to the sun as the planet Mercury. Little wonder why this comet's ice may be completely depleted. This week is also a chance to use the moon to find two elusive planets, Neptune and Uranus.

While you are out on Dec. 14 watching the Geminid shower, look for a thin crescent moon in the southwest. Use a pair of binoculars and put the moon in the upper left side of the field of view. Down to the lower right you might see the small blue dot that is Neptune. Look at about 7 p.m. local time. A few nights later on Dec. 16 be out by 7 p.m. local time looking for a slightly fatter crescent moon.

Again use your binoculars putting the moon in the upper part of the field of view and look down to the bottom for greenish Uranus, the seventh planet out from the sun.

Next time: More astronomical blathering.