[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
(meteorobs) RA & Dec
Hi, everyone,
This is really for anyone who is a frustrated Astronomy professor.
I took a basic astronomy course in college, but that was so far
back that a black hole was considered to be one of the caves we
used to explore. Believe me, it's been a looooooong time, and
I have forgotten soooooooo much.
One thing I've always had trouble with it Right Ascension and
Declination. I just came back from an hour at the public library.
I plundered through every book on astronomy they had, and
couldn't find one good explanation of these. I couldn't find
"Astronomy for Real Dummies" either. Even the two books
I checked out (which are tooted as "beginners" or "basic"
books, leave me confused.
OK, one of you "professorial" type guys help me out here.
My location (according to USGS) is Lat 38d,21m; long 85d,54m.
(Forget the "seconds" right now.) Assume I am standing on my
back deck facing north and have a clear view of the Big Dipper
and Polaris. How do I take a position reference, such as:
RA: 14h,14m, Dec: 19d,18m and find it in the sky?
Conversely, if I spot something in the sky and I want to make
reference to it, how do I calculate the RA and Dec (reasonably
close) so I can tell some one else?
I know that for some of you this question is as simple as "how
do I tell when the moon is full?", but try to help me. Please,
keep it simple. My mind ain't as young as it used to be, and
these library books ain't helping any.
RGDS:EARL
Follow-Ups: