Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto and How to Observe Them (eBook)

Richard Schmude Jr. has a Ph D in Physical Chemistry, and has taught solar system astronomy for over 10 years. He has been Remote Planets Coordinator for the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) since 1990, and has written 18 scientific papers about the remote planets in various journals. He has a total of 103 published papers. He has been a full-time college Professor at Gordon College since 1994.

Contents 6
Author’s Note 8
About the Author 8
The Uranus System 10
Introduction 10
Atmosphere 10
Upper Atmosphere 12
Middle Atmosphere (Stratosphere) 15
Lower Atmosphere 17
Clouds 18
Cyclic Changes 21
Long-Term Brightness Changes 23
Other Characteristics of the Atmosphere 27
Interior of Uranus 29
Magnetic Environment 31
Rings 36
Epsilon Ring 40
Lambda Ring 42
Delta Ring 42
Gamma Ring 42
Eta Ring 43
Beta Ring 43
Alpha Ring 43
Rings 4, 5, and 6 43
Zeta Ring 43
New Rings 44
Beyond the Ring System 44
Satellites 45
Titania 49
Oberon 54
Umbriel 57
Ariel 58
Miranda 60
Collision Fragments 64
Puck 65
Portia 66
Juliet and Belinda 66
Cordelia and Ophelia 66
Captured Objects 67
Sycorax 67
Caliban 68
The Neptune System 69
Introduction 69
Atmosphere 69
Upper Atmosphere 69
Middle Atmosphere 72
Lower Atmosphere 76
Clouds 77
Brightness Changes 83
Other Atmospheric Characteristics 84
Interior 85
Magnetic Environment 87
Rings and Arcs 91
Galle Ring 94
Le Verrier Ring 94
Lassell Ring 94
Arago and the Unnamed Ring 95
Adams Ring 95
Ring Arcs 95
Dust 96
Satellites 97
Triton 97
Triton’s Orbit and Seasons 98
Triton’s Atmosphere 100
Hazes, Clouds, and Dust Material from Geysers 103
Triton’s Surface 104
Triton’s Color and Brightness 110
Triton’s Interior and Past History 110
Collision Fragments 111
Larissa 112
Despina and Naiad 112
Thalassa 112
Proteus 113
Captured Objects 114
Nereid 114
Halimede 114
Trojan Asteroids 115
Pluto and Its Moons 116
Introduction 116
Orbit and Seasons 116
Atmosphere 119
Interior 122
Magnetic Environment 123
Surface 124
Satellites 129
Charon 129
Nix, Hydra, and Beyond 131
Observing Uranus and Neptune with Binoculars and Small Telescopes 133
The Human Eye 133
Light Sensitivity 135
Binoculars 136
Telescopes, Finders, and Eyepieces 140
Finding Uranus and Neptune 144
Visual Brightness Estimates 146
Experiments 150
Color 151
Observing with Medium-Sized Telescopes 154
Photoelectric Equipment 154
Photoelectric Photometry 161
Example 166
CCD Photometry 173
Sources of Error in Photometric Measurements 174
Spectra 177
Visual Magnitude Estimates of Pluto 178
Observing with Large Telescopes 187
Orientation 187
Visual Studies 189
Seeing 190
Transparency 191
Telescope Characteristics 193
Observer Skill 194
The Nature/Location of the Albedo Feature 194
Observing With One or Two Eyes 194
Drawing Hints 195
Sample Observations 195
Ellipticity Studies 197
Polarization Studies 199
Example of a Polarization Measurement 202
Methane Band Imaging 204
Imaging 205
Sample Images 206
Occultation Measurements 207
Occultation of a Star 208
Occultations by Earth’s Moon 211
Transits, Eclipses, and Occultations 211
Satellite Brightness Measurements 214
Appendix 216
Measuring Transformation Coefficients 216
Multiple-Star Method 216
Two-Star Method 217
Measuring Extinction Coefficients 218
Drift Method 218
Two-Object Method 219
ALPO Observation Form 221
Bibliography 222
Index 232