Anton Viola

Well, took a few steps back and investigated theory/equations about black holes. Found an excellent resource (from 2014, but still valid ..?), which shows clearly a lack of consensus (extremely wide spread of the “expert opinions”). Summarised what I found in there attached spreadsheet. Or have I overlooked things? Anton at www.astronomy-morsels.ch Black Holes V1.0.xlsx

Did some research on visual binary stars and compiled a spreadsheet now (actually on request!). It calculates the position angle and angular separation for the whole orbital period (max 100 years). It also allows one to select a star from a filtered Washington Double Star Catalog (Release 2023-08-11). File attached, have a look at astronomy-morsels.ch if you are interested in similar "morsels". Anton Visual Binary Stars V1.1.xlsx

Thanks! Ordered the book, looking forward! Best, Anton my website

Really a strange topic, the ΛCDM Model ... The Lambda-CDM, Lambda cold dark matter, or ΛCDM model is a mathematical model of the Big Bang theory with three major components: 1. a cosmological constant denoted by lambda (Λ) associated with dark energy; 2. the postulated cold dark matter denoted by CDM; 3. ordinary matter. Standard ΛCDM requires only 6 independent parameters to completely specify the cosmological model. I am trying to understand this model in detail, but not too successful so far. Any inputs here? Thanks in advance! Anton ΛCDM Model V0.1.xlsx

Found this website of NASA, describing the "Mars24 Sunclock — Time on Mars" initiative. Very interesting and implemented the algorithm in a spreadsheet (www.astronomy-morsels.ch), also attached. verified this with the available examples. Seems to work fine. Will now try to build the display as well, any support here would be appreciated! Anton Time on Mars V1.0.xlsx

Compiled a new morsel at my website to calculate the transit time of Jupiter's Great Red Spot, see also attachment. Jupiter Great Red Spot V1.0.xlsx

In the past, as an amateur astronomer, I often made the mistake of buying new equipment without knowing exactly how it fitted into my existing equipment. This led to a nice, but somewhat motley collection of telescopes, eyepieces and cameras, where I struggled to make the right combinations. It was then decided to take stock of everything and build a tool (attached spreadsheet, more on astronomy-morsels.ch) to calculate various combinations. This gave me a much better understanding of the optics of telescopes with accessories. Also included list off objects of interest (Messier, Nebula, stars, Caldwell, Herschell) with their position and magnitude. Anton Telescope Equations V1.0.xlsx

I created a spreadsheet to support finding interesting objects (RA, Dec, Visual Magnitude). It includes with cross references: - brightest stars; - nearest stars; - planets; - Messier objects; - Planetary Nebulae; - Herschel 400 Catalogue; - Caldwell List. You can find the list here: https://www.astronomy-morsels.ch/morsels, also attached. Enjoy! Anton Object Data (Stars, Planets, Nebulae, ...) V1.0.xlsx

So, apparently, I need to take into account Kepler's 1st (elliptical orbit) and 2nd (equal areas, varying velocity) into account. So, I modelled actually all 3 laws (including the 3rd: distance vs. speed). All fun, happy with the outcome! You can find the result here, feedback welcomed! Anton Kepler's Laws V1.1.xlsx

I have created a model in Excel, describing the orbits of the earth around the sun and the moon around the earth, including the tilt of the moon's orbit (nodes). It also includes the distance between the moon and the earth (super moons). This model supports the prediction of eclipses, but as the orbits are modelled as circles, accuracy is not always high. Any tips how to model the orbits as ellipses? Anton (astronomy-morsels.ch) Sun-Earth-Moon Model V1.0.xlsx

See also this "morsels" I created. Anton (www.astronomy-morsels.ch) Saros-Inex Cycles, Panorama V1.0.xlsx

Does anyone have an (Excel) example for accurately calculating the equation of time value through a whole year? Less accurate example attacheed. Thanks! Anton (www.astronomy-morsels.ch) Equation of Time V1.0.xlsx

Hi, I went to all astro-related spreadsheets I developed over the years, made a clean up and created a dedicated website (www.astronomy-morsels.ch) to share them. They covering topics such as Spacetime (special relativity), Lagrange points (points of equilibrium), telescope equations, moon phases, planetary positions, star and Messier object observations, etc. Also, models of gear trains of astronomical clocks are analysed (e.g., Antikythera, Eise Eisinga Planetarium, Prague Orloj, Ancient Maya Solar System). These morsels are free and I hope they can aid in your astronomical interests. Best, Anton