Amateur Astronomers Make First Sighting of 10th Planet

[FLO]

A group of amateur astronomers has used the 2.1-meter (82-inch) Otto Struve Telescope at McDonald Observatory to make the first "through-the- Eyepiece" sighting of so-called the tenth planet, an object orbiting the Sun in the Kuiper Belt, far beyond Pluto. The group included members of the St. Louis and Rockland Astronomical Societies, and a few others.

The object, Berman says, "was a very dim, pointlike source that could only be seen through averted vision. If you looked straight at it, you'd never see it."

McDonald Observatory's Mace agrees. "It looked like a faint star," he said. "A little difficult to pick out against the field stars. It's not visually stunning."

However, Mace continued, "how many people on the planet have seen this? Pretty much just our group."

http://tinyurl.com/qjzwy

[Naz]

Good find Steve.

nabban

[lunator]

I really must get working on my 82 inch mirror so I can see this planet

Good find Steve. Those guys are very lucky to have access to a scope like that.

[Astroman]

>heavy sigh<

It's too early to call it a planet, whatever its number...

[Jamie]

>heavy sigh<

It's too early to call it a planet, whatever its number...

So what time does it have to be before it can be called a planet? :nono:

[Astroman]

When will the IAU next meet?

[Astroman]

Why do you say that? The first word in IAU is International, t4u. Didn't the French dicover Neptune? Was it the Dutch that discovered Uranus?

There's a large American contingent that says Pluto isn't a planet. So, what's your point?

[Astroman]

Got it. I'm just returning the favor, since a Brit, Sir William Herschel, is credited with Uranus' discovery. And any one of five countries were involved with Neptune.

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

It has been shortlisted as either:-

MacPlanet, or PlanetXP

Other sponsors are still welcome.

Captain Chaos

[Astroman]

It has been shortlisted as either:-

MacPlanet, or PlanetXP

Other sponsors are still welcome.

Captain Chaos

:laugh:

[Astroman]

Well, there's not much money on the lecture circuit... :?

[The Warthog]

I still want to call it Goofy. Can't we get Disney involved?