640612Lunar5_p1

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                      THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA

                   STANDING COMMITTEE ON OBSERVATIONAL ACTIVITIES

LUNAR SECTION                                                          BULLETIN NO.5


Announcement

    Upon the recent retirement of the Lunar Co-ordinator, Mr. R.R. Thompson, President
of the Toronto Centre, the writer was asked by Mr. Vent Ramsay, as Chairman of the
National Committee on Observational Activities, to assume this position.


LUNAR ECLIPSE, JUNE 24th, 1964

	The first lunar eclipse since the very dark eclipse of December 
30th, 1963, has
aroused considerable interest among lunar observers, particularly 
those wishing to
ccnpare these two eclipses with the two very dark total lunar 
eclipses of 1913.

    Unfortunately for observers in Centres west of Windsor, Ontario, totality will be
over when the moon has risen, a few minutes before sunset.

The following is a list of the nine Centres with contacts in each which are pre-
sently cooperating with the National Committee on Lunar Observing; moonrise and sun-
set times are provided in Universal Time (U.T.) for Wednesday, June 24th, 1964:

              Centre          Contact           Moonrise            Sunset

            Halifax         W. L. Orr            00  00             00  04
            Quebec          Pierre Houde         00  38             00  44
            Montreal        George Wedge         00  44             00  49
            Ottawa          W. M. Cameron        00  49             00  53
            Kingston        Raymond Burns        00  48             00  52
            Niagara Falls   Frank Campbell       00  55             00  59
            Toronto         Archie Ostrander     01  00             01  04
            Hamilton        J. G. Craig          00  59             01  03
            Edmonton        William Cable        04  06             04  10

                                                                                U.T.
                                                                               h.  m.
                                                 Moon enters penumbra          21  58
                                                 Moon enters umbra (1st con.)  23  09
                                                 Totality begins   (2nd con.)   0  16
       (Diagram here.)                           Middle of eclipse              1  06
                                                 Totality ends     (3rd con.)   1  57
                                                 Moon leaves umbra (4th con.)   3  03
                                                 Moon leaves penumbra           4  14

    While Halifax is the only Centre which can observe 2nd contact, valuable contribu-
tions can be made by other Centres should they wish to carry out one or more of the
following programmes.

Crater Timing

    One of the maze important aspects of this event will be the timing of the passage
of the moon through the earth's shadow. It is recommended that a small team (2 to 3
persons) be organised to time the immersion and emersion of specific craters into, and
out of, the shadow as it crosses the face of the moon. Timing is best accomplished
by radio time signals (CHU Ottawa, 3.330 K.C.). If these are simultaneously recorded
on tape, along with the observer's verbal estimate, a very accurate time determination
is provided, as well as a permanent record. As the official record of these events
consists of the reports of those specifically responsible for timing, it is best to
station them at considerable distance from the others participating. In deciphering
a tape, much confusion can result when the record contains unwanted contributions from
several, people in addition to the comments of the appointed observers.