letters
The Essential
Nile Roots photographs of the Chaco Canyon
Native American pictograph and last Feb-
ruarys Moon-Venus pairing.
Image of an Ancient Sky
Following up Anthony Avenis letter in
last Aprils issue (page 12), my snapshots
above are graphic proof that you dont
need a supernova to account for the fa-
mous prehistoric painting in Chaco
Canyon, New Mexico.
In May 1994 my wife, Abby, and I
hiked five miles over a tiny trail so I
could photograph the pictograph, which
I had known about for 20 years. Several
archaeoastronomers surmised that the
image, discovered in 1970, depicts the su-
pernova of 1054 in Taurus (which creat-
ed the Crab Nebula). We still encounter
this idea in books and articles by people
who have not considered common sky
phenomena or the culture of the Anasazi
who lived in Chaco Canyon.
My other photo is of the conjunction
of the Moon and Venus at dawn last
February 2nd taken, incidentally, with
the same camera and lens.
Nile Root
Tucson, AZ
NileR314@aol.com
Ersatz Star Names
and Lawsuit Threats
There was more to the story than you
reported regarding the International Star
Registrys lawsuit threats against, among
others, Perkins Observatory for its Web
page on star naming (August issue, page
16 October 2000 Sky & Telescope
Magazine of
Astronomy
28). The page was a frequently asked
questions (FAQ) list informing visitors
that the star names sold by private compa-
nies have no recognition or validity out-
side the companies own books and criti-
cizing advertising that implies otherwise.
Following orders from our parent insti-
tution, the Ohio Wesleyan University, vir-
tually all of the content of the page was
removed from the Perkins Web site. All
that remained were a line saying The
FAQ has been removed and links to two
other sites where information about star
naming could be found. One was the In-
ternational Astronomical Union; the other
was the International Planetarium Society.
However, this was not enough for the
International Star Registry or its attor-
neys. In late May Perkins Observatory re-
ceived word from the university that ISR
was demanding that any and all refer-
ences to star naming be stripped from
every part of our Web site. In addition,
ISR demanded that the page saying The
FAQ has been removed be deleted, so
that anyone trying to find the site from a
search engine would just get a not
found message. Finally, ISR demanded
that we not even link to any other pages
that have information about star naming.
Clearly this was not about defama-
tion, as the attorneys claimed, since the
words and phrases they objected to had
already been removed. It was about cen-
sorship and their need to keep the pub-
lic ignorant of the truth.
Because of the precarious financial
situation of the observatory, which de-
pends on the universitys support, we
decided to comply with Ohio Wesleyans
orders to do as ISR demanded. It is a de-
cision that will trouble me daily for a
long time to come.
But the International Star Registry
cannot silence every critic of its ques-
tionable practices. The Star Naming FAQ
is back up at a private site, http://home.
columbus.rr.com/starfaq/. The truth is
there and ISR cannot deny it: No pri-
vate company has the authority to offi-
cially name stars, no matter how clever-
ly it may word its advertising or how
much its lawyers try to silence those
who speak out against the advertising.
I encourage every astronomer with a
2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.
 OCTOBER 1950 If there is a simple
curve there must be a simple explanation is
what George Gamow is quoted as saying in re-
gard to observations on the abundances of
the elements in the universe. In
the August Physics Today he dis-
cusses the brew from which the
present atomic species must
have emerged. He finds that
ylem, the primordial mass of
original neutrons, protons, and
electrons that existed during
the first few hundred seconds
of the history of the universe,
must have had a temperature of a few billion
degrees. As this mass began its present contin-
uing expansion the temperature dropped and
elements began to form. . . .
Dr. Gamow points out that the expansion
of the universe began a few billion years ago,
and that while it is slowing down it will never
stop:Our universe is expanding limitlessly into
the infinity.
Gamow may not have invented the concept of
the Big Bang, but he linked cosmology with high-
energy physics. In 1948 his colleague Ralph
Alpher resurrected the word ylem, a Middle
English term meaning universal matter. In that
same year Alpher and Robert Herman made the
first prediction of the temperature of what we
now call the cosmic microwave background.
Y E A R S A G O
OCTOBER1975 During the last days of Au-
gust, amateurs all over the world were startled
to see a brilliant strange star in the constellation
Cygnus. Located about five
degrees east-northeast of
Deneb, the interloper distort-
ed the familiar pattern of the
Northern Cross.
Nova Cygni 1975 peaked at
magnitude 1.8. It brightened
about 40 millionfold, the
largest range known for any
nova. Nova Cygni 1975 re-
mains the brightest nova since Nova Puppis 1942.
The strongest celestial X-ray source ever ob-
served (except for the sun) is a remarkable tem-
porary object recently discovered in the con-
stellation Monoceros and known as A0620-00.
This object, now known to be a binary system,
has one component with a mass greater than three
Suns that may be a black hole.The optical counter-
part is V616 Monocerotis, which was detected flar-
ing at magnitude 10 in 1975 and 12 in 1917.
18 October 2000 Sky & Telescope
Web site to link to this page. Whenever
someone asks you about naming a star,
you can refer the person there. If for no
other reason, do it to stand up for free
speech and to annoy those who
would try to squelch it.
Robert Martino
Columbus, OH
martino.6@osu.edu
While the predatory tactics of the
ISR are distressing, the timid re-
sponse of institutions of learning to
them is appalling! Shame on them.
D. A. Deming
Mauriceville, TX
demimrcvl@webtv.net
As a staff instructor and guest lecturer for
New Yorks Hayden Planetarium, I answer
questions that people phone in to the
planetariums Astronomy Answer Line.
Typically I answer 35 or 40 questions per
week. Sadly, nearly half are some variation
on How can I purchase a star? or I just
had a star named after me and would like
to have one of your astronomers show it
to me in a telescope.
I usually tell the caller that the Hayden
Planetarium refuses to sanction or sup-
port any star-naming company because
the purchased names are not recognized
by any astronomical organization or in-
stitution. Many callers are astounded to
hear this news, because they had been led
to believe otherwise.
I wish the companies that sell these
bogus star names could hear some of the
calls Ive taken from folks who have just
lost a friend or loved one. These people
are desperately trying to find an appropri-
ate and everlasting memorial and feel that
having a star named for a recently depart-
ed person is the best route to go. It breaks
my heart to tell these people the awful
truth: that their treasured memorial
would only rank alongside something
they might purchase at the corner novelty
store.
Joe Rao
Yonkers, NY
Skywayinc@aol.com
As an attorney and an amateur astrono-
mer, I find the business practices of
the star-naming companies such as the
International Star Registry and the
lawyering of their counsel, as reported in
your August issue, to be deplorable. The
legal counsel should be ashamed. They
represent the bottom-feeding element of
2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.
my profession that gives all attorneys a
bad rap.
Long-standing legal doctrines have es-
tablished that truth is an absolute defense
to defamation suits. Every attorney worth
his or her salt must represent a client
zealously, but the American Bar Associa-
tions Model Rule of Professional Con-
duct, which has been adopted by most
state bars, prohibits conduct by attor-
neys that has no substantial purpose
other than to embarrass, delay, or burden
a third person, such as the employees of
astronomical institutions. Also, prosecut-
ing frivolous claims is likewise prohibited.
Jim Fisher
Troy, IL
starguy7@hotmail.com
Spectroscopy from
Harvard Square
The rooftop observatory and 16-inch tele-
scope on the Harvard Science Center, pic-
tured in Getting the Most from a CCD
Spectrograph (July issue, page 125), is the
Knowles Telescope, generously given by C.
Harry and Janet Knowles to Harvard as a
modern teaching telescope. Its been high-
ly successful in this regard, even above the
bright lights and traffic of Harvard Square.
My nonastronomy students, for instance,
use the CCD spectrograph in a general in-
troductory (core) course on stars. Eng-
lish majors were able to measure the spec-
tra of the two components of Albireo and
estimate their spectral types and tempera-
tures for comparison with estimates
from the stars B and V color indexes,
which they measured using a CCD imager.
Jonathan E. Grindlay
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
josh@cfa.harvard.edu
Thaw Refractor Soldiers On
While it is true that Allegheny Observato-
rys astrometric program has suffered a
loss of government funding, reports of its
death (August issue, page 50) have been
greatly exaggerated. The 30-inch Thaw re-
fractor and the Multichannel Astrometric
Photometer mounted on it (pictured on
the cover of the October 1987 issue) are
still used every hour of every clear night.
Although government cuts have led to the
loss of two-thirds of our research staff, we
are continuing a search for solarlike plan-
etary systems of nearby stars.
With the loss of the operator of our
 laser measuring machine, hardest hit is
our attempt to measure a plate collection,
of unexcelled quality, that extends back to
1914. Examples of the use of this archive
have been the study of the possible plane-
tary system of Lalande 21185 (with a 35-
year period) and most recently the deter-
mination of the masses of the triple star
system Pi Cephei (with a 160-year period).
Clearly the time will come when
ground-based astrometric programs will
have contributed all they can, but as
long as space astrometry missions like
Hipparcos, FAME, and SIM are restrict-
ed to five years of operation or less,
there will be a need for continuity in the
astrometric search for planetary systems
with long periods such as those of the
Jovian planets in our own solar system.
George D. Gatewood
Allegheny Observatory
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15214
Astronomers Invade Classrooms
David Levys insightful report on the
pro-am astronomy partnership confer-
ence (June issue, page 81) perhaps did
Advertisement not have space to mention another proj-
ect that was discussed at the meeting, in
which professionals and amateurs have
been successfully cooperating to improve
science education.
Project ASTRO, sponsored by the Astro-
nomical Society of the Pacific (with sup-
port from NSF and NASA), has been
pairing professional and amateur astron-
omers with their local schools for the
last seven years. After being trained with
a 4th- to 9th-grade teacher at a summer
workshop, each astronomer adopts a
class (or occasionally a youth group)
and makes at least four visits during the
school year. The astronomer and teacher
lead hands-on activities, encourage discus-
sion of astronomical ideas and the scien-
tific method, assist students with research
projects, or sponsor an evening star party.
The program now operates in 11 re-
gional sites around the country, and we
have trained more than 700 astrono-
mer/teacher pairs. More than 60,000 stu-
dents have been exposed to more and
better astronomy so far.
It will not surprise Sky & Telescope
Write to: Letters to the Editor, Sky & Telescope, P.O. Box 9111, Belmont, MA 02478-9111, or letters
@skypub.com. Please limit your comments to 300 words. Letters selected for publication may be edit-
ed for clarity and brevity. Due to the volume of mail, not all letters can receive personal responses.
20 October 2000 Sky & Telescope 2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.
ELEANOR ELY
Project ASTRO astronomer David Ardilla helps
a student navigate the Moons phases.
readers to learn that the project evaluator
found amateurs as effective in this en-
deavor as professionals. What the ama-
teurs may lack in details about black-hole
accretion disks (a subject not often dis-
cussed in 5th grade) they more than make
up for in their knowledge of and love for
the night sky and naked-eye phenomena.
Anyone interested in learning more
about Project ASTRO or receiving train-
ing materials can check the Web site
www.aspsky.org/project_astro.html or
contact me by e-mail or at Project
ASTRO, ASP, 390 Ashton Ave., San Fran-
cisco, CA 94112.
Andrew Fraknoi
Project ASTRO
fraknoi@admin.fhda.edu
Swept Up
I was enjoying another fine issue of your
magazine and reading parts of E. C.
Krupps Clean Sweep (May issue, page
95) aloud to my wife. Here I am telling
her about dust everywhere in our un-
tidy galaxy and reading puns on sweep-
ing up. She looks at me and says, What
are they worried about all that dust for?
Its in a vacuum.
John Amoroso
Apex, NC
j-ammo@ix.netcom.com
For the Record
The Hipparcos satellite did not measure
conclusive distances for any of the four stars
comprising M73 (July issue, page 26).