The paper on 2002 TX300 or KBO 55636 was (finally) published in Nature magazine.  It’s exciting for me, because even though I was one of many researchers involved in the project, it was a first in science and a first for me, though I hope it won’t be the last. Jim Elliot and his team were able [...]

I was fortunate to have one good night to put the MIT PICO camera through its paces on the 60″ (1.5m) Richey-Cretein telescope at SPM Observatory. I am grateful to be guided by fellow astronomer Raul Michel, who not only operated the telescope but provided expert tutelage through the data gathering and reduction process. Here’s [...]

Some Wikipedia info on 55636 (source link here) (55636) 2002 TX300 Discovery Discovered by NEAT Discovery date October 15, 2002 Designations MPC designation (55636) 2002 TX300 Alternate name none Minor planet category Trans-Neptunian object (TNO) cubewano Orbital characteristics Epoch December 31, 2006 (JD 2454100.5) Aphelion 7252.615 Gm (48.481 AU) Perihelion 5654.528 Gm (37.798 AU) Semi-major [...]

Rain today, but I was able to give te FLI Camera to Telescope adapter a fresh coat of Krylon Ultra-Flat black today in order to minimize light path reflections. I’m on-duty at the ATMoB observatory tonight so mayby I’ll use the time to practice camera setup and operation some more. I only get one chance [...]

Well, preparations for the trip are just about complete. I fly out on American Airlines on Monday, October 5th to San Diego, pick up a car and drive to Warner Springs to visit some friends and spend the night. Looks like their neighbor Val has a dome so maybe if the weather’s OK on Monday [...]