PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE.

The August meeting of the Johannesburg centre of the Astronomical Society will be held at the Planetarium on Wednesday 12th August at 8.00 pm.

Tom Budge will present a talk entitled "Winter Skies".

Subscriptions for the 1998-1999 year were set at R80-00 at the AGM and are now due.

Please post or deposit directly into the society’s bank account at Nedbank, the branch is Park Plaza, branch code is 19 21 42 44 and it is a current account number 1921 013761. Remember to write your name on the deposit slip. It might also be an idea to let the treasurer or secretary know you have paid via a direct deposit so that they will keep you on the mailing list.

Minor planet number 248 is named Lameia for the daughter of Belus loved by Zeus - she had the face and breasts of a woman and the body of a serpent.

This little rock, about 50 km diameter, provided some excitement for 5 local observers on June 27th when it passed in front of a 7.8 mag star. The shadow track was predicted to pass over central South Africa, around Kimberley way, but revisions in the predictions hinted that it may cover the Parys area. These 5 stalwarts observed the event anyway and found the track to be over the Johannesburg/Pretoria region. Danie reports that this was probably the best observed minor planet occultation ever in the Southern Hemisphere and will be publishing the results in MNASSA soon. Now if only YOU had been observing that night....

We have had such a dearth of good grazing occultation events in the past two years that I have lost track of the observers who are interested in observing these events. There are a few events coming up in September/October which we hope to observe so I would like to make an appeal to all those members who are interested in observing grazing occultations to please contact me.

The first event in on September 2nd just south of Johannesburg in the Germiston or Alberton area at about 11.45 pm.

Then there are grazes on September 28th near Pienaarsrivier north of Pretoria at 21.30pm, and on the 29th there is one near Warmbaths at 19.55pm.

On October 2nd there is another one in the Warmbaths area, at 2.30am..

Will any members who are interested in observing any of these events please contact me on 871-0370(W) or 803-8291(W) or email on fraserb@intekom.co.za.

Plans to organise a trip to Turkey in August 1999 to observe the eclipse of the sun, have not had a great response. If you have ANY interest in going please contact me ASAP otherwise we shall have to cancel the trip. Tel Brian Fraser 871-0370(W), 803-8291(H), email fraserb@intekom.co.za.

In July of 1999 Caroline Shoemaker, of the famous Shoemaker/Levy trio, will be coming to South Africa to attend a conference of the Meteoritic Society. It is hoped that we will be able to arrange for her to visit the astronomical society during her stay. Watch this space.

As a contribution to the Year of Science and Technology, AS&TS are organising a science exhibition at the observatory, which is aimed mainly at school children and teachers, but is open to everybody.

For this science fair the Johannesburg centre has committed itself to two major undertakings :-

1. An evening presentation for the general public in the Sir Herbert Baker building on Friday 21st, Saturday 22nd, Friday 28th and Saturday 29th August 1998, at 7.00 pm. This will be a slide show featuring various interesting deep sky objects that will be visible at the time. Thereafter the public will be able to view these objects through the centre’s and member’s telescopes.

2. The committee is at present assembling a series of 12+ simple projects and models which demonstrate various astronomical concepts in an interesting way; these models can be made by school children for class projects and will be displayed in a room at AS&TS. Centre members will be present to explain and demonstrate to teachers and pupils alike.