Editorial

The morning skies are quite beautiful this year - Jupiter, and to a lesser degree Saturn, glowing in the West and the shimmering silver searchlight of Venus blazing in the East before the rising Sun. There is also the added bonus of our rains coming a little late this year which enables us to do some early morning observing under clear cloudless skies ( without freezing fingers, toes and nose ).

Jupiter of course, is at its closest to Earth in the past 12 years as we prepare to go to press.

The Leonids season is only a few weeks away and with predictions of some really great showers making their appearance in the AstroPress and the Internet, we are attempting to get the services of both an Optical-, and a Radio- Astronomer to give us the two perspectives of Leonids observing.

Brian has supplied your editor with the Astronomical Calendar for the whole of next year - but with typical editorial parsimony, I will be only publishing the next 2 months per issue. Brian has also submitted two good articles, one on the Galaxy Morphology Conference and one on Photometry

Bill Wheaton keeps us abreast of the latest from NASA and JPL in his reflections on the ill-fated Mars Climate Observer, while Evan has news of a new Astronomical site and email list which is aimed at the South African Astronomer.

Danie has supplied an interesting variable for you - V442 Centauri - and revisits an old friend in Eta Carinae who seems to be giving Astronomers much food for thought since the Chandra orbiting telescope became active and peered in it's direction.

Thanks to those of you that have paid your Annual subs - your reward ( or punishment ) is that you are reading this issue of Canopus.

The Editor

Chris   chris@aqua.co.za

 The 1999/2000 Committee of the Johannesburg Centre