MoneCom Project at Vidojevica
The participants of the BELISSIMA project and collaborators of the Petnica Science Center from 27 to 30 October 2011 successfully realized activities of the international observing project MoneCom at the Astronomical Station Vidojevica. MoneCom is related to the MONET telescopes (MOnitoring NEtwork of Telescopes) led by the Institute for Astrophysics from Goettingen, McDonald Observatory of the University of Texas and South African Astronomical Observatory. There are two telescopes with the mirrors of 1.2 m, one on each hemisphere. The northern one is in Texas and the southern one is in South Africa. Since modern telescopes can be controlled over the internet, several institutions from different countries took part in the observing program. Upon the invitation of Dr. Frederic Hessman from Goettingen (who already participated in the executive meeting of the BELISSIMA project in 2010 an in the work of the BELISSIMA workshop in 2011) one school from Croatia, two from Greece and Dr. Milan Bogosavljević, participant of BELISSIMA and Milan Božić and Ivan Milić, collaborators of Petnica Science Center jointly suggested the project of the study of the comets of the main asteroid belt. Dr. Zach Ioannou (Greece), also collaborator of the BELISSIMA project provided support for the observing activity.
At Vidojevica, the high school students from Serbia who participate in the work of the course of astronomy at Petnica Science Center observed the comets from the main asteroid belt with orbits between Mars and Jupiter and which only rarely show their comet activity. They can then acquire foggy appearance and develop a characteristic tail. For some objects this activity is caused by sublimation of ice which can be found in their exterior and interior parts. The study of water in the solar system should solve the mechanisms of the arrival of water to our planet and is believed to play a major role in the emergence of life.
Apart from this remote observing activity, the participants also used the 60 cm telescope at the Astronomical Station Vidojevica which is in function from the spring of 2011 to make observations.
Participants of MoneCom
Participants of MoneCom
Dr. Milan Bogosavljević is giving a talk to the participants of the MoneCom observing project
Links (in Serbian):
http://www.b92.net/zivot/nauka_vesti.php?yyyy=2011&mm=10&dd=28&nav_id=553144
http://blog.blic.rs/708/Mladi-astronomi-u-potrazi-za-kometama
http://ispast.net/2011/10/28/u-potrazi-za-kometama/
http://www.vreme.com/cms/view.php?id=1016623
Additional photos are available here.
