Draw the Milky Way

Your job is to record the amount of detail that your eyes can detect in the Milky Way both before and after they become ajusted to the dark.

The Milky Way passes overhead for observers in the Northern Hemisphere during early summer evenings, so it's a perfect time to study it. Although it stretches across the entire sky, the light of the Milky Way is subtle; it is easily overwhelmed by moonlight, or the lights of cities and towns. In order to study it properly, you will need the proper environment.

Choose a dark, clear, moon-less night. There won't be many of these over the course of the Summer Session, so you should check a good moon calendar in advance. It will also help if you can find a location which is as far from city lights as possible. Prepare two white pieces of paper for your sketches by drawing a circle about 7 inches in diameter on each one. Place marks for North and South at the top and bottom of the circle, and East and West at the sides.

On a good night, go outside between 11 PM and midnight. Starting within several minutes, sketch the extent of the Milky Way. Include in your sketch the locations of at least 5 bright stars and/or planets. You can see a tool like Stellarium to identify them later. If there are prominent features of the landscape (big trees or buildings on the horizon, for example), include those around the edges of your map. If you can draw without any artificial light, do so; if you need light, use a flashlight covered with red plastic material, so that the only light projected onto the paper is red (red light allows your eyes to adapt to the dark properly).

Then wait at least 20 minutes, remaining outside. Don't look at any screens, and don't turn on any lights, so that your eyes can adjust to the darkness fully.

After 20 minutes have passed, make another sketch of the Milky Way and bright objects in the sky.

Later -- the next day, perhaps -- compare your two drawings and comment on the differences. Did you record the Great Rift? (Look it up)

Scan or photograph all your drawings and notes, creating a single PDF file with all the material. Submit the PDF file via the myCourses "Assignments" facility.